Rice Epicurean to Close Four Stores - Leasing Locations to The Fresh Market

Longtime Houston specialty food retailer Rice Epicurean Market today announced that they plan to close four of their five stores and lease spaces to The Fresh market, a specialty food retailer from North Carolina.

Press Release from Rice Epicurean

Press Release from The Fresh Market

The store on Fountain View at Inwood will remain open.

Our take:

We think it's unfortunate to see an iconic Houston gourmet grocer sell out to a national firm, but we can't say we're surprised that it happened.  Rice Epicurean has always been a pleasant, serene place to shop, but their prices often aren't competitive with other specialty grocers and their selection is lacking compared to other, bigger stores.