Where to grocery shop in NYC?

[LisaR]

I'd like to get some stocking stuffer gift cards for a couple of recent college grads who are moving to NYC. I know they will use Amazon Pantry so that is always an option, but are there one or two major grocery chains that most people use? I've Googled it but so many of the articles I came across were quite old and I know things can change.

Any other suggestions for good gift card ideas for the area?

 

[mjkacmom]

My niece lives in NYC and likes Trader Joe's for their somewhat reasonable prepared frozen meals. She loves shopping at the one by us, because in the city, you pretty much get in line at the entrance, and shop from there.

 

[tasha99]

I shop at Fairway and Trader Joes. I suppose it depends where in nyc they will be, but for the upper west side, those are my 2 favorites

 

[clori]

D'agostino is a basic grocery chain store with several locations.

 

[Miffy]

New Yorker here. Unless the grads you're talking about are extremely unusual--and perhaps they are!- -they'll be like most NYC residents--relying on foot power and public transportation, not a car. People here shop in the grocery stores closest to them, and unless you know exactly where they'll be living, getting them a gift card for a particular store or chain might not be helpful. If the nearest Trader Joe's, for example, is 40 blocks away, they won't be shopping there, no matter how appealing the merchandise is.

For example, I do a large amount of my grocery shopping at a local fruit and vegetable store, not a chain.

An Amazon gift card might be a better choice...or the most useful gift might simply be cash. Seriously. They're making a major move, I assume, and cash is always welcome.

 

[usnuzuloose]

Okay interesting thread. Do they not have regular chain grocery store?

 

[LisaR]

New Yorker here. Unless the grads you're talking about are extremely unusual--and perhaps they are!- -they'll be like most NYC residents--relying on foot power and public transportation, not a car. People here shop in the grocery stores closest to them, and unless you know exactly where they'll be living, getting them a gift card for a particular store or chain might not be helpful. If the nearest Trader Joe's, for example, is 40 blocks away, they won't be shopping there, no matter how appealing the merchandise is.

For example, I do a large amount of my grocery shopping at a local fruit and vegetable store, not a chain.

An Amazon gift card might be a better choice...or the most useful gift might simply be cash. Seriously. They're making a major move, I assume, and cash is always welcome.

Good point! I'll hold off. They are hoping to secure a place this weekend. I'll wait and see where they end up before making any decisions. Thanks!

 

[Miffy]

Okay interesting thread. Do they not have regular chain grocery store?

There are plenty of chain grocery stores in NYC. But if a store isn't convenient to where you live, you're probably not going there. Because you probably don't have a car. And even if you do have a car, you're probably not using it to go to the grocery store.

Why don't you have a car? It's incredibly expensive to garage it, and most neighborhoods have alternate-side parking, which means you'd have to move your car every single day, even if you weren't using it. No fun at all and often impossible to do. Even people who move to NYC with their car, intending to keep it, often decide against it. It's actually cheaper to rent a car when you need one.

I'm talking Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn here. In Staten Island and the Bronx, it's different--more car drivers, more cars, less expensive to park your car, and possibly alternate-side parking only 2 days/week instead of 5 or 6 days/week.

NYC is a culture of walkers, not car drivers. For something as essential as the groceries, people shop in their neighborhood stores. Someone farther up the thread mentioned D'Agostino's, a NYC grocery chain. But they're not in every neighborhood, and even if they are in your neighborhood, maybe they're 10 or 15 blocks away and not anywhere near the subway stop you use to get to and from work. So you'd never shop there. The nearest D'Ag's to anywhere I ever lived was 4 long blocks across town. I never went there unless I happened to walk by on my way to or from something. Also, there's no Fairway near me, so as great as the store is, I don't shop there.

I'm just back from a spur-of-the-moment trip to WDW, so excuse me for rambling! I'm still half at the Mouse!

