Zealot Endorsement: SFGreenClean.com

I'm a pretty cynical guy. You might have noticed that I offer more criticism than praise. Perhaps I am en route to becoming a codger? Certainly naming my blog "Zealot" implies a particular fervor. I've mentioned before how much I loathe the current state of outsourced, impersonal customer service and I absolutely abhor the idea of corporate anything. I'm not often overwhelmingly impressed with much in this world.In a brief departure from my food posts, I must rave about a service I recently discovered that exceeded my expectations far beyond mere contentment. I wanted to use my bully pulpit to advocate a new paradigm in dry cleaning. I want to introduce SFGreenClean.com [LINK].I've never been a fan of dry cleaning. The cost and the waste is simply abhorrent. Plastic bags, hangers, chemicals - there was always something wrong. But what alternative? My girlfriends keep me in a respectable wardrobe. My shit's gotsta look fine. Translation: I like to look fresh pressed.I finally reached the end of my rope when I went through my closet last week and decided enough was enough. Way too many hangers, way too much plastic. I knew there had to be an alternative in this high-minded [read smug] town. [ASIDE] For a really good window on our smugness, see the South Park episode "Smug Alert" [LINK]. If you can't laugh at yourself.......It didn't take long to find SFGreenClean - this web thing is pretty cool - might actually catch on. From start to finish the experience was eye-opening. The web site touts the number of hangers and bags saved. There is a hybrid delivery vehicle pictured (honestly I didn't see what car the driver had) with a dude looking all happy.  There is a lot of speak about non-toxic cleaning methods. It all sounded good.I scheduled the pick-up for the same day and the driver was dead-on prompt. Like, 7pm, ding-dong, hello?!! He had a bag into which I stuffed all of my schwag. The next morning I logged back on to the site and every piece was input and detailed in their tracking system. I mean they had the brand name, size, color, measurements - wow. All of my clothes there to track. They even identified pit stains [ewww] and other nick and tears that were automatically repaired. They just took control.Every detail of the process was shown online. At every step I could see where my clothes were and what was next to come. It was kind of fun to have such disclosure. Moreover, with all of this information, I will ultimately have a full inventory of my wardrobe once each piece cycles through the system. I'm not sure how I could use this data (perhaps tracking longevity or number of cleanings, etc), but it certainly can't hurt.When everything was completed, I received an email and I selected a delivery time. When the stuff arrived, it was on wooden hangers - wooden friggin hangers people!! Inside lovely cloth bags - lovely cloth bags people!! I assume I will ultimately return them as we proceed with future orders. There were no obvious instructions, but I'm sure if I weren't so lazy I could find it online.The biggest thing I noticed was that my clothing was REALLY clean - like age-old stains were gone. And the was no stanky-dry-clean smell. God I hate traditional dry cleaning smell. Gone. No more. Adios mofo.There is no doubt that I am paying a huge premium for this luxury. But I have to say that I've been lulled into a state of bliss, so much so that I never checked the charges. I really don't care. If I have to cut out some other luxury, it is worth the cost. I've found the perfect cleaners. Now take it from the Zealot and get you yours.