Best of Melbourne 2020: City’s top 10 greengrocers revealed
Looking for a great spot to get fresh fruit and vegetables? The votes are in and we’ve unearthed your favourite Melbourne greengrocers. Find out who made the grade. SEE ALL THE WINNERS AND FINALISTS
The Best of Melbourne
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It’s safe to say this Best of Melbourne poll was our juiciest yet.
Who would make the grade when it came to revealing Melbourne’s best greengrocers?
There was plenty of healthy competition, with hundreds of ap-peeling nominations and votes in our latest Best of Melbourne poll.
Now, it’s crunch time — find out who’s the pick of the bunch as we reveal the sweetest spots in Melbourne for fresh fruit and veg, served with a hearty side of customer service.
It’s time to go bananas as we unearth Melbourne’s top 10 greengrocers.
You can also see all the finalists at the bottom of the story.
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10. LOCAL FINE FOODS, DIAMOND CREEK
14/72 Main Hurstbridge Rd
For Tanya and Vito Granieri, Local Fine Foods is more than just their worksite, it’s the place where their love story started.
Ms Granieri said she used to work shifts at the Diamond Creek shop after school where she met Vito.
“His family ran the business so I worked for his family,” she said.
“Then the business was sold — years went by, we got married and then it came up for sale four years ago so we went for it.
“We love what we do
“Fruit and vegetables is what my husband knows – it’s in his blood – and we just love the area we serve.”
Ms Granieri said the community prioritised shopping local.
“The locals support local businesses and that’s been especially evident during the coronavirus pandemic,” she said.
“We try to give back to by supporting neighbouring businesses – we donate to the local footy club, provide for schools – we are part of this community,” she said.
“Knowing your area is crucial to running a successful business – we know Diamond Creek is a particularly elderly area so we offer delivery services for example.
“We know what each customer wants and we are happy to help.”
More: facebook.com/localfinefoodsmelbourne
9. DELIGHTFUL FROOTZ, WHITTLESEA
25-27 Church St
Delightful Frootz owner Tony Certoma says it’s top quality produce and good old-fashioned service that makes his business stand out from the crowd.
Mr Certoma runs the business with his nephew Jarrod Vicari and said he’s grateful for every customer.
They took over the store, which had been there for more than 40 years, five years ago.
“It was run down for a long, long time,” Mr Certoma said.
“It’s taken a bit of time but we’ve turned it around.”
The pair provide old-school service, and love greeting every customer with a smile and a hello.
And Mr Certoma sees nothing special about offering to carry groceries to a car, or delivering a weekly shop for free.
“I’ve been doing this thing since I was 15 (years old). That’s normal for us,” he said.
“You do the right thing and eventually it comes back to you.”
~Richard Pearce
More: facebook.com/delightfulfrootz
8. EARLY ‘N’ FRESH, KNOXFIELD
75/1470 Ferntree Gully Rd
One of Melbourne’s favourite greengrocers has announced its ongoing commitment to the wholesale market after pivoting into retail sales to manage the fallout from the coronavirus lockdown.
Knoxfield’s Early ‘n’ Fresh was forced to stop supplying the hospitality industry in the outer eastern suburbs when pubs and other businesses had to close their doors.
Owners Simon and Izzy Javor transitioned to retail to offset losses when usual supply chains were closed.
So, now you can have fresh produce delivered to your doorstep each week.
“We go daily to the Melbourne Wholesale Market in Epping, where virtually everything starts, then pick up the balance of goods from a few farms. From there, orders are carefully packed, ready for delivery,” Mr Javor said.
And the hard work to remain relevant has paid off with Early ‘n’ Fresh being voted by customers as one of Leader’s favourite greengrocers in the Best of Melbourne series.
“When hotels, pubs and clubs are open again and we can supply them, absolutely we will,” Mr Javor said.
“But we would never change back to a wholesale-only model now – we’ve got to keep looking after everybody.”
Taking on the retail market had also allowed Early ‘n’ Fresh to put staff back on.
“We will keep listening to our customers to hear what we need to change so we can keep delivering great fruit and veg,” Mr Javor said.
~Andrew Rogers
More: earlynfresh.com.au
7. LAKES FRESH FOOD MARKET, TAYLORS LAKES
58-70 Shoppers Lane
The family-run Lakes Fresh Food Market prides itself on exceptional customer service and having only the “freshest and finest produce” that customers love.
The Shoppers Lane store boasts a range of products from fruit, vegetables and meat, to European groceries, Italian sausages and fresh cannoli.
Having started the business with his late father, Frank De Agostino said their success over the years was thanks to the community and always having the best fresh food.
“We give customers old-fashioned service, from taking groceries to the car to helping with any questions they have,” he said.
“We treat the customers like family, like our own.
