BOULDER GETS ITS FIRST ONE-HOUR GROCERY DELIVERY SERVICE
The new age of food delivery has dawned in Boulder. The onehour grocery delivery service, Instacart, has chosen to grace Boulder with its presence as the city’s first home grocery delivery service. As of Sept. 4, Instacart will bring wares from Whole Foods Market, King Soopers or Costco to your door in as little as one hour for a $5.99 charge.
Founded in San Francisco, Instacart has since expanded to 15 cities and relies on crowdsourcing for its labor, allowing independent “personal shoppers” to shop for and deliver groceries with their own personal transportation. Instacart says they are likely to charge less than other similar delivery companies — if they were to come to Boulder — because they don’t need to rely on “expensive infrastructure such as warehouses, trucks and full-time drivers.”
No membership is required for deliveries from Costco, and Instacart says more stores will be added in just a few weeks.
“Giving Boulder residents an option to receive their groceries within one hour ensures they don’t have to slow down — or change their lifestyle in any way,” said Apoorva Mehta, Instacart founder and CEO, in a press release. Mehta said students especially might find the service useful during heavy study times, like around finals.
Customers can order via a mobile application or online at www.instacart.com.
Personal shoppers receive the order via their smartphone and deliver in the timeframe selected by the customer, with options from one-hour for a charge of $5.99 or two-hours for $3.99. The minimum order is $10.
Customers who open an account get a free delivery on their first order. Instacart’s coverage area includes the Boulder metropolitan area but also extends to Louisville and Lafayette. A full coverage map is available at http://www.instacart.com/locations/boulder.
LONGMONT OKTOBERFEST BOASTS A 200-FOOT BRATWURST
On Sept. 26 and 27 Longmont aims to cook a 200-foot bratwurst and host six local breweries to celebrate its biggest Oktoberfest yet. Presented by Left Hand Brewing Company, the festival will be held at Roosevelt Park and, while not mandatory, attendees are encouraged to sport Deutschland duds. There will be a bestdressed contest as well as a bratwurst-eating contest.
At 3 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 26, sausagestuffing will commence as Oktoberfest attendees attempt to make the world’s longest bratwurst, beating Longmont’s own 2013 record, which was achieved using the world’s longest grill constructed from continuous sections of steel gutter and a custom-made grill top. This year’s bratwurst will be 200-feet long and will be made on-site by Boulder Sausage.
German-themed music and activities will accompany the flow of beer from the six breweries, including Left Hand Brewing Company, Oskar Blues, Pumphouse, 300 Suns, Grossen Bart and Long’s Peak.
A bike parade from the local breweries to Roosevelt Park will welcome crowds to the inaugural keg tapping, to be done Friday evening by Longmont Mayor Dennis Coombs.
Attendees should bring blankets and chairs for various musical performances, including Last Men on Earth and THUNK.
There is a suggested $5 donation. For more information visit http://lefthandbrewing. com/longmont-oktoberfest-3/.
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