Tuesday, March 13, 2012


Roosevelt Island Gristedes Image From Roosevelt Island 360


 Gristedes Owner John Catsimatidis and Hudon's David Kramer Town Hall Meeting


Boy, did he get some.









PeaceandPlenty said...

In all the years I have lived here I have seen town halls, letter writing campaigns and so on regarding the supermarkets.  Sometimes things change a little, then slowly go back to pretty much where they were.  With the exception of when the store expanded, I haven't seen all that much to entice me. 

The floors were disgusting 20 years ago and they still are.
The prices were way high 20 years ago and they still are.  Actually, maybe they're even worse, since they are now carrying some higher end products.  The selection on lots of products was limited and still is.

And let's talk gauging, not simply pricing to cover costs, unless I have a total misunderstanding of their costs.  When a gallon of organic milk is $9.49 at Gristedes and $6.29 at Whole Foods, a spotless, well stocked, high end store, something is wrong, and that particular price wasn't a volume issue.  Gristedes doesn't usually sell gallons and I was told they were delivered unexpectedly.  So $9.49???  Regardless of how much money I had, I wouldn't buy that out of principle alone.  I can give you a list of ridiculous prices of a similar nature.  I'll bet I could hire a roundtrip Towncar, travel to a Whole Foods in the fanciest Manhattan neighborhood, have the driver wait, and still come out ahead.

YetAnotherRIer said...

NY State actually has a "Milk Pricing Gouge Law" that prohibits the retail of milk at prices exceeding 200% of what the farmers are paid for the milk (it was relaxed tremendously in 2008, though). I assume there are many gotchas involved in this, though. Selling organic milk at that price you mentioned is not too surprising. What would concern me most is the price of conventional milk which still is quite excessive at Gristedes (again, not just at ours - all Gristedes in NYC are at fail here). Overpriced milk is a NYC phenomenon (http://gothamist.com/2011/09/19/milk_is_not_cheap_not_getting_cheap.php). I get my milk at Costco at $2.80 a gallon or so.

RIresident said...

I only go here on emergencies, maybe 2 times a year. I have been boycotting this place for years. Their meats are green and the prices on non-organic items are higher than the Wholefoods' organic items prices. So ridiculous! Taking advantage of the disabled that can not go to the city. Shame! 

RIresident said...

Thanks for the link! And let's emphasize some of us don't have cars to get to Costco, don't have the time to go there with the bus because we're at work and in the weekends we're already swamped with house work. Let's emphasize we need and want a good store walking distance from our buildings that is reasonable to us. :)

YetAnotherRIer said...

It's a nice 15 minute walk to get to Costco. No need for a bus or a car at all. One of those push shopping carts are excellent for bringing home a week or two supply of milk.

Anonymous said...

Id never shop there for main groceries, just forgotten ingredients, a candybar, or emergency purchase.

CheshireKitty said...

It is tough, but not impossible, to shop at Costco's without a car.  One could call for a cab, however, before leaving the store.  If I'm not mistaken, there are usually some car-service type cabs available by the exit (guys asking if anyone needs a ride).  Another approach is to shop co-operatively with a member who does have a car - have them pick up items for you, then get the food from the friend.  I'm sure many families/relatives buy in quantity at Costco's and then redistribute the food once it's brought home.  

PeaceandPlenty said...

Good food has a price and I expect to pay a fair price for what I want, but $9.49 does indeed seem like gouging.

As for cheap products, the prices we pay for them includes more than just money.  If we want cheap sneakers, the jobs go to other countries so that we can get them, and we lose jobs here.  So the cost of the sneakers is less, but the other costs are high.

If you want $2.80 a gallon milk, you will most likely be getting feedlot milk, where the animals are kept in crowded conditions and fed unnatural diets.  You will also most likely be getting traces of antibiotics and hormones in your milk.  It's a chain reaction.  The milk is $$ cheap, but the total cost is not and some of the cost, such as effect on health, are hard to measure. 

As for Costco organic, visit this website, one among many, to read about the sanctions imposed on their supplier for unlawful practices.  http://www.cornucopia.org/aurora-organic-factory-dairy/

I'd rather purchase half as much milk, of the very best quality, than have gobs of cheap, substandard milk.  That being said, I want that top quality milk at a fair price (not cheap, just fair).  $9.49 is not fair when top prices else where are in the $6 range for the exact same product.

YetAnotherRIer said...

I am glad you can afford this. I cannot spend $18/week on milk alone.

PeaceandPlenty said...

I didn't make any mention of what I can or cannot afford, nor what we spend a week on milk. What I did say is that I would be willing to cut consumption by half if necessary (or more) to get a good quality product, rather than buy more of lesser quality. In fact, one of the biggest points I made was that there are different ways of factoring what the true cost of something is.  If you spend years ingesting antibiotics and hormones, what will the cost be and will you be able to afford it?  How much does healthcare cost? 

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