“We have been here 12 years in the same spot and go to the market daily to buy fresh produce and have daily meat deliveries.”
The shop has readily adapted to the COVID-19 pandemic, limiting the number of customers in store at any given time, and setting up measures to ensure social distancing.
Having been in the same spot for 12 years, the business is a staple in the community, but the journey started with in the 1970s with Michael’s father, who worked with fruit in Brunswick.
Now run by Michael and his two siblings with help from mum Teresa, the Lakes Fresh Food Market is a family treasure and a tribute to their late father.
~Grace McKinnon-Leyton
More: facebook.com/lakesmarket51
6. GOOD FOOD EMPORIUM, NARRE WARREN
15/430-440 Princes Highway
Christine Dos Anjos is well on the way to achieving her dream to make wholefood and healthy eating the norm in Casey.
She opened Good Food Emporium in Narre Warren just seven months ago but the business, which specialises in sustainability, wholefoods and organic fruit and vegetables, is already a hit.
The Princes Highway business has been voted among the top 10 greengrocers in Leader’s Best of Melbourne series.
Ms Dos Anjos said she was humbled by how quickly the community had embraced her business.
“There has been real interest in what we’re doing and I think people really want to learn more,” she said.
“Narre Warren is so vibrant and has such diversity
“We’re in the heart of the central business district and there’s a great atmosphere.”
The business was forced to temporarily close its cafe when the coronavirus restrictions were introduced but Ms Dos Anjos said staff were quick to adapt.
“They have been amazing; coming up with ideas to do things differently, sharing shifts and even offering to work for free to get us through,” she said.
The business launched a Honey Bee Home Delivery service which includes organic produce boxes and pantry items.
Customers can also pick and mix their own boxes for delivery.
Frozen meals can also be ordered.
~Lucy Callander
More: goodfoodemporium.com.au
instagram.com/goodfoodemporium
5. LAUNCH FRESH, LAUNCHING PLACE
2080 Warburton Highway
A focus on fresh quality produce is the key to Launch Fresh Fruit Market’s success, according to owner Anthony Virgona.
The family business, based in Launching Place in the Yarra Valley, will celebrate its 30th birthday next March, and from humble beginnings has grown to be favourite with locals.
In 1990 the Virgona family bought the “tin shed” on Warburton Highway and transformed it into a fruit and vegetable market.
Mr Virgona said it had gone from serving 200 customers a week in the early years to about 3000.
As well as fruit and vegetables it also sells a range of grocery items.
“Our objective originally was to sell purely fruit and vegetables,” Mr Virgona said.
“As we increased in size the demand for a greater range of product was requested, customers would come in to say they’d like to stop here and do a one-stop shop.
“We introduced milk and bread … then meat and pasta and it just never ended and it still hasn’t ended.”
Mr Virgona said 60 per cent of the fruit and vegetables the business sold were grown locally and the rest were sourced from the fresh produce wholesale market in Epping.
He said the key to its success was selling good quality produce.
“Fresh produce is the main ingredient for our business, the only thing we might have over the supermarkets is freshness and the quality.”
He said he was very grateful to his staff, their families and the store’s loyal customer base.
“Ninety five per cent of customers we know by name and they know us by name and I’m convinced most of them come in just to have a chat,” he said.
“It’s a pleasure to see them come in.”
~Kim Seedy
More: launchfresh.com.au
facebook.com/Launch-Fresh-538561086252736
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4. SECOND AVE GROCER, ALTONA NORTH
62-76 Second Ave
With generations of the Palamara family having manned Second Ave Grocery, there’s no wonder there’s something special about it.
The aptly-named grocer, off Second Ave in Altona North, started as a humble fruit shop in Richmond when father Onofrio took the plunge and moved to Melbourne from a small village in Italy.
Now, his children have been running the show at the Altona North site since 1990 and have transformed the space into a one-stop shop for all things grocery.
Manager Anthony Krslovic said the store prided itself on its beautiful range of products – including artisanal cheeses, Italian meats, antipasto and more.
“We’ve got a massive pasta selection, freshly roasted coffee, a huge gherkin selection, fresh ready-made meals,” he said.
“Our personal touch in terms of our service is we like to greet all our customers, we carry their boxes out – our store just has a different feel to other stores.”
Mr Krslovic said the staff were very excited when they found out they had been named a finalist in the Best of Melbourne voting.
“We’ve gone through a lot of changes over the past few years, so it’s good to be recognised for what we’re doing,” he said.
“We just want to say thank you to our customers, it’s been a tough time over the last few months.”
Second Ave will open an online store in a few weeks’ time.
