Rosemary Farm

I never write reviews (I think this might be my first), but I think it’s unfortunate this place only has two stars. I always go here for produce and it’s always fresh and, if not cheap, at least fair. The folks there have always been incredibly nice. The non-​produce staples (like beans) are sort of pricey, but not obscene. Definitely would recommend it above every other place in the neighborhood.

I love this place! Totally disagree with previous negative reviews; people should not post them after a one-​off bad experience. I shop here regularly and the staff are always very friendly, produce is fresh and of a good variety. I only wish they didn’t require a $ 10 minimum for card purchases but that’s pretty standard. I especially like to support them ever since the C-​town next door upped their game to service the changing needs of the neighborhood; there used to be a line out the door at this place and now there’s hardly anyone in there. I’m totally fan!

Wow, like another reviewer below, I’m kind of shocked by these reviews about being ripped off at this market. I will also be careful in the future but as far as I have witnessed, they have been fair to me.
In fact, I was coming to write a very good review because the produce is fresh and beautifully cared for and the young guys who almost always ring me up are incredibly nice.
One time recently I grabbed a plant and somehow thought the price was a couple dollars less than the sticker said. The cashier couldn’t find the price and I told him what I thought I had read the price to be. He finally found the sticker, saw it was 2 dollars more than I accidentally quoted, and he gave me the plant for that lower price anyway, with a smile.
I truly can’t complain about this place at all. I’m a fan.

When I moved into the neighborhood about 2 years ago I had a few run ins with the the checkout counter ripoff artist. The last time she got me for a few bucks and at that point I realized my earlier suspicions were confirmed. I quit shopping there for a while because I was pretty ticked off about the whole thing but was also really bummed that I no longer had access to their produce (which imo is the best in the neighborhood).
Fast forward a few months. counter ripoff lady no longer works there and things seem to be back in order. I’ve been shopping there for the last 6 – 8 months without an issue.

I feel very unsure about whether all these posts about the cashier cheating everybody are true. For one thing, the person who usually rings me up is an extremely sweet guy of about 20 who I have trouble imagining cheating anyone. Anyway, I just weighed some fruit I bought at Rosemary on my home baking scale and figured out what I should have been charged, and i was charged correctly.
The fact is that produce in general has gotten grotesquely expensive in the last couple of years. If you find your jaw dropping at the price on the Rosemary register, that might be the reason – not somebody cheating you.
And yes Rosemary’s prices are higher than you’ll find on Grand Street, where I try to stock up on fruit and root vegetables on the weekends. But Rosemary’s stuff is fresher – the greens at all the Grand Street stores are hopeless – and they’re closer to my apartment, so I’ll continue shopping there too. I got a smallish bunch of kale at Rosemary yesterday for a dollar, which though I didn’t weigh it seemed about right at $ 1.69 a pound, and it was extremely fresh and crisp.
It can’t hurt to be careful and watch the cashier closely, but I would not jump to conclusions and cease supporting a neighborhood, family-​run store based on these posts.

This place has been around forever. When I was younger, my mom was buying a few oranges. When my mom set her bag of oranges on top of the tomatoes to pay the cashier, the cashier yelled at my mom. Needless to say my mom doesn’t come here anymore.
However a few years ago I bought two bananas from here at 80 something cents a pound but got charged a dollar something. Ya they do overcharge you if you aren’t getting much.

As far as groceries goes, this store is decent. I’ve seen the reviews regarding the unethical pricing methods and while I’ve been wondering about that myself I haven’t been able to keep up with numbers at the till to know for sure. It has the best fruit and veggies selection in my neighbor hood anyways.
However, at my last visit the girl at the register asks me if I go to church?
When I replide that I don’t, she questioned that and continued by saying that «god gave me my life». I tell her that my parents gave me life but then realize the pointlessness in all this and proceed to leave the store as she shouts «You must repent»!
The novelty of this incident amuses me, but if if this turns into an ongoing thing I’ll start buying hassle-​free onions elsewhere.

Pretty sure I got ripped off a few times here as well. Maybe with enough negative reviews, they’ll make some changes? Here’s hoping.

DO NOT SHOP HERE.
The reviews are right. You are overcharged every time you come here.
Don’t believe me? Then step up… play the game! Try to watch the numbers as she types them in while comparing them to what they *should* be. I warn you… she has the fastest fingers West of Bushwick.
I have asked for receipts but they only list a $$ amount so it’s pointless. I’m not disputing the fact that you charged me $ 6 for 3 tomatoes, I’m disputing the fact that I SHOULD be charged $ 6 for 3 tomatoes.
The lady at the register doesn’t care. She doesn’t care if you pay twice as much as advertised, she doesn’t care if you never come back, she doesn’t care if you catch her, she just really doesn’t care.
The produce IS nice, though.

Yikes. I was just about to write a glowing review on here of Rosemary’s beautiful produce, then read the other comments and now I’m a little wary. I’ve been going here about twice a month for a year and thought it was just expensive, but I have to admit, I’m never one to watch the prices very carefully at the register. The girl at the checkout is really unfriendly about 90% of the time I’m here, so it kind of wouldn’t surprise me if she was adding a few dollars to my orders every time.
Still giving this place three stars, though, because the workers keep everything impeccably set up (as soon as you take a grapefruit out of a pile, they replace it with another one) and the quality is really good.
I’ll check out the place across the street if I see I’m getting ripped off, but for now I’m staying put.

