M Street Grocery

What «Closing sale» … yeah really. If you can get there tonight something you need might be 10% off… or something you just want… but be forewarned I got the last nail polish remover… ftw.

R.I.P. M Street Grocery Store
I am sad to say that today is M Street Grocery’s last day in business. I have lived above the store for almost three years now and it was so nice to just be able to run downstairs for some sour cream or a latte or more toilet paper whenever I needed it. I really enjoyed calling ahead to order a freshly cooked breakfast from Brian, their chef extraordinaire, and picking it up a few minutes later. Their barista, Krystyna, was always so friendly and personable along with so many of the staff who worked there. I thought the prices were reasonable and the selection superb for such a little store.
The M Street Building Management said the closure is due to the neighborhood’s lack of supporting the grocery store but when I stopped by the store this morning, the owner put up a sign saying that the Building Management raised the rent and thinks that they’ll be able to achieve higher rent objectives with a different business in the space. Unfortunately, there is an oversupply of retail space available on this corner with vacancies under the Landes Apartments, not to mention the empty building on 7^th & Madison.
At any rate, the loss of M Street can be your short-​term gain. Prices are slashed and so if you live in the area, it’s worth a visit today. It is a sad day on 8^th and Madison.

I love you M Street Grocery. You make life so much better. :D
They have a tasty little coffee shop, tons of groceries packed into a small building and great prices. (Oh yeah, a decent wine/​alcohol selection)
The only downside is that they are only open until 10pm, but still. It’s walking distance from my place, and it’s perfect for when I run out of one or two items and don’t feel like getting in the car to drive to QFC on broadway or something.
Plus, the staff is always very friendly and helpful. :) I am an M Street Market customer for life now.

NOt only do I come here every day for coffee /​groceries /​cat food, but the staff is always nice, always welcoming and i have never had a problem with the place. In fact, when I first moved to Seattle, I went to buy groceries there and my card was refused due to a bank error. As I waited for my friend to come help me out, one staff member felt bad for me (I was somewhat embarrassed) and offered me a cup of coffee.
May seem small, but it’s that kind of compassion I wish I saw more of these days.
Thank you, M Street for being my beacon of light and coffee on dark days.
I have to especially commend the coffee area staff for knowing my order by heart, especially Ms. Krystina. (I know I spelled that wrong)
I would HIGHLY recommend this place to anyone. I consider it my «Cheers» grocery because it’s very neighborly and well, at this point, most know my name or my face.

Please stop putting up sale prices and then not honoring them at the register. That’s TWICE now. The first time I was cool about it, because there was a line. The second time, you actually embarrassed me for wanting to get the sale price you had advertised.
You are my local grocery store. I doubt you care if you have my business or not, but if given the choice i will shop elsewhere. Get it together, M street. We pay enough for your products in general to expect higher quality of customer service.

Pretty pricey, but sometimes they have great deals. I live right next door so I’m stopping by when I have those «oh shit I forgot to get a lemon» or «hey babe we’re out of beer» moments. I don’t do my weekly shopping here.
I appreciate the convenience for sure, but aside from that the staff is great, the store is always clean, and they make pretty good coffee in the bakery/​café section.

This place is key for picking up lunch on the way to work. I like how I can get $ 0.09 of lettuce for my sandwich in a teeny tiny Chinese take out container.
They have a great selection of beer, soft drinks, and vitamin water-​type things. Wine is not so good in the $ 8-​$ 15 range, however.
I very rarely feel the need to purchase actual groceries here.
I love the people who work here. I often feel like I have little «moments» with them. They’re nice, genuine people who like my bracelet or wonder why the hell I’m buying $ 0.09 worth of mesclun greens. They commiserate when I respond, «I’m pretty hungover,» to their inquiries of How I’m Doing Today. They ask if I need a bag 100% of the time. When I do need a bag, I don’t get a guilt trip. I’ve been here about once a week since January and no one has ever been rude to me, just «real.» *sobs* Don’t change guys… I mean it. M Street! I love you man!

