Met Food Markets

Wish they would stay open for as long as they are supposed to. Gates were down half an hour before they were even officially supposed to close and it wasn’t even a holiday. Won’t be getting any business from me from now on.

Update: Yes, Met is expensive, BUT they have pretty good weekly deals and you can see the circular online/​on your phone. When stuff goes on sale, stock up.

I’m am slightly surprised by the low reviews this place has. I’ve been coming to this spot for 3 years and I am always happy with the products. It’s a well-​kept market with ample choices. Sure, the prices are kinda high but it’s a fully gentrified neighborhood. Around the near vicinity, this is the only supermarket. I usually go for their fruits and sandwiches.

Wish they marked the products on sale with lil price signs next to it so you know about those deals insteada having to ck out the huge annoying newspaper flier. That was my main gripe when I used to shop there b4 way better markets opened up.

Watch out for expiration of best by. I bought a Starbucks Ground Decaf House Blend On Feb 25, 2015. When I got home, I saw it was best by Dec. 2014. So on Mar.3^rd, I brought my receipt & the coffee back. To my surprise they said it was he wrong coffee & I did not buy it there… maybe a Starbucks store??? I showed them the empty space on the shelf where one bag of coffee was when I left the store & they still didn’t even However, I called Starbucks to complain. read the numbers off my receipt and they gave me the refund to my registered card! I love Starbucks!!!

One star for this particular cashier. Very unprofessional, and make unnecessary comments to a customer during the checkout process. I do like the rest of the team at this location, but just this particular cashier completely ruined my shopping experience here.

I have had it with this place!
I live across the street, so of course I keep coming back because it is convenient, but THREE times now I have bought rotten/​off produce.
1. Bad chicken– I opened the package and it stank. They did, grudgingly, let me exchange it
2. Rotten garlic– I didn’t even know you could buy bad garlic until I bought mushy, decomposing garlic from this place
3. The final straw– the packaged feta I bought had pink mold on it. Had to throw it out
So, my advice is to avoid the ‘fresh’ food if at all possible, and the supermarket altogether if you can.

As far as neighborhood supermarkets go, it serves its purpose. It’s in a convenient location, i don’t have to wait on a long line most times (avoid friday after work hours if you can), the aisles are fairly clean, the shelves are stocked, and the produce is decent. But it’s no whole foods. Not by a long shot.
I’m a value shopper, i.e. I enjoy looking for and buying items that are on sale. I don’t think i’m alone here. Given that, my biggest qualm is that they OFTEN do not have sale items listed in their circular! I know it’s a chain supermarket and that not all items listed in the circular will be in my local store, but a LOT of the sale items are not available in this Mulberry Street location. And in my experience, if you do buy items that are on sale, you should watch the register carefully to make sure the correct price goes through. It is incorrect about 20% of the time.
I had one bad experience– i bought some calabaza squash that was on sale for $ 0.79 a pound. When it went through the register, the cashier typed in another kind of squash which was $ 2.99 a pound (a big difference!) so i told her it’s the squash that is on sale and then showed her the circular with the picture and pointed to the squash. She said «No that’s one the same squash». I said «Yes it is — it looks just like that». She called the manager who agreed with the cashier so I told her I didn’t want it anymore. I understand it was a «She said/​He said» situation and that maybe they really thought it was another type of squash. But what a waste of time…

«Beggars can’t be choosy» — classic mom phrase that I tell myself EVERY TIME I come here.
This place has a larger selection of foods than the average mart with lots of recognizable brand names, but everything is overpriced.
To my fellow vegetarians, they carry tofu (several brands) and Morning Star products.
For the pickle affectionado, they carry Claussen.
DO NOT buy any type of «fresh» produce here. I have given it many tries but the lettuce is consistently wilty, the onions are mushy, the avocados are hard as rocks… the list is endless. If you are desperate, buy the packaged lettuce. They sell Organic Girl for about $ 5 and I have yet to have an issue with the freshness.
I’ve never gotten anything from their deli counter, but they do have one. 99% sure they have Boar’s Head products.
Biggest pro: there is no minimum for credit card purchases, AND they take Amex.

Go here to avoid Whole Foods, but it’s not the best in town, here’s why:
PROS
Decent variety
Good quality brands
Larger than the average corner grocery
Good for last minute purchases
Simple Layout
CONS
Two check out counters (you could wait 10 minutes to check out)
Small alcohol selection
Over-​Priced!
TINY freezer section
TIP: Don’t go here to buy in bulk

This place is horrible. The staff are unfriendly and bordering rude. They grunt at you at the checkout and don’t even try asking a question.
The prices are nuts, really high and hugelyinconsistent. Same item can chang prices wildy over different days, never the same as advertised on the shelf. As I say no point asking the staff, just get grunts and mumbles.
Never buy any produce, of any kind. Not fruit, not vegetables and especially not meat. The fruit is nearly rotten when you buy it, so eat is straight away. Never buy the meat, unless you particularly enjoy food borne illness.
All in all, would give it 0 stars rude.

