Alabama-based Renfoe’s Market has six stores in the state and is famed for excellent customer service, with staff always on hand and happy to help with anything from locating products to bagging groceries and carrying them out to people’s cars. Customers love the fact that the family-run store stocks so much regional produce too, from bagged salads to locally raised meats.
IGA Food Cache is the place to stock up on Alaskan specialties from baked goods to fresh fruit and vegetables. A real community favorite, the store is known for its helpful staff and warm welcome to all customers. You can also pick up hot food items including delicious soups. The store closed in late 2021 after the roof collapsed under heavy snow and ice, and is temporarily located at the neighboring Beverage Cellar while the rebuild takes place – check the Facebook page for updates.
Arizona has a thriving food scene so it's no surprise that there are some excellent stores in the state. If you love seafood, Mekong Supermarket is a must-visit in Mesa. The 40,000 square foot store is located in the Mekong Plaza mall and stocks Vietnamese, Mediterranean, and Latino ingredients that are difficult to source elsewhere. It has fruit, vegetables, meat, poultry, and the largest live seafood selection in the area.
Edwards Food Giant, with several locations in Little Rock plus others around the state, is known for its excellent deli selection and meat counters, where knowledgable butchers prepare cuts of meat daily and even make sausages in-house. It’s a great option for lunch or dinner on the go too, with a range of hot food options such as fried chicken, catfish, meatloaf, macaroni cheese, and cornbread.
This family-owned grocery in Sacramento has been around since the 1940s and is still extremely popular today. Inside you’ll find interesting wines and spirits, specialty products like pomegranate molasses, candied ginger, and toasted couscous, a meat counter and deli bar with olives, cheese, and charcuterie. It’s the freshly made sandwiches – packed with meat, cheese and salad big enough to last two meals – that really get people talking though.
A fourth-generation family business in Fort Morgan, Edwards Right Price Market is loved by nearly all who visit. The unassuming store, here since 1933, has a fantastic meat counter with ready-to-cook options such as bacon-wrapped chicken and marinated pork. There’s also a deli, bakery, locally grown fruit and vegetables, and a fabulous florist, while display boards tell the story of how the store came to be.
Once dubbed 'the Disneyland of dairy stores', Stew Leonard’s is perfect for parents shopping with kids. There are now several stores in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York. The first store, in Norwalk, opened in 1969 as a retail dairy where children could watch milk being bottled while parents shopped. It's come a long way since then and now every section has theatrical performances from characters like Clover the Cow and the in-store ‘band’ – a set of mechanized puppets called the Farm Fresh Five.
You’ll find everything from flour to furniture at Byler’s Store. This wonderfully old-fashioned grocery and general store has shelves heaving with everything from spices, herbs, cheese, and bread, to house products, decorations, and lotions. The bakery is particularly good, and customers recommend picking up ready-to-eat items like delicious sandwiches and ice cream. It’s great value too.
According to a study, retail therapy is real – with shopping at Publix proving an especially positive experience for customers and even making them happy. The Florida-founded chain has stores throughout the southeastern states. The stores are impressive – for example, the Daytona Beach branch has a huge deli section often hosting cooking demos, a restaurant, and even a drive-thru.
This 140,000 square foot store, just outside Atlanta, is the place to go for ingredients you can’t find anywhere else. Dekalb Farmers Market has hundreds of varieties of fruit and vegetables along with a selection of live seafood, a meat counter, cheese aisle, and organic bakery. You can also pick up some delicious ready meals, pay a visit to the florist or stock up from a great selection of beers and wines. Fans reckon it’s one of a kind.
Residents are big fans of the Foodland Farms store in Honolulu’s Ala Moana district. The largest of the regional chain's 30-odd locations, it’s well-stocked with local provisions from incredible poke, sushi, and musubi (spam sushi) to whole roast kalbi and char siu chickens and guava barbecue rib tips. Other specialties worth looking out for are lilikoi (passionfruit) donuts and sweet potato haupia (coconut milk) tarts. There’s even a wine bar.
For grocery prices that are lower than low, WinCo – an employee-owned grocery chain in the western states – is the place to go. You may have to sacrifice having your bags being packed for you but it’s worth it for the great-value produce, quality selection and friendly staff. There are often extra discounts when bulk-buying goods at the Moscow store.
