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Pratts Country Store
Pratts Country Store is a thriving mom and pop grocery in Fountain City, a Northern suburb of Knoxville, Tennessee. I recently had the opportunity to speak with Perry Pratt, one of the owners of Pratt's Country Store. In a day when Krogers, Bi-Lo and Food City are the ever-present, totally-predictable norm, it's a pleasant surprise to know you can still find locally-grown produce sold by a locally-owned store - at a good price. Pratt's has been in business at the same intersection where it is currently located since 1923, when Perry Pratt's grandfather and great uncle purchased two houses and five acres to begin their family business. "Back then, folks would come tell them what they needed, and my grandfather and his brother would go driving around town in a horse-drawn buggy to trade for it and bring it back to the store. "They had everything from fresh local produce and other grocery staples to tools and even coffins. It was really more of a mercantile store than just a grocery." Though Pratt's Country Store has changed a little bit since then -- Perry Pratt, his father, sister and some cousins built the current facility in 1985 -- it remains close to its heritage, and it's still very much a family business. Said Perry Pratt of the company organization: "My dad is the meat and potatoes of Pratt's. I'm just the seasoning! "We don't have a computer in our store. We're pretty low-tech. When we need something, we write it down, and go get it from local growers or distributors. We're not really in the grocery business. We're in the relationship business," said Pratt. "We still have people trading with us who were young back in the 20s and 30s and have been our customers their whole life." Pratts Country Store is the real deal. It's the kind of old-time mom and pop establishment that people get nostalgic about.Pratt's is a place where they still carry your groceries out to your car for you, and the owner's last name is the same as the name that's hand-painted on the building. And everybody who cares about such things knows: in the heat of summer, you go to Pratt's for the best peaches in town. Pratts Country Store also offers live plants that are very-well cared for, healthy and beautiful. Every spring when it's time to liven up our yard, my wife goes to Pratt's first. 
This time of year (July), their corn is nothing short of AMAZING! If I knew which local farmer they bought it from, I'd be tempted to go buy a trunk-full. We've been having it, along with some of their REAL Grainger County tomatoes (unlike the ones that the big chains carry), for dinner at least twice a week. We have to get out our biggest pot to boil the corn: it's so long, it won't fit in any of the others, and it's too darn good to cut off even one kernel to make it fit in a smaller pot! They also carry the regular staples: milk, eggs, meat and bread. All are reasonably-priced, and from the best of suppliers. Take a trip to go see Pratt's Country Store the next time you need fresh veggies and a little taste of Southern Hospitality. It'll do your body - and soul - good! Return to Mom and Pop from Pratts Country Store Return to Knoxville Business from Pratts Country Store Return to Mom and Pop from Pratt's Country Store
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