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Downtown Grocery Store List (current + proposed)

Metro is a regular let down with their hot counters. Everything seems to be either too bland, or too dry, or too salty.

Metro has 2 decent points, in a small number of stores they have 'The Carvery' where they do fresh (cooked in store that day) Roast Beef, Montreal Smoked Meat, and Smoked Chicken.

The roast is sometimes a bit over......but not bad; the Smoked Meat is actually decent (I mean its not Jewish deli level...but its quite edible). But its really only good early in the day in most stores, typically its made overnight/early morning, then put under the heat lamp. Good at noon.........but if its sitting there at 5.......(they may be out)...... yeah, not so much.

The Onion Rings, while frozen actually aren't 1/2 bad. The use red onion, in a decent chunky size and the batter has some interesting spice to it.

Haven't tried Farm Boy's hot counters yet - I often peruse the offerings, but they usually look dried out and stale - like c'mon, is it that hard to come along every now and then and stir the contents so that the top layer isn't crusty while everything underneath is mushy? Maybe the temperature setting is too high? Either way - LAZY. Put more effort if you want to entice me.

I find the same issue. I tried their counters back when. I found that their best items any given month (they rotate the menu monthly) was often decent'ish. But the rest.........very plain/understated.

Either way, like the Carvery at Metro, stuff tends to go out for lunch.......if it sells through every day, they might have one replacement tray, If not, it tends to age unfavourably.

I'd love to know more hot counters with better quality, or other solid grab 'n go places like the Rooster.

Whole Foods used to be great....... they made everything in house, and had chefs/cooks who knew local tastes.........but the American management imposed their menu (bland); and then contracted out 1/2 the food to third party vendors. Sigh.
 
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No Frills is opening in the former Organic Garage space in Liberty Village.

Look at you breaking retail news........ LOL

Its a bigger space that you might think......it always felt small to me, but its how they laid it out............its 13,000ft2.

Edit to add: Interesting to note closeness to the former City Market, now NF at King/Shaw, a mere 750m away; while its 1.4km to the one in Parkdale on King W.
 
So that makes three new No Frills downtown?

I would not consider Liberty Village downtown, nor Danforth/Broadview..... King/Shaw is a pretty serious push too. Normally downtown, (more expanded that ever definition wise) is thought of as Bathurst to the Don River, the Lake to Bloor

In that context we're at zero.........If you choose a definition of Broadview to Dufferin, then yes, we're at 3 net new, albeit all of them at the expense of pre-existing grocers.
 
Ok, I have to laugh, BlogTO got around to covering the OG to NF changeover in Liberty Village, but they're hedging their bets on whether its true.

LOL

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Interesting. Good to finally see a discount grocer in LV - but they are already testing their mini-market format a few minutes away at King and Shaw..
 
Empire appears to be completely pulling the Sobeys banner from the City of Toronto.

We've seen it shrink dramatically the last couple of years with many locations flipping to Farm Boy, we've all seen the renders for one of the two Etobicoke stores on Queensway flipping to Longos.........

I can now confirm that the Leaside location, arguably their Toronto flagship for the brand will close this July and reopen in 2025 as Farm Boy.

That will leave only 4 full-line Sobeys in Toronto, and four urban fresh stores.

Of those, we know Balliol will be developed, I expect the same for Broadview and Danforth; the former, may just get a brand changeover first.

That would cut the number of full-line stores to just 2 in Etobicoke; (I'm being generous calling Bloor full line, but I digress) ........... and then 3 Urban Fresh stores.

I don't see them keeping the banner in Toronto for that.
 
Empire appears to be completely pulling the Sobeys banner from the City of Toronto.

We've seen it shrink dramatically the last couple of years with many locations flipping to Farm Boy, we've all seen the renders for one of the two Etobicoke stores on Queensway flipping to Longos.........

I can now confirm that the Leaside location, arguably their Toronto flagship for the brand will close this July and reopen in 2025 as Farm Boy.

That will leave only 4 full-line Sobeys in Toronto, and four urban fresh stores.

Of those, we know Balliol will be developed, I expect the same for Broadview and Danforth; the former, may just get a brand changeover first.

That would cut the number of full-line stores to just 2 in Etobicoke; (I'm being generous calling Bloor full line, but I digress) ........... and then 3 Urban Fresh stores.

I don't see them keeping the banner in Toronto for that.

Where does the Main and Danforth store fall into this?
 
Where does the Main and Danforth store fall into this?

It is being discussed for redevelopment. I don't see it staying a Sobeys, its missed the last 2 reno cycles for Sobeys banner stores, the store is also chronically under staffed.

I imaging they'll want to retain a store here post-development unless they can find a better location close by.........I would expect it to return either as Farm Boy or Freshco.

I can't rule out that that they might renovate it/rebanner it pre-development, but that would seem odd.
 

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