NetCost Market

I love coming here for all things Russian and Eastern Europe; baked goods (made onsite, or prepackaged), cookies, breads, jellies, dairy products, dried fruit, fish (fresh or frozen) steam table pre-​made dishes, juices, fresh fruits and vegetables… you name it! Prices run from reasonable to rather high. Their «home» made cakes are amazing, the riotous color and variety of produce soft, fresh breads, and deli counter items will make you want to buy it all. Be sure to try at least one or two of the many steam table items; they will bring out the Russian in you!

Always go there to buy my favorite food, caviar, bread of course (cannot eat american bread), smoked salmon, fish, organic honey, salt…, tasty cakes… everything. Great variety and good price!

Today I tried this place with the intention of not buying anything. I just wanted to look around and compare to the Unilocal reviews. I must say it looks very organized, good enough selection and yes they have an especially large selection of Russian products but the area is very Russian so it makes sense. The cheese selection caught my eye and I had to stop. I was greeted by a pretty young lady at the deli and she was very nice. She gave me a sample of the feta cheese since they didn’t have the one I wanted (French) and she said I’d like Romanian. I did. The checkout lady was also very courteous and smiled and offered to assist me with a memebership card form. I’m not sure why all the reviews say that if your aren’t Russian you will be treated rudely here. This was not my experience and I am not Russian. Everyone was polite and helpful. I will return now since I’ve got my membership lol.

Is it business really bad that you are selling Turbot fish smelling so disgusting? I’m not going back to this store, no more!

Love this place! Being new to the area I had been trying to find a place with good quality produce at reasonable prices and clean. I got so much more … They have an amazing bakery so I get fresh baked bread whenever I want! I am so hooked. The quality and assortment of cheeses, salami, kolbasi are really good. The meats are fresh, clean and packaged really well. They a a very large and lots of variety in anything kosher. I love the variety of cultured butter Please note the labels with ingredients are in English so most of the items although in Russian you can read or anyone there has been very kind in answering any questions I have. Their prices are reasonable and lots of specials weekly. I get strawberries 1.99 led, organic milk $ 4.99 and the organic eggs Pete n Gerry @ $ 3.55 there because honestly they have the best prices in neighborhood. They have great specials weekly but as I mentioned I can always get my organic milk n eggs at the lowest price in the neighborhood.
The staff although primary Russian are all very friendly and helpful with answers questions or explaining the Russian labels on products. They are just very warm n nice … Even the security team are so nice they take your baskets at the register and put it back for you. Make sure to ask for your club card sign up n present it during checkout time.
I can’t forget to mention the variety of international chocolates they have. And they have delivery nice cars, new and clean they seem to take pride in delivering your groceries. I would recommend this place to anyone in the neighborhood.
Street parking can be the biggest downfall but the times we’ve gone in car it really hasn’t been a major issue. We are in and out. :)

An interesting place to visit; they have quite a lot of cool stuff. But — overall, its a bit of an odd place. Not my cup of tea, but — again; overall pretty cool place. Staff is pretty nice.

Great having this market in the neighborhood. The main thing this market has over the markets around the area, fruit selection. It has a total strangle hold on the fruit game in the Rego Park/​Forest Hills area. First the selection is varied and fresh. So if you see a fresh box of strawberries, buy some, they may not be there tomorrow. Prices vary a great deal for the fruits, ranging from constant bargains (bags of persimmons and kiwis for a a buck or two) to the absurd (a watermelon in the 20s). Pick and choose.
Moving on from the fruit section, come to the veggie area. Always with a solid selection of different peppers. Assorted mushrooms, brussel sprouts, starchy veggies, leafy greens and herbs. Section and kept clean and bright.
We then move on to the self serve hot and cold food area. Avoid at all costs. See many people take a bite of food and dump it back. Steal and eat the whole damn thing, don’t contaminate the tray for the rest of us. Odd thing, there is usually an employee around here but they never say anything.
Dessert aisle is the best. Russian cakes are just flat out sweet and rich. I’m into that, sponge in cakes makes no sense whatsoever. Cakes made out of only chocolate, cream, mousse, and custard.
The sausage section is OK in a pinch, personally prefer the Polish markets in Greenpoint for sausages. Never really bothered with the butcher. Fish, anchovies, herrings are all priced well here.
A very deep beer selection, mainly consisting of eastern European beers and Russian brews. Cheap as heck so always tempted to buy a few different ones to try. Have yet to actually like one, so usually take a sip and end up using the beer to cook or marinate stuff with.

