Food Emporium

Actually one of the dirtiest, grundgiest grocery stores I’ve ever been to. They were recently acquired by Gristedes… probably made it even worse. Everything is dirty and overpriced.

Ahh– the joy of trying to find a good grocery store, aside from whole foods, in NYC.
Well people, let me warn you: do everything you can to completely AVOID this super market.
First– how expensive things are. they tried charging me $ 17 for GRAPES. A BAG OF GRAPES. What the hell! That should be enough of a reason as to why this store sucks.
Second– FILTHY. FILTH.
Third– Sucky produce; across the board. So not only is it ridiculously priced, but it is also TERRIBLE quality.
Fourth– they have NOTHING. I went in for some basic necessities, and I swear there were rows and rows of empty shelves– the place where my basics should be. I was astonished.
It is so outdated, there is never anything I actually need, and it is way too expensive. Save your money, and walk the few blocks to Whole Foods.

This really is one of the worst grocery stores I’ve ever frequented. And I frequent it way too often because my apartment is just around the corner and sometimes I’m too lazy to walk the extra few blocks to Fairway.
The service is pretty much always terrible. The checkout attendants barely acknowledge you, and in many instances I’ve had to just stand there while they’re spaced out staring out a window, or finishing up a gossip with their coworkers.
Pricing is a bit all over the place, but on the whole… quite expensive in comparison to Fairway.
They always have empty shelves and broken freezers/​fridges, so the range isn’t always great.
And I’ve bought meat from them that I went to cook 3 hours later, and it was completely rancid. Smelt like a used diaper. I’ve literally never bought meat that was off from a grocery store, so I was super grossed out by that.

Summary:
Great super market where you can pick up what you need and rarely, if ever, crowded. Best place for cold cuts and sandwich fixings on the UES!
The Freshness:
I’ve never had a problem with this here. The fruits and vegetables are all very fresh, though slightly more expensive than Fairway. The deli meats are the best in the entire neighborhood. They have this insanely amazing Spanish Chorizo that is to die for (at $ 15.99/lb it’s expensive but well worth a tenth of a lb).
The Food:
Standard fare. They are missing an olive/​cheese bar for which I docked a star. They also don’t have pizza dough (but easily rectified by going across the street to Lunetta Pizza). I can easily pick up whatever I need.
The Value:
Much cheaper, better quality, and value than Gristedes. I go here for the cold cuts and that’s about it. You get better value on veggies/​fruits/​milk/​bread at Fairway. The beer selection is small but quite cheap in comparison to the rest of the neighborhood.
Recommendation: Come here for the cold cuts and other quick things you may need, but go elsewhere for bigger/​weekly groceries.

Their prices have come down somewhat in the last few years. For that, I credit the arrival of Fairway. They’re also the only supermarket in the neighborhood that carry udon. Fruit & veg still somewhat overpriced but the meat is usually good.

If you want a grocery store that consistently has NOTHING on the list you went there to purchase, then this is the store for you.
I work right next door and often run in for a quick easy purchase rather than walking further uptown to the Duane Reade. It, without fail, never has what I need. It reminds me of a scary outdated creepy dead grocery store. Horrible selection. Weird layout of items. Not fresh. I have left on numerous occasions empty handed and frustrated that I even wasted the time walking in.

OMG $ 6 for a box of cereal? Hyper-​Inflated Prices on nearly everything in this store. Food Emporium… You should be ashamed of yourself! THANK GOD FOR THE NEW FAIRWAY STORE ON 86TH STREET. (B/​T 2ND & 3RD AVE.)

The checkers have all had Surliness Training 303: Advanced Smile Avoidance, the store lacks even the most basic food groups, and I just paid FIVE dollars for THREE small apples.
I want to punch this store in the face.

This Food Emporium has the most pretentious, snobbiest, rudest creatures that exist in a supermarket.
I will share one story, one of many, that have happened at this wonderful establishment:
The other day I was in Food Emporium. I was buying a few things that were on sale. After all this is FE, and the groceries are a million dollars per piece!
I went to the checkout stand. There was a woman in front of me with a cart. She put her groceries on the stand. She pulled the cart forward making me think that she was going to pull it out past the checkout stand where somebody bags groceries would be.
I stood to the side by the magazines the entire time I was observing her. I was waiting for her to do the routine thing in city supermarkets. The routine is that one takes their cart and backs it out towards the magazines after stacking groceries. The man who works at the store then removes it. This is because there isn’t any room in the front of the checkout stand and people need to walk by.
I gave this woman ample time to move her cart back. I then proceeded to move forward and put the items I was holding in my hands on the counter.
She then decides to back her cart into ME. She hit my bad foot, the one I am getting ESWT treatment on. I also have a bad knee that needs ACL reconstruction. Well She EXPECTED ME to move it FOR HER because she is rich and wearing fur!
Granted, if she POLITELY ASKED ME to move it I probably would.
She felt that she was entitled to others doing her work without her needing to say a word!
Oh boy did I confront her. She was so scared of me she said nothig back. I basically explained to her that it does not matter how much money one has, that they need to utilize manners. I called her out that she was rude for hitting me with her cart especially when I gave her ample time to move it. I then explained that she must have gotten a thrill out of hurting somebody with a cane and knee brace, and bad foot.
She quickly exited. I am glad and hope that I made her feel shame.
Terrible how people are.
Summing it up further: There have been countless times that people have hit me with their carts, children who have THROWN groceries at me with parent who do not or will not scold them, people who hog entire aisles and grow angry when you wish to pass by… and so on.
I vote FE as one of the snobbiest places in Manhattan as per my list.
Enter at your own risk.

A review to express my frustration.
FE did not have 3 of the 4 items I went in for last night, all of which I’ve purchased there at some point in the recent past. I can’t stand inconsistency. Whole wheat pastry flour. Stonyfield Oikos yogurt. Brownulated sugar. Not asking for much there. They did have organic eggs, but a preferable brand was actually cheaper at the not-​cheap health food store (yet to be reviewed) a few blocks up the avenue.
I’ll also say: don’t even TRY to buy fresh fruit and veg here.
I stop in for staples like paper towels, cat litter, and frozen peas, just because it’s super close to my apartment, but… MEH!

I grew up in the land of mega supermarkets. I mean, you can even buy SHOES at the supermarkets I’m used to. However, after 6 months of living in NYC, I have adjusted my expectations accordingly. Nonetheless I am still constantly disappointed. You are hard pressed to find basics such as basil pesto or fennel here. Food Emporium sells itself as a «higher end» grocery store (I’d say midway between Key Food and Agata & Valentina’s), so it’s pretty pathetic that you can’t find a lot of vegetables/​products at this location. They also have horribly marked up prices too. This FE is the closest one to me, and I always try to treat it as my last minute place (i.e. I forgot an ingredient for dinner), but they almost never have what I need!
In short, this Food Emporium is overpriced and poorly stocked. If you’re set on doing your groceries at this chain, you’ll fare better at the 86^th st store.