The last of the smaller, full-service, corner grocery stores in Redding is closing on January 29 at 6 p.m.
I’m taking it personally, because this market (originally Sunset Market), was my easy “go to” store.
It was the kind of store with “real” butchers behind the meat and fish counter. They would sharpen my knives for free, and cut me a piece of halibut off of the whole fish that had just arrived.
It was the kind of store where I could order a specialty cake from the bakery with whipped cream frosting, not buttercream frosting. Once I ordered a birthday cake for an employee at work, and the name of the individual was misspelled. No problem. The baker herself arrived at my work location with her frosting tube in hand, and made the correction. Also notable is that this same baker made a cake for the then-governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, when he visited Redding.
The produce department might have been small, yet it had heart, with mindful attention to buying locally, and organically, when possible. The miniature heads of romaine lettuce, for when I had company, were an example of the unique items they carried.
The deli staff, while I’m sure they are worried about their jobs, are also concerned about their customers. One woman told me, “I don’t know what the fishermen will do now. We always made their sandwiches to order early in the morning.”
I don’t know what the fishermen, and fisherwomen, will do, either. I do know that I will miss my corner grocery store.
