Port Richmond Grocery Store One Of The First In Philadelphia To Sell Beer
By Todd Quinones
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Something new for some grocery stores in the city of Philadelphia -- beer.
The selection rivals most any beer store, but here you can pick up your spaghetti too.
A Thriftway in Port Richmond is one of the first grocery stores in Philadelphia to sell beer.
The official grand opening is happening this weekend.
"I think it's pretty great. Provides some competition in the craft beer market, bring the prices down," shopper Doug Lowbell said.
"You go to other states and go down south and it's just common to see it in gas stations," shopper Amy Failing said.
Buying beer and bread under one roof has been a part of the suburbs for sometime, but finally the idea is making its way to the city too.
Competition from corner beer stores in the city and the cost of renovating have been some of the hurdles.
"We actually tore out our frozen food and spent an enormous amount of money," Thriftway manager Don Petzak said.
Recent challenges to the state law opened the beer business up to grocery stores, but there are restrictions.
When you buy your groceries like your instant oatmeal, that has to be done at one checkout. And when you buy your beer, that has be at another register.
You must also provide seating for at least 30 people and you have to sell food.
"We operate basically like a café. People can come in they get something to eat, they can sit down and have a beer," Petzak said.
Jordan Fetfatzes manages the Bella Vista Beer Distributors.
On the wholesale side, he can sell to the grocery stores, which is good, but on the retail side, where some distributors make their living, this is new competition.
Law prevents distributors from doing something similar.
"We don't know when that day will come but hopefully there will be changes that change the entire system," he said.
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