 

[ashley0139]

Yes, wait until you know where they are living. In my years there I lived close to a Food Emporium, D'Agostinos, and a Bravo. I also stopped by TJ or Fairway if I was near it but they weren't close to me.

 

[shoney]

I have had friends who lived in Manhattan. They don't do big grocery store shopping like we do in the 'burbs. I know they got stuff delivered... even fruits and veggies and picked up things as they needed them. Most lived in small places and could not "stock up". They also went out to eat very often! City living is quite different!

 

[mefordis]

I'd consider giving them an Uber gift card.

 

[Imzadi]

New Yorker here. Unless the grads you're talking about are extremely unusual--and perhaps they are!- -they'll be like most NYC residents--relying on foot power and public transportation, not a car. People here shop in the grocery stores closest to them

There are plenty of chain grocery stores in NYC. But if a store isn't convenient to where you live, you're probably not going there. Because you probably don't have a car. And even if you do have a car, you're probably not using it to go to the grocery store.

Best posts. Fellow NYer here, so I'm the same. As much as I'd like like to consider myself unique, unusual, different, etc., when it comes to buying groceries, I shop at the closest grocery stores. There is a D'Agostinos further away with better sale prices, but I usually don't have the time or the impetus to WALK that much further away and lug back four heavy bags of groceries.

This was my trip the other night after coming back from a movie premiere party : I already have my backpack with me. (Always do.) I prefer a backpack to a handbag slung over one shoulder which offsets my weight on one side and slides off my shoulder, even though I am decades beyond being a college student. Once the backpack is stuffed full with some things I've bought and put on my back, it leaves both hands free to carry whatever else I am buying - typically 2 (evenly weight distributed) bags. A very usual question the cashiers bagging the groceries will ask is, "Do you want it all in one bag or two?" as they know it's easier to walk & carry two evenly distributed bags than walk lopsided with one heavy bag. I usually end up with 4 bags - and those may be stuffed with smaller bags from other stores along the way.

I never have one of those collapsible shopping carts. I'm not at the old granny stage yet to need one, nor do I want to lug around a large, cumbersome, heavy, collapsed cart around all day or TO the store. It's like carrying around a piece of luggage. PLUS, I didn't know I'd be stopping at the supermarket after the party. Once filled, the carts are hard to negotiate through all the tourists, local pedestrians, bicyclists & street traffic, up & down curbs and around pot holes and bicycle lanes. And the carts tend to make a lot of noise. It is quicker & easier to just lug shopping bags home. I would think two, able-bodied 22 yr olds would think the same way.

I bought enough groceries to fill 2 plastic grocery bags. Then I decided to stop at the drugstore to pick up my favorite brand of toilet paper that is on sale this week. I WANTED to get four 12-packs of the toilet paper. But, since I already had 2 bags of groceries, I could only lug home two 12-packs. (One 12-pack & one grocery bag in each hand. Weight evenly distributed.) While I could have carried an extra 12-pack in each hand, as they aren't that heavy, they are wide and cumbersome, which make them even harder to negotiate.

So that means a second trip to the drugstore before the sale is over by the end of the week. And probably another trip to the supermarket, as I only have a half size fridge and minimal storage space - hence why I only got 2 grocery bags full earlier. This is my weekly routine. As well as is the routine of most NYers here in the city. Shopping a couple/few times a week as we come home. Since I'm already out, I might as well pick up the extra things I need, in small, manageable amounts, from the stores closest to me.

If the nearest Trader Joe's, for example, is 40 blocks away, they won't be shopping there, no matter how appealing the merchandise is.

