Submitted by Nugget_4758 t3_100eq66 in massachusetts
Hi, I’m going to be a college freshman in the fall and will be attending a school in Northampton. Im from the south so I’m not very familiar with the New England area. What grocery stores would be the ones people on that area typically use?
This sketches some people out but Big Lots also carries a ton of random, quality and interesting foods for cheap. There’s one in Northampton, as well, but I haven’t been in close to a decade. So I can’t speak to the selection/prices anymore.
>Assuming that you're going to Smith? Typically the students eat at the dining hall
Indeed, even compared to many other schools Smith seems to be very self contained with students rarely seen much beyond the immediate area of the campus
>If you need a real grocery haul, the Big Y in Northampton is a dang delight and is a bike ride away
Yes, but it's worth checking Stop and Shop, too. Some things are better at one, some at the other. And watch the sales each week, lots of stuff is a ripoff at its usual price and should only ever be bought on sale.
>(there is a bike path running past it!)
No, there's no bike path near Big Y. That's Stop and Shop.
To get to Big Y from Smith one could take State and get on the bike path behind Stop and Shop which then intersects Jackson Street, but that leaves Jackson Street itself and the goofy intersection with Cooke. Or one could just go up Elm to Woodlawn to Jackson, though technically turning left onto Elm on the return is not allowed.
There is technically bike lane (not "path") on the portion of King Street between Big Y and Damon/Bridge, but King Street is not a very sensible way to get there on a bike.
Ironically there is more or less "bike path" to the Big Y way over in Amherst but while Trader Joe's, etc that one would go past in Hadley are probably worth it (and until Northampton's opens late spring, Aldi) there'd be little reason to go to the Amherst Big Y rather than the Northampton one.
But the whole area is great to bike around - there are a tiny handful of roads to avoid but most of the ordinary ones are great.
Thank you !
If you're going to be a freshman, will you be living on campus and eating in the dining hall? If so, you probably won't need groceries very often.
If you have a car there are a number of different grocery stores within driving distance. If not, Stop & Shop is walkable from campus, but it's almost a mile so it'll be hard to carry a lot of stuff that far.
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Im nearby and Trader Joe’s is popular amongst my peers
Stop and Shop, Big Y, Aldis, awesome Asian market in Hadley, some specialty stores in NoHo and Amherst, Market basket in Athol if you can drive is both a lovely trip and cheap
Driving from Northampton to Athol will cost more in gas than you'll save on groceries.
Probably cost you less in gas to drive to Springfield, West Springfield, or Agawam.
Not to mention the time
There’s also the River Valley Coop on Route 5 north of the Big Y/Walmart retail.
First of all deals and steals is right in noho no drive to Athol (lol) needed.
Secondly. You excluded river valley coop which is cheaper for eggs and produce 8/10 times
I always forget that is there honestly.
Hey it happens no worries:
What’s the Asian market in hadley? I only know of the one in Amherst
>What’s the Asian market in hadley?
Tran's World Food Market.
It basically backs up to the bike path so actually quite reachable for a student, but maybe a little tricky the first time to identify which unofficial exit to use. Needless to say route 9 is not fun.
Yeah I think I’ve gone once years ago. I thought there was more than one Asian store on route 9. I remember route 9 being a pain (but when is it not?).
Trans
Oh okay! I think I’ve been there maybe once with my family years ago! I always forget about them
I enjoy going there, they're usually really helpful with my recipes when I'm buying for curry
Yeah I remember them having a good selection. There used to be another store in hadley that was an Asian store too but it caught on fire? Was it that one or a different one?
Don't go to stop and shop. It's dirty and target is cheaper somehow. S&S is the worst local chain we have imo
The main thing with both Stop and Shop and Big Y is to watch the sales and only buy what's on sale. Which has a better price varies week to week and item to item. That would be even more true of CVS - absurd ordinary prices, but often good sales.
Of course either grocery store is inexpensive compared to much of what's downtown, except maybe some of what deals and steals has.
Too note with CVS get a card with them for the deals.
State street market is the closest to Smith.
Also +1 on state street deli sandwiches.
Cornucopia in Thornes is a nice little natural market, and State St Fruit Store is a small grocery store with most your needs, but very walkable from campus.
As other people have mentioned, Big Y and Stop & Shop are the major chains in Western Mass. Big Y is family owned based in Springfield, Stop & Shop is part of the Ahold Corporation, a Dutch company that also owns Hannafords, Giant, and Food Lion.
You shouldn’t need much if you’re living on campus, the two small down town stores should be able to get you all your essentials.
Make sure you get yourself some nice waterproof boots, a warm coat, and some mittens. Winters can be chilly, but the spring and fall in Northampton are gorgeous. You’ll have a great time just on campus and downtown Northampton. Be careful, those who come to the valley for college tend to never leave.
Non-confrontational counterpoint re: Stop and Shop vs Big Y-- you're correct about ownership, but S&S is unionized, while Big Y is aggressively anti-union. That factor alone keeps me going to S&S over Big Y.
The family is also heavily involved and takes most of the profits from the company, they also have local news wrapped around their finger.
>You shouldn’t need much if you’re living on campus, the two small down town stores should be able to get you all your essentials.... You’ll have a great time just on campus and downtown Northampton.
While that's true it's definitely worth exploring beyond downtown, not just because everything downtown is overpriced but because there's just so much more to the area.
Anyone here not saying Atkins is just plain wrong.
