Top Ten Produce

I’ve been a regular at Top Ten for over a year now, and I try to buy as much of my groceries here. The guys are the hardest working, most decent bunch you could hope to meet.
If you like the sterile atmosphere of a regular supermarket then Top Ten may not be for you. If you like to support independent business with character and good prices, then definitely check out the Top Ten.

My first review since moving to Vancouver. First I have to say that I made the horrible mistake of making Safeway the first grocery store I tried to go to in Vancouver. It was the most absurdly expensive and disappointing selection I have ever experienced in my life. It made me question my choice to move here.
Luckily, I stumbled into Top Ten Produce. The prices are incredibly reasonable for Vancouver and the have an excellent selection of produce. Not a ton of organic produce, but pretty much everything I have bought here and seen is incredibly fresh-​looking and has tasted good. There is also quite a wide variety of items considering how small the shop is.
Also, the people working are always really nice.
Sure, they don’t have everything you need, but they have enough of my staples to make me want to shop here on a regular basis. Thanks Top Ten!

Kudos to them for daring to compete w/​Kin’s next door.
Typical produce w/​more non-​food items.
But you can barely see through the store, as all their window & doors are just crammed w/​posters & ads.
Metered parking in front.

Hurray! Non-​Chinese garlic! That stuff is acrid, tough and has none of the nuance of garlic grown without some kind of growth stimulants. None of the non-​organic stores on the West Side have it so I have to go to Urban Fare or Choices. It’s the same thing with Chinese ginger. I am grateful to Top Ten Produce for that garlic. Yes, the store is in some disarray and there were no price signs on prominently displayed items like blueberries so I had to ask. There were at least two other items I didn’t buy; one was a display of bags upon bags of Que Pasa tortilla chips that I passed on because there were no price signs. You would think after having been asked questions like that a few times they would put up a sign but maybe the denizens of this neigbourhood don’t care about prices. The young man with the apron and many tattoos on his arms was very helpful and congenial. I’ll be back. One more thing: I’d like to find a produce store that has a refrigerated area for delicate plants like cilantro so they wouldn’t yellow and become limp so quickly.

This neighborhood grocery store pretty much has everything you might need to throw together a decent meal.
Lots of fresh produce, with a whole center section for organics.
Locally-​made bread, with gluten-​free options… and tortillas too!
As for canned goods, you have to keep your eyes peeled for deals cause they’ll stock those in larger quantities due to high turnover.
For pics:
I wish I’d stumbled upon this place sooner, but I really do judge a book by its cover. It’s taken me half a year to even enter this store because the storefront simply wasn’t enticing enough, but it does reflect the unkempt nature you’ll find waiting inside. I’m big on presentation, esp. if I’m going to be wandering in and out of a store on a weekly basis. Though the store looked much cleaner on this second visit…
Appearance aside, I was really hoping I’d found an alternative to Safeway but unfortunately, they don’t carry a mainstay of mine — Lactaid… sigh. Back to the drawing board I go.