Town Food Market

I’m a frequent visitor to Town Food Market, so much so that the daytime employee recognizes me and already has my order rung up before I reach the register. He is slightly on the grumpy side, but I think it’s mainly because he has to deal with seedy enough customers to be behind a plexiglass cage. They’re a little overpriced compared to a distributor, but nobody else besides Bella Vista carries my brand and they’re way closer to where I live. Sounds like a good review, right? Until tonight, my first trip «after dark» (it was like 8pm, nothing crazy).
I noticed very quickly that the guy behind the register is different. No matter, I’m 26 (and not a flattering 26, I might add), and it’s kind of nice to be asked every now and then, makes you feel young. And I’m a licensed attorney in another state since 2013, which means if I wasn’t 21, I graduated high school when I was 12, college when I was 16. At least, that’s assuming I went straight to law school after college (which I did). So, I get to the register with my order and he asks for my ID. I hand it to him, an ID from when I was 18 (8 years ago) that still has another 2 years of validity on it. He looks at it, proceeds to say it doesn’t look like me. I present my attorney licensing and explain that that requires 7 years of post-​high school education and at least a year of other stuff to get, explaining as I did above the absurdity of me not being 21. He proceeds to ignore that and starts making jokes about how «if this is you» how fat I’ve gotten and makes me take off my hat so he can stare me down. He then refuses me service (again, 26 years old, balding, I have not been mistaken for under 21 in a long, long time) and hesitates to return my license to me.
I took my ID and my registration and walked a mile to Pac a Deli, where I was greeted with a smile and excellent customer service, as usual. Sure, I had to get a different brand from my favorite, but at least the employees understand common sense, business, and proper etiquette when communicating with customers. I guess I’ll just have to walk the extra distance until I get my new license where I’m «fat enough» to be myself. What a joke.

Just an FYI– no strong opinions about place, but note that they are listed under category beer, wine, spirits in Unilocal — they only sell one of those three things though.
Also, the workers are encased in a large cage made of bullet proof plastic– they are clearly expecting trouble.
Oh, also– they totally do take credit. $ 10 minimum but that’s hardly an issue. Beer costs a fortune in Philly.

This place is a bit quarky. Pretty good beer selection. Prices as to be expected. Limited groceries, yet they have a good selection of cheeses, humus, lemons and limes. Ben & Jerry’s, hot pockets and three isles of chips!
In fact beer & chips account for 90% of the shelf space. I once asked the guy at the counter if they had any chips — he didn’t get it.
I also asked if they had any cookies. I am a Cookie Monster. Found a single box of chips ahoy. They were pretty bad. Checking the label, they were 2 years past the expiration date. So buyer beware.
Still I go for beer, chips and ice cream, when I don’t feel like dealing with Philly Flavors.

Town Food Market has great hours. You can stumble home from Dirty Franks at 1:45 am (they close at 2), and still be able to pick out a six pack or a Four Loko from the decent beer selection and grab a box of mac and cheese to eat and drink with your friends when you get home (or yourself, no judgment).
The food portion of this convenience store doesn’t have a huge variety, but if you need to pick up an essential, live nearby, and don’t have time to go to the supermarket, it will probably have what you are looking for. The beer selection is pretty good for what this store is (Bottle Shop East or The Foodery, it is not). Most of the craft beers are American, but they do have a smaller Belgian selection. All the beers are expensive, but what do you expect at a bottle shop in Philadelphia. Prices tend to vary within a dollar or two depending who is running the register, but you can get at 12 pack of Yuengling, Miller Lite, Bud, etc. for around $ 15 with tax, which isn’t terrible. Sundays, they start selling beer at noon, most other days they start when they open.
If I wrote this review three months ago before they started taking credit cards, I would have given it three stars, but now you can use your credit card with a minimum purchase of $ 10. There is also a low fee ($ 1.75) ATM in the market that is convenient when you don’t want to walk to an actual bank.

Great Malt liquor selection, $ 4.00 average price for a 40z, bit steep, but open late, nice snacks, here’s chips, and coqui 900 «yeah!»

When I moved into my apartment, my friend Roxy told me that I live near the «good beer store.» She was right! I live near a Good. Beer. Store. Good enough variety for me! It took me a while to decide what I wanted today, but I ended up sticking with some old favorites: Chimay & Duvel.
They also sell snacks. Grody processed stuff that i don’t eat. But I’m not reviewing them for their snack foods. I’m reviewing them for the good beer.
Apparently, based on others reviews, this place is overpriced. Don’t care. I pay for the convenience of good beer on my block.
Cash Only.

Three stars because I live so close that I just can’t avoid it because it’s open until 2. I am prompted to write this review after spending a jaw dropping $ 30 on two six packs the other night. Yikes! This is borderline as bad as the dreaded Foodery. I guess convenience isn’t cheap…
Cop shop has a pretty decent selection of good beer that changes with the season. They have everything your regular convenience store would have– nothing to write home about.
The dude behind the counter is either horribly unfriendly or really nervous. I think I frighten him when I say hi how are you. As for the never getting carded for beer– maybe I have a baby face but I get carded every time without fail.
Cop shop is cash only. Beware unless you want to use their $ 2.50 fee ATM.
Place isn’t bad but I’d never go out of my way to get here unless I lived so close.

