Oakhurst Market Now Open
Decatur Metro | July 9, 2011 | 9:29 pmTracy sends along a slideshow of photos inside the just-opened Oakhurst Market. Candy, wine, produce, meat? What more could a sweet-toothed, wine-slurping, omnivore ask for?
Tracy sends along a slideshow of photos inside the just-opened Oakhurst Market. Candy, wine, produce, meat? What more could a sweet-toothed, wine-slurping, omnivore ask for?
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Hola
Steve
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Clay
JSM
Tiffany
Cannonball
Macarolina
Steve
Hola
AJC Attempts to Explain the “e” in Clairemont Avenue
I’m gonna give them a try. Nice pics.
Augh, I was just at Matador today for a late lunch. Would have popped by to purchase something for dinner if I had only known.
Are they open on Sunday?
They are planning to be open 7 days a week.
Wow, that’s an advantage over Sawicki’s which is closed on, I think, Mondays, whichever day it is that I have a sudden last-minute need for high quality food.
Ok, totally excited!!! This will be a great addition to the ‘hood. My only worry is that this will hurt The Mercantile’s business – we love them! I hope there’s enough demand to sustain them both.
I hope Oakhurst Market is open today – cannot wait to check them out!
I hope that they actually stock some items – unlike the Mercantile.
Bought a beautiful N.Y. strip there yesterday. The place looks great.
It’s much better than the Mecantile! The pics are great but it’s even better in person!!!
I bought a bike with a basket just for the purpose of riding to the market and buying dinner! So excited!
Went today and I cannot be more excited that this place is open. It’s amazing inside!
Anyone know the hours today?
If you stop in and buy something they will carry more. Most retail inventory is pegged to demand…once they gear up if it sits they will cut back like the mercantile has done. Thousands of dollars in sitting inventory is better spent on marketing what moves. It’s not a matter of quality it’s a matter of prioritizing. Look at belly general store….3/4 of their shelves are stocked with soda.
Just went. I could not be happier. It’s better than I expected!
So you will be changing your handle to Gruntled, then?
The disconsonance between the moniker and the message hit me too!
I’m still disgruntled about a bunch of other stuff but you’re right, if this kind of progress keeps up I may have to change my moniker to Pollyanna.
It’s like…white Dannemann’s! Do they have a jar at the front “have a dollar, leave a dollar. Need a dollar, take a dollar?”
I’m here all week…
” White Dannemann’s” ???
And THIS is like…something I would think after too many pints in the sun at U-Joint but later be thankful I didn’t post on DM…
Sounds like a joke to me, but out of bounds (?).
Yeah, sometimes it’s better to think before hitting send.
Yes, and it’s also better to ignore something that offends.
Then how come we can’t seem to ignore each other?
Gibbetties, I could just squeeze you & Nelliebelle sometimes, ’cause y’all make me chuckle almost more than anyone else on this board!
Went today and enjoyed the experience. Big selection of meats and good folks to explain the cuts and custom cut. Small but nice selection of vedgies and fruits and cheese. Old-fashioned penny candy! Beer and wine. Right now this is more of a small, high-quality neighborhood market than take-out place but they are still developing. They will have soups when not so hot out. The bread and pastries looked great but were mostly sold by the time I got there.
What a great addition for New Oakhursters. Old Oakhursters still have the Hop n’ Shop, so now everyone’s covered.
Really?
Well…..yeah. An Oakhurst Market fits in well with the vision of Oakhurst that the new crowd has. The Hop ‘n Shop fits in with the vision that the old crowd holds. It’s what most controversial discussions about Oakhurst are really about – what kind of neighborhood we think we’ve got here. Some people think it is a surging intown community with very successful local businesses. Others think it’s the kind of downtrodden place that needs a Dollar General.
Now everyone should be happy. Right?
Yeah, it’d just be awful to have a nearby store where the “sweet- toothed, wine-slurping omnivores” could buy mouthwash, floss, & toothpaste + headache, hangover, & digestive remedies!
