posted by chicago pop
Communities are based on traditions, and traditions are based on stories. The death of the Hyde Park Co-Op in 2007-2008 is a story that is destined to live on in song, myth, and legend; to be passed down from mother to daughter and father to son; to inspire blind, anonymous poets in the crafting of epic cycles of poetry, folk ballads, blues riffs, and maybe even a straight-to-video screenplay.
So in the spirit of the valiant WPA ethnographers, musicologists and folklorists who roamed the back-roads of Appalachia in the 30's to find and record the remnants of American folk music -- an endeavor which it should be noted produced no economic stimulus other than the employment of a few academics, but which resulted in what is unarguably a cultural treasure trove -- we have surfed over to Yelp! where a record of past reviews of the Hyde Park Co-Op is still on-line, as if frozen in time.
So that you may begin to compose your own folk ballad, I present you with our top picks.
From "Allison B.":
For a selection of deeper cuts, check out the rest, then let the legend grow.
So in the spirit of the valiant WPA ethnographers, musicologists and folklorists who roamed the back-roads of Appalachia in the 30's to find and record the remnants of American folk music -- an endeavor which it should be noted produced no economic stimulus other than the employment of a few academics, but which resulted in what is unarguably a cultural treasure trove -- we have surfed over to Yelp! where a record of past reviews of the Hyde Park Co-Op is still on-line, as if frozen in time.
So that you may begin to compose your own folk ballad, I present you with our top picks.
From "Allison B.":
JustFrom "Elisabeth A.":
Die
Already!
Seriously, between the high prices, looming bankruptcy, and elitist attitude?
Go with God.
And God? If you are listening, please bring us a Trader Joes or Whole Foods or that other organic-y Sunflower or whatever the name is. You know. Thanks.
This place is a f***ing abomination. Their prices are insane & their produce rots the day after you buy it. Their meat leaks like a bloody nose. And, get this: their scanners have been down for the last 3 or 4 weeks, so you actually have to write the prices down on a little piece of paper while you shop so that the cashier knows how much to rip you off. Oh, my god. I hate the co-op. I drive all the way up to Roosevelt to shop at the Jewel because giving the co-op my money just makes me mad.And here's a closing, solid analysis from "Andrew C.":
OK, I'm giving them an extra star because their bulk section is pretty sweet and they carry 9 different kinds of capers. And they fixed their scanners.
The Co-op needs to close as soon as possible.
If you own "shares" in the Co-op, please sell them to expedite its demise.
1) The meat area often smells rotten. The floor in that part of the store is sometimes sticky. I don't know if they're actually violating health codes, but if not, we need new health codes.
2) The management is abysmal. I was once on a group-purchasing account at the coop, and they made numerous billing mistakes, which they refused to deal with until I yelled at them.
3) The prices are shameful. Tofu, soy milk, tempeh, and organic produce are significantly cheaper at Whole Foods, which is notorious for high markup.
The co-op suffers the same problem as many other "community" organizations: No one in the community cares enough to participate in such a tedious, unnecessary undertaking. As a result, the only people left to run it are sanctimonious, closed-minded pensioners who end up blaming the community for their failures.
The the co-op only survives because it has a monopoly on groceries in a neighborhood with high population density and low car ownership. I feel like a chump whenever I shop there, but until Hyde Park Produce opens at 53rd and Kimbark, I have no other choice.
For a selection of deeper cuts, check out the rest, then let the legend grow.
