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 The Stony Brook section of Jamaica Plain is packed with tree-lined streets and multi-family homes, and at the heart of this diverse neighborhood is City Feed and Supply. Part cafe, part deli, part grocery store, City Feed grew from the owners' desire to create a meeting place reminiscent of their rural roots.
David Warner - Owner, City Feed and Supply: "We liked the idea of how the feed store can be the center of its community, it's where everybody runs into each other once a week or once a month when they're picking up supplies."
Kristine Cortese - Owner, City Feed and Supply: "Mainly we just want to offer really good food, really good coffee, and create a community spot for the neighborhood to come and hang out and get to know each other."
Ninety-five percent of City Feed's customers live within a five-block radius of the store, and many of them stop by every morning to start their day with a cup of fair trade organic coffee. For a bigger jolt, there is also a full espresso menu, and a variety of fresh baked goodies. At lunchtime, City Feed serves creative sandwiches like Smoked Turkey with pesto mayo, marinated red onion, smoked cheddar, and red pepper relish. There's a classic Prosciutto with fresh mozzarella, tomato, and basil, or the Italian, packed with cured meats, peppers, and provolone.
The menu also offers an impressive selection of vegetarian sandwiches like the Farmers Lunch stacking extra sharp cheddar, granny smith apples, and pickled green tomatoes. There are even three varieties of Peanut Butter and Jelly, like this one made with Rubie Jam and banana slices.
While most local grocery stores have been swallowed up by megamarts, small-town spirit still thrives at City Feed. The shelves are stocked with everyday items from fresh produce, to ethnic ingredients, to health and beauty supplies. City Feed is more of a natural foods market than a conventional convenience store, but they're not opposed to carrying items to satisfy the occasional craving.
David Warner - Owner, City Feed and Supply: "We think people are pretty well informed about what they're eating, and we just try to provide healthy options, so unlike a convenience store where you're just about gonna find only junk food, here we have what you would call junk food, but we have healthy food too."
In fact, most of the products sold here come from customer requests. Hanging in each aisle is a pad where shoppers can write down something they'd like to see on the shelves.
David Warner - Owner, City Feed and Supply: "When we first opened the store, we left a lot of room, like at least half the space open just for people to make suggestions and every time somebody would suggest something we would order it, we would try it, if it sold, we would reorder it."
For City Feed, giving the community a voice is what it's all about. Here, neighborhood announcements don’t blanket bulletin boards, they’re neatly organized onto clipboards. Customers don’t just stop and shop, they sit and relax, and admire the work of local artists. The sense of community is obviously clear, but City Feed and Supply's name can still cause some confusion.
David Warner - Owner, City Feed and Supply: "About three times a year we'll get a call for hay or baby chicks, or cracked corn or something like that."
So while the farmer may need to shop somewhere else, there rest of the community can find just what they're looking for at City Feed and Supply, a Phantom Gourmet... Hidden Jewel.
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Review Date:
8/14/2004 |
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