So disappointing and gross. I really wanted to come here and get some food for home but unfortunately their variety in food was very limited and not fresh. I saw a man walk up and grab a piece of cabbage salad with his fingers and legit was eating it in the store. I then also saw a woman break off a piece of fish to «make sure it’s good» prior to purchasing. I immediately walked out. Net cost in Brooklyn is a complete different story, it is PHENOMENAL. The drive from queens is worth it every time.

Well, I lied. Since Pioneer closed I was begrudgingly obliged to return to NetCost because the other market is significantly further away. I’m glad I did. With time I’ve found that at certain hours of the day there are significantly fewer elderly people there and that makes all of the difference. I’m not going to split hairs: old Russian people can be pretty pushy, conniving, and inconsiderate shoppers making for an unpleasant experience.
But when the place is less crowded, it’s a pleasure to shop at NetCost. I’m falling in love with the fresh baked breads and experimenting with what to me are some exotic cold cuts. Russian and eastern European cuisine are so great and I’m glad I gave this place another chance. The produce section is beautiful and I’ve found some great quality produce at reasonable prices. I love that they always seem to have a small area set aside for the more expensive exotic fruits. I’ve had passion fruit, dragon fruit and even some strange Colombian berries I had never heard of.
Thankfully, I haven’t had issues at all with expired goods, knock wood.
The employees are always on top of stuff, making sure everything is in place and as tidy as possible. The checkout counters are also manned by spritely, deft young people who get you in and out quickly. Overall I’m impressed and hope the quality remains consistent. This place has changed my heart and mind for the better.

Good place! Prices are pretty cheap for the area and quality is good. I have heard from a few people regarding the expiration dates, so I normally check, but have yet to find expired stuff (close to expiration, but not over)
Best thing is selection of eastern European foods all in one place. Candy, sweets, pickles, cheeses, etc. You name it they probably have it
Smoked fish department is really good, and I never experienced any issues, but I usually get the same girl serving, who more or less remembers what I get.

This place is a throwback to the Soviet Union. One of the few places in the city where being rude to customers is still the norm. The people working the cold cuts counter constantly talk trash about customers in front of them, and generally try to get out of doing their job. Just try and ask them to cut the sausage or cheese at 8:45, and see what happens! (Note: they close at 9pm). Avoid this place at all costs, for your own sanity.

Hands down the most horrible customer care experience I’ve seen in my life. Even within the Russian world it was outstanding in its disrespect. Yesterday I was there waiting at the cold cuts counter. 4 people behind the counted and only one working. Another one making jokes with a girl customer, another one cutting cheese for display; another one does God knows what. They saw the customers waiting and complaining and in a typical Russian manner disregards the customers on purpose. Then I was looking for a shopping cart and asked for an employee for help. He barked at me «no more carts» without even stopping.
I go to Russian stores about every 6 months and every time I go, I realize why I go so rarely. But that experience beat them all. Stay away!!!

I used to admire this store, have their discount card, and feel fortunate to live nearby to enjoy it. The reason I take stars off is the management during 2015 have allowed it to slide into despair with over crowded aisle of display boxes, and sales on items at or near expiration while fresh on sale items are always «coming in tomorrow».
I find it annoying how the same type of item is displayed all over the store instead of it’s own native section. If I want pickles there is already a designated aisle full of them, so why are there a dozen more pickle boxed displays for me to trip over all over this already cluttered store. Sour creams have their section, then are redundantly mixed in with the yoghurts in a far display case, then again with the soft cheeses — it’s madness.
My guess is that central corporate level buyers are dumping whatever bargains they find in the import wholesale channels on their now dozen store outlets. then each area store is stuck having to move the merchandise without any reflection of what their customers actually want, or even to leave them enough room and any logical expectation on where to find it.
$ 7/​LBs for hot prepared food is high for rego park when you consider they are cooking their own raw produce sold elsewhere in the store, and the fact that most of the stores on this block are shuttered. Going to this store used to be a culinary adventure — now it’s just one big hassle I will try to avoid in the future by getting the few unique items I came in to buy, then getting the hell out of there ASAP.

Be careful they cheating on cash register. Management Nows Doing nothing about
.

