I admit, I go here more often than I should. It's on the high-end side as far as markets go, and everything costs a pretty penny. And yet, I find myself here semi-regularly. There always seems to be some kind of specialty item that I can't resist. Whether it's getting some fancy cheese, obscure brand of salad dressing, fresh fish, or non-dairy dairy product (lactose free, coconut milk, almond milk), I always find my way to Union Market. Also, their hours are extremely work schedule friendly. 7am to 10pm? Take that, Key Foods! This place is clean and well maintained. Maybe a little TOO well maintained. There always seems to be more workers than necessary milling about, trying to be helpful. Which, don't get me wrong, I appreciate. But I like doing my grocery shopping without someone looking over my shoulder and possibly judging my dietary choices. Also, I'm convinced that Union Market has a position called "Cheese section employee." Every time I've gone here, and we're talking a lot of times, there is always the one guy stacking and re-stacking all of the cheeses. Like his job is to build little walls of cheese. Now I admire his dedication to this very specialized task, but just once, I'd like to browse the cheeses in peace and not have to constantly sidestep the cheese wall builder guy. I know, my life is so hard, right? read more

This place is food heaven. Aisle after aisle of tastiness, from the olive bar with the balsamic-soaked cippollini onions, Essex Street pickles, and marinated artichoke hearts to the wide selection of cheeses. The produce section is great as well, with lots of specialty items I don't normally see, like kumquats, baby bananas, and blood oranges. I was happy to see a prepared food section in addition to the meat and fish counters. So glad this has moved in the neighborhood! On the pricier side but worth it. read more

$7 for a loaf of stale bread! I should really blame Caputo's for closing before designated store hours. read more

Came here for some basics while staying in the area for a few days (yogurt, milk, fruit, beer). Also took advantage of the free coffee with oatmeal or pastry deal, and got some salads from the deli. The food was good and the people working there were really nice. read more

It's clean, it's shiny, and it helps to be tall because stuff is stacked 10 feet high up in here. The produce and dry/canned goods aisles were well stocked, and they've got some high-end items in here with appropriately high prices. I'm not much of a cheese guy, but they had a fresh cheese counter, and it was full of cheeses I've never heard of. Lots of samples throughout the store. The best part, for me, was their butcher/seafood counter. They had dry-aged steaks and a nice selection of fish and shellfish. When a store is this clean, it builds all kinds of confidence in buying these kind of ingredients, so I will definitely come back. As others have said, there's something funny about checkout. I can't put my finger on it, but it's definitely weird. read more

One of my fave spots for browsing and buying gourmet in Carroll Gardens. Everything in this clean, gourmet grocery store is arranged to be esthetically pleasing. They have an amazing array of artisanal cheeses, pricey, but worth it and the experience of getting a cheese seems less daunting then venturing into the always crowded Murray's cheese shop in Manhattan. I love the fact that they stock Steve's Key lime pie and are generous with their cheese samples. I also like their bread selections and have never bought a bad loaf from here. read more

Quite expensive, but great for specialty items. The most reliably stocked small market in the area. read more

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Feel like coming to Union Market's defense. It's a lovely place to shop when you are looking for imported Italian cheese (amazing and fresh) floral and fine quality olive oil, sometimes Colavita just isn't going to do on those $9 per pound heirloom tomatoes :) Beautiful bread, great selection of coffee, and a respectable meat counter. The gentle sounds of Jazz washes over you and elevates a mundane shopping trip to a mini cultural inerlude. Never felt any attitude what so ever, but maybe it's because I'm friendly going in. Yes, fruits and veggies are pricey, but we all know that post Union Market the clever shopper gets their greens and unremarkable produce at bargain prices right across the street. WIN - WIN :) read more

I go here because it's the closest market to me. We all know it's expensive so I won't dock it for that. Mostly good except for 2 things: 1) they are frequently out of items I need, such as almond milk, walnuts, chickpeas - not incredibly obscure ingredients... 2) the cashiers are not very nice Pro tip: if organic vs. inorganic ain't no thang to you, go to K & Y fruit & vegetable across the street and save on your produce. read more

Been reading the other reviews and agree, vegetables are terrible, go across the street, fish does look sketchy, I had a friend visiting from a famous seafood coast in Europe and said all the clams were rotten. Don't know about the meat, I have had some of the sausages and the skirt steak, I didn't die or get sick, Union market is a huge overpriced disappointment , the weird off putting jazz played a loud decibles mixed with the screaming of the employees at each other makes the place bizarre. Mix in the snooty yuppies and hipsters and is downright alternate universe. read more