«How I Met Your Supermarket»
Working in SOHO for years had led me to discover this little grocery store delight.
Stocked with EVERYTHING you need it allows you to be a human who doesn’t have to hand over their first born to Dean and Deluca.
i actually ended up buying more than I went in for. Layout is easy and simple to navigate.
If you didn’t know this place was here, well you never will. It’s a total happenstance to stumble upon, but would become your neighborhood grocer if you live in proximity.
She would take Gristedes (aka Gristinkies) any day.

I’m glad to see this place survived as long as it has. It used to have MET FOOD SUPERMARKET signage outside, but now the neighborhood has gentrified, it’s just black. Minimal sale signs, and only if you’re old school and frugal like me you’ll actually pick up a circular.

I go here for all my grocery shopping needs. Actually, I only go here for American goods since it’s the closest of all the American supermarkets in the area. It is a bit on the small side, but it’s big enough for the neighborhood. The store never really gets crowded. If the cashier line is long, they tend to open up a new lane. The employees are very helpful. Fruits and vegetables are consistently fresh. I don’t really pay attention to pricing when it comes to grocery shopping so I can’t comment on whether it’s cheaper than Whole Foods or Hong Kong Market.
Thumbs up for keeping this neighborhood market alive and well despite cheaper Chinatown markets blocks away or the heavyweight Whole Foods nearby on Houston and Bowery.

Sgahskjs

As far as neighborhood supermarkets go, this is the only one. And because of this, it’s not particularly good.
If you can manage, go to Whole Foods on Houston instead. Unless you need something name-​brand. (WF doesn’t carry V8, etc.)

This is more of a convenience store than a supermarket, hence the prices being higher than anywhere else in the area.
Don’t make the same mistake that I did purchasing poultry or meat from the display. Each time I did so I was slapped in the face with the smell after opening the packaging at my apartment. Would you buy poultry from 7-​Eleven? Dont even think about buying anything with a «Managers Special» sticker on it. These items will literally kill you as they’re always past the sell by date.
Take special care to look at the sell by dates on everything you buy, including packaged snacks, obviously dairy, etc.
Their deli counter is their saving grace… kind of. It takes about (no exaggeration here) 8 – 10 minutes to make a sandwich. If you come here with 2 co-​workers, plan to be there for 30 minutes, no joke. At this point I’ll only buy something if it’s canned, dry goods, or produce that I can inspect myself.
Unfortunately there are no better options in the area unless you want to trek to Whole Foods.
EDIT: Since my first review on 3÷22÷11 this place has made some substantial changes that have greatly improved the store and I’ll now give them 3 instead of 1 star. I would prefer 2.5 stars but that’s not an option.
They now carry Murray’s poultry which is always fresh and kept at the right temperature. The butcher fridge in general is stocked with much better food, and it’s always fresh and looking good.
The deli counter has been redone and is now staffed with people that can make a sandwich in under 5 minutes… Gone are the days when you ordered onion on your sandwich and the guy went around the counter to pick up a whole onion and slice it. They’re actually sliced before hand now!

I’ve stopped in here a couple of times for random things, beer, wine, snacks, and the such. I guess it’s the most convenient place if you’re in the area and you’re too far (or cheap) to go to Whole Foods. But the prices aren’t exactly competitive (so you can’t be that cheap) either.
But hey, they stock the essentials. Sometimes you have the market cornered and you can take advantage of it. Sure it’s an evil, but it’s still necessary.

The only reason I go here is for American goods I can’t find in Chinatown. Even American goods in Chinatown are cheaper than this place.
Here are some price comparisons with my favorite Chinatown grocery store nearby, Hong Kong Supermarket.
Bananas: $ 0.99/lb at Met vs. $ 0.59/lb at HK
Tropicana OJ: $ 4.19 at Met vs. $ 3.59 at HK
Kraft Shredded Cheese: $ 4.99 at Met vs. $ 3.49 at HK (and at HK they had a cheaper brand at $ 2.49, whereas Kraft is the cheapest option at Met)
I’ve also found that the pricing of goods is inconsistent. For instance, the shelf says a good is $ 2.99 but the label on it says $ 2.59. I like to know exact prices, and Met just doesn’t provide them.
HOWEVER, they do have decent sales. Last time I was there the bananas were on sale for 49 cents a pound, and the yogurts were 2 for $ 1. So watch out for the sales, as they are much more reasonable.
I’d say this is only a good option if you’re looking for goods you can’t find in Chinatown or you need groceries after 8 PM.

Eh. There’s a good selection of food, but everything’s overpriced. Also, the cashiers are. not very bright, to say the least. The eggs I bought broke because one cashier placed the eggs at the bottom of the bag. Another time when I brought my own bags, the cashier got super confused and offended for some strange, unknown reason… Another time, a cashier wouldn’t bag anything for me ’cause she was in a bad mood.
…Basically, every time I leave this grocery store I leave in a bad mood. Time to find another place.