Stores & Markets in Easton

Names can be deceiving. Eggplant isn’t made of eggs, microwaves don’t wash up on beaches, and mushrooms don’t have windows. You’ll also find more than just noodles at Dave’s Fresh Pasta. With today’s Groupon, $10 gets you $20 worth of gourmet groceries at Somerville specialty shop.Follow @Groupon_Says on Twitter.

Staff members at Performance Nutrition fuse their training in nutrition and fitness with a broad knowledge of the science of protein powders, multivitamins, and nutritional oils. After listening to clients explain their fitness goals, staff members flip through the encyclopedia in their skulls to pick out products—gluten-free supplements, herbal remedies, workout-recovery bars, and more—that match individual needs.

Fresh, colorful fruits and vegetables fill the shelves of Weepin Willies, a local market that stocks produce and meats at two locations. Shoppers can find high quality cuts of beef, chicken, and pork, or opt for Boar’s Head meats and cheeses and prepared soups, salads, and sandwiches from the deli.

Hoping to revive the culture of the neighborhood butcher shop, with its personalized service, attention to detail, and artful products, restaurant-industry veterans Justin Rosberg and Jason Parent took a gamble on their first New Hampshire butcher shop in 2003. Dubbed The Meat House, their store quickly earned a foodie following, spawning additional franchise locations across the country. Today, The Meat House’s Mission Viejo location stocks fine cheeses, prepared side dishes, other gourmet grocery items, and hundreds of wines alongside the usual selection of traditional and exotic meats. Butchers also explain how to prepare each hand-carved cut of meat, sharing recipes, best slicing practices, and cooking techniques for giving pork chops the flavor of justice.

Rafeal Mekhanjian, the founder of StartMyDiet, began as a dietitian for a fitness company for 5 years before launching his own business, where he now fuels his passion for developing and supplementing custom diets and workout regimens. A staff of nutrition experts and muscle whisperers helps fill the gaps in their clients' diets with a full spectrum of health supplements, ranging from multivitamins to muscle-bulking protein powders to antioxidants that ward off unwelcomed fat cell squatters.

With a fitness center on site, the nutrition and supplement superstore encompasses all the building blocks for wellness, including an online system that tracks customers' progress toward better physical fitness.

When Phil Todaro and Jeff Barton met as lab partners in a seventh-grade science class, the seed for a joint venture was planted. High school came and went, college came and went, and the seed survived in the friends' nonstop talk of breaking ground for their own business. Then, in 1995, Phil and Jeff discovered hydroponic farming in a newspaper article. The seed sprouted. They watered it by taking a class at the University of Arizona from Merle Jensen, a forerunner in hydroponics and the lead designer of Epcot's The Land pavilion in Disney World. Eventually, their seed grew into a thriving hydroponic greenhouse called Water Fresh Farm.

Today, that farm regularly yields a dozen different crops including tomatoes, cucumbers, basil, and spinach. Phil and Jeff plant seeds in rockwool cubes, coconut husks, or perlite mixtures and, once they sprout, transfer them to nutrient-rich pools of water, where they can grow and splash one another during games of Marco Polo. The market sells these vegetables alongside artisan breads and cheese, fresh pasta, and deli meats from local establishments and farms. Other sources of food include the kitchen, which serves soups, sandwiches, and entrees including pumpkin-sage ravioli and pulled pork in an apple-cider barbeque sauce. Nearby, the silo prepares fresh hot dogs and ice cream in six different flavors, including moose tracks and watermelon sorbet.: