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Ziggy's Fantastic Foods
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
2 reviews for Ziggy's Fantastic Foods
2 reviews in English
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Review from Melinda M.
Toronto, ON
12/9/2009
I always call this place St Clair Market, never knew there was a connection to Ziggy from the comics. But that name makes sense! Whenever I go in here, I sort of feel like that Ziggy - beaten, sad and defeated. St. Clair Market is in a convenient location, but nothing else about it is convenient.
First, the layout. You have to enter from the entrance in the "mall". If you come in from the east, you have to walk all the way past all the checkout lines and around the display tables blocking the store, to the small lanes where there is slim space to squeeze into the store. Once in, still tough to navigate. It's a small store, poorly laid out, and because of it's convenient location, it is always crowded.
Yes, the crowds. I get it, especially at lunch and after work. Trying to get a bowl of soup between 12-2 is a shit show because they have the cups and lids on one side and six soups slammed closely together. You wait in line for the cups, then wait again for your soup to be available, or just accessible, and then you have to go back and wait in line for the lid. Do yourself a favor and grab the lid when you grab the cup. They have tried to improve things by putting some cups on the right side, but they always seem to only be the large cups, and no lids. The soups themselves are delicious. Mushroom bisque, thai chicken, italian wedding, lobster bisque are all very good and reasonably priced. ($3.50 for a filling medium!)
For the lunch crowd, there are also lots of pre-made sandwiches, a counter with salads by the ounce and samosas, and a hot food area with rotisserie chickens and potatoes and other such hot foods.
Outside of lunch, I avoid this place for groceries. It's too expensive, and the selection is limited. Not worth trying to find something that may not be there anyway. If I am really lazy or the weather's horrible, I will try, but that's called desperation, and I like to think I am better than that.
At least at lunch time they know it's going to be crowded and try to staff the registers. After work, not so much. I went there once at 5:30 and there was one register open. They are just NOT in a rush to serve at this store.
I also have a new dilemma which adds to my frustration at check-out. Last week I was walking up the escalator from the subway (the store is one flight up from the St. Clair subway station) and was following a blonde woman. She stopped abruptly in front of me and when I tried to walk around her at the top of the escalator, she purposely moved in front of me. I said out loud, "how rude" and walked around her from the OTHER side. THEN I realized it was a cashier from St. Clair Market. Now, if there are 2 registers open, I have to avoid hers, even if no one is in her line. But really. The cashiers are rude even when they're not in the store!
I was told this store originally opened because the Loblaws HQ is next door, and this was the "example" store to show off to visiting clients and executives. Either they are not using this store as an example anymore, or Loblaws has just given up.Listed in: To-go
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Review from Denise M.
Toronto, ON
12/7/2009
Ziggy's Fantastic Foods, AKA St. Clair. Market AKA Loblaws AKA secret little grocery store in the Yonge/St. Clair plaza is decent for the size. It has all the departments of a full-size grocery store but I don't think I've ever bought more than 10 things at once here.
There are really only two reasons I go here:
1. I'm too lazy to walk the extra three minutes to Sobeys
2. Their pre-frozen, inexpensive salmon lox that comes in little plastic containers and is never in the same location! Buy this, a package of cream cheese and make your way over to bagel house just down the street and you have a fine breakfast in the making.
