18 September 2009

Thomas Dux Grocer, Surry Hills (5 Sept 2009)

Shop 1, 285A Crown Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010
http://www.thomasdux.com.au


Passion for food!

Every time I walk into a Thomas Dux Grocer I'm overwhelmed with foodie joy. They have so many great gourmet products on offer all under the one roof including a cheese and deli section. You can really tell they are passionate about their food and their slogan 'We Love Food' is very apt. If there was a nuclear fall out this would be one of my top places I'd want to be in for survival rations. The open courtyard seating at Pieno next door is pretty good as well for a brunch stop.

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6 comments:

Anonymous said...

It is just Woolworths you know. They love money and squeezing the suppliers and growers more than they love food. Their new 'up market/ gourmet foodie' branding is just a way of getting more people in their stores.

Simon Leong said...

hi anonymous, it's very clever marketing isn't it although i think it's a lot better than your normal woolworths because there's more gourmet choices which you'd usually find in say David Jones Food Hall etc. They also seem to take care of the fruit and vegetables better than a normal woolworths which is stocked and run by adolescent kids it seems. i find Coles even worse in terms of quality for fruit and vegetables — I can't believe how many times I'd see sad looking fruit and vegetables which should be thrown out, strawberries are the worst contenders.

Anonymous said...

I was there today.. and I can second the above comment that this is just another woolworths, and the only thing 'gourmet' are the prices. As a local its sad to see what previously was a great alternative to the woolworths thats practically next door, is now woolworths hiding under a re-brand to be its own competition.

I must say your enthusiasm for this store is suspicious.. the products, especially the fruit and veg, are identical to woolworths. The garlic I just bought here is made in China, same brand as woolworths around the corner. And I would recognize these flavorless tomatoes anywhere.

As the post above mentions this place is bad news for suppliers, growers, and I would add the local shoppers who once enjoyed some variety. Mostly what annoys me is the re-branding; if your a woolworths, say so. Trickery, trickery.

Simon Leong said...

hi Anonymous, thanks for your comment. i've learnt now it's owned by Woolworths. they certainly tricked me. so who owns Norton Street Grocer and Maloneys Grocer stores? are they independent or just owned by another major food chain? i guess if you want to buy directly from the farmers and suppliers then visiting Eveleigh Markets seems to be a great place to do this.

Sharon said...

H Simon,

Norton St Grocer are independents - Claudio and Albert Guerrera and their partners George Angelidis and Max Tomassian (info from 2006) and Maloneys is family owned.

Coles and Woolworths own a lot more (http://hungrybeast.abc.net.au/stories/beast-file-woolies-coles). Different brands for different markets...

For fruit and vegetables, the alternatives are your local greengrocer, farmers markets, Sydney markets and community supported agriculture.

Tastebuds tell the truth ;-)

Simon Leong said...

hi sharon, thanks heaps for the info. excellent to know. proof is in the taste buds for sure :-)

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