The Grocery Myth

One of the horrible burdens any person living in Detroit faces is dealing with suburbanites who inevitably (and sometimes immediately) ask, "Where do you shop for groceries??"   And answering that question is, honestly, super annoying.  First of all, I have to repeat something I've said a hundred times.  And secondly, I am forced to think the person I am talking to is an idiot, which makes me feel like I am wasting my time.

Jim Griffioen, my across-the-park neighbor from when I lived in Lafayette Park who writes the super excellent Sweet Juniper blog, has taken a little time out to address that question, and you can read about it on the Urbanophile blog here.

And if you aren't going to read the whole thing, at least read this:

The myth of a city without supermarkets is hard to kill, even faced with the evidence above. Ultimately, that myth perseveres because the mainstream media and its audience is steeped in a suburban mentality where the only grocery stores that really seem to count are those large, big-box chain stores that are the only option in so many communities these days, largely because they have put locally-owned and independent stores like the ones you find in Detroit out of business.

I'm not much of an at-home cook so the grocery question wasn't even on my radar when I moved here.  But to answer everyone's question, I have been a regular shopper at Harbortown Market, Honeybee Market and oh yeah, that place basically across the street from Lafayette Park - Eastern Market.  And sometimes I like to shop at Trader Joe's or Whole Foods so I drive there. But I would never base my decision to live somewhere (or my quality of life) on proximity to one of those.