The Root Cellar Village Green Grocer

My partner and I only go to Rootcellar to get our Meat products. They have quality meat and provide the sources to where the meat is sourced from. They are such a great spot for clean farm-to-table quality groceries!

I had never visited before today. I went in to look at the garden center and grab a rotisserie chicken. There are some indoor plants inside and flowers that can be bought and on the outside seasonally there is a garden center that sells anything from blueberry bushes to herbs and flowers. They even had some gorgeous Japanese maples. I ended up also buying a baguette from Bond Bonds, some wonderful French Camembert cheese, a pack of assorted cookies from the Dutch bakery, and some hot cross buns that I found at checkout, in addition to a rotisserie chicken that stated that it was in the Peruvian style. The place is remarkable for all of the different things that you can find there. It is not a giant place but they seem to have so much to offer. The staff was helpful and friendly. There is spacing and barriers at checkout and several different checkout people so the line moves fast. I think my only complaint is that it is kind of difficult to get into the parking lot if one is going the wrong way on either Blenkinsop or McKenzie, but obviously that can't be helped and they have done their best with two large entrances/exits, one is off of Mckenzie and one is off of Blenkinsop.

On our way to a family dinner late in the afternoon we were hungry stopped in for a snack then headed off to dinner. Later that night we both had severe food poisoning. We weren’t sure whether it had come from the family dinner so the next day we figured out from the rest of our family thank goodness no one else had gotten sick so we knew it had been from the salad we had eaten the previous day. Out of concern for other people who may have bought the same salad and wanting to inform the management so they could remove it off the shelves that it had contained something that wasn’t safe I phoned the cafe and asked for a manager. A young girl informed me there was no manager to be had so I told her what had happened she basically just said “oh sorry” and had nothing else to say to me and then randomly asked for my name and not my phone number didn’t offer anything and was really quite dismissive and vacant. Then I asked if they want my phone number with my name anyway that was just dumb and I thought that was the end of it then the meat department manager called me back I think his name was Eric. He reacted appropriately was shocked and asked me the date informed me that he would remove the others from the shelf told me it should never happen, that he was really sorry, and that the general manager would be in contact and that they did not want to lose me as a customer. I was pleased that he acknowledged me and was satisfied that someone was going to call me and try to at least refund the $20 salads that made us very sick. An apology would have gone a long way from anyone higher up in management. It has now been a week and a half waiting and nothing. We were sick for 5 days. I’ve been supporting this business since it’s inception, friends and family have been long time customers, and it’s kind of a shame to have to stop going and patronizing them when it was something that could have and should have been rectified immediately. Hopefully my experience can help others avoid the sickness thanks to help from the butcher manager that did call. However the lack of correspondence from the general manager and lack of recompense is a stain on this otherwise good business. I won’t feel comfortable patronizing them in the future.

A great place to shop. Friendly, helpful staff. The produce is always first rate. Have you tried their green sauce? SO delicious, with just the right amount of heat. Full of flavour.

Lots of fresh produce, fresh meats, dairy, bakery goods, and an adjoining coffee shop makes it a good place to stop for groceries. Also a massive selection of plants to start your garden off in this beautiful spring weather!! Lots of healthy bedding plants and a large variety. They have potted indoor plants that make the perfect hostess gift.

I am a broke student who lives nearby, which means everyday after school I stop in to browse the discount sections. Occasionally I can snag some sausages for half off, which is a real treat, but most of the time it's a pack of buns or a ham and cheese croissant. The quality of everything truly is superb, it all tastes great even when it's expiring and half-off. I'm currently snacking on $2.50 worth of a cup of berries from the cafe, and I can't believe how much fresher and more flavourful this fruit is than a comparable fruit cup you might but at starbucks or wherever. Even in early spring, before any local berries is being sold Also a surprisingly good place for houseplants!

I lived a couple blocks from the old Oxford foods. The people who shopped there may miss the prices but...So the Root Cellar is great. There are good bargains in veg but this place is a cut above and the prices reflect that. Well lit friendly staff and great variety . We come home poorer but happy with what we bought .

Alright so first let's get this out of the way, the place is immaculate. It's incredible. It's like a well designed Disney theme park ride for produce nerds/foodies. It's exactly what it says it is, the minute you get in there you are reminded of your Grandma's root cellar, it's actually cool and dark but not poorly lit, and they have tons of tubers, root vegetables and gourds. The produce selection is comprehensive, pleasing to the eye, and well stocked, if you like food and produce you'll be a kid in a candy store. It's basically like if a grocery store said we are going to scrap the middle aisles, keep only the perimeter and have the best products possible. That being said it all is incredibly overpriced. Maple Bay Farms eggs, a wonderful product that I regularly buy from Pepper's, Quality Foods, and 49th Parallel grocery is actually FOUR DOLLARS more expensive here. For a dozen eggs $4 is quite a discrepancy.. That alone was enough for me to decide that, like Disneyland, this will be a rare, rare visit. Friendly staff, clean, lots of parking, and great canvas reusable totes that are actually reasonably priced.