This place is terrible. It would be awesome, except for the fact that the lady that always works there purposely overcharges you by A LOT every single time. She rings you up in a way that makes it very difficult to make sure that you are not being cheated, which you ALWAYS are. Be prepared to pay up to $ 2 for a single small tomato (no, not the vine ripened ones) or even the smallest of possible onions.
Unless you are there to buy one single item where you can make sure that the price is right, it’s much better to walk the 6 – 7 blocks to «To The World» on Grand St. and Lorimer-​ish. That place doesn’t have as nice of a display and sometimes the vegetables are past their prime, but they are super cheap and purposely try NOT to cheat you as they ring you up. They are amazingly friendly people too. A bag of vegetables that would cost you $ 40 at Rosemary’s will be $ 10 at «To The World.»

CRIMINAL !
UNETHICAL BUSINESS PRACTICE !
Although they have one of the better fruit/​veggie produce selections in the neighborhood (instead, try «Corner Market» across the street), Rosemary’s billing practices are the WORST. For example, the sign says $ 3.49 per pound for garlic, but when you buy a small garlic clove, they «cleverly» try to charge you $ 9.99 per pound. Not many people will notice, a small garlic clove for less than a dollar, but as a billing policy they cheat every customer by about 20% more then the posted price. Call them out on it. They are unethical cheaters!
Most people don’t notice being overcharged 25 cents or so, but in the big picture they are cheating us all out of hundreds of thousands of dollars every year with inflated charges. I bought an avocado that was listed as $ 2.19 per avocado … what did they try to charge me? $ 2.29 for the damn avocado. I mean come on, ten cents!?!
They try to cover their theft by offering to show you your receipt. However, the receipt does not document the per pound price charged for each item. There is no record of their criminal activity, other than a quick visual scan of the per pound price entered on their scale. Keep your eyes open when they are weighing things on the scale and call them out on it when they rob you!

WHAT A RIP OFF. That lady just invents prices at the register every time. She seems nice, but she’s out to get everyone with her fast fingers. I’ve sworn this place off. I just went in to get an onion, a green bell pepper and eggs that were 3.50 and got charged $ 10!!! Screw that. I go to To The World Farm on Grand Street now. That place is a great deal and has fresh produce as well.

Is it really overpriced when the alternative is rotting fruit/​vegetables from C-​Town or Millennium Market? While I try to steer clear of the packaged goods (you can always find it cheaper elsewhere), the fruits and veggies are really exceptional. I’ve gone to the Whole Foods in Union Square looking for certain ingredients that end up being sub-​par in quality when Rosemary Farms had better (and cheaper).

Wish I could give this place negative stars.
I used to go to Rosemary Farm all the time – it was pretty much the only place you could get fresh, nice looking produce around the Grand L stop.
…until i realized the checkout lady tries to add on an extra 3 – 4 dollars every single time i check out.
This isn’t just something that’s happened to me, it has happened to countless friends as well – so I wasn’t surprised to see a review on here in which it happened to someone else.
I’ve called her out on it and she plays dumb. The first two times I just thought it was a fluke, maybe she was new or prices changed, etc. etc. But after the third time I swore this place off.
Imagine how much money she pockets daily from people who don’t call her out or notice when she takes a little off the top. Ugh! Disgusting!

Previous reviews are right: they cheat you. I’ve caught the checkout lady keying in extra dollars a few times now, and when I called her on it, she doesn’t even pretend it’s a mistake – she more seems annoyed that she has to re-​open the register.
Ask for a receipt and compare it to what you’ve bought every time. You’ll be stunned at what they try to get away with. Call them out and get your money back.
And you can file a complaint with the city here:

While Rosemary Farm may be overpriced, I think you are truly paying for quality and convenience. When compared the to grocery stores near me, Rosemary Farm is the picture of perfection (especially compared to C-Town’s decrepit little produce shelf). The produce is always VERY fresh, and they also carry specialty asian groceries. One detail in particular stands out: I have never purchased a bad avocado. I know how to pick them, but some places just don’t have a good selection. They may be expensive but they’re worth it.
There are definitely some negatives here, from the congestion after work to the lack of english spoken in the premises, but when you want to make something delicious for dinner does it really matter? You’ve got to have your priorities, and I’d rather give the business to these people than suffer at Whole Foods for a good half hour +.

I have to agree with the review below. As much as I would like to shop here because it’s practically next door to me and the produce selection is great, the owners totally rip you off. They ring up the stuff super fast so they think you can’t tell, but every time I’ve gone there I’ve checked the receipt and they have charged me more than the listed prices. The sad thing is that I’ve told them repeatedly (and clearly so have others) so they can’t claim ignorance or mistake; these are just people who don’t care about having loyal returning customers and would rather make a living by cheating people. As much as I’d love to support my local mom and pop grocery, they have made it impossible for me to do so.

Tiny market with mainly fresh fruits and veggies. Not much else, but it’s a great little spot! Everything is organized and looks really fresh. Prices are fair too for the quality in the area. There’s not many places in the area that have such a good selection.
They also have a pretty good selection of Ritter Sport chocolates. They are probably my favorite chocolate in the world… Just amazing. So it’s nice to find a place close to my apartment that has them.