(Even your most ardent allies are probably cringing at your lack of graciousness.)
Graciousness? What, did I win and you lost? I said everyone wins.
Now, if you think what I’m saying is that the Oakhurst Market confirms what many anti-Dollar General folks felt, well I won’t argue. But only if you said it. Cause it would be ungracious of me to do so.
Let that little light of yours shine, shine, shine.
Speaking of being gracious.
This is just a blog comments section. Please don’t take it so personally. I’m sure we’d enjoy a beer together if the opportunity ever came up.
I cringe not, T-boy. Since when is telling it like it is–or the way you see it–not gracious?
Well, no. Those are not the only two visions of Oakhurst that are common around the neighborhood. Plenty of us envision a community that is neither downtrodden nor surging ever more upscale — because that’s the community we live in. We are invisible to you, evidently, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t here. We believe that an upscale boutique market and the Hop’N’Shop shouldn’t be our only choices. The new market is a wonderful addition to the community, but there is still a gap.
I’m not entirely sure if this is what you’re arguing, but a recent critique of Jane Jacobs in the NYT said something that has stuck with me for many months. (Sorry I can’t find the article online at the moment) Essentially, the diverse community of Greenwich Village that Jacobs so loved – long-time, old world shopkeepers selling selling cuts of meat to young artists, etc – was actually a neighborhood in transition. They may be full of vibrancy, diversity and life, but they are places that won’t last. Eventually such areas become more homogenous – for richer or poorer. Before going through transition again
It’s a cycle that can’t be stopped.
If that’s the same article I read, I think it was a review of a couple of books about, among other things, Jane Jacobs. It’s sort of on point. But what I’m really trying to do is challenge the notion that Oakhurst — or any in-town, constantly evolving neighborhood — has to be either-or. TeeRuss’s characterization suggests to me an grossly oversimplified view of both the “old crowd” and the “new crowd.” Neither is as homogeneous as all that. And the transition Oakhurst has been experiencing is a lot more complex than a “downtrodden” place flipping into a “surging intown neighborhood with successful local businesses.” Not trying to pick a fight, or get into a protracted discussion — just feel like that kind of facile characterization shouldn’t go unchallenged.
Of course it’s not either-or. But on DecaturMetro, in a comment thread about the Dollar General, it was either-or. And so I followed up with a comment in line from that discussion.
Others picked up a hint of ungraciousness, as if I were spiking a football on behalf of the upper-middle class folks who have moved here. I probably should have tossed the football to the ref and headed for the sideline, but I’m psyched that we went from a probable Dollar General to an actual Oakhurst Market, and couldn’t hold it in.
Upper middle class guy spiking a football? That’s a horrible sports analogy. You were Tiger Woods fist pumping after draining a long putt!
Not to be contentious, only to respectfully disagree….I read the whole DG debate somewhat differently. On one level, yes, it did boil down to a simple question of being for or against a DG store locating in Oakhurst. But people on each side of the question expressed a wide range of reasons for their opinions. And it also seemed to me that the two camps did not really break cleanly along “old” and “new” crowds (by which I think you mean longtime residents versus folks who’ve moved here more recently–using whatever thresholds might be meaningful in that respect).
sometimes i feel like starting a smalltowngal fan club. for real. seriously though, smalltowngal is definitely not alone in thinking that alot of assumptions made by alot of folks in this neighborhood REALLY need to be challenged. thanks for tirelessly doing that on this blog–it’s something you do much better than me and something i just don’t usually have the energy to do.
Here’s to a truly inclusive, healthy, supportive community…and world 😉
I am very curious as to STG’s real identity. I have put together a list of clues and I have one very good candidate, but I am probably wrong.
