Today I'm going to write about my favorite supermarket in New York. The story begins in early 2005, when RST moved to 233rd Street and Broadway, in Kingsbridge. Across Broadway was a supermarket where we sometimes got sandwiches, and I also went there to stock up on provisions to keep at work. The place seemed to be having an identity crisis; judging by its verbose awning, it was called something like 'Eastside Fruit Plaza,' but the receipts said "Villa's Market." The name that became most widely understood around the office was "across the street."

Over several trips, I gradually realized that Villa's Market, as I preferred to call it, had a lot of products that you didn't see much in these parts, and yet it rose above the level of a specialty market, because of its supermarket size and because these products did not seem to be tied to a particular country, though there was perhaps a region of emphasis. They had lots of Greek, Spanish and Dutch cheeses; Russian soda; crackers and cookies and chocolate from all over Eastern Europe; and dozens of types of salami. The cheeses and salamis were often available for sampling, which was always fun. They also had amazingly low prices on many of the products that I was used to only finding at Zabar's and Fairway, such as Fage Greek yogurt and Rao's pasta sauce. For a long time they had a rotisserie and sold whole roasted chickens for $3.99. I started shopping there for home groceries whenever I could.

The other magical thing about Villa's was that almost every time I went there, they had either added a new section, installed a brand new shelf of coolers, replaced the checkout equipment, or made some other huge change. It was in constant flux, though I hardly ever saw the work in progress. They have at this point expanded into two or three former neighboring businesses, including one Italian salumeria the loss of which we mourned at work, but I don't think their closing was Villa's doing.

My all-time favorite product sold at Villa's has to be these gigantic pails of Bulgarian sheep's milk cheese. Each one weighs nearly nine pounds and sells for thirty-eight dollars. It looks like something intended to feed an army, and yet I have actually seen people buy them. Closeup here.

Today, Villa's appears to be nearing the completion of its massive renovation, and has resolved its identity crisis by replacing the facade seen above with a new one that reads "Garden Gourmet Market" in large red letters. The name is used consistently on the receipts, the bags and the uniforms of the staff. Apart from the great product selection and prices, Villa's (it will always be Villa's to me) has a personal touch that I find lacking at Zabar's and Fairway, where my queries about unusual products are usually met with blank stares or even sneers. And that's why this is my favorite supermarket.