Dominick’s Supermarket, Bucktown, Chicago
I am used to tiny supermarkets, bodegas and gourmet groceries where the aisles are barely big enough to walk down. I am used to a limited selection at each store. To only being able to purchase only as many groceries as I can carry on a 10-block walk back to my apartment.
You would think that having access to these huge supermarkets with 536 choices for what type of bread you want to buy and aisles you can drive a Hummer down would be heaven, but the truth is I get kind of lost. My head spins. I’m like that guy in that commercial who stands in front of the bread for 10 minutes just staring at it. And I end up buying hardly any groceries. I’m not the “stock up” kind of person. I’m more of the “buy what you need for that day” kind of person. Which could be a problem because Chicago isn’t set up like New York, with a bodega on every corner. But I’ll get used to it, I’m sure. And I won’t always have access to a car so I will learn to stock up and take advantage when I do.
29 responses so far ↓
1 tien // Apr 13, 2004 at 9:18 am
sheesh, wood floors in a grocery store?!? a bit much, no?
2 janelle // Apr 13, 2004 at 9:44 am
i appreciate the charm of frequent stops at the nyc corner deli, but there’s nothing like a trip to the supermarket.
3 Jason Zada // Apr 13, 2004 at 10:07 am
Welcome to the land of the big. Everything relating to food seems so much bigger in Chicago. Wonder why…. hmm…
4 Michael Dietsch // Apr 13, 2004 at 10:38 am
I moved from Indiana to NYC two years ago, and I was stunned by how claustrophobic even groceries like Key Food and Dags were, let alone the bodegas. Now, when I look at your pictures, I’m shocked by how large that Dominick’s is. I guess it’s all what you get used to.
5 JP.. // Apr 13, 2004 at 10:40 am
I wish Atlanta had mini marts….Service would be better. :/
6 dy // Apr 13, 2004 at 10:50 am
Our grocery store is so popular here, people visit it when they come from out of town - Wegmans.com is the site. They even started their own restaurant. Alas, no pictures on the site, so you can’t admire it’s beauty.
7 dahl // Apr 13, 2004 at 11:37 am
see, in new york the grocery stores aren’t big because they don’t need to be - the kitchens are so small that people can’t buy in bulk even if they wanted to!
8 Kel // Apr 13, 2004 at 12:46 pm
Rachelle, you should come on up to Ottawa (Ontario) and see the largest Loblaws in the country. I don’t even know if you can call them grocery stores anymore…you can even buy furniture! Crazy!
9 hubs // Apr 13, 2004 at 12:56 pm
you’ll either get used to it or starve.
10 Julia // Apr 13, 2004 at 1:07 pm
Like Dy said, Wegmans is something to behold. I believe we both grew up in Rochester, which is the hometown for Wegmans. Once you move somewhere that doesn’t have this grocery store, you realize how much you love the place! I would be lost without this store. Really. I live off the store-brand items. Plus, it’s nice to be able to grab a cup of chai to drink at the little in-store cafe while you shop.
11 Nan // Apr 13, 2004 at 1:50 pm
If Dominick’s makes your head spin, I want to take you to Woodman’s - blast from the past. I haven’t been to one in ages, but I remember it being more like a warehouse than a store. Super Wal-marts are getting out of hand as well. We don’t have one around us, but Appleton/Oshkosh has them.
12 CJ // Apr 13, 2004 at 4:28 pm
It sucks doesn’t it, I HATE all of the grocery stores in Texas, they are so huge(football field size I swear) that by the time you walk in from the parking lot(also huge)you need to use one of those motorized scooters for the elderly to get to the dairy section and avoid passing out. And of course the milk is at the very back of the store. But like they say, everything is bigger in Texas, including the people, you think having them walk 2 miles to get a gallon a milk would help the obesity rates go down here.
13 Reinhard // Apr 13, 2004 at 5:21 pm
on my page http://reinhardkirsch.dsc24×7web.de/
mt/wa/pictures.php?dir=24
you can see very nice small markets on Bern Switzerland.
14 anonymous loser // Apr 13, 2004 at 7:01 pm
Okay, I live in flyover land. What’s a bodega?
15 cracker // Apr 13, 2004 at 7:10 pm
bodegas are convenience stores, typically owned by a a person of hispanic descdent. They’re everywhwre in NY. They are small, and sometimes dirty, but when youre in a bind, they are like heaven.
We used to call them the “corner store” cuz they were always on the corner.
