Fairplay Foods

The best meat you can get anywhere … Great butchers, ask and you shall receive. They do what they can to make you happy.

I prefer this grocery store among many other local options. There is plenty of parking and shopping carts available. What I love the most about this store is the produce section. There is an abundance amount of fresh produce to choose from. I can always find a good deal on the produce or mostly anything.

I have driven past this place for a long time and never stopped in until I went shopping for a lady I work for and yeah I agree with one poster that they need to mop in the meat area since there’s no reason for the stench. Also the sketchiness of the store is questionable because it seems right when the new month happens it never fails to see a gang of hoodrats and their family members tying up every department mainly the meat and deli with their orders to feed their idiot boyfriends and disrespectful army of children. Also they need to get in touch with the way other stores run by having self checkout lines to make things go faster. Also when they give out samples they need to have a trash can because the floor was littered with half eaten chicken tenders and I got sick of stepping on that crap and instead of using toothpicks they used pretzel sticks to serve the chicken tender samples. They do however have some good weekly sales. Their chicken nuggets are about the only thing I have taken a liking to since they taste better than McDonalds and does not taste like minced chicken but the actual tenderloin of the chicken. Park your car several spots away the hood idiots can’t park for crap like they failed driver’s ed so they’re not up against your car and boxing it in.

Hit or miss with this place, but the last time was defo a miss.
I brought some bagels. The Dutch brand o_​O. Praise your Gods that I checked the bagel before eating it. Complete mold on the bottom of the bagels. Why keep moldy food on the shelves. Corporate greed at it’s finest.
I wish more grocery stories would take the time to mop and clean around the meat area. Walking into a store and the first thing you smell is the stench of meat is a turn off. I mean, yes meat has a smell, but not the smell of meat and blood caked up on the floor for days on end smell. Naw can’t do it. On a side note I wish more people would use VINEGAR to clean with… moving along. Also, I do not trust buying my meat from here. It taste strange at times and sometimes it can be so tough. This is why I have to stop eating meat. «It taste strange. It was tough.» WTF type of life did this animal live and I am eating it.
The produce department is not good at all. The few times I got in to this place, I can never buy produce because it’s so bad. Either it’s moldy, soft or there are flies everywhere. I do like this grocery store, because some of their items are discounted and those Doreen’s mini-pizza’s, Gingerbread Men and Yoplait Cherry and Pomegranate yogurt. I can’t find them anywhere else, so I am forced to to trek here from time to time, but just be careful when you are shopping at this place, you are liable to get a couple of vaccinations with some of their products.
SIDENOTE: Just wanted to add that this place does has many cab drivers if needed. Professional and non. Ask for Mr. G if you need a ride.

I don’t like coming here because the quality of the food and fresh vegetables can be dubious sometimes. The neighborhood itself is sketchy but it’s handy when you need a last minute ingredient!

Wow, wished I knew to come here a lot earlier. I think the store is pretty clean and well stocked.
They have lots of selections and good prices. They have some great weekly sales.
It can seem a bit sketchy, but I think it’s not bad at all.

I just want to apologize for shopping here and for bothering the cashiers with my groceries. Everytime I shop here I feel as if I’m a bother. The employees are extremely rude. A few days ago I got yelled at by Gertie the cashier because apparently I had a job to do… I thought I was a customer? Besides, who likes feeling like they’re in the ghetto anyway.

My mother insists on shopping here. Just a question… Why are the cashiers here always so angry with my groceries?

Been here countless times since I was a kid. They have a well-​stocked place for foods. Their shopping carts have locks that refuses to leave the parking lot though. There’s also a fresh deli and hot food section here.
Not recommended to stop by during busy days (end of the month or beginning of the month) when most do the restocking.
This place is similar to Cermak Produce (minus a lot of the ethnic foods, they carry a lot of cheap groceries though) and carries a lot of the items for cheap.