I’m flattered by your curiosity, but it’s also activating my shy streak. I may have to start wearing a disguise. If you see someone wearing a sleep mask with eye holes cut in it, that’ll be me!
i suspect gingham is involved
Thanks, OW. A pat on the back is always welcome!
I think it is probably impossible to stop that transition once it gets going. That is why I have been sad to see my old neighborhood of Melrose-Drexel-Lansdowne going from a very racially and economically diverse neighborhood to one where only higher income, 2-car owners families can afford to buy the new homes being built or restored.
Well… the thing to do to stop the transition from going all the way is to have a variety of housing stock. Housing prices in Oakhurst are going up up up, and I don’t see an easy way of stopping that–people can always buy up stuff and renovate it or tear it down and put up top-end houses. But we can use zoning and other means to encourage more affordable rentals, and maybe more smaller duplexes and other housing options for people who aren’t upper-middle-class+ .
Kids…do I need to turn this car around?
Hah! Hearted.
Hop-N-Shop versus Oakhurst Market? How about something in between? I went in a few days ago to the new store and left $25 poorer with 3 carrots and a few steaks that barely fed two medium-sized adults. Yes, I understand quality costs money. It’s just disappointing to think that my options for basic supplies that I could use to throw a meal together remain the Stop-and-Shot or Kroger, way across the tracks in DowntownLand, Is Oakhurst really ready for boutique retail? Sigh.
+1
It’s funny that STG +oned this comment–I think this was part of TeeRuss’s point. Also, once there is shift in either direction it tends to continue that way–it’s a pendulum not a divining rod.
That said, you gotta love Steinbecks, McGowans, Saba, et al.
How big were those steaks?!?
Personally, I can easily see myself grabbing a pastry at Oakhurts Market on my way over to Hop ‘n Shop to pick up some essential item for which I don’t want to take the time to drive outside of Decatur.
BTW, I actually asked what an “OM burger” was when I was at the Market yesterday, thinking it was buffalo beef or organic or something else Zen-like. Boy did I feel foolish to find out that “OM” stands for Oakhurst Market! Nonetheless, I think the OM designation is perfect for the spirit of this market.
Here’s hoping that they will have a Steak Day like the one at Oak Grove Market.
+1
Although I’m not sure that’ll ever happen. I *think* Steak Day at Oak Grove is a loss leader that gets folks in to buy more. However, a $7.99 Steak Day might cut into U. Joint’s lunch profits on that day…
What are the prices like? I accept paying more for fresh, local produce and meats right around the corner, but I can’t do it every day. Hoping there will be a nice balance so that it can be more than a “special occasion place.”
And is anyone else both happy and miserable over the Icee machine???? I can hear the whining from my kids now…
I paid $3.99/lb for ground chuck that seemed perfect in color and texture, unlike what I usually get at the grocery store which is often ok looking on the top and not so good looking underneath. And $6.09 for 1 1/2 pounds of a custom cut of beef for stew. This all seemed reasonable to me since sometimes I buy meat at the grocery store that doesn’t last a day and gets thrown out or otherwise disappoints. The penny candy wasn’t a penny but was reasonable for a gaggle of girls at a party. The fruit and vedgies may be pricey but if they are high quality and last more than a day, they may be worth it. I am so tired of buying grapes, cherries, watermelon, and apples at the grocery store that seem timed to self-destruct as soon as I get them home.
Excellent points– lately I’ve had issues with freshness from Publix far more frequently than I used to– in particular having to toss meat days before the “sell by” date because it was smelly. They have been very nice about taking returns, but it’s still frustrating and a pain to deal with.
What is considered old vs. new Oakhurst these days?
I certainly don’t see myself as “new” Oakhurst, but also haven’t been here since the 1980’s either and bought my house before anyone thought it was reasonable to spend $500k+ for a house in Oakhurst. Am I new or old or somewhere in between?
I also see myself shopping at both Hop n Shop and Oakhurst Market depending upon what I’m looking for.
Not sure your labels fit so tightly.
