Old tyme grocers still exist

Do you remember when you got excited about going to the grocery store with your parents, anticipating the samplings, drooling over the fresh food displays?

Well Farm Boy is the return of the old-time grocers and Farm Boy, in the Pickering Town Center Mall, is a throwback to those good old shopping days of the past.

Farm Boy at the Pickering Town Centre is a throwback to those old-time grocery stores, or it wants to be, the old-time grocer your parents or grandparents loved and enjoyed.

Ya gotta be an old timer to remember the old time grocer. ‘member the one? The one that cut the fish the way you wanted; the one that skinned the fish if you asked; the one that let you try each item, endlessly if you wanted; the one that suggested pairing “with vegetables,” not wine.

That old-time grocer wasn’t a giant warehouse, big enough to store two 747’s, or even three. Those kinds of grocery stores existed everywhere and they were highly regarded not that long ago. Today, as more and more people reject technology, large size corporate techno-giant retailers are losing popularity. Old time grocers have a nostalgic attraction as we yearn for bygone times, the days of yore, the days when we were ‘somebodies,’ treated with personal respect. We felt almost like friends rather than customers.

That doesn’t happen in the techno box giant warehouse where you walk in, ready to ask for a roadmap or a GPS device to help you navigate the giant maze. Staff working such places aren’t ‘service people;’ they’re guides to help you find your way around. Light bulbs? Aisle 27. Dry mustard? Aisle 38. Soy sauce? Aisle 46. Thingamabobs? Aisle 683. You need a cell phone to keep in touch with your shopping partner.

Old time grocery stores were jewels. Cozy, small, compact, easy to get around. You shopped quickly but only if you wanted to and only if you were grumpy, not wanting to talk to anyone that day. It happens to all of us. You also enjoyed a store with lots of selection, quality products sold at competitive prices, almost all sourced locally and were even likely to have been made in store.

Farm Boy is that kind of store. This store wants to be ‘yer old-time grocer.’ For the story behind Farm Boy: The FARM BOY story

Products sourced locally? You bet. Selection and choice? Absolutely. Competitive pricing? Compare for yourself. Samples for tasting? Throughout the store. In-house food preparation? Just try one of the many homemade soups; check out the “fast food” bar, salads to sandwiches and lots of other stuff in between. Fresh, made in-house, and tasty.

Farm Boy isn’t a giant warehouse. It’s compact and cosy, medium sized but far from being a grocery warehouse. Pay for your ‘fast food’ lunch and sit down in the spotlessly clean eating area enjoying food as good as many dedicated eateries.

Should the staff be mentioned? Without hesitation. Speaking with the fishmonger, who is leaving the store and moving to Ottawa. Where is he going to look for work? Farm Boy in Ottawa. Why? “Farm Boy has a work atmosphere that is joyful. Staff are happy, smiling and laughing while on the job. The managers, Jim Lefroy and Ken Mitchell, are two of the nicest guys to ever run a grocery store. They may not remember your name, though one should not bet against it, but they will remember your face. This staff demonstrates the feeling that the drudgery of grocery shopping can be made enjoyable with the right food, the right prices, the right atmosphere and the right attitude and Farm Boy has all that in spades.

Jim and Ken are proud that their store goes further than modern grocer-tech giants. They will open a box of cookies for you to sample if the cookies aren’t out for sampling already. They will cut up the pumpkin, the squash for patrons who struggle with that task. They will cut a pie in half if you really don’t want a whole one. They will even roast your turkey or your ham for you should you need that kind of specialized service. And the Farm Boy staff, very few of which are under 25, empathize with older folks. They know you move at a slower pace, want to savour rather than rush, need a bit of help in your selection, your transport of purchases to your car. This staff understands and appreciates your needs.

But to think Farm Boy has its eyes solely on the “old” would be short-sighted. Farm Boy is dedicated to service of patrons of every age, older, younger and every age in between. They simply exude a sense of caring about their patrons.

For the weekly specials flyer: SPECIALS OF THE WEEK

Daniel, a 27-year-old IT specialist, keeps your ATM machines running, and running without glitches. Occasionally, Daniel will venture out to shop, tiring of dining out, pub food and delivery take-out. One early evening, he and his significant other visited the salad bar at Farm Boy. The ‘SO’ had a hankering for her favourite kale salad, except she wanted it in quantity to feed 4. To her chagrin, it was sold out. Farm Boy’s food-at-hand service person to the rescue. Not only did they make up a replacement salad at the spur of the moment, but they created an appropriate dressing for it. The icing on the cake, so to speak, “no charge!”

Farm Boy has become my ‘go-to-grocer.’ It’s not perfect, but it almost is. My “SO’s” only complaint, “They don’t have a points program.” Well, they are on point in every other area.

Below: take a trip down memory lane to re-visit some of those old tyme grocers.

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[ Full disclosure: Richard received no compensation, financial or otherwise, for writing this opinion piece about Farm Boy. He really is a patron. ]

 

 

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