Atkins is a good complimentary grocery but not a primary food source imo.
It's also not in Northampton. Depending on where you are in town both Stop and Shop and Big Y are pretty reachable by foot and easily by bike.
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Also river valley
River valley imo if you live in noho
If you're loaded, sure.
Also unpleasant to get to without a car.
The eggs and produce are cheaper then big y and stop and shop. Center aisle stuff, maybe yeah
Produce I found at parity but proteins/meats were double what I was used to at Big Y.
Big y, stop n shop, Walmart, and (soon) Aldi are located on King Street. There are smaller markets mentioned closer to Smith or maybe Clark. There's river valley coop also on king street which is like a smaller, local whole foods.
If you have a car, bike or time to take a bus to hadley across the river there's an Asian grocery, Spanish grocery, Maple Farm Foods which is my personal fave for low cost and variety, a larger Walmart, trader Joes, target, Whole Foods, another big y, aldi and stop n shop. Maple Farm is actually on the bike path and has an ice cream window/ places to eat outside. Pre- covid they had a great hot foods bar and salad bar which are slowly starting to return. They have a bunch of heat n eat meals too.
There’s gonna be an Aldi on king st?!
> a larger Walmart
In terms of floorspace, technically yes, but in many ways Northampton's seems better, and they have more food than Hadley. Easy to duck in there before Big Y. Actually the only thing I can think of that Hadley Walmart has that Northampton doesn't is ammo?
Idk, I don't spend enough time in either to really compare but the Northampton one made me say "holy shit this is small".
Hadley seems to have more freezers?
>Hadley seems to have more freezers?
Think it's the other way around, despite being "bigger" Hadley has little besides a few frozen pizzas, milk, and perhaps some eggs and cheese.
Northampton has a a whole row of refrigerators facing towards clothing, and then the reverse side in the next aisle is frozens.
So for example you can get frozen veggies, or bag meals, or chicken in Northampton, but never seen them in Hadley. Neither of course has fresh.
I've always wondered if it was a lease or business license condition that the Hadley store not really compete in the "grocery" space. At least there are lots of places you can get those on a trip over there.
Not sure where they are in Northampton but Big Y and Stop & Shop are the go-to supermarkets.
Right in Northampton it's going to be Big Y and Stop and Shop. Trader Joe's is a short bus/car ride into Hadley. I do not recommend shopping at the area walmarts as they're small form factor and don't have full grocery stores inside. They're also walmart (ew).
Big Y, Stop & Shop, Trader Joes. Other: Target, Walmart.
If you go to Big Y or S&S get a free member card to reduce prices because they're expensive.
What nobody here is telling you is Northampton is a very high cost of living town in an already high cost of living state. Make sure to have income of some sort though if you’re going to smith you’re probably fine already.
Big Y an Stop an Shop are nearby and the most reasonable.
>What nobody here is telling you is Northampton is a very high cost of living town in an already high cost of living state.
On a more practical level, the difference between prices in downtown Northampton vs. the actual grocery stores in Northampton and Hadley (reachable by bike or in the case of stop and shop even walking from campus) is larger than regional price differences.
It's buying things at what are essentially convenience stores, prepared meals, etc. that are actually going to kill a budget.
Being in Northampton if you do choose to live there you have a Trader Joe’s and a Whole Foods that’s only a 5 or so minute drive and there’s a local store called big y they have one in almost every town. Other then that your looking at just small mom and pop shops
Surprised nobody has said Deals and Steals. As a broke college kid I bought most of my groceries from Deals and Steals and supplemented with veg from Cornucopia. Both are right downtown. Big Y and Stop and Shop was when a friend with a car was willing to drive.
There's a whole food and trader Joe's and cheap stuff in NoHo. You'll be fine. Enjoy Bueno, Raven Books, and Antonio's. Check out the bike path and hiking at Mt Tom. I love it there.
Edit...Sorry. Pinocchio's
Whole Food and Trader Joe's are across the river in Hadley. They are relatively accessible by bus, but probably too much of a hassle without a car.
Funny, that's what I thought when people were saying Atkins...but yeah.
>Whole Food and Trader Joe's are across the river in Hadley. They are relatively accessible by bus, but probably too much of a hassle without a car.
Pretty easy ride on the bike path except when its covered in snow
knobbly t1_j2hvwoa wrote
Assuming that you're going to Smith? Typically the students eat at the dining hall, but State Street deli and market is going to be the closest place for you to get dorm snacks and light groceries! Walkable from campus.
If you need a real grocery haul, the Big Y in Northampton is a dang delight and is a bike ride away (there is a bike path running past it!) Stop & Shop in Northampton is a little closer of a bike ride but the produce section is somewhat disappointing tbh.
You'll probably be 99% set for food with the dining hall, but it's so worth it to get into town if you can (drag your floor mates along for some bonding!) Shelburne Falls and Haymarket in town are great cafes, there's some cute clothing stores, and if you take the B43 bus (free with your student ID, leaves from campus), you can get to the bigger mall the next town over if you need to do a target/trader joes run or pick up some winter gear.
Welcome to western mass! Best part of mass - don't tell the Bostonians 😉
EDITING TO ADD: can't believe I forgot about deals and steals!! It's a little overstock store in Northampton with close to expiration canned and dried foods. They have the best prices on most things for sure and have a weirdly good selection of gluten free or other specific diet stuff like Bob's red mill products. Also a weird amount of discount Dansko clogs. It's an experience.