Associated Supermarket

Wow — how many times have I passed this place by, only to wind up at overpriced Gristedes that’s a little closer to home for me? Will no longer be making that mistake! This place has crazy-​good prices on the name-​brand stuff I normally pay way too much for. Plus it’s clean and well-​stocked inside, more than you’d imagine from their nondescript signage. The only area that maybe leaves a little to be desired is the fruit — had to hunt for a while to find some non-​bruised bananas. But worth it for the deals to be had.
Side note — their private label pb&j is the bomb dot com.

Finally I found a market where the prices aren’t astronomical! I just moved to NYC and couldn’t believe the prices at markets here. But Associated has pretty fair prices on most items, and they have a lot of sales in every section as well, so if you shop the sales you can save some money. Zucchini for $ 1.79/lb in september. Lot’s of bread on sale for $ 2.50 a loaf. Cereals for $ 2.50, etc.
I also stopped at the deli and had them make me a fresh wrap for dinner. I got Boar’s head chipotle chicken w/​cheddar on a spinach wrap. They did a really good job making it, were very friendly and joking around with me. They didn’t have a package of spinach wraps open but they were fine with opening up a new package right off the shelf for me (I feel like other places would just say, «We’re out of spinach wraps.»). It was $ 8, which I think is a little high, but considering it’s New York, and the meat, cheese, and wrap were all very fresh, I guess it seems fair.
I will definitely be returning to this market as it will now be my go-​to place to get groceries.
Oh, and did I mention boneless/​skinless chicken breast for only $ 1.79 a pound!?! Boo yah.

Hidden little gem. I like to have a spot when working in the city and living in NJ where I can go real quick (great prices) and go.
My first time going in I was shocked HOW clean and tidy it was. The staff who I always ask for help was HAPPY to be at work (that’s a first) and better yet they can actually answer my questions. The meat cutter guys were fantastic, especially since I’m still learning how to order my meat. I don’t normally ever get cold cut sandwiches, but it happens to be I would give it another whirl (I didn’t finish it again), this tends to happen all the time.
I needed some noodles the second time around for a work pot luck and found some for a deal that day. It was perfect. In and out visit.
The cashier was sooo pleasant, she was smiling, joking, and laughing. I miss that customer service. Sometimes I go into stores and not ONE hi, how are you, nothing… I hope you have a great experience as I did :)

For the location price wise not so bad but still not the best.

Fair prices, and lots of locations. I come here for all my basics.

Came in here today because it’s close to work. Wasn’t expecting bottom rock prices, but wasn’t expecting to get jipped as well. First, the cashier girl with dyed red hair rang up my apples as Fuji apples at $ 2.29/lb even tho I grabbed the $ 1.49 ones. But what’s a few cents when you’re tired as hell after a long day of work, so I let that slide. She also rang me up in a hurry and bag everything faster than you can say «associated.» The reason? She charged me $ 4.56 for «produce» that I didn’t buy. Didn’t see this til I was checking on the train. Thought I could save a few bucks tonight instead of ordering delivery. Thanks a lot, Associated. I’ll take that $ 4.56 as fee for never stepping in your store ever again.
Tip: barely anything is price marked, perhaps so they can charge whatever they want?

Great prices and good selection. They carry Drake’s cakes and Little Debbie. The cashiers are the best.

Cheapest supermarket that i have found around 16^th St. The grilled chicken for $ 6.79 is saving me a lot of expensive diners.
But care! always check the receipt! 2 out of 7 times that I bought here it was wrong:
The first time they charged me $ 10 for a beef fillet that I didn’t buy (I bought salmon, not sure which one is more expensive). And today instead of blackberries ($ 3.99) I got charged blueberries ($ 5.99).

True, no frills and fulfills its purpose as a basic grocery store. However, a basic grocery store should also be more mindful of keeping EXPIRED items on the shelves. I’ve lived close to this place for a while now and I always wind up finding a past-​freshness-​date item in the dairy aisle, especially. Produce isn’t very good, but beer selection’s ok. But beware of skunked beer — I managed to be unfortunate enough to get some here, as well.