i can’t quite give Fairplay four stars but it has inched it’s way up from one to three in the matter of month of frequenting there.
i migrated from a über dutch town that was DRY as well as closed on Sundays. there was a Fairplay the next town over that we would go to for booze and for the sin of grocery shopping on Sundays. i strongly remember it smelling like rotting fish back then.
i was warned by my neighbors, by my landlord «DONT GO TO FAIRPLAY… unless you absolutely are in dire need of something fast». coming here my first time i parked in between two cars: one blaring gospel music, the other gangsta rap… i’m not kidding — i couldn’t even hear my phone ring it was so loud! there is a personal COP at the entry/​exit: badge, gun, serious face, that scans every one that comes in the store — you must check your bags in as well upon entry. lastly cop cars (not just security, but CHICAGO COPS) circle the parking lot almost every time i go. just parking here i feel like i’ve entered a place of sin… but now i just remind myself when i arrive the lyric from the lesbian duo «indigo girls» that «every devil i meet is an angel in disguise».
and i dunno if its a corporate strategy to lure us with the smell of baiting rotted fish, but this Back of the Yards location smells EXACTLY the same as i remember from a different location in my childhood. enough to deter me from shopping here for 6 months despite being less than a mile away from my home. i would drive ALLLLL the way to south loop Whole Foods, Trader Joes, or Dominicks for groceries — which at times felt like a chore, especially if i only needed a few basic items. then i was in dire need of something… i went from shopping here for emergency items, then just for the basics, now for almost anything packaged or most produce that can be found at any other grocery store. see my list of do’s and don’ts for deets…
I DO BUY HERE:
1) fresh produce: you may need to inspect some bunches but most has been good in my experiences. you can’t beat the produce pricing here. they have cactus (not even some of the big three grocery stores have cactus), fresh ginger root, big bags of spinach, cilantro bundles for 50 cents (we eat cilantro every other day), good avocados… among many choices especially for vegetables
2) packaged meat: the same packaged ground turkey, but for less money. more pounds of chicken packaged for significantly less money — just have to cut a lil more fat off in preparation. i don’t eat pork and rarely eat beef so i can’t vouch for those as i haven’t purchased them from here yet.
3) anything canned, jarred, or bottled: this place is canned goods king — almost every aisle has something canned in it (i know where to go when i want to stock my fall-​out shelter). brand fruit juices for sometimes half the price of other stores or off-​brand for even better pricing.
4) milk, eggs, packaged cheese: cheese is good and priced well but no variety besides standard packages of shredded cheeses. eggs and milk abundant, though not much variety and you MUST check the expiration date to get the most out a purchase!
5) baked goods, bread and tortillas: fresh and inexpensive. i buy a large coffee cake to bring for breakfast and coffee at the rents for as low as $ 2.50! eat bakery breads soon or freeze as i don’t think they have preservatives.
6) guilty snacks: they have this off brand flavored microwave popcorn for a dollar or two. i cannot refrain from putting it in my basket. i even bring it to my friends house and it’s devoured in seconds. they have many brand name snacks for less or way cheaper alternatives. candy is way inexpensive — i just walk straight passed the aisle to resist! every once in awhile you can get a gallon of ice cream for under $ 3 if you spend over 20 dollars — i haven’t said no to this deal and i still have ice cream sitting in my fridge.
I DON“T BUY HERE:
1) SEAFOOD & FISH: it’s smells like rotting fish here… i can’t help but steer clear of it
2) over-​the-​counter meats: absolutely no deli. i’m sure some of the meat is OK over-​the-​counter but i don’t trust the handling and the packaged meats suffice.
3) cigarettes: well they don’t sell them… and i just recently quit so i guess it doesn’t matter now!
4) yogurt: the selection is almost non-​existent. i must drive all the way to south loop grocery stores, or even settle for the almost non-​existent selection of Halsted Foods selection of yogurt down the street.

The sales at fairplay are awesome!!! The gentlemen in the the meat department (butchers) are very nice and professional and aim to please their customers, and the prices are reasonable

I’ve been going to the local Fairplay Foods ever since it opened. It used to be really ghetto and trashy but now they maintain it very well. The prices are pretty good and the customer service is excellent.

I recently moved to the area and I was on the hunt for finding a good neighborhood store. Fairplay is a good place to go for great deals. You can find everything and anything in this store. The meat is reasonably priced and specials on cereal and produce are competitive. Their bakery offers a great selection of cakes and pies. There is even a «Day Old» clearance rack that offer fresh rye bread loaves for 50 cents! I was in heaven! The produce is fresh and I see Whites, Blacks, Hispanics and Asians in this store. That says a lot about the place because it offers something for EVERYONE! The meat is good quality and every week there is a new sale. Check it out!

This supermarket is like a combination of all good things — the brand variety of Jewel/Dominick’s combined with the bargains of ALDI, complete with a butcher, bakery, hot foods, deli counter and fishmonger.
People from all walks of life can be found in the store, but it’s located in Back of the Yards next to a dollar store and it’s open all night on the last day of every month.
Most of their weekly bargains (the ones noted in their weekly ads) can be found huddled together at the store entrance, but also in the regular aisles. If you’re in there and you’re hunting for the milk, it’s hidden in the corner in a little niche with some soda machines. Just head all the way to the right as soon as you get in.
You’ll also probably find cuts of meat and pieces of animals that you’ve never seen before and might be shocked to know that people actually buy. I now know where to look if I wake up one morning with a craving for pig’s feet, turkey necks or hog jowls. Or need a 40-​pound box o’ chicken parts. Cuz they sell ‘em there!
Other awesome hidden spots — the aisle full of things you wouldn’t believe could cost a dollar. Take special note of the jars of preserved fruits and various boxed and canned foods — all costing $ 1 apiece. Also, this is the corporate location and posibly the biggest, so they’ve got room to include different flavors of certain foods. I never knew some of my favorite brands of barbecue sauce had so many different flavors! And the chips as well!
A word of advice: they try to check all bags/​backpacks when you come in. The first time I shopped here, I was almost hunted down by this guy because I had a backpack with me. It all seemed fine, because I watched him clip a clothespin on my backpack and gave me the matching one, but at the end of my shopping trip — the guy was nowhere to be found. If this happens to you, just go to the checkout on the far right that’s also a counter — your bags are stored there and if the bag-​check guy has disappeared (which he has over 70% of the time I’ve been there), the person working that checkout will get you your bag back.
All in all, it’s rare that I give a location a 5-​star rating, but the fact that you can get there on the #47, #8 or #44 bus (the last of which swings right by my apartment) make this one of the easiest grocery chain stores for me to get to, and one of the cheapest I’ve ever been to as well!

This store is great if you like meat, like me, and, like me, don’t like paying a hefty price for it! Seriously how can one pass up four pounds of bone in chicken breasts for four dollars and fourteen cents? I think you’d have to be out of your gourd to do that.
This store is huge and you can find a lot of random things that you can’t find at a Jewel They also have very decent prices.

This is a long standing grocery store chain in Chicago. Fairplay has good produce, great meats and low prices. This store is located in the Back of the Yards «hood» area, but I have never had problems here. Black, whites and hispanics shop here. Its not upscale like some stores, but your dollar lasts longer here than at other stores. I like Fairplay!