What's your favorite type of local business?

Dusky Beauty · #1 01/05/13, 01:57 PM

I bet everyone has some kind of particular small and local business they love to see in the town they live--- what's yours? Coffee shop/book store? a hardware store that's been in the same spot for 50 years?

For us, DH and I love a comfortable, non chain affiliated chinese restaurant where the female relatives wait on the tables, and the patriarch is the chef--

One of those places with great prices, great service and you can while away an afternoon starting with a hot soup and hot tea and eating your way through the delectable house specials (every place has different ones of course! sometimes it's a certain appetizer, sometimes its the lo mein)

We've had a favorite neighborhood chinese spot in every place we've lived except this one

This part of Arizona is just plain too californicated and everything is a chain.

Oh well at least our feed stores are local and family owned...

emdeengee · #2 01/05/13, 02:06 PM

Without doubt the local feed store and saddlery and since we moved to the north the most interesting place to visit is a local pet store that has a Tanzilla harness workshop. They make to measure.

Ardie/WI · #3 01/05/13, 02:13 PM

The local tavern! It's a typical country place where every one chats with everyone, stranger or not. I don't know about at night, but during the day little alcohol is ordered.
Family oriented so, if there are children around there is no profanity! The conversation can and does get a bit naughty if it is just adults, but nothing that would make anyone blush.
I could go there in my flannel nightgown and slippers and nobody would blink an eye.
The food is good too!

soulsurvivor · #4 01/05/13, 02:36 PM

Apologies, I decided to delete this post due to personal reasons.

Queen Bee · #5 01/05/13, 04:06 PM

I am sad to say, almost all our 'small' local businesses have gone away. Our town is tiny but we are the 'county seat' which means the courthouses are here, one is our old org. courthouse, has beautiful architectural work--or Class if you will--the new one looks like a ugly pc of modern trash... The old jail has been replaced a new HUGE mega prison system that can't be missed. Every empty shop, now has lawyers, bail bondmen or other court related business. Downtown we have two trashy junk stores (and I love junk stores)! These are beyond junk-- just mainly trash--stuff recovered from the local dump, unwashed, thrown in piles.. The beloved tractor place was purchased by a large company who fired all the old people and brought in all new ones who know NO ONE.. The feed store used to be a gathering place for all the old farmers to gather in winter but the new owners removed all the chairs and had a sign made that said ' we welcome your business but we are not a gathering place'... And last month they put a Walmart Express..... to help take out any other small stores, shops etc.... :{ BUT we have a new little asizn grill... HOPEFULLy it will make it....

dkhern · #6 01/05/13, 04:15 PM

pawn shop

MO_cows · #7 01/05/13, 04:38 PM

Can't pick a favorite, I am glad for all our local businesses. The restaurant where you get a friendly greeting by name and a big hearty meal, lots of it made from scratch, for a fair price. The "grocery store" which doesn't have nearly the selection of a supermarket but if you need a few things you don't have to drive 30 miles to the supermarket. The farm service, where you can buy all kinds of useful things and during harvest season they are open almost 24/7. The gas station, always higher priced than the ones in the city but we fill up there sometimes, too, just to make sure mom and pop are still in business when we want fuel available only a few miles from home. The closer to home you spend your money, the more you are supporting the local tax base and taking some of the burden off yourself.

jwal10 · #8 01/05/13, 05:02 PM

Lumber yard. Family for 3 generations. Big selection or I can order anything I need there, free delivery. They buy from small mills nearby and support many things good for this town. If I drive the 25 miles to the big box store and find what I need I am tired out for 2 days. I can go here and order what I need and it is put in the back of my truck or delivered if need be at no more added cost than if I would have paid for the gas to drive the 25 miles. And it keeps the money in the community. There is a little junk store here that I trade with, he takes anything that has worth in trade for what he has or pays cash, nice to be able to get what I need cheap and he recycles things to needy people in the community at good prices....James

CaliannG · #9 01/05/13, 05:52 PM

Dusky Beauty, try "May Garden" on Indian School Road, somewhat past 55th Ave. It's a little hole in the wall Chinese place. I don't know if Maria still runs it or if she has turned it over to her son since I lived there a decade or so ago.

However, the food was excellent, and if you left there hungry, it was your own fault.

If you like fusion, "Chino Banditos" served YUMMY stuff, Chinese/Mexican fusion. I think they have opened up more stores, but I went to the one on 19th Ave just north of Thunderbird.

There is a YUMMY Ethiopian place in Tempe off of University Drive called Lalibela. Try the African honey wine there.

On Thunderbird Road, near the intersection of 19th Ave, in a strip center on the north side of the road is a Mexican food place whose name I do not remember clearly, probably because I always left there in a food coma. Solena something? Order in Spanish, and their burritos are to die for. Best hot sauce anywhere.

CurtisWilliams · #10 01/05/13, 06:27 PM

By far, my favorite local store is Bomgaars. I beleive that they are only here in the midwest. Very similar to Tractor Supply, but with a better selection, much better prices and a great level of customer service.

lordoftheweeds · #11 01/05/13, 06:55 PM

NZ Cramer. the local hardware store. Been open since the late 1800's.

