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I don't speak a lick of Spanish and have never been to Mexico proper but this place is awesome. I don't know crap about Mexican food/delicacies/quality but this place is just interesting in cultural terms. I say this because often there are naysayers who complain that Phoenix is one long strip mall of chain stores. While that is partially true, places so unique as Ranch Market makes me love Phoenix.
The music, the meat counter on a Saturday the announcements over the loud speaker in Spanish. Awesome.
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I'm ambivalent.
On one hand, I'm not in the camp of white and/or hipster guilt who will automatically give anything "ethnic" 5-stars, just because that's the cool thing to do. While Phoenix Ranch Market has very delicious food and a decent selection, it's still missing a lot to be a "real" mercado, or whatever.
I'm also not in the other camp who complain excessively about "authenticity". I lived in Guanajuato for three years, so I know at least a tad about the real stuff. And this is an Americanized market -- there are no questions about this, or there shouldn't be, at least. But on the other hand, I don't care. It's nice. We're in America, so let's appease the whities.
Yeah, it's nice. I like this place. I usually always smile at some point in here, but I also frown from time to time. So, I'm ambivalent, but everybody should at least go sometime during the weekend to experience the beer cooler mariachi band and have a meal. I guess.
Holy Effing Yes!
I hiked Camelback Mountain with my Latina friend this mid-morning and then went to Ranch Market with her for an early lunch. We went there last went to buy specialty meats, cheeses, veggies, etc, but today we went specifically to try the prepared foods.
First off, you can buy super fresh squeezed fruit juices, I mean fresh mango, papaya, watermelon, melon, coconut, pina, strawberry, etc for $1.69 - $2.69 per 16 oz. and a bit more for the 32 oz size. Furthermore, you can have them blended too....
We ordered a ton of food to quell the massive hunger pains after our hike....
Sope De Carne - $3.99, really fresh torta with slow roasted pork, some pieces of pineapple, cojita cheese (absolutely love this cheese) and a tiny bit of sour cream.
My friend ordered a Sope De Carne with Carne Asada. Simply amazing, especially for $3.99.
Combination Plate - $6.29 - Slow roasted brisket and Chile Verde with cubes of pork and sides of rice and beans and plenty of tortillas. Really flavorful, nice portion size.... definitely hit the spot!
Last but not least, I was surprised when my friend ordered a Quesdilla for good measure. Me, gringo, thinking it would be like all of the other terrible ones I've tried in and around town, gave her a bit of grief for it. Well, this gringo will admit the error of my ways....for reals. Holy Jesus and baby Jesus was it good. Massive lightly fried fresh tortilla, with fresh Panela cheese, some chopped Jalepenos, super fresh guacamole and topped with a liberal amount of Cojita cheese.....Sofa King good and it cost $2.79!!!!
After pigging out, we walked around the market and picked up plenty of fixings for a feast later this week. Definitely make the trip to 16th street and Rosevelt, you'll be glad you did....
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I love this place! it's a cultural experience! I think even if you are Mexican, this place delights all the senses!
I love the tortilla department! 36 freshly made yellow corn tortillas for $2.50!!!
the ladies at the meat dept were fantastic!
The wall of spices, herbs, and chilis was incredible.
I did not have enough time to sit and eat there but that's the plan for the next trip.
I came home and made shredded beef tacos with all the fixings.
My rec is come and linger and enjoy the sights and then have a great lunch either at the food court or at the restaurant next door.
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Fun, Festive, Inexpensive, Selection, Culture, Taste, Energetic....
The Ranch is a great place, but be prepared for crowds, I don't know of a time we have been there that it hasn't been busy, but Christmas time ... Ay Carumba! The produce, the meats, the Cocina, the Bakery, the selection is all amazing... even if you don't live close, bring a cooler with some ice in your car to get what you want/need and then feel better about taking it home!
Be sure to try their resturant (on West end of the building) Tradiciones!
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My friends & I affectionately refer to this place as Mexican Disneyland (I think I stole that from an article on this place or something). Where else can you find bacon dogs, carne asada sold by the pound, bulk cheeses & yogurt, fresh tortillas, 8 or so flavors of agua fresca and chicharrone the size of a "small person" under one roof -- besides maybe, Mexico?
My favorite is the shrimp taco sold in the back of the market at the pescaderia (even though it takes them forever to make) and a large cup of watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberry or horchata agua fresca. It's the perfect meal before a Suns or Diamondbacks game and a hell of a lot cheaper too!
The produce also seems to be alot cheaper than what I normally see at Fry's & Safeway. Too bad I'm never headed straight home or else I'd buy groceries there.
Andale! Andale! to Phoenix Ranch Market!!
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TRAVEL ALERT/ALERTE DE VIAJE: The State Department wants you to know about new travel restrictions for entering and exiting countries subject to the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiatve, including Mexico. As of June 1, 2009 travelers must possess either a passport, passport card, or WHTI-compliant identification to enter the US by air, land or sea. Contrary to popular belief however, Americans will be able to visit the Phoenix Ranch Market without documentation.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION/DESCRIPCION GENERAL: Phoenix Ranch Market III is an upmarket Mexican-style mercado complete with an interior food court called "La Cocina" (The Kitchen). It is located in a rather unpleasant part of town, but manages to attract a large following of gringos eager to inject some diversity into their palette without risking turista.
