We compared Flour + Water’s new retail pasta to store-bought spaghetti.

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From Barilla and Rao’s to department stores, the pasta section at your local supermarket can be overwhelming. Now Bay Area residents shopping at Whole Foods may have another option to consider. Flour + Water, one of the best places to eat ravioli in San Francisco, launched a line of dried pasta in December. After hearing this news, we really had no choice but to try it for ourselves – such is the heavy burden of food journalism.

We decided to compare Flour + Water pasta with a regular box of noodles. Since retail pasta is only available at Whole Foods for now, we took a box of flour + water and a box labeled 365 house. For the simplest comparison, we chose organic spaghetti, although the new brand also includes elbow pasta, campanelle (flake noodles) and penne rigate.

You see, it was all very scientific. Turning on both front burners at the same time, we boiled two pots of water side by side. When opening each box of dried pasta, the key is to pay attention to the texture difference. Where the 365 was smooth, the Flour + Water Spaghetti is noticeably rough to the touch, a sign of texture differences to come.

Nine minutes later, after draining the noodles, we added extra virgin olive oil, vegan basil pesto to each bowl, and—we royally hate dairy—a generous sprinkle of nutritional yeast.

Finally it’s time for the tasting. That’s the problem. Didn’t notice much of a difference in taste. However, as stated on the “Flour + Water” package, the pasta maker uses the same bronze-matrix extrusion process as its chefs at Mission District’s flagship store, reputedly creating a porous texture that absorbs the sauce optimally. There was a definite textural difference. Compared to regular spaghetti, Flour + Water noodles have a softer and more delicate taste.

Unfortunately, while we were enjoying the noodles, we made the mistake of glancing at the grocery receipt next to two bowls of pasta, a direct reminder of the financial realities of heightened taste. 365 organic spaghetti cost $2.29 at Whole Foods, and a box of Flour + Water organic spaghetti cost us $5.99.

Of course, there are several clear reasons for the $3.70 price difference. First, it’s apples and oranges to compare a huge corporation like Amazon, which is regularly criticized for its questionable employment relationship, to a food retailer in a typical restaurant.

In addition, the highest prices for “Flour + Water” are related to the environment. The hospitality group helped found Zero Footprint, which is working with other restaurants and food companies to implement regenerative farming practices to help mitigate climate change. Flour + Water pledges 1% of its Zero Footprint retail revenue.

Ultimately, what started out as a simple pasta tasting got us thinking about some of the more pressing issues of ethical consumption in an era of rising food prices, a resurgent labor movement, and the looming threat of climate change. It’s a delicate balance, to say the least. With all that in mind, shopping for a box of pasta at the grocery store may seem even more daunting, but the end result is still delicious.

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