here's no shortage of options for gourmet grocery shoppers on King West. When Fresh and Wild opened a year and a half ago, they were met with much more success than I'm sure they had planned on. King West has its fair share of gentrified shoppers who only want the finest. Now, Fresh and Wild may have found a worthy adversary in Frescos, the new high quality food option that's opened just down the street.

The majority of the food is frozen, but it will all be high-quality stuff. The focus is on freshness and quality, so don't be expecting Delissio rising crust (it's not delivery). The concept is simple: fresh, fast, and healthy. People like good food, but they don't always feel like cooking (I know I don't). But, no one wants to eat Mr. Noodles seven days a week. Frescos dips into the not-wanting-to-cook demographic (I'm deliberately not using the "l" word) and combines it with the has-enough-money-to-spend-on-quality-groceries demographic.

The store offers Stir Frys, Chicken Breasts, Beef Medallions, Sides, Salads, and Soups, all of which can be cooked between six and 18 minutes. Unlike most frozen foods, there are no additives or preservatives and everything is made fresh in the store right before it's frozen. So, even though it isn't cooked from scratch, it'll still be both fresh and healthy.

It's comparable to TV dinners, except much higher brow. Everything is prepared and wrapped up in a handy box for you. There's not much that you have to do except pop it onto the stove and wait. Then, once it's finished, you've got a decent lunch or dinner for yourself without having done much more than opening a package.

If you're the kind of person that prides yourself on your cooking, just lie and say you made it yourself. That's my plan. - R.T.