We opened in 2011 with one oven, a single cold case and a short list of things our own family couldn't find nearby: bread that hadn't been sitting, meat we knew was zabiha, and the pantry staples our mothers cooked with. The shop was small enough that we knew every customer by name within a month.
Fifteen years later the ovens run from six in the morning until closing, the counter cuts for half the street, and the aisles have grown to carry what our neighbours actually cook with — Levantine, South Asian and East African, side by side, because that is who lives here. What hasn't changed is who is behind the counter. Same family, same block.
We take WIC and EBT/CalFresh on eligible purchases because a market that serves families has to work for all of them. Nobody is asked twice about it and nobody is treated differently at the register.
Three batches a day so there is always a warm shelf. Nothing carries over to the morning.
Tell us what you're cooking. The counter cuts for the dish, not for the tray.
Certificates posted at the register, and we'll bring them out if you ask.
WIC and EBT/CalFresh accepted on eligible purchases, without any fuss.
“The bread is still warm when I get it to the car. I stopped buying it anywhere else.”
“They cut the lamb exactly how I asked and explained what to do with the shanks.”
“One stop for the whole week's shopping, and they take WIC without any fuss.”