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What Whole Foods, Fairway and Trader Joe's do excel at is bringing often various departments of good foods and such under one roof.
Those living in Manhattan not that long ago probably remember themselves or perhaps their mother's shopping for meat/poultry at this store, produce at that store, cheeses, fish, baked goods, etc....
WF, Fairway and TJ's aren't perfect, you still must know your prices and how to judge quality. But they are streets ahead of the often dismal some kind of piece of supermarkets one mostly found in Manhattan before they came along.
Indeed once Fairway opened on East 86th, Food Emporium, Eli's, Key Food and other supermarkets/shops from 96th Street down to 72nd had to step up their game. Things will really get interesting when WF opens on Third in a few months.
Can Trader Joe really be considered a rival? All the ones I have been into have a rather bland setup, and they are never as large.
I hear you. Its all frozen food. No butcher or fishmonger.
Personally, I go to independent butchers, fishmongers, bakeries and grocers. I'll go specialty Italian markets and Chinese supermarkets as well. At a regular chain supermarket, I tend to only get the manufactured stuff there (packaged and bottled things).
I find places like the Brooklyn Kitchen and the Green Grape to be irritating. But I'll happily go to the outdoor farmers markets in the summer, until I have to pay.
Last edited by ShirlMastic Beach; 04-11-2014 at 05:34 AM..
The Fresh Market stores blow the competition out of the water concerning the sheer 'Hollywood movie set' look and feel of the grocery shopping experience. I know these stores because I discovered one in Center Valley, Pa. and I always make a point of visiting it when I am in the area because it's such a delight just to walk in and take a look around. I love seeing the produce arranged in wonderfully artistic fashion and I never leave without buying some of their products. They tend to be more of a specialty store but then again, if that is what you are looking for, it's perfect.
This is not a Costco or a Waldbaum's. You will not find thousands of boxes of pasta lining the shelves but you will find things you don't see in the major chains. Their bakery department belongs in some bakery hall of fame. Their cakes and cookies are to die for and their selection of spices is fabulous! You can sample different coffees and teas and their flower displays are marvelous. They are located at the door so when you duck in out of the cold you are immediately surrounded by a floral paradise. It's gorgeous!
As for Key Food, it is a local store and I suspect they are able to stay in business because some of them are in areas with a very senior demographic. The stores are local, easy to walk to and that is a huge part of their success. I regularly find outdated food in the Key Food stores. I am also totally disgusted with the shabby feeling of the stores and do not enjoy them because of this.
I was very excited when the Whole Foods opened by Woodhaven Blvd. but my last visit to the store was a disappointment because it was VERY crowded (lines stretched from the registers in the front, all the way to the back of the store). Forget trying to shop for anything in that last aisle with the scores of people waiting to check out. No way! I put down my groceries and left, and walked three blocks to my car. The parking in their miniature lot is horrendous. It was a good idea to try and put a store there but frankly, if you live close by and can either walk to the store or get there when they first open, that is the optimum time for you to shop there.
Most just rebranded but they are all still Key Food. For example, mine now goes by Fresh n Save.
One of the locations that I know used to be Associated Grocers and then another used to be C-Town and both of those are now Key Food. The other stores that I know have been Key Food for years (at least since the early 1990s if not earlier).
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