YAY! The super happy girl is gone! I’ve bumped up their stars for that factor alone… now I can get my coffee, tampons, cat litter, deli meat, dog food or whatever I may go in for in peace.
They have also put up their outdoor BBQ again which is awesome! half a chicken for a couple of bucks or a tres tasty burger for about the same… hard to turn down a fresh made meal!

I walked into the store today thinking that I wanted some mango’s to go along with the cottage cheese I had back at the office. Turns out, the mango’s were just not good. I picked one up and it felt very soft so I put it back to pick up another one and ended up getting mango fruit juice and squished mango’s all over my hands cause most of the fruit was just rotten. The fact they had this out and available for display just turned me off from the rest of the store. As I walked out the person at the register asked if I couldn’t find something… and I said I found what I wanted but it just did not look good. She said hmm… that is what someone said earlier today and I’ll notify them. Bummer they couldn’t address it before I got there because I don’t think I’ll be coming back any time soon.
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UPDATE: The owner of M Street contacted me via Unilocal.Nice to see that they care what people say about their establishment and are willing to take action.

I like walking in every morning and the clerk says hello & good morning. I feel like it’s part of the neighborhood and makes it a little more comfy.
It’s expensive as sh** and I can barely afford to shop here, but I do because it’s convenient. I can’t stand the full time ‘bum’ that stands outside everyday though. If you can do that for 8 hrs, please go someplace else because after shopping here, I can’t give you any money!
They DO have a great coffee shop in here, great deli with the BEST selections of goodies. sandwiches, fresh baked bread, cheeses & olives. They have everything you need… Well, except Advil PM

This store happens to be on my walking route to work and so when I walk in, it’s generally at some ungodly hour of the morning.
When I first visited it, I didn’t like it. I felt uncomfortable. They would line the walls with video camera snapshots of shoplifters and while I, myself, am not a shoplifter and I totally understand that they’re in kind of a tough location that likely attracts an «interesting» group of folks, it still felt… mean. It just didn’t sit well with me.
Since then, they have closed off one of the entrances so that they’re better able to watch who comes and goes, and the pictures are down. The staff are super polite and the prices are meh… selections pretty good, though. If I lived close to them, I’d probably be there all the time.
It’s a pocket-​sized store but it gives more options than, say, a Trader Joe’s — more variety and more practical stuff.

Liked it– Not loved it– But if I lived in the area consistently I could see myself stopping here for needs and wants…
Cute bare style bakery with a seating area, tv, and espresso. Stocked small produce, dairy, and fish + meats section. Salad bar and olive bar that sells by the pound. Typical grilled sandwich section, hot bar with things like jojos, and the required urban market sushi to go section. Cut up fruit and prepackaged meals. Stocked wine section and chilled beer section with lots of local options. Couple aisles with typical grocery selection.
To put the store into perspective– I saw a woman (downtown suit style with status bag and jewelry) with a cart and it was full (they only have half style carts) and I instantly though «You have got to be kidding me» to her doing all her shopping here… It is just not that kind of place… due to prices (can be outrageous on a few things) and to the style of store… You can judge for yourself though! Also, when I left I had two Cascadia Fresh yogurts, a LARA bar, cooked butternut squash (last one packaged– checker told me the deli was on a butternut squash kick), & a piece of chocolate… M Street Grocery was perfect for this randomness of lunch and breakfast needs…
FYI’s~
* Deli closed at 7:30pm
* Small Indian, Asian, and Thai sections
* Good ice cream selection– organic, random brand, ben & jerry’s, hd, gelato, mochi, dryer’s etc
* Great food and nutrition bar selection
* Amy’s organic products sold (even frozen)
* The vegan/​vegetarian meats (products) are next to the cold cheesecakes and other desserts
* Bavarian Meats is sold here

It’s very nice to have a stocked grocery store in First Hill. They have a pretty good selection of fresh produce, a deli counter, coffee shop, and a nice wine selection. The cashiers are always nice and the store is always kept up. There is free wifi for customers in the coffee shop. The only down side is the high prices but I guess that is to be expected for a grocery store on First Hill.
Also they grill out on Tuesday and Fridays, I think. Half chickens or ribs for $ 5. Pretty rockin deal. Free validated parking next door in the parking garage.