I love Trader Joe's, but I'm not often in those neighborhoods. To just make a trip there only for Trader Joes, means $5.50 round trip subway fare. I don't have a monthly unlimited card as I walk everywhere I can. When I do go to particular neighborhoods, I tend to multi-task and hit ALL the stores in walking distance that I need to visit in that neighborhood at once. If I'm in Chelsea, that means I'll hit Home Depot for the odds & ends I need, Michaels and Dick Blick for art supplies, Staples for an extra hi-lighter, maybe Old Navy or Bed, Bath & Beyond, before heading over to Trader Joe's last, as almost everything I buy there is frozen stuff. I also plan my route so that I am buying the lightest/fewest items first and pick up more/heavier items as I go along. That may mean I already have my hands (and backpack) full by the time I head into Trader Joe's. And that again will determine how much I buy there. Also, not only do I have to lug everything walking, I have to negotiate stairs and a subway car crammed full of people, too, if it's rush hour, fit everything in without banging into other people, set the bags down, (there usually is no seat,) and scoop & lift all my packages easily and quickly at my stop. Also, the closest subway to a store may not necessarily be the closest subway home. EXTRA walking.

Fairway: I've made a pass through there a few times as people keep raving about that place. But, other than the assortment of fresh veggies and artisan cheeses, they are like other supermarkets, but with even narrower aisles. I think I've maybe actually bought things in there 3 times and they were the Fairway brand spices. I have a farmers market in my neighborhood and can get artisan cheeses in my own neighborhood. And I don't have to deal with the long lines at Fairway. Plus, Trader Joe's is down the street from them now, so I'd rather shop there.

 

[Imzadi]

I know they will use Amazon Pantry so that is always an option

I have had friends who lived in Manhattan. They don't do big grocery store shopping like we do in the 'burbs. I know they got stuff delivered... even fruits and veggies and picked up things as they needed them. Most lived in small places and could not "stock up".

Lisa, you'd better check and see what Amazon Pantry actually has available in the items they'd want. Your 2 college grads probably still have the Amazon Prime student discount to use for Amazon Pantry, but when I looked to see if they had the items I'd love to get delivered, the majority of the items I'd have to buy in BULK. I don't have enough storage. No WAY can I buy 12 cans of ONE item when maybe my cupboard only holds 30 cans total. I have one extra cardboard box, the size of a copier paper box, that is my extra "pantry" storage in addition to the cupboard. And that is at the cost of off-setting much needed storage for other, non-food items, like extra space for clothes or office supplies. The only items I buy in "bulk" are toilet paper (and cans of coffee that are in that cardboard box.) And by "bulk" I mean stocking 4 packages of each at a time.

A neighbor in my building turned me onto online shopping at Walmart instead, to have food & cleaning items delivered. Free shipping over $50. Walmart is much cheaper than local stores, a single can of veggies is actually $0.99 rather than $1.59 here. (There is no such thing as "dollar stores" here anymore. The "dollar stores" are now actually $1.29 stores, yet most items you want are $1.59+. Does Wendy's Hamburgers still have Dollar Menu items in the rest of the country? Ours now have "Value Menu" items at $1.59.) Walmart online often doesn't have individual serving size cans or boxes for delivery, usually only family-size, of the items I want. Unless your 2 college grads are into eating the same things, one person continually buying family size items, or in bulk, when communal kitchen space/fridge space is sparce is just inconsiderate. Even college dorm rooms have larger, allotted storage space than typical NYC apartments in Manhattan. One has to get very creative with space & storage. Furniture needs to multi-task and one needs to prioritize what one wants to store.

I recently found out that Target now has individual serving size cans/boxes (NOT in bulk) for delivery. I filled my online "shopping cart" with 2-4 of each item as needed and got a nice assortment. So Target & Walmart are now my "go to" places to get items delivered over Amazon Pantry. And I shop through the Swagbucks affiliate link, or Ebates, and get an extra $5 back for the purchase, which I then use for my next purchase there, which earn me another $5, etc.

My recommendation for gift cards are for Target & Walmart or just a prepaid Visa gift card that they can use anywhere. Of course, Amazon gift cards for any and all other items.