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There’s a lot to see in the Windy City but you should make time for a visit to Gene’s Sausage Shop. This independent grocery store, run by Polish brothers, stocks a fabulous selection of goods including family-recipe smoked sausage, Polish delicacies such as cabbage rolls, schnitzel, goulash, and stuffed duck, rustic breads, and candy imported from Europe. It’s also full of delightful quirks, like the rooftop beer and wine garden and resident life-size cow sculpture.
Opened by two Korean brothers, Saraga International Grocery store on Commercial Drive is a 62,000 square foot megastore. Head there for dumplings and leave with mangoes, sugarcane, rice pudding, noodles, and crab legs. The fish counter is especially good. It’s so popular that Saraga opened two more stores – a second in Indianapolis and one in Columbus.
The Hawkeye State’s favorite supermarket is without a doubt Hy-Vee, a coupon-loving, employee-owned Midwestern chain where you can order some seriously elaborate birthday cakes. The Waterfront branch in Iowa City is many people’s favorite due to its huge selection and excellent customer service, with staff regularly going above and beyond.
Mexican food fans must visit Bonito Michoacan in Kansas City. There's a butcher, grocer, bakery, and café filled with specialties from south of the border. Stumble across tamarind and guava soda, wheels of queso fresco cheese, tortillas, dried chilies, churros, and tres leches cake. The $1 tacos on Tuesdays are also a must – although these are some of the best tacos around on any day of the week.
A store that gives back to the community, the Good Foods Co-op in Lexington works with farmers and producers to supply local food. It’s seasonal, sustainable, and organic, with plenty of vegan, gluten-free, and restricted diet options. What’s more, the Co-Op runs a program where purchases are rounded up to the next dollar with the extra change going to good causes.
If you want local flavor, skip the national chains and head to The Best Stop in Scott, just outside Lafayette. This family-owned Cajun grocery store sells award-winning boudin (pork, rice, and spices in a sausage case), cracklins (pork skin), smoked sausage, jerky, hog head cheese (a kind of spiced pork pâté), crawfish tails, and other local favorites. It’s all delicious.
When this branch of sustainable supermarket chain Hannaford opened on Cony Street, Augusta in 2009 it was named the greenest greengrocer in the USA. It has geothermal wells to heat the store, refrigerators with doors, skylights, and shelves designed to optimize natural light, and strict management of energy, water, and waste.
With a wide range of organic and local produce alongside international favorites, all under the same roof, Streets Market has pretty much everything you need. It’s on the pricey side compared to some stores but the quality is high and there’s a good selection of hot and ready-made food you can grab for a quick lunch or dinner. The small chain has three Baltimore locations plus several in Washington DC.
Some of the best prices in Massachusetts can be found at Market Basket, a regional chain founded in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1917 and now with stores throughout New England. The Waltham branch is a customer favorite, with people going for the pastries, clam chowder, sushi bar, and prepared foods such as pizzas, burgers, and fries. Stores will also often take requests to stock new products.
A wholesome family-owned grocery that stocks local produce in Grand Rapids, Kingma’s Market has won a loyal following thanks to its wide range of produce and its famous wall of candy (pictured). There’s a huge selection of wines and beers, plus health foods such as tempeh (meat substitute made from soy) sausages, kombucha, and miso paste. There’s also a large selection of house plants.
This grocery store, located in the heart of Eat Street in Minneapolis, is all about benefiting the community. To start, every grocery worker is a volunteer. Volunteers are compensated for a few hours' work each month with a 20% discount, and savings are passed on to the customers with food sold at lower prices. The store also prides itself on its commitment to sustainability and its programs, which support people struggling with food insecurity. The public agrees, with shoppers claiming Good Grocer is a perfect example of a community-supported business.
Family-owned general store Williams Brothers has been serving the good folk of Philadelphia since 1907. It’s full of surprises, from grocery items such as slab bacon, cheese that's sliced to order, and sweet potato pecan pies, alongside clothes including Levi's jeans. If you find yourself in town, be sure to try the hoop cheese (made from just milk, with all the whey pressed out).
Gourmet food fans should head directly to Cosentino’s Market in Kansas City’s downtown (there’s also another in the city and one in Overland Park, Kansas). It has a cheese counter, bakery, wine and spirits department, fresh produce, meat, seafood, and a range of fine and specialty foods. Plus, the beautiful interiors make shopping a pleasure – and you can order fabulous occasion cakes too.