5 Stars for the fact that it’s a «full» grocery store on First Hill! Why are there not more grocery stores in the area? While they may not have every item you’re looking for, they have a pretty decent selection, especially since the store itself isn’t that big. Their produce is fresh and I’m pretty amazed at the quality of their deli. In general, their pre-​made food is delicious. Mac and Cheese FTW! Additionally, if you’re looking for a decent bottle of wine, M Street’s your place.
–1 star for not so great coffee. Sure I probably shouldn’t complain because 90% of the time I get a Vanilla Latte and the Vanilla (in theory) should cover up any bitter tastes, but their coffee isn’t so great and a burnt, bitter taste always comes through. What’s up with that?
–1 star for relatively overpriced merchandise. Sure, prices have gone down since when they first opened, but I occasionally cringe seeing the prices of items I can get for far cheaper elsewhere…
Minus a few gripes, M Street is pretty sweet. The free wi-​fi almost cancels out the bad coffee and the good service counterbalances the high prices… plus, where else can you get your grocery shopping done in the area?

True it is kinda spendy but what do you expect for downtown seattle?
My reason for the 5 stars however is because one time I left a bag of groceries there and one of the guys who worked there literally ran 2 blocks after me in order to return it. Go awesome employees!
In other news the Vita coffee makes it a great place to get espresso downtown-​ish that isn’t Starbucks. And they have amazingly good sushi.
Which is actually what I am doing for lunch today… yum…sushi…

THE HIPSTER GROCERY STORE!
haha. Everyone who works here is super fly. I’ve always had great customer service too, as far as cashiers go.
I think they should have a larger frozen food section for us poor, cheap people, and LOWER THE PRICES. I was so glad to leave Red Apple behind when I moved from the CD but this is like it’s little sister. All the same signs and high prices are still there.
/​negativity
I like it, I like it. It makes my new ‘hood feel homey. I can’t believe First Hill didn’t have a grocery store before this!
I also got an awesome juicy peach there yesterday, along with some cherries. Both were delectable. Amen.

The only good thing about this place is the friendly staff. Other than that, prices are significantly higher than QFC or Fred Meyer’s. They do have a decent, if not cheap, cooked food section in the back.
I went to the coffee shop to get some work done because I had seen the sign for free wi-​fi. The place is really small and pretty loud so it’s not the best working environment. The drip coffee in the coffee shop was unpalatable. It may have been the worst coffee I’ve ever had, and absolutely unacceptable for Seattle. It was still grimace-​inducing bitter after I had laced it with copious amounts of sugar (and I normally don’t need to do this for decent black coffee). I choked down about a quarter cup before giving up.
They offer 20 cents off your purchase if you bring your own cup. Hopefully their espresso drinks are better than their drip.

The quality of the produce and the deli is superb.
The staff is always friendly and helpful.
The selection is a little limited and the aisles are a little narrow.

Great convenience. This little store has everything that I need for a quick stop. Fair prices and you cant beat the location (at least for me). I love the hot soup bar and the salad bar. Café Vita is a nice addition but I usually make my own java.
Think I need some milk, and maybe a banana to go with my cereal this morning… guess it’s time for a quick walk!

M Street continues to get better and better. They have almost everything I need in a grocery store.
When it first opened, I thought it was a little expensive, but all I need is the occasional trip to QFC to remind me that it’s not. If you live in First Hill, you can’t beat the convenience. And they recently extended their evening hours and are open until 10:30 most nights.