 

[LisaR]

Lisa, you'd better check and see what Amazon Pantry actually has available in the items they'd want. Your 2 college grads probably still have the Amazon Prime student discount to use for Amazon Pantry, but when I looked to see if they had the items I'd love to get delivered, the majority of the items I'd have to buy in BULK. I don't have enough storage. No WAY can I buy 12 cans of ONE item when maybe my cupboard only holds 30 cans total. I have one extra cardboard box, the size of a copier paper box, that is my extra "pantry" storage in addition to the cupboard. And that is at the cost of off-setting much needed storage for other, non-food items, like extra space for clothes or office supplies. The only items I buy in "bulk" are toilet paper (and cans of coffee that are in that cardboard box.) And by "bulk" I mean stocking 4 packages of each at a time.

A neighbor in my building turned me onto online shopping at Walmart instead, to have food & cleaning items delivered. Free shipping over $50. Walmart is much cheaper than local stores, a single can of veggies is actually $0.99 rather than $1.59 here. (There is no such thing as "dollar stores" here anymore. The "dollar stores" are now actually $1.29 stores, yet most items you want are $1.59+. Does Wendy's Hamburgers still have Dollar Menu items in the rest of the country? Ours now have "Value Menu" items at $1.59.) Walmart online often doesn't have individual serving size cans or boxes for delivery, usually only family-size, of the items I want. Unless your 2 college grads are into eating the same things, one person continually buying family size items, or in bulk, when communal kitchen space/fridge space is sparce is just inconsiderate. Even college dorm rooms have larger, allotted storage space than typical NYC apartments in Manhattan. One has to get very creative with space & storage. Furniture needs to multi-task and one needs to prioritize what one wants to store.

I recently found out that Target now has individual serving size cans/boxes (NOT in bulk) for delivery. I filled my online "shopping cart" with 2-4 of each item as needed and got a nice assortment. So Target & Walmart are now my "go to" places to get items delivered over Amazon Pantry. And I shop through the Swagbucks affiliate link, or Ebates, and get an extra $5 back for the purchase, which I then use for my next purchase there, which earn me another $5, etc.

My recommendation for gift cards are for Target & Walmart or just a prepaid Visa gift card that they can use anywhere. Of course, Amazon gift cards for any and all other items.

Thanks so much for this. I'll pass it on to them. Pretty sure they are going to end up in a 300 sq ft studio. Not exactly a lot of room for Costco sized toilet paper! I'm anxious to see how these suburbanites do in the city and the cold (they are from FL). It should certainly be a learning experience.

 

[LisaR]

I'd consider giving them an Uber gift card.

I didn't know that was an option. Thanks!!

 

[Imzadi]

I didn't know that was an option. Thanks!!

That also depends on where they will live. If they are in the far reaches of the outer boroughs, and there are no regular city cabs around trolling the streets, Uber may be a good option. But NYC has thousands of taxis and hundreds in other boroughs. I literally walk out my door, go to the corner, raise my hand and can get a cab within several minutes.

I have YET to get an Uber. The only time two times I considered getting an Uber was when I was going to be coming from NJ late at night, and just crossing state lines doubled the taxi fare. Plus one has to call and order a taxi in NJ anyway, so it might as well be an Uber with their first ride discount. I ended up taking the bus home as I got out early enough. The second time was when I was in the outer reaches of Queens and had had a big piece of equipment I needed to bring home. I ended up ordering another car company as I knew they use Lincoln town cars and the trunk was big enough for the equipment.


A little FYI: unused gift cards are some of the largest profits for retailers. That is WHY many of them have expiration dates in states that they can get away with them. AND now, in the states that DO have laws against expiration dates, those retailers now have "service fees" if one hasn't used the card within a certain period of time - eating up the amount on the card, when unused, till the retailer gets all the money.

I bought something at Staples and got a $14 rebate. They issued me a Visa debit card instead of mailing me a check like they used to do, that I would just deposit. I read the back of the Visa debit card. If I didn't use up the $14 in 6 months, I'd be charged $3 per MONTH as a "monthly maintenance fee" for all the money still left on the card.

Think long and hard and research the details on the gift card you think you may be getting.