~Emilie Baxter
More: secondavegrocer.com.au
3. SCICLUNA’S REAL FOOD MERCHANTS, MENTONE
2-4 Como Parade
The Scicluna “diehards” are what have kept the booming grocer thriving across Melbourne’s southeast for more than half a century, store manager CJ Scicluna says.
And with three locations spanning from the picturesque Mornington Peninsula to busy inner Melbourne, the Maltese fresh food fanatics have cemented their roots in the market scene with homegrown produce, delectable meats, top-notch coffee and beautiful blooms.
The empire was started by late grandfather George Scicluna who was first introduced to Melbourne’s market community when he landed a job with a friend at Queen Victoria Market straight after migrating from Malta.
And 55 years ago, the patriarch opened up his first shop on Como Parade, Mentone before two more popped up at Tooronga Village, Glen Iris and Ocean Beach Rd, Sorrento.
The bustling stores are held up by a team of coffee and culinary experts including George’s grandson CJ, his uncle Joe, and CJ’s cousins Hayley, Kayla, Sophie and Mitchell.
“George always prided himself on quality and a fair price … we source a lot of our produce from local growers,” CJ said.
“Our customers are diehard Sciclunas who always get behind us with everything we do.”
~Brittany Goldsmith
More: sciclunas.com.au
2. JT’S FRUIT & VEGETABLE SUPPLY, MELBOURNE
A Shed, Stalls 25-26, Queen Victoria Market
For brothers John and Rocco Tripodi, carrying on their parents’ legacy at Queen Vic Market means staying ahead of the competition.
And the fruits of their labour has seen the pair recognised among the best greengrocers in Melbourne.
Rocco told the Leader the stall’s success came down to the staff’s hard work and strong relationships with customers.
“We have so many repeat customers we know by name and know what they enjoy and we’re always happy to have a chat to them and help them pick the best of what’s in season,” he said.
“We put a lot of effort into keeping our finger on the pulse and knowing what our customers want.
“Because we are in a marketplace it’s important to remain competitive because if you don’t like my bananas you’ll go next door and buy my neighbour’s bananas — but it also means if you don’t like my neighbour's apples you might come and buy mine.
“That competition is actually great for our customers.”
The brothers have been working together at JT’s Fruit and Vegetable Supply for about 20 years after taking over the thriving business from their parents who started it in the ‘50s.
Now, the boys’ children are starting to work there on weekends.
“Being named among the best in Melbourne is good recognition for the work our parents did,” he said.
“We’ve just continued the good start they gave us.
“Some of our regular customers are the children of our parents’ regular customers and that’s really nice to see.”
Rocco said the store had continued to thrive during the COVID-19 pandemic and many customers had become more adventurous in their buying habits as they got creative with cooking during lockdown.
“We’ve got some beautiful pine mushrooms at the moment that are going off with people frying them up or making lovely risottos,” he said.
“It’s really nice to see people cooking more and making big family meals.”
~Jordy Atkinson
More: www.fruitandveg.melbourne
facebook.com/JTsFruitandVegetables
1. CARTER BROS. FRUIT & VEG, SILVAN
339 Monbulk Silvan Rd
If there’s one thing people enjoy during this uncertain time it’s comedy — and popular Silvan grocers the Carter Bros are serving it up in style.
Brothers BJ and Josh have been running their funky fresh fruit and veggie shop for two-and-a-half years on Monbulk Silvan Rd, and not only have they built a strong local customer-base, but also more than 2000 Instagram followers and celebrity status.
“We appear to be one of the only shops that don’t take anything seriously,” BJ said.
“While all this weird and scary stuff is happening you can go on social media or come into the shop and see complete stupidity and enjoy yourself.
“It breaks up the constant news cycle of are we going to die (coronavirus).”
Customers love the quirky shop and its tasty offerings so much, they have voted it Melbourne’s best greengrocer.
It’s a real family affair, with BJ’s wife Megan working in the shop, handling the accounts and managing the books and the social media.
Their father has also been in on the fun, helping around the shop since late last year.
The Carters’ friend Harry Lukies is also part of the team and features regularly on their Instagram feed.
BJ and Josh started the Silvan greengrocer more than two years ago after growing sick of their jobs and wanting to try something different.
It’s now grown into a seven-day-a-week roaring trade for loyal locals and – before coronavirus – passing tourists.
As well as the regulars and walk-ins, the Carter Bros have about 30 businesses they sell goods to wholesale including cafes, childcare centres, nursing homes, cafes and caterers.
“Right now we are getting a lot of produce come in from local farmers,” BJ said.
“We have been making pre-packaged boxes up for people and for every 10 sold we give one away free to someone in need or an essential worker.”
So far the team has donated 25 boxes, which are each worth $50.
The pair grew up in The Basin and now live close to their shop in Chirnside Park and Kilsyth.
~Laura Armitage
More: carterbros.com.au