Shopping for groceries in New York City is no easy feat.  By the time I've trekked from one crowded, overpriced, less-than-clean store to another in search of everything on my list, and then lugged bags of heavy items back home, the last thing I feel like doing is cooking with any of the ingredients I spent hours procuring!  So when I was invited to an exclusive luncheon hosted by the folks from Peapod, an online grocery delivery service from Stop & Shop, I was nothing short of delighted.  The idea of being able to shop for groceries at home (most likely in my pajamas), and have someone else take care of bringing them right to my door is pretty much a dream come true for a busy mom like myself.

Over a delicious lunch at Tree, a charming restaurant in the East Village, I learned all about Peapod, which leverages the buying power of one of the country's largest supermarket retailers (Stop & Shop) to provide customers with a broad selection of national brand and private label items at low, supermarket prices.  And they aren't kidding around with this lower price thing.  I did some comparison shopping and found that the prices on some of my family's staples, including organic milk and fruit, were dramatically lower on Peapod than they are at the grocery store.  For example, a half-gallon of Stonyfield Farms organic milk, which runs me close to $5 at Food Emporium, is just $3.19 on Peapod.  And those organic strawberries I saw last week at D'Agostino for the absolutely insane price of $9.99?  Just $3.99 at Peapod.  Serious savings, indeed.  Which is not to say that Peapod is perfect.  Their selection of organic products could certainly use some beefing up (no pun intended), and they lack variety in the prepared foods department, but for the bulk of your grocery needs, you really can't go wrong with Peapod.   

One of the coolest features on the Peapod site is NutriFilter, which lets you choose from specific health and nutrition needs such as gluten-free, peanut-free or low sodium, and then filters your shopping results to display those items meeting your specific criteria at the top of the list, clearly identified by the plan icon.  I can imagine this would come in very handy for parents of kids suffering from various allergies.  There's even a free mobile app that lets you start, modify, finish and place an order directly from your phone or iPad.  And get this - Peapod not only accepts manufacturers' coupons, they double them!  Extreme Couponing, here I come!

I left the lunch thoroughly impressed by the Peapod team and eager to try their online grocery delivery service for myself.  With lower prices and the convenience of having groceries delivered right to your door, Peapod really is a fantastic option for Manhattan parents.  Peapod's delivery service is currently available in Midtown, the Upper East Side and the Upper West Side, and there are plans to extend plans to additional Manhattan neighborhoods by the end of the year.  To start your own online order, visit www.peapod.com.  Macaroni Kid readers can save $15 on their first Peapod order by using the code PEAPODNYC (expires 8/31/2011). 

Disclosure:  I received a complimentary lunch and a $50 Peapod gift card to facilitate this review.  The opinions expressed herein are, as always, entirely my own.