Everything about this place sucks. I live in the building above them and we only shop there as a last resort.
The main detractor is the guys who work there. For the most part, they are surly, unfriendly and rude. They suck.
A majority of their shoppers tend to be either depressingly drunk, depressingly downtrodden or depressingly Hipster. I love when dirty hipster kids are in there fretting over collecting pennies to afford their 6-​packs of PBR, asking those in line around them for a nickle… and then they go outside and hop on their custom fixie with purple chrome pedals and gold chrome wheels (how shockingly contrasting!). The people who shop here… they suck.
This store isn’t economical, either. Generally things are more expensive here than in a larger store. That is to be expected. It is why we call it a ‘convenience store’. I get that, but I’m still going to say… their prices suck.
And so all of you who love this place and have Unilocaled with such gregarious support… please attempt to remain quiet when you’re outside trying to figure out how to fit your u-​lock, duct tape wallet AND pounder of PBR into the back of your skinny jeans that you turned into thigh-​high cutoff shorts.

Beer, open all types of hourse in the night, oodles of noodles.
Got my vote.
Thanks Cop Shop.
cash only

I love the cop shop. They are right across the street from me, and contribute to my laziness daily and nightly (open until 2am).
They have cat food, always some sort of cheap munchy for me and my roommates, a deli, and an adequate selection of beer. Also when I’m sick they have cold medicine. Cleaning supplies. Toothpaste. Everything.
But it is overpriced, so if you don’t live right on 13^th St. I wouldn’t recommend it– but to my neighbors, enjoy.

This place is close to my house. The beer is somewhat overpriced and the snack selection leaves something to be desired. The fact that they only take cash is a bummer too. My girlfriend has been locked in here before when one of the local crazies threatens the proprietors. I’ve never had this problem myself. I like the guy behind the counter’s pinky and the brain shirt. Oh also they should diversify their toilet paper selection. Scott can be hard on the old behind.

Cash only? For realz? Know your demographic, dudes. If I had cash money to be spending, don’t you think I’d be in the shitty dive down the street?
Extra star for apparently being open until 2 AM though. If I had cash at that hour, I would love nothing more than to spend it on beer here.

Not one to break tradition, I’ll open with the obligatory THE COP SHOP!
To the best of my knowledge, this corner beer spot had the moniker bestowed upon it as a result of the previous owners being former police officers. This was all before my time but that’s the version I’ve heard batted around the most. Good ol’ local Philly lore.
What can I say? It’s a corner store that’s open till 2:00am with beer and an assortment of other necessities. Snacks, drinks, few canned goods. Just about every trip I’ve made has been completely uneventful (except being able to holler «hello» to John, the clerk). There’s something to be said for consistency, advantage Town Food Market. As far are convenience stores go, it’s open later than most others in the area so it’s a clutch player.
The in-​store ATM does come with a wallet lightening $ 2.50 fee but insomniacs & drunks can’t be choosers.

The Cop Shop!
To be honest, I’m not really sure why this joint is nicknamed the Cop shop, but my roomie, who went to school at U Arts and knows what’s up, claims it’s because they never carded, so 18-​year-​olds could look totally boss at the «Abstract Concepts» bash, pounding forties of Old E.
Those must have been the good ‘olé days of yore though, because when I started going here about a year ago, I got carded all the time. (I’m told I have young features.)
Without the «super shady» legend attached, TCS is basically your regular old convenience store (and I’m going to have to dissent here and say it’s really not that shady either), full of snacky-​snackies and a pretty decent beer selection, including super cheap PREMIUM 40s (like, you know, Yuengling Premium) plus Flying Fish, Bluepoint Blueberry Ale, and my staple, Miller High Life.
They’re cash-​only, which kinda blows, but, as Bill mentioned, there is a «super shady ATM», with charges you a 2.50 fee. And they’re open til 2 a.m. Not that I would be looking for booze then, ever.

I once stupidly spent $ 30 for two 6 pack of Corona, a couple limes and a Mountain Dew. Granted, I am originally a Jersey girl and we can buy our beer and liquor all from one store for much cheaper, but that’s kind of outrageous even for overpriced PA standards.
The only good thing about the place is that they have a decent selection of beer for a kinda shady — yet well lit, clean and easily accessible — convenience store. Oh, they also have a slightly better than average selection of snacks/​convenience store stuff, but that’s about it. If you can, get over to VIP Food Market (on Walnut between 13^th & Broad). The beer prices seem to be slightly better (for shady convenience store standards).

Damn it… somehow your plans for the evening fell through and now all your friends are hanging out in your apartment circa de Center City. It’s 1am and everyone is cranky. Surely, there must be something to do?
When in doubt, there’s alcohol and if your fridge needs stocking at 1am, Town Food is your solution.
It’s the only non-​bar in Center City (that I know of) that sells beer until 2am.
Be advised that you can’t get hard liquor here though…

If your like me then you might know this place as the Cop Shop. Why? I’ve never really figured out. My cousins who lived around the area called it that as an in the know thing roughly 10 years ago and I’ve been going with it ever since. even know a lot of people who have as well.
anyway, it’s your shady run of the mill semi shady corner food market. but it is also the only semi shady corner food market that sales alcohol until 2 AM! it sales everything from semi high end (Guinness probably being the highest end imported) to PBR. It’s semi shady so you probably don’t want to get the higher end stuff there. case in point though — It’s the only non bar place that sales beer that late, it’s at a fairly recognizable corner of Center City, and you can get fairly reasonably priced alcohol. it doesn’t take credit card, but it does have a semi shady ATM that I wouldn’t recommend using. Overall it isn’t the best, but it serves it’s purpose.