DO NOT....I repeat DO NOT have more than 1 olive sample even though they have several products to try or OMAR will come up to you and make a big deal saying you can't have lunch here. Really creepy experience. Extremely rude employee at this grocery store. The worst customer service ever. I've been a longtime shopper there but now no longer....I'd rather go to TJ's or Whole Foods!!! read more

Same complaints as many of the other reviewers: poor quality for the price on much of the baked goods, produce, cheese and meats. Staff not particularly helpful either. Would blame that on the management over any of the employees- they often seem understaffed. Still nice to have this place in the neighborhood when you're in a bind and key food or corner stores won't do. read more

I shop here occasionally for bread, but the place is highly overpriced, and quality varies. Definitely beware the seafood. I've purchased a bag of mussels here that turned out to be mostly dead (dangerous!), and which was missing the date tag (highly illegal). When I wrote in to complain, i didn't get any response. Much better to instead buy your veggies at the greenmarket directly across the street. I don;t think they have much organic, but the produce is cheaper, much better quality, and a lot of it is NY/NJ local. read more

Great selection, but a lifeless operation. It feels like all the people who work there are ghosts, haunting a gourmet shop. You see the products being stocked, cheese being sliced, cupcakes placed in boxes, but there's no one really there. And don't even get me started on the cashiers. If the floor workers are ghosts, the cashiers are souls stuck in purgatory. And like any good Greek epic, you MUST pass them on your way out of Hades. This is my least favorite part. They all stand there, usually with a sour look on their faces. You'll be next in line and all the cashiers will be open and available, but none of them will say anything. They'll just continue to chat away, probably about how much they hate it there and what a bitch Persephone is . Finally, one of them slips up and makes eye contact with you, so now they begrudingly call you over. You put your produce down. They ring it up. You go to pay with your debit card...but wait, do you slide the card or give it to them to slide? There's this plastic card ALREADY in the little slider machine. Depending on what time of day it is, you're always wrong. Go to swipe yourself, they'll say, NO! I have to swipe it. Hand it to them and they'll say, you could swipe it yourself (you self-important hipster, aren't you late for a stickball match??) as they take the card from you. Overall, Union Market is a necessary evil. But whenever possible, I take my husband with me and make him deal with the cashiers. There's only so much I'll put up with for an overpriced bag of basil. read more

Expensive, overpriced neighborhood grocery store, with fruits and veg, meats, fish, cheeses, and bakery. So-so vegetables and greens that you can get across the street for less and better quality. They have some premium produce and grocery things but on the whole overpriced, worse than Whole Foods. Most of all the cashier girls are full of couldn't-care-less attitudes and are outright nasty. Not what a customer should get for spending money on expensive groceries. Management needs to pay attention to this. I will avoid the place just because of that. read more

This place is grossly overpriced and staffed with extremely rude people. Go to Stinky for cheese, G. Esposito or Paisano's for meat, K&Y for produce, Caputo's for bread, and D'Amico for coffee. No need to waste money here. read more

Expensive, but I like the set up. Fish section was nasty and needed to be cleaned up, as well as the meat section. You can tell when items don't move, probably because they are overpriced. The shelves were fully stocked, which I like to see. They also had a lot of different items and sell Raffetto's products! The front end cashiers need to talk less about their personal lives and concentrate on their customers. read more

Friendly employees and some deals, but as a retail investigator, I must discose that both this location and the 7th Ave. location use expired packaged soups for their "daily soup" and "extend" expiration dates on some dairy products.. Caveat Emptor! In the process of writing to the Board of Health for a more extensive review of their unfortunate practices. read more

Inventory: pretty good given the size, especially for some specialty items. Produce is fresh and much of the selection is organic. Pre-made items are just OK. Prices: overpriced Atmosphere: smaller. enjoyable and clean. Nice to have some samples. Staff: men are always helpful and nice (especially the men behind the cheese and seafood counters). Every single female employee that has rung me up or I have asked for help have been extremely rude, abrasive and seemingly annoyed, despite my efforts to be nice. Contrary to Trader Joe's customer service, these women ruin the whole experience and encourage me to shop elsewhere. They need a major attitude adjustment or should just be fired, if they are so unpleasant. read more