 

[LisaR]

That also depends on where they will live. If they are in the far reaches of the outer boroughs, and there are no regular city cabs around trolling the streets, Uber may be a good option. But NYC has thousands of taxis and hundreds in other boroughs. I literally walk out my door, go to the corner, raise my hand and can get a cab within several minutes.

I have YET to get an Uber. The only time two times I considered getting an Uber was when I was going to be coming from NJ late at night, and just crossing state lines doubled the taxi fare. Plus one has to call and order a taxi in NJ anyway, so it might as well be an Uber with their first ride discount. I ended up taking the bus home as I got out early enough. The second time was when I was in the outer reaches of Queens and had had a big piece of equipment I needed to bring home. I ended up ordering another car company as I knew they use Lincoln town cars and the trunk was big enough for the equipment.


A little FYI: unused gift cards are some of the largest profits for retailers. That is WHY many of them have expiration dates in states that they can get away with them. AND now, in the states that DO have laws against expiration dates, those retailers now have "service fees" if one hasn't used the card within a certain period of time - eating up the amount on the card, when unused, till the retailer gets all the money.

I bought something at Staples and got a $14 rebate. They issued me a Visa debit card instead of mailing me a check like they used to do, that I would just deposit. I read the back of the Visa debit card. If I didn't use up the $14 in 6 months, I'd be charged $3 per MONTH as a "monthly maintenance fee" for all the money still left on the card.

Think long and hard and research the details on the gift card you think you may be getting.

Screw it! They are getting cash!

 

[tasha99]

Uber in nyc is mixed bag. I'd rather take a taxi in Manhattan, because half the time the uber can't find me. Then theres the time I got in one, turned out it was a different uber, and got dropped off a few blocks after (ugh). I only travel the surface if I have a bunch of stuff. The subway is cheaper and so much faster.

Agree with those who say proximity matters. I was shopping at Fairway when in nyc daily, because was literally across the street. We just moved to Jersey City/Hoboken, so I bet I never shop there again.

 

[Imzadi]

I'm anxious to see how these suburbanites do in the city and the cold (they are from FL). It should certainly be a learning experience.

Two words: Puffer coats.

Are they women? Have them get ones that are long enough to cover their butts. They will probably want the cute, shorter jackets, that end at the top of their hips, but a strong wind blowing down the street, if they are waiting or standing outside, getting underneath the bottom of the jacket and they will feel COLD. Get something that covers their butts. Think of a puffer coat as aluminum foil wrapping a baked potato, sealing in the heat. You want to get a long enough one to work. The really long ones, that go down to their knees are nice if they have to wear dresses to work. But going out shopping & other places, the extra length may be cumbersome, especially while indoors shopping.They will usually have the coat unzipped and the extra length usually bangs into things and knocks things off shelves.

Here is page of puffer coats at Kohls. The light grey coat, fourth row down, in the middle, is what I'm talking about. Or a parka with a hood. No flattened hat hair with a hood. I actually have the ZeroXposur brand myself. I was leary of not getting a down jacket this time around, but goose down takes way too long to slowly dry after laundering - especially at a coin landromat. I wanted something I could easy wash & dry. The tight weave of the microfiber in the ZeroXposur coats make them very windproof and I think there is a coating to make them water-resistant. Mine is.

http://www.kohls.com/catalog/womens-puffer-quilts-coats-jackets-outerwear-clothing.jsp?CN=Gender:Womens+Silhouetteuffer & Quilts+Product:Coats & Jackets+Category:Outerwear+Department:Clothing&kwid=p3252470660

If they are guys, a good parka is good. Parkas automatically are long enough to cover the butt & have a hood.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

FWIW, I live on Trader Joe's; it's the only grocery store I will shop in because the stores near me are just too expensive. The TJ's I go to is over 40 blocks from my apartment- but I take a bus or get a cab.

I'm also a suburbanite from FL- good luck to them!!