Huge store with a lot varieties of food. I usually buy something, that is cooked. It saves me a lot of time. Their salmon is the best ! And of course pirozhki

They price types of milk differently & while I found a half gallon for a fair price, I had to deal with this old guy cutting in front of me in line then having the gall to expect me to move while he was dealing with his stuff. Furthermore, not a single employee says one word about this guy’s cutting. I didn’t feel welcome here & with the small size of this store and limited selection, I think I could do better elsewhere.

They have a large selection of products. Living in Greenpoint I am spoiled because I can get my Polish products at most stores. My aunt and sister live nearby and have talked about this store. So I finally went and it looked impressive at first. I looked and found unwrapped sausage in a fridge that you can grab. This made me uncomfortable at the thought that anyone can touch the meat and put it back. Something like that should be at the deli counter to keep sanitary.
You also know it’s bad when your aunt asks you if you have cash upon entering because of the frequency of credit card fraud and theft.
Additionally, I didn’t realize but I bought gingerbread cookies. After reading reviews some noted tampering with the expiration date. So I got paranoid and what do I see? An expiration date that’s been erased, as evidenced by smudged ink. I think I’ll just buy my East European goods in Greenpoint where I trust it.

My family always hits up the Net Cost locations all over Brooklyn but I’ve recently been visiting the Rego Park one. Okay, so it may not be on steroids like the others I’ve been to, but they have a lot of variety when it comes to their products. The prices are unbeatable if you compare them to chain supermarket prices (for example, a bag of pre-​washed salad mix will cost you anywhere from $ 3.50−5.99 elsewhere, but here I pick it up for $ 1.99!), and their prepared food bar is AMAZING. They have all my favorite Russian eats from the salads, to the chicken, to the duck, to the cutlets, to the perogies, to the blini (crepes), and alllllllllll the salads and spreads.
The best part, aside from the food, is the lack of lines and chaos! I’m in and out in minutes.
Ugh Net Cost, why do you not exist in Manhattan or Long Island?!

As any person who has been living in the Rego Park area, when describing someone where this pace is, you simply say «You know, where Platinum used to be,» The Platinum i am referring to was a 24 hour, buharian/​russian owned gym that has been closed for few years now (not before they stole everyone’s money with selling yearly memberships, before closing.) You get the gist of what was going on .
In its stead, arose a Brooklyn Grocery Store behemoth dubbed ‘NetCost’. Amongst rumors of its initial inception, the people in the neighborhood, which are majority Buharian/​Russian Jews, welcomed the news. It would bolster the already perimeter Russian stores in the neighborhood with a bigger variety of Mediterranean cuisine and treasures from the homeland.
However, this did not translate to all the items in the store, particularly the perishables. I come once in a while and my wife shops here do to need, not want. two very different things. The vegetables here tend to go bad very fast and i heard that Tuesday are the new days for veggie produce and I went there a few times. I was sadly misinformed. The products in the place all nicely shelved and perfectly laid out read like a Tolstoy novel, are all appealing to the eye.
Don’t get me wrong, the inside is beautiful and they have a nice bread selection. But there have been times when I bought some Strawberry Jam, to enjoy it with tea, only to open the Jar and see the whole thing MOLDING from the top down. When my wife went to return it, they had the audacity to say, «if its more than three days old, we cannot return your funds». If i was there, it would have been a different story of the ridicule and hell storm I would have rained down on them for saying something so stupid. HELLO: the customer is always and irrevocably always right!!! Don’t even get me started on the unsophisticated and rude employees that work there who don’t speak a lick of english and say stupid comments about the customers in Russian. The things have never been directed at me but a little FYI: i fully understand what you guys say and some of you guys need to grow up quick. NEW York will surely consume you, swish you around in its sewer drenched mouth and spit back bone.
To reiterate my initial statement, we come here due to need, not want, particularly because my wife lacks of an automobile. However, i have been going to Trader Joes much more often and will definitely continue to do so.
PS: Netcost Management: Hire better and professional employes.

I’ve now been here twice — both times walking in optimistically, thinking I’d find something even remotely resembling quality. And, both times, walking out in a huff, appalled at both the food and the service.
One star for what appear to be decent organic vegetables.
Minus a hundred for the unreasonably snobby girl at the caviar case — who will never get a job anywhere requiring brains and/​or human decency — chlorine smell, and unappetizing EVERYTHING.