I go to this store occasionally, usually for more specialty items. Went there on Wednesday afternoon, and it was mercifully uncrowded. I stood at the butcher station waiting for the dude to acknowledge me. Waited a good 5 minutes. He glanced at me a couple times but then would look away. Finally, I said, "Excuse me..." and he gestured to some meat and said, "I'm with a customer." I looked at him curiously, again he gestured to the meat and said, "I'm with a customer." I said, "Are you serious?" And he shot at me, "I'm taking care of a customer." I said, "Is there someone else who can help me?" He said, "No." I went down the street to G Esposito & Sons where I should have gone in the first place; they, as always, could not have been nicer. This experience at Union Market at first really pissed me off, but now just seems hilarious and appropriate. read more

expensive for sure.. but that's not all the beef with that establishment.. the fact that they are wasteful is. jacking up prices while throwing perfectly good stuff at end of day is downright puzzling. we live next door and witness the hoard of scavengers going through their garbage bags on the street every night, opening the garbage bags and sifting through them to pick food. why dont they make stuff available to the public at reduced price instead of throwing it away? i even talked to some of the employees there and they are totally baffled by that. on another note - i always have to be vigilant about expiration dates when shopping there - mainly in the dairy and bread sections. ALWAYS find items days past due. very convenient but with their wasteful practice and truly unbelievable price gouging - its getting to the point where i ask myself if i really want to give this business my (very) hard earned money. read more

Do your wallet a favor and shop elsewhere. The stuff sold here is not worth the price. Anything sold there you can find WAY CHEAPER elsewhere, guaranteed. The customer service is horrible, very unprofessional and might I add rude employees. and I'm pretty sure they sold me some very old prepared food last I was there, my stomach sure as hell felt it. I'd rather give my business to Trader Joe's or Whole Foods. read more

Okay, good selection of semi gourmet items but what is going on with quality control? Many items in cheese section always past date. Produce is iffy and there is nothing like cutting into an overpriced loaf of bread and finding mold (more than once and the response when mentioned to counter person is less than customer service focused!) Too many well managed stores in the city for this to be a keeper. As long as it isn't perishable and I am in a hurry it is okay. read more

Good food at outrageous prices. Not sure why anyone would go here when Trader Joe's is a few blocks away and Fairway is a short car ride. This place is good if you're looking for something very unique, like say a large selection of wild mushrooms. Otherwise, for regular shopping there are much better options. read more

The samples given out here are far plenty. Almost up there with the chain markets like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. Here is where its not.. price. I came here because I was looking for a bite to have for lunch. After passing every section, I felt like I was one broke fellow. I walked out empty handed. I reasoned with myself $4 is too much to be paying for a TV dinner when I could get two slices down the block and it would fill me up. read more

The stuff inside the store is great. The sales staff is knowledgeable and the place is immaculately clean. Having said that, all of the food is expensive. The worst part is the sneak attack ten dollar ice cream options. Ten dollars for an ice cream sandwich is like the Balrog in the mines of Moria (from Star Trek), it shall not pass. I go there and hate the basket to brown bag part, but shopping is great and the later times eating is enjoyable. If money was fake (I'm fairly certain it isn't), this store would be awesome. read more

Sigh. This is the only game in town when you have to work late as they are open until 10. As such I have been shopping here at least once a week since it opened...let's face it - who doesn't love an easy rotisserie chicken. While yes, agree that some of the check-out staff could lose the 'tude, the lovely folks behind the deli/meat counters well make up for it. In the early years I was a slightly reluctant shopper but only because of the prices (which are not surprising for the hood.) In recent years I have become more hostile than reluctant. I agree with other reviewers. Things sit on the shelves past their sell-by dates. I have come to expect this from the local Keyfood but really? in a so called bougie establishment with jazz over the sound-system? It hadn't occurred to me that new date stickers were put over old ones as one person suggested - but that explains the acrid guacamole with brown spots, the rancid smelling potato salad and the cheese that tastes like it has freezer burn. Add to that the yuppies who are permitted to let their "adorable" children ride scooters around a crowded store on the weekend (I actually witnessed a woman telling her son who was attempting to pick up a bucket of toothpicks that he knocked over to "leave it, someone else will get it..") plus previously mentioned jazz, if they don't up their game to match their prices, I need to find another late evening shopping solution. Pronto. read more

