Gourmet Garage

Officially closed as of 12÷26÷11. Can’t say I’m terribly surprised. They were very expensive compared to all the other supermarkets on Broadway and to be honest, their fresh stuff wasn’t all that good. Once Whole Foods opened up on Columbus, it was really the final nail in the coffin.
Sorry to see any store close up, but that high price/​low quality business model is not the best plan for success.

this company is shit, and they treat their employees like shit.
They are greedy, GM’s get huge bonuses while all the hard working employees make only $ 8 an hour and have been there for 10 or so years… never getting raises. They recently had bad press regarding re-​dating packaged foods;
Although they will continue to deny it and wait til the last minute to tell employees that they are shutting down; Their Upper Westside location is DEFINITELY SHUTTING DOWN end of this month;
GOOD RIDDANCE!

I don’t understand why people are so positive about Gourmet Garage.
I can be short about it: It’s expensive and they have nothing special. There are a lot of better stores in the area!

**3.5 stars**
This is like a Whole Foods/​Fairway lite! In a pinch, I like to come here for specialty items, and their cheese selection is outrageous! I rarely get here though, it’s off the beaten path for me. But I still like to window shop in here.

Tried the soup & cupcakes — were okay, nothing special.

Good to grab food on the go. They have a good selection of specialty items. I like thier premade salads. It’s always been fresh.

Guilty pleasure at this store for me is their Super Moist Cupcakes! There is a pretty well known cupcake establishment in this neighborhood that was spoofed on SNL but Gourmet Garage’s cupcakes beats their cupcakes hands DOWN! Why? Super Moist and extremely affordable. I’m in here at this store at least once or twice a week.
Yesterday, I was looking for some tea bags and was really impressed with their global selection of teas that you can’t find in a regular grocery store. I don’t know if you are familiar with the tea brand PG Tips but it’s extremely popular in the UK. It’s wonderful knowing that their tea is sold here because it’s delicious.
Take home meals from the hot bar, the sushi bar, soup bar and the salad bar are affordable.
Just this week a seating area was added where there used to be the coffee section. I am so happy now that if I get a drink and want to sit inside that I can sit there than outside when it maybe raining outside.
The only reason why I am not giving 5 stars is that the area to stand in line to check out has always been a problem in this establishment. I wish that there can be a truly defined area where there are either bars or ribbons or something saying this is the check out line. Before Gourmet Garage was here there was another grocery store establishment here that also that had this same check out problem. I have had SO MANY people jump in line before me at this particular store but most of the time I have let them be but this is a real nuisance. Fortunately the cashiers move quickly so don’t fret but know that there are some people who have an entitlement issue where they think it’s okay for them to walk over you. You have to pick your own fights. It’s not worth it here. Trust me!

Gourmet Garage is already greatly missed … and I only moved out of the neighborhood yesterday. An awesome selection of soups available all the time? Gourmet Garage has been god sent during a winter of being nonstop sick, where only some yummy hot soup is the only thing your tummy wants. Even when I’m not sick, I’m quite a fan of all their soups, especially their New England Clam Chowder. Keep your campbell’s cans … give me some Gourmet Garage.

At first, I was skeptical. How Gourmet can a place be when it describes itself as a garage? But as soon as I walked in, I knew all that mattered was that I was there.
The breads and cheeses and produce are all fantastic. This is the one place semi-​close that I know I can go to to find any fresh herb I may desire, and even a stinky cheese or crsuty bread to sccompany it.
Quite a gem and I am thankful for the location. Now if only there was a connoisseur carport…

Highest premium for cheeses albeit eclectic. Nice selection of breads coffee and tea. Prepared foods available for grab and go including an olive bar. I spent under $ 15 for 5 items… Nice quality food when in the neighborhood.

