I discovered Aunt Maggie's last year when they opened a branch near my workplace. The wide range of veg-friendly goodies, organic fruit and veggies and friendly staff put it into my regular grocery shopping rotation. So I was super excited when Cindy spotted some Aunt Maggie's signage on an old Crazy John's right around the corner from our house.
They got the renovations done in almost no time and the store opened last week. I sneaked in before the big opening day extravaganza and poked around while things were still quiet.
First things first: it's massive. Bigger than the Fitzroy store I'd say and with a beautiful light-filled vibe. Things are quite spacious - even on the Saturday with the crowds there was plenty of room to poke through the shelves and suss out all the products they offer. There's a great selection of fresh produce, heaps of vegan-friendly stuff (Vegusto, cashew yoghurt, coconut icecream, tofu, tempeh, soy condensed milk, etc.), organic toiletries and cleaning products (including this household's new brand of toilet paper) and on and on.
So far, it's literally been a one-stop shop for us (as opposed to the usual trip via the fruit shop, the IGA and Coles). It's not doing wonders for our shopping bills - buying organic or ethical products is always going to cost more than supermarket stuff - but it combines ready availability of some otherwise difficult-to-find items with the feeling that we're supporting some worthwhile products and companies. It's our go-to grocery store at the moment (although they don't seem to have the cheap lunchtime soup bar that the Fitzroy store offers).
24/5/2014: Correction - they do indeed offer soup at the Brunswick store, it's $6 for small and $8 for large. The spinach and lentil soup I had today was excellent.
24/5/2014: Correction - they do indeed offer soup at the Brunswick store, it's $6 for small and $8 for large. The spinach and lentil soup I had today was excellent.
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Aunt Maggie's
74-78 Sydney Rd, Brunswick
8388 7358
www.auntmaggies.com.au
(and their slightly more informative facebook page)
Accessibility: There's a wide, flat entry and a reasonable amount of space throughout. The checkouts are at a reasonably low level.
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