The Independent Edition

Dream Farm Fruit & Vegetable Owner:  Sang Soo Yu Opened:  2007 Cooperative:  none Location:  1424 Nostrand Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 The Meat Place is at the southeastern corner of Nostrand Avenue and Martense Street, with Dream Farm at the southwestern corner. By the way, this is finally the last greengrocer shop we're going to see in Flatbush -- and for quite  a while anywhere. Come back tomorrow for our next store on Nostrand Avenue!

The Meat Place  Owner:  Peter Sills Opened:  2009 Cooperative:  Krasdale Location:  1423 Nostrand Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 Today's snapshot is the second of the two Meat Place locations, with the first being about three quarters of a mile south on Nostrand Ave. This location opened in 2009, nine years after the first. And it also appears that this one is under a different owner, Peter Sills instead of Anthony Marchese, however that could also just be an error in the listing. This location is two doors north of JK Joe Farm , which you can see with the green awning in the above picture.

JK Joe Farm Owner:  Joseph Kim Opened:  2012 Cooperative:  none Location:  1427 Nostrand Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 Very quick look today at this store on the east side of Nostrand Avenue as we continue to head north. It previously operated as Lucky Farm, with JK Joe Farm opening in 2012. Up next we head two doors north to the second location of The Meat Place!

MK Marketplace Owner:  Mun Kwan Cha Opened:  2017-2020(?) Cooperative:  Retail Grocers Group Location:  3008 Church Ave, East Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 Just a block west of Country Coco is the 4,000 square foot MK Marketplace. It's a very similar store in many ways. In fact, the stores used to share an owner. MK was the Master Food Supermarket from its opening in 1998 until about 2015, when it rebranded to MK Supermarket. Inc 2017, a new corporate entity was formed called MK Market Place Inc. While I can't locate an individual's name for the MK entity, I'm willing to bet ownership has not changed and that Mun Kwan (MK) Cha is still running this store. So here's the thing about supermarkets. They're a hard business to be in. The profit margins are so low that especially independent owners have no wiggle room whatsoever. And the reality is, dense urban locations (regardless of income level of the neighborhood, by the ...

Country Coco Owner:  Hwan C Sung Opened:  2013 Cooperative:  none Location:  3114 Church Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 Our store today is a 3400 square foot Caribbean grocery store that's close to central Flatbush. Previously the Nebraskaland Supermarket owned by Mun Kwan Cha (who also previously owned what's now the Church Fruit Farm and currently owns tomorrow's MK Marketplace), this store changed ownership and branding in 2013. This is another narrow and deep store. While it doesn't carry meat, as Nebraskaland did, it has a large produce and Caribbean grocery selection. The store was also renovated in 2013, bringing in a larger produce department and new flooring. Great mix of basic and international produce items. Heading to the back of the store, we encounter the grocery department, with a heavy emphasis on Caribbean and natural/specialty products. Refrigerator cases mostly stocked with single-serve...

The Meat Place Owner:  Anthony Marchese Opened:  2000 Cooperative:  Krasdale Location:  1891 Nostrand Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 This quirky 4,000 square foot store is serious about what they do: meat. This is one of two Meat Place locations, the other one being farther up Nostrand Ave (which we'll see later). It's between the KP Farm Market and a Key Food we'll see tomorrow. Much like Green Village , meats run along the left wall, with butcher and deli on the back wall (Green Village does not have a deli). Dairy/frozen runs along the right wall, with grocery aisles in the center. The store is definitely a spacious 4,000 square feet. Notice that the signs are exactly the same as the CTown we saw on Hillside Ave in Jamaica. Four registers, and as many grocery aisles. Tomorrow, head over to The Market Report to see the Key Food immediately next door!

KP Farm Market Owner:  Jin Sung Cho Opened:  2005, moved to current location in 2016 Cooperative:  none Location:  1887 Nostrand Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 When KP Farm Market moved out of 1881 Nostrand Ave  in 2016, they moved to 1887 Nostrand. This puts only a dry cleaner between KP Farm Market and Isaac Natural Foods. The next storefront to the right (south) on Nostrand Avenue is also a grocery store, The Meat Place, which we'll see tomorrow. And the next storefront to the right of that is a Key Food. Show me another place in the US where there are three grocery stores immediately next door to each other -- to the point that they literally share a wall!

Isaac Natural Foods Owner:  Chee H. Cho Opened:  2016 Cooperative:  none Location:  1881 Nostrand Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 Okay, hold on to your hats. This block of Nostrand Avenue between Newkirk and Foster Avenues has four, count 'em, four  grocery stores. We're starting with Isaac Natural Foods, an interesting place with a deli, basic and natural groceries, prepared foods, dairy, and seafood. This spot used to be the KP Farm Market, but when they moved next door to a larger location, Isaac came in. Tomorrow we'll see KP Farm Market two doors down.

Green Village Meat Market Owner:  Nostrand Finest Meats, Inc. Opened:  2017 Cooperative:  Retail Grocers Group Location: 1861 Nostrand Ave, Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY Photographed:  May 2019 To give you an idea of the density of stores in this neighborhood, this location's front door is only 300 yards from CTown 's front door, or one block if you prefer. And it's next door to what used to be a supermarket as well, though I didn't know that at the time of my visit. "99 Cents Avenue D" was the Gem Meats Fine Food Supermarket , a bad knockoff of Fine Fare, before Green Village opened. Fine Foods closed by 2017, which is when Green Village opened. To my knowledge, this isn't affiliated with the Green Village Meat Market chain with locations in the Bronx; Brownsville, Brooklyn; and Far Rockaway, Queens. This cramped, 2300 square foot store is slightly smaller than the 2400 square foot former Fine Food store next door, and it specializes ...