East End Food Co-op

The Co-​op is a wonderful mixture of organic, seasonal and tasteful, all at a reasonable price. My favourite parts of going grocery shopping here are the super lovely staff and unpretentious atmosphere. A local gem.

At first glance it doesn’t look like much, however, when you browse the isles you do appreciate what is in store. It doesn’t have anything that is unique or a wow factor, however, it does serve a community purpose. The lady at the til was super friendly and nice. Sadly it was one of the few times I walked into a grocery store and didn’t find anything inspiring to buy but it is nice to know that it is there. I agree that the prices are high which is sadly what they have going against them.

I love the idea of a co-​op but I imagined it to be a lot more welcoming an experience than it was. From the moment we walked in it was a let down. We had brought containers to fill with soap and coffee, and some old clean milk ones to recycle. The lady we first ran into I asked a few questions about it since we were told we had to weigh stuff first. She literally refused to open her mouth and say anything… She just grabbed our containers and looked at us like we were slightly retarded. Sorry lady, it was our first time and we didn’t know exactly how it worked. Anyways she silently weighed our containers and handed us the slip so we moved on into the store. It is arranged awfully and hard to find stuff cuz it seems to be completely random. Another guy helped us out with using the coffee grinding machine which in case you didn’t know has a switch on the back of the spout as well as the start switch on the front. He was actually nice and joking and who i would have imagined working at a coop, so he is literally the only reason they get that 3^rd star. The items are quite high priced considering most of them are offered at other places on the drive for the same items cheaper. Maybe its just not for me. Once we had everything we headed to the till and then the rest of the issues started. The cashiers were switching shift change which is fine but I was the only person in line. Couldn’t you wait for one last customer before counting your till? So they switched while the lady still refused to communicate with me or the other dude taking over that till. She must be on one of those «no talking strikes» or something I swear. So he finally gets his gloves on and starts running the order thru and proceeds to ask me which apples and pears they are? Um I don’t know I’m thinking, look at the sticker? I don’t work here? Again very unwelcoming and confused staff. So as much as I like the idea of shopping locally and supporting community I will not be back for my personal groceries again. A community co-​op should be welcoming and helping a customer shouldn’t be so difficult. Sorry co-​op but Ill have to find another way to give back for now.

This co-​op is rad and so convenient to shop at (right across from Eternal Abundance!). During the summer, they had the ripest strawberries and sweetest bananas that I loved and will definitely be coming back for next year. The entire produce section is awesome with so many fresh and organic choices available. I haven’t explored other parts of the store, but since the produce section had the most delicious things, why bother looking around elsewhere? :) The lady at the checkout was also super kind and gave me a free material bag with The East End Food Co-​Op logo on it. I’m happy using it whilst at the same time advertising the co-​op, the more people to know about this place the better.

The co-​op rocks! I always go here first for my shopping.
Full of local produce that’s organic and/​or conventional. Prices are very reasonable and comparable to supermarket giants like Safeway.
AMAZING bulk section… which includes MAPLE SYRUP and laundry detergent! You can bring your bottles, just make sure to get them weighed before filling.
Don’t need to be a member to shop. It’s worth becoming a member. You receive discounts on your grocery bill and custom order goods that aren’t in store, among many others.
And since the co-​op is member-​owned, you’re investing in the community with each visit.

My first stop for groceries. So much to love like the organic produce, cheap co-​op brand goods, sales, and member appreciation days.
You don’t need to be a member to shop here but its very much worth it.
The bulk section is alright. I am hoping that eventually they will have a bit more of a selection for us vegans, different kinds of not milks and not cheeses.

Ahem, to an earlier reviewer. NOT worker owned and operated. Consumer owned; worker operated. Of course, the workers have often acted like they own the place, which is a bit of a mood spoiler.

This store is my jam. Organic produce. Lots of local produce. Reasonable prices. Great music. Friendly staff. Member appreciation days. Improving bulk section. And so on.
I am in here so much it’s silly.

I can honestly say that I’ve never stepped foot into any kind of co-​op — the kind of thing that I’ve only read about in books and magazines. So, I was excited to stumble upon this one. The store front isn’t exactly the most appealing; in fact, I nearly walked right past it, but the lower prices printed on the signs plastered along the lower right of the window caught my eye. (
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Aside from the usual organic and local products one would expect to find at a co-​op, they also encourage their members (and the occasional non-​member) to engage in sustainable practices. For example, they sell laundry detergent by weight; just bring your own receptacle for a refill. (
) Or if you’d rather purchase ½ dozen eggs rather than a full dozen, simply take one of the egg cartons from a nearby box that have been cut in half. Overall, I’d found most of the products to be lower in price than Whole Foods, or even the local IGA.
If I lived near The Drive, I’d consider becoming a member. $ 20 bucks a year gives you voting rights, and 10% off of every purchase. (
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In a city that doesn’t have many coops I’m thrilled to have found this place. Great local, organic, and conventional produce.
Best part is they are worker owned and operated!
they except members and non-​members although I’d suggest becoming a member in order to take advantage of member appreciation day and get 10% off.
I really appreciate their no bull s* approach to doing business. If your looking for a pristine, fancy, gourmet shopping experience like at capers or whole foods this is not the place. If your looking for honest, down to earth, ethical shopping than you’ve come to the right place.
They’re right across the street from Drive Organics which is a good place for more high end treats and snacks. The two places compliment each other nicely.

Great Value, Super fresh local veg & fruit, Low prices, Organic food, Friendly nice staff, Funky commercial drive clients, Like really low price point (co-​op) and I love supporting old Vancouver Co-​ops and small businesses. It doesnt get and better than this for shopping.
No Membership required !!

Great place on Commercial for organic and local foods.
Now, keep in mind that I don’t really like the price premium that comes with organic foods. I don’t really go out of my way to shop organic, except for meats. And I don’t fantasize about eating the 100 mile diet.
From what I have seen, this is one of the more reasonable places in Vancouver to get organic food. Being a coop they charge a price that reflects the quality of the food, not just how much they feel they can gouge your wallet.
For example, their loaves of Georgian bread ($ 2.99) are usually about $ 1 cheaper than the identical ones at Urban Fare. $ 1.20 organic avocados, vs. $ 1.00−1.50 non-​organics elsewhere and $ 2.50 @ Whole Foods.
Drawbacks: they do not have that wide a selection, especially in meats or cheese. They don’t source out-​of-​season fruits and veggies much from remote places like Chile, unlike some of their greener and trendier competitors. And despite being more reasonably priced than many other organic shops you wouldn’t mistake them for a budget supermarket.
Update April 2015: taking away a star. Way too much focus on pricey organics and hipster artisan food producers. And, in doing so, not always looking at actual dietary quality of said small producers.
Some examples:
an «organic» Salsa that has twice the already high sodium content of your standard El Paso at an extra 50% of the price.
Carrying bio-​dynamic apples? Really?
Big producer, but nitrite-​free bacon that they used to carry? Gone, and replaced with local, 100-​mile diet bacon that does have the nitrites.
i.e. it would be nice if stores that aim to care about healthy foods actually did their homework and paid attention to the salt/​sugar/​nitrite basics.

The «Co-op“as it’s called around these parts is like a large high end, glorified, modern convenient store. It is co-​op owned and operated. This place prides itself in buying locally grown goods and really participating in a community of people dedicated to the growing buying and selling of sustainable goods, or what they call, «the politics of food.».
There are benefits to becoming a member which you can read about in the business link provided.