This place is disgusting!
Once we found mouse poop all over a bag of bread from the bakery section. We told a manager who didn’t seem very surprised about it.
Another time my partner picked up a bag of beans that was covered in olive oil…
And today I saw a worker who was stocking salad drop a bunch of salad on the floor (BARE, not in a plastic bag), pick it up and put it back on the shelf.
On top of it all the prices are not much different than the other much higher quality stores in the neighborhood.
Yuck!

Pros — Convenient
Reasonable prices (especially by NYC standards)
I can usually find the majority of ingredients I need for a given recipe here
Staff is respectful
Cashiers are fast
Cons — Not the cleanest
Staff isn’t very knowledgeable
Freshness of produce is so-​so

You can find some good deals at Associated. There’s always a random sale on at least one brand of every item that you went in to purchase. I really like that Associated has a circular ad. It reminds me of shopping back home.
The cashiers here are average. Sometimes I get checked out by the rudest worker in the world, and other times the nicest. It’s pretty hit-​or miss in terms of the service.
I definitely wish the produce department was bigger, but they have the basics. They also have a surprisingly great selection of beer. There are a lot of groceries that I buy on a weekly basis that I can’t find here, but that doesn’t stop me from stopping in to purchase the staples of my shelves at least a few times a month.

Inxpensive — one of the few supermarkets I’ve gone to in NYC with normal (non-​NYC) prices. They also have a lot of ethnic food (mostly latin american).
Much as I’d love to shop here due to the prices though, the produce did not look very fresh at all (and I’m not particularly picky when it comes to this). I also looked at some of their kitchen tools (measuring cups, etc.) and they were filthy. It’s too bad as this is one of the few good value supermarkets in the area.

I was in a bind and needed fruit. So I happened to walk by this place before heading to an event so I wandered around and saw some pretty good fruit — already chopped and packaged. They had whole fruit too and the prices looked decent. I ended up buying a big container full of pineapple which turned out to be very sweet. I also bought a Sobe Life Water for 99 cents which was the sale price. They had a wide variety of products, groceries, snacks, and already prepared foods in the café area.

1. decent prices +1 star
2. somewhat fresh bread .5 star
3. produce section is a decent size amd seem fresh and relatively good prices +.5 star
4. courteous cashier +1
5. One cashier on duty at 5:30 in the afternoon –1
6. cold beer +1 star
Total :3 stars

Great cheap supermarket unlike Greedy’s –i mean Grestedes.
They even have really hot cheap lunches at the deli. It loses a star becuase they have a limited salad bar, don’t have sushi ready made and lack a really good variety. But yet we need whole asile of junk food? They acutally carry a lot of produce.

This is the closest supermarket to me and that is the only reason I go. I always leave thinking how much I dislike it. Yes I suppose they have the basics but when you actually want to eat healthy it is seriously lacking in many areas. Didn’t see Tofu. the vegetable selection is very meh .and everything else is pretty generic.
The prices are normal grocery prices but I’d personally rather pay a bit more for better quality, selection and the ability to get through the aisle. It’s definitely a low end grocery that always leave me disappointed.

It is the only place around here that does not have the tired old «gourmet» tag, it is your plain ordinary competetive priced supermarket. If they were to close I would have to go to Food Emporium on 12^th and 6^th for my ordinary groceries.
Francis, the manager, is a great guy also, known him for years.

I was amazed by this little grocery store across the street. It’s a relatively large grocery store but with a down home neighborhood feel to it.
The manager hangs around and is extremely helpful and amicable, especially with all the regulars.
I was there picking up some BBQ items like dogs and buns and some Blue Moon beer when I discovered there were only 3 bottles left. The manager was kind enough to go downstairs to grab me another 12 and gave me a special deal on them since they weren’t chilled like the rest of them.
What awesome service!

Why go to overpriced and underserviced Balducci’s when you can go to a real grocery store with real-​people prices just across the street? I was thrilled to come across this supermarket just steps outside the 8^th Avenue L train station. I have a hunch my lunches at work will never be the same again.
For $ 8, I picked up some hummus, pita bread, BabyBel cheese, and an apple. That’ll cover me for about two or three lunches, stowed in a refrigerator at work.
Given the store’s location, it’s a bit cramped and crowded, but not overly so. And they seem to have everything you might need in terms of standard groceries. Awesome.