Good Food Store is a non-profit grocer that has been around for more than 40 years, set up by a group of friends as a bulk-buying cooperative. It has local produce, ready-to-eat foods, an organic meat department, and cooking demos. Shoppers can’t get enough of the deli counter offerings, huge range of beautifully fresh produce, and the fact that you can buy pretty much anything in bulk.
This family-owned grocery in Lincoln is beloved by locals. Specialties at Lincoln Mediterranean Market include freshly baked naan and pita, ready-made hummus, pickles, stuffed grape leaves, baklava and Turkish coffee, plus unexpected household items like naan griddles. There’s a wonderful selection of fresh fruit and vegetables too, with a particular focus on varieties used in Mediterranean cuisine.
Great Basin Community Food Co-op is the place to stock up on fruit, veggies and meats in Reno. The community-owned store, which started in a garage in 2005, has a juice bar, house-baked croissants and pastries, grass-fed meat, alcohol, and a café. But the highlights are the fresh produce and groceries from local suppliers, with clear signs giving information on provenance.
A trip to family-owned grocery Ralph’s Supermarket is as much a social occasion as it is a food shop for residents of the tiny town of Charlestown. Open since 1970, Ralph’s is such a local favorite that many customers have been coming here for 50-odd years. Fans praise the friendly staff, while you’ll find quality produce at the meat section and the deli counter, which sells pizzas, salads, and grinders (sub sandwiches).
Owned by Westside Market, which is based in New York, Maywood’s Marketplace is both a grocery store and a place to pick up the next best thing to home-cooked meals. The deli selections are particularly praised, with customers raving about the delicious cheeses and marinated olives. The fresh produce is impeccable quality too.
On University Avenue, Toucan Market is an independent grocery store that stocks local products and Mexican ingredients including salsa, eggs, tortillas, spices, and fresh chilies. There’s a vibrant selection of fresh fruit and vegetables too, plus great bakery and deli sections. And the store has a loyal fanbase: in 2018, when it was at risk of closure, customers flocked to help it stay in business.
There’s always excitement when a new Wegmans opens, and the popular grocery store’s arrival in Brooklyn in 2019 was no exception. People began lining up at dawn for it to open, despite the cold and rainy winter weather. The chain, which was founded in Rochester, New York and has locations in seven states, has even been named one of the top 10 supermarkets in the US. People love the wide range of delicious prepared foods and the fact that you can find pretty much anything here.
Harris Teeter was founded in Matthews, North Carolina in 1936 and now has stores across seven Southern states. Customers especially love the selection of meats and prepared foods, with options such as sushi, pizza, soup, and salad. Other pluses include a thoughtfully curated wine selection, free cookies (sometimes dished out by the store’s mascot, Harry the Happy Dragon), and a genuinely good rewards scheme.
Hornbacher’s is North Dakota’s favorite supermarket chain, with half a dozen locations in Fargo and a few others elsewhere in the state. Head to Newport for the most luxurious experience: the relatively new store has wider aisles and checkouts, a meat, seafood and deli section, homeware, and outdoor seating. There’s even a coffee shop, florist, smokehouse, and custom cake service.
Cincinati’s Oakley Station is home to the largest Kroger store, a 145,000 square foot food paradise decorated with murals by local artists and home to a very popular bulk-buy section. There’s also a cheese shop, sushi, Starbucks, health clinic, and even a drive-thru, and shoppers can grab a glass of wine or do a tasting at the onsite bar. Kroger was established in Cincinnati in 1883 and, though the company now has around 2,800 stores nationwide (including Fred Meyer and Food4Less), it remains an Ohio favorite.
Whether or not you’re specifically looking for Asian ingredients, Super Cao Nguyen is a good option for inexpensive groceries. The store is in Oklahoma City’s Asian District, or Little Saigon, where many Vietnamese immigrants settled in the 1970s. Inside, you’ll find a wonderful bakery, fresh seafood, meat counter, deli, tropical fruit, and homeware.
Like freshly baked bread? New Seasons Market claims to be one of the first grocery stores in the US to have an organic in-house bakery. The Woodstock store in Portland gets high praise for its selection, with customers particularly loving the selection of cakes. While you’re there, stop for a bite to eat at the wok or ramen bar, or grab a beer on the rooftop.