I like this place. The food is fresh. They do a nice job at keeping things organized. I have noticed when comparing prices they are higher than other markets. Again you get what you pay for...take the ice cream section for example. When you start hitting those big numbers it's time to think about your diet. read more

lotta haters of this place for being expensive, but you get what you pay for. i come here for special items that just aren't available or as good anywhere else. reads as: cheese, olives, seafood, meats, specialty crackers, prepared hot food i go to trader joes for most other items because the quality or selection there for the items listed above just isn't the same! highlights: union market has fresh seafood, cheeses and olives to sample, and delicious meatballs in the prepared hot food section. (they're also the perfect walking distance for a market from my apt.) low points: like others have said, don't come here for produce. if you're in the hood, K&Y across the street is a better option. read more

I do enjoy going to this store but its typically to grab a drink or coffee and then wonder why everything is so crazy expensive. It seems like they have a good meat selection but when other items can be bought for 2 dollars less down the street, why bother spending more here? read more

It's a great place to shop if you don't have a budget. They have a wonderful selection of gourmet goods. However 13 bucks for pink salt that yes, may be from a different location than the one they sell at TJ ( for 3 bucks), still is very expensive. That being said, a baguette with a cheese from the wide selection that they have, is always a a great go-to meal. But always clean, bright, and has a good olive selection as well as good yogurts. Good place to go if you can't make it out to Fairway in Red Hook. I do believe that the produce is way overpriced though since it dosen't seem organic or anything special. read more

Twice now (out of maybe four times) I have bought cheese from them that went moldy within a week despite having an expiration date far into the future. They also don't keep most of their fruit cool, don't have gallons of regular milk (only half or you can get the bs local milk for like $2 more), and are pretty expensive to top it all off. Take a walk to Trader Joe's if you don't want moldy cheese. read more

With Trader Joe's & Fairway in such close proximity I can't imagine why anyone would shop in this place. It's outrageously overpriced, I mean OUTRAGEOUS! The place looks nice and have some hard to find specialty items but the cost ruins it. read more

In the prepared foods section, a deli man named Clark was less than helpful when I was buying a prepared whole chicken. I asked him about the different flavorings, even of a chicken "on hold" but he refused to explain it. It was my first experience of their prepared foods and I was just curious about the variety they offered, in general. I'm not sure he realized how rude he was at that point, but he certainly must have known he was out of line when he started shouting out insults about MY attitude. Chicken was ok, but service was really, really poor. read more

Avoid this market-I have noticed a number of items from here that have had their "best before" sticker torn and replaced with a later date, vegetables and fruits that go bad with two days from date of purchase, as well as moldy products found in plastic containers. Their prices are outrageous and particularly for the poor quality of food. Completely untrustworthy establishment, with a facade of bourgeois health grocer. Trader Joe's and Whole Foods are nearby. read more

Prices are expensive. I will pay premium prices for their meat and seafood. The butchers are helpful, and you can select the pieces you want. I bought strip steaks, and asked to see the ones on the bottom. No problem. Delicious cuts of meat. read more

Your typical specialty/fancy grocery store, which means overpriced. This location of Union Market is roomier than the one in Park Slope. Plus one star for usually having some samples around; however, that must be so customers forget how much they are paying for veggies/chips/coffee/paper towel/fill in the blank! One thing I have noticed about this location is the staff isn't very friendly compared to their other ones (with a few exceptions). I brought back cherry tomatoes after they had spoiled a day after purchasing. The manager was very rude and suspicious about it and reluctant to replace them. Word to the wise, go across the street to the veggie/fruit market for much cheaper and fresher produce. read more

The staff is, 90% of the time, super nice. Today around 5:30, one of the deli guys had a meltdown because I didn't respond fast enough as to whether I needed help. I'm sure they are stressed and maybe understaffed with the post Thanksgiving rush. So management should take care of it and hire enough people behind the deli counter or train staff on how to cope with stress during a rush, including gender dynamics. But its not ok to raise your voice at customers, especially regulars you know. Management and staff should find ways to cope, de-stress, maybe learn from other neighbouring markets. This is a learning opportunity. read more

It looks better than it is. Over priced, staff was pretty rude. I stopped in out of convenience, but I'll continue to shop at Trader Joe's.

What an amazing gourmet grocery store filled with delicious treats and treasures! I stopped in here while visiting my sister for the weekend, we were looking for stuff to make for appetizers to go with dinner. We found ready to eat vegetarian dumplings (samosa, Shanghai and vegetable). They were by far the best prepared dumplings I have ever had, Delicious cold or warmed up. You could do all of your grocery shopping here and it would be delicious, but it could get a little pricey. They also have snacks all around the store to sample! I found guacamole, salsa and chips, fresh brie, jam and crackers. What a fun place to find tasty treats and excellent gourmet food!! read more