I think “reasonable” has gone back down to under $400,000. I’m seeing house prices in the 300,00s even in the Great Lakes area which has some homes that are as close to McMansions as you can be without losing the quaint craftsman cottage look. There’s still some homes with flyers listing prices over $600,000 but I haven’t seen any of them sell.
New houses are still selling for over $500k in Oakhurst.
Interesting. There’s not many new houses on the northside. Maybe resales have dropped more than brand new houses. But new houses can dip a little in value in a time of generally stable or declining house values because the new house smell and feel wears off quickly. Foundations settle, baseboards get dented by rugrats and pets, and no siding or roof ever stays pristine, even with spray washing.
Nonetheless, eventually everything has to go up, barring a permanent financial collapse, since they aren’t making any more land on this earth. House values are like children’s stages, if you don’t like them, just wait a little and they’ll change again.
Didn’t Mayor Floyd’s house just sell for over $650,000?
That’s just the “celebrity premium.”
We were talking about “reasonable”, right? I’m sure some houses are selling at over $500,000 on the northside, but it’s the very high end houses. A while ago, just about anything was priced high–I never knew what they actually sold for. And houses that were nice, but not that darn nice–you’d still want to do some improving–were advertised at ludicrous prices. Now I am seeing houses listed along a gradient of prices that seem more commensurate with the gradient of actual value.
So, was the mayor’s $650,000 house really nice?
+1
I’m leaving work now and heading to the market. I’ve been peaking through the cracks in the paper covering the windows for months now in anticipation. I’m so hoping that I’m not let down, and as long as they’re not selling Ben and Jerry’s and Lottery tickets, then Hop and Shop has nothing to worry about from my point of view. I’m glad for the competition, and speaking of that, I do have one concern.
As often as I’ve enjoyed Steinbecks and U-Joint, I still haven’t ever figured out completely what their relationship truly is. Who owns what percentage of which part of what business is confusing and now the Oakhurst Market is part of an Oakhurst business love triangle. How long until no competition exists in the ‘Hurst (ha, couldn’t resist and it is a truly terrible moniker).
Ben and Jerry’s isn’t high end? Uh oh. Cool has left me in the dust as usual. I mean, it’s better than Mayfield or Good Humor, no?
Yes, Ben and Jerry’s is higher end than Mayfield. My only point is that I usually buy mine at Hop and Shop so it’s not like OM is taking away my business from them. They’re both fulfilling different needs for me. Truth be told, most other things I end up buying at Hop and Shop are even more high end as far as pricing since they’re usually in the smaller “convenience” size I’m paying a premium.
Don’t worry Karass, I can assure you that whether or not it’s “high end”, Ben and Jerry’s is still da bomb (which means “cool” and “awesome”, or at least it did the last time I could possibly claim to be in the know). I haven’t smoked pot in over a decade but I swear I can feel the lingering effects of long ago buzzes after a late night Phish Food binge.
Now speaking of ice cream, how do we get Morelli’s to open a location in either Oakhurst or downtown Decatur??? I’m pretty sure my dream of the Penn State Creamery opening shop down here will never come to fruition but Morelli’s within walking distance would be gloriously dangerous. Hopefully it will happen after the new Walmart opens so I can stock up on some expandable waistband pants. Do they still make Sansabelts?
Morrelli’s. Yes please.
I prefer ‘Khurst.
So is the meat at OM grass-fed, free range, hormone & antibiotic free etc? Veggies organic?
Before anybody starts making snark about your inquiry, I entreat all snarkers to read the Hormel article in the most recent issue of Mother Jones.
Always enjoy the Oakgrove Market. Friendly surroundings good food at a reasonable price. Popped in at the Oakhurst Market, sorely disappointed….just too ladeeda. I can get wine anywhere and I can get anything I want butchered so you are missing the point if you think there is any connection to the Oakgrove. I’ll make my destination to LaVista Road still, nice try.