Go to the Vons on Virgil and Sunset and you can come away with what’s essentially a sprig of so-called fresh basil for somewhere in the vicinity of $1.89.

Go to the Trader Joes in Silver Lake and for about a buck more you can go home with a metric ton of the undeniably and pungently fresh stuff in either window sill-ready or infinitely transplantable pots. I opted for the latter option:

Viva Trader Joes!