Grocery

Not the greatest fresh food. Always seems dry or stale. Awesome grocery items though. Love their stash of vosges chocolate.

No idea why it’s taken me so long to visit this place, especially since it’s on my route home from the gym. Grocery is my go-​to spot for prepared foods – flank steak, grilled salmon, chicken quesadillas — at decent prices. The salad bar is also solid.
Just what I need on those nights I’m not up for cooking.

The crab cakes here are excellent! Hardly any filler with a nice crunch from the red onion and tiny pieces of green apple. If I came by here more often, I’d definitely try the more tempting entrée items like the very fresh quinoa salads or salmon fillets.
My only complaint was the Lolita bar. I tried 2 plantains & 2 sweet potato patties. When I ate those, they were quite cold and didn’t taste great :(. Perhaps they should have a better working heat lamp or make it more often so it’s a bit more fresh.
Despite the Lolita bar, the crab cakes was great and the two guys that assisted us were very nice and helpful.

Had my second visit here and got the brussels sprouts and sweet potato salad from the salad bar. Both were delicious– the guy behind the counter was friendly and heated it up. Will be back!

Stopped by Grocery yesterday for a quick snack after work, and was pleased with the salad bar selections. I grabbed some cucumber salad and an interesting turkey salad with grapes and walnuts, and was really glad to be able to get a small portion to go. The bar with selections from Lolita initially intrigued me, but it looked like the food had been out a little too long for my taste.
I poked around their grocery selection as well, and saw some pretty good stuff — including a basket of cheeses under $ 4! — so I’ll have to pop back in sometime for more interesting, unique additions to my regular grocery list. The offerings seem more curated and gourmet, and the prices do reflect that.

One of my favorite places for prepared foods, and if I’m ever in the neighborhood, I duck in to take a lunch to go.
Far superior than any prepared foods by DiBrunos, this is usually why I make the detour to pick something up here.
There is always an interesting, ever changing array of food options, usually seasonal — and the proteins, chicken, fish, etc, is always cooked on point. Veggies galore, prepared every which way! One of my very favorite dishes there is the parmesan cauliflower purée. Creamy, delicious, otherworldly. I don’t really partake in the salad bar, although it always looks fresh.
Prices are a wee bit high and I never leave there without at least spending $ 15, but I’ve never had a meal where I haven’t devoured every last morsel.

First visit but not my last! Tried various cold sides from the salad bar (Israeli couscous, a lentil salad, a quinoa salad) and a chicken & black bean quesadilla. Everything was very tasty. The salad bar per pound price might be $ 0.50-$ 1.00 «above average» for the area but you’re definitely getting above average salad selections. And, the black bean & chicken quesadilla, was scrumptious and a great value ($ 6). Next visit, there’s a few cased items I definitely want to try!

Healthy, delicious food. Not cheap, but it is one of the few options that’s convenient and not greasy or fried. I often get a soup, roll, and small hunk of cheese for less than $ 10. The Little Lolita bar is also very good, as are the prepared salads.

This is an expensive salad bar and cupcake place, despite the fact that it’s called «grocery.» No, you won’t find loaves of break… milk…sugar…you know, groceries. Old Nelson is a block north with more options and better prices if you’re looking for take-​out. If you’re looking for groceries — which you probably are if you’re entering a place called «grocery.» — Walgreens has a decent selection a couple blocks west.

I was impressed with how many delicious looking options this small place had! Counter full of premade «price per pound» veggies, salads, fish, etc… that all looked incredible! They have a section with sandwiches and salads already packaged, easy for a quick grab & go lunch. There were 4 – 5 different soup options and also a salad bar to make your own.
.I went with the salad bar, but rather than making a typical salad with lettuce, etc… I tried a few of their other types of salads: Israeli couscous; some sort of lentil salad; vegan tofu salad; Italian tuna salad; orzo and feta; and a few others. Everything was delicious! I really liked the Israeli Couscous salad: sweet honey dressing, walnuts, dried cranberries, some peppers, and I don’t remember what all else was in it… but it was great!
I look forward to trying some of their other options. Those types of «make your own/​pay by weight» are generally always pricey, but it was really good so I say it was worth it!
FYI — $ 10 credit card minimum

Grocery may be the most overpriced place to eat in Philly. I got a small to-​go container of rice and beans with some shredded pork. Stuff that has been sitting under a heat lamp for who knows how long. Nothing special. I attached a picture to show how small it was. The container is literally smaller than my hand. Price: $ 13.84 plus tax, $ 14.95! For that price you could get the same exact meal at Chipotle but it would get you like 5lbs of food.

I’m not surprised at the range of reviews. I work nearby and get take-​out there occasionally. The employees are the surliest bunch of people in Center City. The food is good, but not really THAT good.

It makes me sad that anyone could NOT love this place. I can’t imagine any of the food not being completely delicious! I get my lunch from Grocery pretty much every day and the associates are always friendly. They have my favorite chicken salad AND a hot bar that serves food from Lolita, what’s not to love?

