Greg C.
Yelp
I have never written a review on Yelp before but felt compelled to do so after my wife read me the poor review posted here from a previous visitor. We have been staying on Hatteras Island almost every summer for over 30 years and our daughter even got married here. We have shopped at all the grocery stores mentioned by the previous person.
We appreciate what a great upgrade the renovated Red & White grocery is now, and how friendly our interactions have been with others in the store. In fact, we have told the owner that multiple times now over the past two years. Every experience since these new owners have upgraded the market has been extremely pleasant for us.
We just returned from a trip there and managed to find everything we needed at reasonable prices. Of course, a small local market may find it hard to offer prices like a giant chain-owned supermarket like Food Lion, but to drive 1-2 minutes to the store versus a 20 min. drive each way is a real time-saver while on vacation in Hatteras. We walked in at 8:00 am when they opened and were surprised at how many customers came in and out while we were there. It was great to see it bustling with business, because trust me, it has not been that way for years in this store.
We also found the prices surprisingly reasonable - we paid .59/lb for bananas, and our local Walmart at home charges .57/lb. The tomatoes were priced similarly competitive. Nothing we bought seemed outrageous at all, and I am a pretty economically minded shopper. In fact, some people (ahem, wife and kids) might even call me extremely cheap. Although some things might be more expensive than we are used to at home (chalk that up to both size of store and location - food deliveries to a small local grocery store on an island are more expensive). Everything seemed fresh and the shelves were stocked neatly.
Regarding beer, the Red & White has a surprisingly great selection of craft beers that are also priced pretty competitive. They have some of my favorites and a lot of ones that I have never tried. I can't speak for the pricing of Coors Light since I don't buy the large company beers and don't even look at that beer when in a store, but it makes sense that a large corporate giant chain like Food Lion is going to have better pricing on large corporate giant beer selections. It just goes to reason.
By the way, the co-owner who just checked us out at the register is a beer-lover who can speak about the craft beers and other alcohol drinks available in the cooler to give you other considerations to try. He can also tell you which ones are the favorites of all the local fisherman - try getting that information from the person checking you out at Food Lion!
If I had to do a huge shopping trip for a whole family for the entire week, I probably would make the longer trip from Hatteras Village to do that at Food Lion and take advantage of using our MVP discount card on food specials. However, the convenience of shopping at a very nice locally-owned store now in Hatteras with a smaller but nice selection of grocery items is a much more pleasant experience.
We are thrilled about the "new" Red & White as long-time vacationers here in Hatteras Village and bet the local residents are glad to have it here also. All of the island grocery stores have their place, and we are glad we can now shop in a nice grocery store here also.
