"Restaurants and food processing companies get to cream the best before supermarkets get a hand in. Am I wrong?

Yep, the most perfect vegetables, fruit and cuts of meat are shipped to New York City and other wealthy cities where people seem to feel entitled to the best of the best all the time. California's best produce also goes to Japan.

That is a matter of economics, not one of food safety. The steak you can buy at a supermarket just has more visable fat and gristle than the one served at a 5-star restaurant. The artichoke is smaller, less perfectly-shaped and may have spot or two.