Photos show how terrible New York City's grocery stores are compared to the Midwest
Talia Lakritz
- New York City grocery stores are about half the size of the average US supermarket.
- As a Midwesterner living in NYC, I miss shopping for groceries in giant superstores.
When I lived in the Midwest, I looked forward to grocery shopping. Browsing spacious stores with seemingly endless aisles of products to try felt like an enjoyable outing. (Granted, there's not much else to do in my small Wisconsin hometown.)
Upon moving to New York City, trips to the city's small, crowded, hectic supermarkets became a chore.
A 2009 grocery-store analysis by New York City's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene found that New York City supermarkets are about half the size of the average US grocery store, with 1.5 square feet per person compared to 3 square feet per person.
New York City has gained some larger supermarket locations since then, like a new 82,000-square-foot Wegmans at Astor Place, but they only serve some parts of the city and remain the exception.
While there are many great things about living in New York City, these photos show how the grocery stores I shop at pale in comparison to the Midwestern chains I know and love.
Grocery stores in the Midwest are so large that they seem to go on forever.
At Midwestern chains like Piggly Wiggly, the wide aisles leave plenty of space for shopping carts. The high ceilings also help the space feel larger.
Even the new Wegmans in New York City features smaller aisles and shorter shelves than Midwestern superstores.
The Wegmans location, which opened at 770 Broadway in October, spans 82,000 square feet and features two levels of groceries and takeout counters.
In my experience, it almost feels like a Midwestern grocery store because it's much larger and fancier than many other supermarkets I've visited in the city. Even so, the low ceilings, narrow aisles, and smaller shelves make it feel a bit more cramped than stores in the Midwest.
At Trader Joe's in the Midwest, I don't usually have to wait in long checkout lines.
When I visited a Trader Joe's in Milwaukee in November, each checkout line contained only two or three people.
In New York City, shopping at Trader Joe's can be a stressful experience with a line that wraps around the entire store.
Like many Manhattan Trader Joe's shoppers, I often get in the back of the line and continue to shop as it advances.
Similar to Wegmans, the Trader Joe's location I visited on 72nd Street features underground levels. On the second lower level, I noticed my phone didn't have service because it was so far down.
The produce aisles at Midwestern grocery stores like Sendik's offer a huge selection arranged in artful displays.
Sendik's, a family-owned grocery chain in Wisconsin, operates 18 stores across Wisconsin.
In my local Manhattan supermarkets, the produce aisle is often squished in alongside other grocery items.
The narrow aisles also offer a narrower produce selection.
Sendik's also sells the kinds of housewares and gifts you'd expect to find in a boutique.
When I visited in November, the selection included platters, glassware, cheese boards, and pillows.
New York grocery stores sell some kitchen tools, but nothing decorative enough to gift wrap.
To maximize space, the kitchen items in some Manhattan supermarkets are stored above the shelves.
Midwestern grocery chains like Meijer also include large wellness, pharmacy, and beauty sections.
When I go grocery shopping in the Midwest, I enjoy the convenience of picking up toiletries, painkillers, and makeup during the same trip.
New York City supermarkets tend to only stock a few basics.
Instead of several aisles of health-and-wellness items, the grocery stores I frequent in New York City just have a small selection of necessities.
At Metro Market in the Midwest, shoppers can sit and eat their purchases in a sunny dining area.
A subsidiary of Kroger, Metro Market's seating area features a stone fireplace, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a TV.
In New York City, every inch of real estate is used as retail space.
While a few nationwide grocery chains like Whole Foods do offer seating areas in some New York City locations, it's a rare find.
Even though I've lived in New York for over a decade, I still pine for Midwestern grocery stores.
It's one of many surprising differences between the two regions I've discovered since my move.
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