Dusky Beauty · #12 01/05/13, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliannG

Dusky Beauty, try "May Garden" on Indian School Road, somewhat past 55th Ave. It's a little hole in the wall Chinese place. I don't know if Maria still runs it or if she has turned it over to her son since I lived there a decade or so ago.

However, the food was excellent, and if you left there hungry, it was your own fault.

I'll see if its there next time I am over that way--- to give you an idea how far that is from me though-- I live over in Tonopah just past 355th! LOL 99th and McDowell is usually about as far as I range!

whodunit · #13 01/05/13, 08:27 PM

This is long, sorry...

I'd have to say our local Chinese restaurant, too. The owner is actually Chinese and worked at a larger nearby city for over a decade as a waiter. We drove to that city JUST to eat when he was there and were absolutely delighted when he chose to open a place in our town.

The things we like are that he is a decent, hard-working family man who takes care of his family; some of whom work for him. They are typically waiting for you when you walk in the door and get your order to the table piping hot in less than 15 minutes. The place in impeccably clean and he hires decent waiters and waitresses. It can be a bit pricey for our family of six, but we leave stuffed and still have food left over.

One time we went to a locally-owned steakhouse for lunch which had a repuatation for good food but poor service. It was around the lunch hour when we got there but they were NOT busy. We waited to seated; were seated in a bad spot for people with children; were given FULL large-size glasses of ice water; and then had to wait for the waitress to come take out orders.

I told my wife we should leave and she was slightly embarrassed, but we hadn't ordered yet, so we walked. The waitress was kind of annoyed and cut us off at the door to ask if there was a a problem. I told her we didn't feel like waiting and she asked us if we were in a hurry or something.

We drove across the street to the Chinese restaurant and were greeted at the door. Within minutes we ordered and a few minutes more we had our food. About mid-way through the meal the owner came out to talk to us and make sure we noticed he cut our bill in half to say Happy Chinese New Year.

Many times he comps us bowls of soup to take home or the extra cup of soup. He used to comp me soft drinks when I went in on-duty as a cop to eat lunch. Just a great guy who is thankful to be working and living in the USA.

Today, we went to the local feed store. I waited for DW and watched an older gentleman go in after her. He then came out BEFORE her with his purchase. I asked DW how that happened and she said part of it was one of the guy at counter was weeding out people who had "too difficult" or "complicated" needs and told them they would have to wait because they were really busy. These people needed things like checking their accounts or what kind of feed they normally buy. DW was ticked.

Customer service is a pet peeve with us and that is why the Chinese restaurant is a shining star in our book!

Catalpa · #14 01/05/13, 08:45 PM

Local grocery store - closed on Sundays, sells no alcohol, always doing something to help locals, like fund raising for fire dept., or benefit for cancer victim. They try to hire a lot of the local high school kids, too.
Local hardware store - I can get canning jars, ammunition, hose gaskets, and stainless steel bolts in one place. How cool is that? And the workers are always helpful and joking with me.
Local bulk foods store - owned and run by the Mennonites, and caters to the Amish. I can get some great stuff in there, and the folks are always friendly.

Haven · #15 01/05/13, 09:03 PM

A small deli where customer service is amazing, they call me by name, and everything is made from fresh and local foods. The prior owners failed, but the new ones are upbeat, passionate, and the place is filled with great energy and even better food now.

CaliannG · #16 01/05/13, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dusky Beauty

I'll see if its there next time I am over that way--- to give you an idea how far that is from me though-- I live over in Tonopah just past 355th! LOL 99th and McDowell is usually about as far as I range!

Whew! That's a ways!

I lived in Glendale for a while (which is how I found Maria's place), then up by Moon Mountain in the North, then in Surprise, then back to Glendale, with a short tour up in Flagg. LOL

Rainy · #17 01/05/13, 09:07 PM

Our coffee shop's.

Jokarva · #18 01/05/13, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whodunit

Customer service is a pet peeve with us and that is why the Chinese restaurant is a shining star in our book!

That's what makes me ambivalent about my favorite business.....there's a produce stand that has such great veggies, local eggs, good prices, is spotless clean and has Cheerwine cola in the fridge to bribe DH into stopping there. But the owners and their family that work there....sullen and unfriendly ( to everyone as far as I've seen, not just me. Not that I'm paranoid or anything....

). Such a shame, can't have everything I guess.

Oldcountryboy · #19 01/05/13, 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dkhern

pawn shop

and also, flea markets. I also like a small auction house that's usually a Friday or Saturday night thing in some small towns. We haven't had one around here in a long while. It's a good place to get rid of junk!

DYngbld · #20 01/05/13, 10:51 PM

A good coffee shop. The local one here had a lot of trouble after some bad storms here in the spring, he was closed nearly a month lost almost everything. A large number of us stepped in and did a ton of pro bono (ok we got free coffee) work to get him back open and up to code. You won't find that that at a starbucks.