I walked into this place today, looked at the the first employee I was walking towards, smiled and said «hello.» We made eye contact, and then she proceeded to not return any form of acknowledgement, ignored me, and walked straight past me! WTF! Was this person new? No. I have seen them there for quite a while. I looked around at the other two people working, both with sullen looks on their faces doing their best to avoid contact with the public, also unavailable for assistance. Can I also mention that the food does not taste good? FYI, the cupcakes are dry and stale, and they know it… among other things. There are too many better options around to get ripped off by people who are selling crap ice to the Eskimos of Philadelphia. Please, don’t waste your money here.

I think I’m in love.
There’s a dirty little secret in the takeout world: vegetables come fried or not at all (with the exception of Asian takeout, which my better half can only stand occasionally and I could eat every meal of every day). Living in South Philly, one can only order Italian takeout so many times per week without contracting scurvy because the closest thing they serve to vegetables are romaine lettuce and roasted red peppers.
Luckily, I recently discovered this little gem right around the corner from my new gym! Between the killer salad bar and the deli case with numerous re-​heatable sides and entrees, there is something different to try every time I come. Recent hits include the turkey and corn empanadas, the flank steak, and the pita bread. I spent about $ 24 on a bountiful and reasonably healthful meal for two, which is on par with what we typically spend when we order delivery for anywhere, if not less.
The hot bar from «Little Lolita» looked pretty sad but it was quite late when I was there, about a half hour before closing time. The employees were super friendly and the place was clean. This is going to be a frequent post-​gym dinner option for the future!
Pro tip: the oven is the way to go for most of your re-​heating needs. Especially anything with a pastry or breading. Microwaves kill dreams.

Ew. I was in the area, and my stomach was talking. I was thrilled to see a salad bar after walking a few stores down from where I had just left.
I wanted to eat something «healthy», but not raw.
I was happy to see a quinoa and I also picked some grilled squash.
The grilled squash tasted of a heavy smoky, almost barbecue taste. I assume that the after taste was a result in their meats, that all seemed to be drowned in the same brown sauce. Very unappetizing.
The quinoa was sooo bland. No flavor. The only flavor that came threw was the taste of the canned chick peas that were in the mix. Even the feta cheese, that they also put in the mix, tasted bland. The only thing in this mix that was good and fresh was the sliced cherry tomato, but I had only a couple since I wasn’t sure why it was there in the first place.
I only spent $ 2.25 and I couldn’t finish it either. And the only reason I ate most of it is, because I’m currently overweight. And I didn’t want to leave a healthier choice for another carb later.
If you need a salad bar, one with amazing amazing quinoa, go to whole foods. Your mouth and body will thank you.

i stopped in on my way to soccer last night for a coffee… i just stumbled in because i happened to be walking past there, and i was somewhat surprised with myself that i had never been inside before.
grocery is like a fancy bodega /​take away spot. you can get staples, but they will be fabulous versions of things you eat every day. you can get take away, but it will be custom dishes from the 13^th street high end foodie havens. you can get salad bar, but it will be filled with the fanciest salad items ever. and you can get coffee and beverages and chocolate and chips and whatever other minor indulgence you could want quickly and easily. (ps they serve la columbe, obvs)
they had a ton of vegan tofu /​mustard sammies on the shelf last night that looked delish, but also sad and lonely bc no one was buying them. while they didn’t have a lot of vegan selections at the hot food bar, i’m guessing it’s because of a lack of demand. (judging from the insane amt of uneaten tofu sammies)
they also had a great selection of fair trade and vegan chocolates — i was very impressed with that.
but i will def come back and stock up on fancy chocolate, tofu sandwiches, and all the cute little snack things they had!

JUST FOR CUPCAKES —
I had a lunchtime craving for a cupcake but didn’t wanna shell out PhillyCupcake prices so I came here instead. Had the chocolate Mocha something-​or-​other cupcake.
Not worth it. It was dry and crumbly, the frosting was good but it didn’t mesh well with the dry cupcake. Regretted it immediately.
Price was 1.95 so not too bad on that front.

More like 3.5 stars. This place is a great place to grab a good lunch. It has a premium salad bar, a mexican bar (food from lolitas) which is okay though a bit lukewarm, and it has a soup bar. It also has a lot of deli like products and little snacks to buy. This is a place to get some grub and go back to work and chow down.
The food is good, though pricey.

There are so many attractive looking snacks to choose from; sandwiches, prepared foods, desserts, specialty sodas, and two by-​the pound –buffets, one with above average cold salad type stuff and the other («Little Lolita») with hot food from Lolita, a Mexican BYOT (T for tequila) owned by the same owners of Grocery. You can make a great lunch out of the buffet. From the Lolita buffet I picked up pork carnitas, ropa vieja, and a chicken dish. The ropa vieja tasted rather authentic, slathered strands of beef with a mild tomato flavor. The juicy chicken was smokey, not boring. The flavor of the pork carnitas screamed orange juice, but it was still enjoyable.
I can never resist curried chicken salad, so I added a helping from the regular buffet along with some edamame for color. Both buffets are $ 7.99 a pound. The plate ended up being $ 9. It was a ton of food, and very high quality.