When you have a cold, you think of mother and her soothing recipes and love to make you better. When you think of the earth as a living being, you likewise may think of "Mother Earth", a coined term referring to Planet Earth as a woman with properties of love and concern.

Mother's Market - Costa Mesa   225 E. 17th Street, Costa Mesa, CA Tel: (949) 631-4741
Mother's Market - Huntington Beach   19770 Beach Blvd., Huntington Beach, CA Tel: (714) 963-6667
Mother's Market - Irvine   2963 Michelson Drive Irvine, CA Tel: (949) 752-6667
Mother's Market - Laguna Woods   24165 Paseo de Valencia, Laguna Woods, CA Tel: (949) 768-6667

When locals in Orange County California  think of buying herbs, vitamins, supplements, and a hot herbal tea or vegetarian meals, they think of Mother's Market. With a scant four locations covering the north and south ends of the county spanning 50 miles or so, this popular store sells cereals, juices, fresh fruits and a variety of products you don't find at the big box Albertson's grocer in the same shopping mall or just down the street at Von's.

From Canadian cereals made with certified, non-genetically modified corns and wheat, to row after row of pills, liquids and supplements, if you seek something unusual that may help your body, try Motherr's.

In addition to a thriving business that's open daily in all four locations, Mother's offers classes in a variety of topics, special demos, and of course the popular Kitchen selling smoothies, pasta, soups, salads and deserts that offer a non-meat version of traditional meat dishes.

For instance, I ordered a Reuben Sandwich in Mother's Kitchen and it was markedly different than a traditional Reuben that I usually take the beef off as I don't consume much beef. It's sauce was a red roasted pepper sauce that gave it a slightly sweet, rich flavor, minus the fat content in traditional Reubens served with Thousand Island dressing.

When visiting the OC, you may need a pick-me-up for your travels, or as locals do, maybe a vitamin or two. Filtered juices made in the US can still be found in Mother's Market. As you know, if you go into a store to purchase pineapple juice now, even Dole products come from the Philippines and most juices are re-constituted. One study showed the containers the juice concentrates were transported in previously carried other products such as petroleum. Hopefully they've discontinued that practice. 

If you think you really don't need to add Red Die #2 to cranapple juice, then you have to start looking for other sources where you can purchase the old-fashioned foods that didn't get injected with fake colors, fillers, sugar and a whole bunch of stuff you cannot pronounce. This is why places like Mother's and other Whole Foods style stores have popped up. Sure you pay more. It's a shame that getting real foods costs more. But at least you don't have to be a victim and accept only what's sold by the big chains. Thank goodness for Mother!