There’s only one place to go for cheese in Pittsburgh and that’s the aptly named Pennsylvania Macaroni Co. The family-owned supermarket, which specializes in Italian foods, has been going since 1902. People come to stock up on marinara sauce, pasta, antipasto, olive oils, and other imported Italian goods. But the biggest draw is the vast cheese cabinet; the mozzarella, freshly made in-house, comes highly recommended.
The flagship store of Dave’s Fresh Marketplace in East Greenwich makes shopping feel easy. The largest of its stores, all of which are based in Rhode Island, wins praise for its cleanliness and great deli selections. Pick up one of its prepared options for dinner, from sushi and dim sum to freshly made pizza. The store also carries all the fresh produce, grocery staples, and specialty foods you might want too.
Checkouts marked by surfboards, a swimwear department, and a lighthouse out front; Boulineau’s, in North Myrtle Beach, isn’t your average grocery store. Its coastal location is celebrated throughout, and there’s plenty to pick up for a picnic on the beach too, from sandwiches and sushi to steaks for the barbecue. You’ll also find great cakes and a wonderful selection of hot food to go or eat in.
The locally owned Sunshine Foods in Madison is loved by its community and equally believes in giving back. Part of a small chain, with stores in South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa, it stocks local and regional ingredients and fundraises for good causes. The staff are also super friendly and ready to assist shoppers with groceries to their cars.
The people of Nashville love The Turnip Truck, which prides itself on its local identity. There are three stores in Nashville and each sells mostly organic produce, championing sustainable produce sourced from regional farms and local makers. Customers love the selection of delicious hot food and that there’s a good range of vegetarian and vegan options.
A Texan chain through and through, H-E-B started out as a store in the small town of Kerrville in 1905 and there are now 125 locations in the state. Some staff have been employed here for several decades and the customer service is considered second to none. A real community spirit is part of the chain’s charm, with many branches hosting customer events and employees going the extra mile to make sure everything from meat from the butcher’s counter to celebration cakes from the bakery are spot on.
Rancho Markets is your one-stop shop for incredible Mexican food in Utah. Loved as much for its restaurant as its groceries, the regional chain sells bright, fresh produce and baked goods, so you can fill your trolley with everything from fat artichokes and avocados to churros, empanadas, and tres leches (three milks) cake. Then try some of the best tacos, quesadillas, and gorditas (stuffed pastries) served anywhere in the state. There are several stores in Salt Lake City plus other areas including Provo and Ogden.
Often compared to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s, City Market is a community-owned grocery with two stores in Burlington. Each offers fresh fruit and vegetables and speciality foods from Vermont farms and producers. Customers also love the fact that you can get kombucha on tap, while the hot bar serves healthy options like vegan chili and sesame noodles.
There’s only one Ellwood Thompson’s and it’s considered the best grocery shop in Virginia. The local market and health store caters to organic, vegan and eco-friendly lifestyles with home supplies, a coffee and juice bar, baked goods, fresh produce, bulk-buy goods, and ready-to-eat meals. The vegan ‘chicken’ salad and vegan cheese deserve particular plaudits.
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The flagship Uwajimaya in Seattle opened in 1928, and has stuck to its original ethos of celebrating Asian food culture and the best ingredients from the Pacific Northwest. This is about more than groceries – the prepared foods, like Chinese roast duck and bao buns, are incredible. If that isn’t enough, there’s even a bookstore and food hall inside. There are two other Washington locations, in Bellevue and Renton, plus one in Beaverton, Oregon.
This beautiful shop stocks speciality produce, edible gifts, and good-quality meat. The Wild Ramp is like a farmers’ market housed in a grocery store. Everything is local and seasonal and 80% of sales go directly to the producer. The store also hosts regular events including Stinkfest, an annual food festival celebrating the ramp (wild leek) the market is named after.
Founded in 1919, when it was merely a grocery stand, Woodman’s Market is still hugely popular today. This store may not have a deli bar or the fancy ready meals stocked at many newer grocery stores but that’s all part of its charm. Instead, you’ll find aisle after aisle of fresh produce and groceries at great prices. The Janesville location, which is employee-owned, is the original, the biggest and, for many customers, the best.
Aside from the usual big chains, good grocery stores are hard to come by in Wyoming. Grant Street Grocery and Market is an exception. Its shelves and fridges are stocked with artisan goods such as raspberry vanilla jam and lemon garlic bratwurst. Then there’s the kitchen, where you can get a delicious veggie burger or enchilada. But the best part is the cheese counter, with cranberry Cheddar, bourbon gouda, and asiago.