*******************************
i am certain that many nyc apartments in the future will be built without kitchens. instead there will be mini firdges and microwaves built into the walls of living rooms. Add a small sink, and you’re all set. who needs a kitchen in ny, when you have food choices everywhere
16 rachelleb // Apr 13, 2004 at 7:23 pm
i’ve already seen apartments in nyc like that. i once looked at a 200 square foot studio in the village that was renting for about $950/month + utilities and it only had a mini fridge and a burner built into the counter of the only room, besides the bathroom, of the apartment.
new yorkers love their bodegas.. because of space constraints in the city and because of the abundance of really really good restaurants, we’re always dropping by the bodega for just the bare necessities. and because there’s one on just about every corner you come to be possessive of yours. so i always had my deli/bodega by my apartment and the one by work.. i would stop in every night and buy water or soda or bread or ice cream.. coffee in the morning. they’re always open so in the middle of the night i would struggle in there drunk looking for something to satisfy my munchies. you come to know the people who work there, and they come to know you. i’ve heard many stories, and have some of my own, of people getting to know their deli and the workers there and them having what they need for you ready as soon as you walk in the door. i think when my parents were in town i even introduced my dad to the guy that i saw every single day in my bodega. except i didnt know his name so i said “dad, this is the deli guy. deli guy, this is my dad”
17 Mark Shewmaker // Apr 13, 2004 at 9:31 pm
One benefit that should be mentioned when discussing bodegas is free delivery. My wife and I used to have beer, ice cream, etc. delivered to us from the bodega (literally) across the street from our SoHo apartment because we didn’t want to climb down (then back up) our five flights of stairs.
Let’s not forget kozmo.com:
http://disobey.com/ghostsites/show_exhibit/kozmo
I think they may have shut down before you moved to NYC…
18 mom // Apr 13, 2004 at 9:32 pm
Yeah, I remember that ! you did introduce dad like that ! He said you looked like him ! and he knew what you wanted and what you drank!
Kel: We’re going to be in Ottawa end of May for the marathon. our 30th anniv and your’s too.
19 rachelleb // Apr 13, 2004 at 9:54 pm
mom, i dont think that kel is any one that you know. but maybe she has some ottawa tips for you, since it seems like she lives there. i think he knew i drank diet coke all the time.. it was the 3 brothers in hell’s kitchn, not the place in the village
20 rachelleb // Apr 13, 2004 at 9:55 pm
oh.. yes, and kozmo was before my time in ny
21 william d // Apr 13, 2004 at 10:35 pm
let’s start a pool. Person guessing closest to the date Rachelle gets a car wins! I’m guessing July 15th.
22 rachelleb // Apr 13, 2004 at 10:36 pm
the winner gets to make the payments! whoo! you win, william d!
23 whatisee // Apr 14, 2004 at 1:50 am
Ahh Wegmans. Each one bigger and better than the one before it. Whole Foods gives it a run for the money, not in size (I’m not sure they could possibly be as big as a new Wegmans), but in quality and upscaleness.
As for Chicago and the car, it’s pretty much a necessity isn’t it?
24 Kel // Apr 14, 2004 at 7:47 am
Mom, actually I’m not a girl, I’m a boy - but that’s fine!! .. and yes, I do live in Ottawa and would be happy to give the inside scoop for visiting! Ottawa’s a great place to visit.. and I think one of my friends is competing in the marathon too!
25 rachelleb // Apr 14, 2004 at 8:02 am
a car in chicago is not a necessity. i know plenty of people here who don’t have one.. but a lot of people do. when i came out here to find an apartment i made sure i found one that was close to the subway line that i take to get to work. i’m 3 blocks away. i’m also about 3 blocks or so from a supermarket and a department store and i was conscious about that too when i was looking. it’s different here without a car than in nyc, but it’s definately doable. i think i take more cabs here but the good thing is that friend of mine lives right by me so we split them a lot.
26 kel // Apr 15, 2004 at 6:23 am
Kel: ANY tips or info you can share would be greatly appreciated. Rachelle’s Dad and I are celebrating out 30th wedding anniversary in Ottawa, running the marathon together and it’s also the 30th anniversary for the National Capital Race Weekend Marathon (nearly on the same date)! We’re excited to go and run this one. We’re trying to get all our papers in order as it’s coming up quick ! Please, you can email us direct ! We’d welcome your insight! thanks !
mom
27 willo // Apr 15, 2004 at 6:00 pm
I’m kinda the stock up type of person, but then again I work at home, so I eat most of my meals here (which is probably great money saving) And also when I get really busy, I don’t have time to go out shopping for every meal, let alone a big shopping trip even! So, Safeway.com has become my new friend. Buying $160 worth of groceries that will last me a good 2 weeks or so - and they do all the leg work for me and bring it right to my door - it’s awesome! Might only be in SF so far though.
28 Camilo // Apr 18, 2004 at 8:50 am
Oh, the sense of being lost comes from having many options. Typical to the American cosunmer.
MAtter of fact, I would love to have bodegas around here - too much walmart, too little small business.
29 bandgeek // Aug 23, 2006 at 8:05 am
$160 every 2 weeks for one person? Wow! I spend about $150/week for a family of five and that includes toiletries, my scrapbooking supplies, etc. What are you eating?
Leave a Comment