Tiny little joint in a prime spot (and filled with red-​liners accordingly). After some contemplating, I chose to hit up the hot food/​sandwich area at the front. After about 30 minutes, my sandwich was cut up and ready for me (not sure what was happening, but the guy must’ve been new – wasn’t particularly nice or rude, but just sloooooow, especially with no heating involved). Got a «sweet and crunchy» veggie sandwich (it was neither) and some assorted tropical fruit (kiwi, passion fruit, starfruit). First was marked @ $ 5.99 & rang up at $ 6.99; the latter were reasonably priced. Decent resource, but nothing worthy of a 4 IMO, as I don’t live nearby.

I really like this location of Gourmet Garage. They have my absolute FAVORITE coffee, which brings me back to my days in CA… Peet’s Coffee and tea! They have it to buy to make at home, and they have it brewed in store so you can buy a cup on the run. The 16oz coffee comes out to $ 1.96, which is very decent.
However, everything else in the store seems to be at least $ 5. Whatever it is (box of spaghetti, a cookie, block of cheese)…$ 5, or more. It seems overpriced…

This place is okay — I shop here quite a bit. However, be sure to check the expiration date on anything perishable that you buy here. They have some stocking issues. It isn’t unusual at all for them to be selling something past its due date.

I’m a Gourmet Garage loyalist, and I do go there semi-​regularly out of convenience, but they are not cheap! And in this crappy economy, it’s the perfect time to revisit there pricing structure.
Their same groceries can be had more affordably in this ‘hood.
Bests: Bread selection; Soups by Hale and Hearty; fresh sushi; ample olive bar with tasties
Worsts: $$$$ cheese selection can be had at Zabar’s or Barzini’s for ½ the price. Produce is steep. Buy 5 things (no matter how small) and your bill will be over $ 40.

I find myself here nearly every night after work. Their soups are great, especially the savory beef chili, which I get every time I see it offered. The sushi used to be cheaper but is still reasonably priced. I definitely enjoy the free cheese and quince samples that are offered as you stand on line in this crowded little store.
I like to buy fish to prepare the same night, and I unfortunately picked up the spicy catfish. Too spicy! (And I enjoy very hot foods.) I had to throw it away and make a PB&J sandwich instead.
The prepared foods are nice when you’re in a hurry and don’t want to cook. I enjoy their prepared mac & cheese.

There’s a pretty good correlation between the price of an item and its quality on the Upper West Side and nowhere is that more apparent than at Gourmet Garage.
As the name would have you believe, food exists on the high end of the quality scale. There’s lots of packaged goods, including organic and healthy foods and in the frozen case you can even occasionally find strawberry Skinny Cow Ice Cream sandwiches.
But the real draw of this location is its pre-​made meals. A lot of times if I didn’t really want to cook, I could swing by here and grab pre-​packaged kebabs and fish, all of which were of a good quality. Toss ‘em in the oven or in a pan and pretty quickly I had a good, and not terrible for me, dinner.
It’s a little more expensive than some other places in the area (*coughGristedescough*) but it’s a worth it.

For such a small space they pack in everything good. Down to the Sabra Hummus… good cheese, pre-​made selection rotisserie chicken looked really tasty and the produce was in good shape as well.

Very Trader Joe’s like in it’s selection of prepared foods, cheeses, and other fancier items, this is right by my new pad. And useful to swing by when I need those things and am too lazy to go to TJ’s.

Produce is usually fresh and there’s some decent baked goods. They have a number of organic selections too. I’ve even found a few unique items that I love (some spice mixes, sauces, etc.). However, one of the best things about it is the friendly cashiers. Unlike shopping at the Gristede’s across the street, I don’t feel like I should apologize for existing as I check out. It’s no Fairway of course, but GG is a block from my apt. and sometimes that’s all that counts.

This used to be my favorite grocer on the UWS. The Garden of Eden up near 108^th street has taken that spot now due to their far better selection!
GG has a decent enough fish and meat market. The produce is better than at the Gristede’s down the block. Sometimes I still swing in to pick up their house brand coffee beans at a good price!