THE FOOD/LA ALIMENTACIN: Offerings in "La Cocina" run the gamut from Mexican style tortas, to more iconic tacos and burritos. Many items offer a choice of meat, from ham to carne asada, to carnitas. A separate area offers various seafood dishes. Everything is ala carte, suprising those hoping to economize using an American style "combo". Despite this, "La Cocina" remains popular, especially at lunch time.
SERVICE/SERVICIO: All orders are taken by an attendant standing next to the line for the cashier. Most guests do not wait long before placing the order. Some have reported difficulty communicating with the attendant however, the other employees tend to have command of the English language. Visitors are responsible for retrieving their own orders and seating themselves at long bench-style tables.
PRICES/PRCIOS: Like Mexico itself, the Ranch Market is not the bargain it is made out to be. Prices that may look low for entrees quickly increase when adding in the cost of beverages, churros, and gas. Most respondents however, believe that the mercado occupies an important niche between true fast food and more sophisticated self-serve meals.
SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS/CONSIDERACIONES ESPECIAL: Some have accused the Phoenix Ranch Market from being too acommodating to non-Latino customers. While this concern cannot be dismissed, it is obviously the case that all of Mexico has fallen to this trend. New hotels now gleam along the shoreline in Puerto Penasco, golf courses spourt in the arid desert outside Cabo San Lucas, all while Costcos can be found in such tourist-heavy states as Veracruz and Guanajuato. The Calderon Government and America's Hispanics will have to confront the tension between assimilation and authenticity one agua fresca at a time.
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Ranch Market... nothing like it in Arizona. Even better than Lee Lee's! This place is an EMPORIUM of great, high-quality, inexpensive food. The produce is exceptional and once you into the spirit of the butcher (ie. any part of the animal you want, you can get) the quality is also very high. Fresh tortillas made all day long and a really festive atmosphere round it out.
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3.5 stars
I want to love the Ranch Market for so many reasons. It's the closest Market to my house, it's fun and lively, the produce looks great, and the prepared food smells wonderful.
But I don't love it. I'm actually somewhat annoyed by this store.
Numerous times I have entered looking for something and haven't been able to find it. I know you're thinking it's some wierd gringa item I'm looking for, but this last time I was looking for canned tomatoes to make chili. Canned tomatoes!?!?! I'll cut them a little slack because I actually sent the husband to do the dirty work and he couldn't find it after asking 2 or 3 employees. I have a sneaking suspicion that they do actually have it there, because it would be ridiculous for a Mexican market to not have canned tomatoes.
Another time I took an out-of-town friend. He was so enamored with the beauty of the bakery items that he wanted to photograph the many cakes and pastries. But the tub-o-security rolled over and said "No Photographs!" Seriously? These people work so hard to make such beautiful creations and we can't take pictures? Of food? (Ironically, the next day we went to Taliesin West and were encouraged to take photographs of everything except the gift shop.) And, we left empty handed because the store didn't have 2 of the ingredients we needed.
Bottom line: If I'm incredibly unspecific with the ingredients I am looking for, I can definitely do some grocery shopping here. But any ideas for meals are usually thwarted and I end up at Safeway.
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Five starts all the way for the ability to make a Market place a destination location. People come from all over the valley to enjoy themselves and family to a food adventure. Personally I don't know what most the stuff is inside here but the smells and quality speak for its self. Take a step out of the box and into Hispanic culture.
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I don't want to be controversial, but most of these crowning reviews are from those not likely to have seen what a true mercado may look like, and yes, I'm referring to ethnicity.
Phoenix Ranch Market is the Knot's Berry Farm to Mercado Tipico's Disneyland. Its a noble effort to bring Mexican staples and unconventionals to the big city in the middle of Arizona, USA, but the product are tinged with americanization; from their weekend menudo, which is wholly rubbish, to the carne which is a grade above what you would get in a true Mexican market (damn FDA). Though the latter may sound like an unusual gripe, its that stringy gato-grade-meat that makes fajitas and tortas uniquely tasty. I was impressed one time, however, when my buddy Graham snagged a few pounds of fajita meat for the SuperBowl from PHX RM, and they marinaded it for him in a sturdy plastic bag which included whole jalapenos to boot. However, I beleive it was Graham's skill on the grill that made them very tasty and moist rather than any particularly amazing grade of meat from the Market.
As a hispanic, the place feels appreciably disingenuous. Sure, they sell the liquados and the pansitos, et al, but if you plopped this place in Mexico pt 1, it would fail from poor quality by Mexican standards.
By all means, if you don't know the difference, then knock it out. You won't know what you are missing anyway, and you can get your ethnic dinner party needs and a sandia drink while you wait.
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Best place to go when you are feeling blue!
As a fresh new transplant to the area who knows absolutely no one besides her beyond retired neighbor who hits the pillow by 4pm, I often find myself slightly lonesome. Instead of watching another episode of entourage, I decided to see if you yelpers were right....THIS PLACE IS AMAZING!
Not only were my new Mexican friends staring at me because I was the only white gal in sight, but probably because I was beaming from ear to ear! From the outrageous meat section to the beautiful bakery I think I could easily spend a whole day there. The store was extremely easy to find and for a whopping $1.88 I left with a gigantic cucumber, 2 over-sized oranges and at least 2lbs of grapes!
Great place, cant wait to go again!
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This place is like crack for foodies :) You just cannot get enough! This should be #1 on your list when out of towners visit you, they'll just drop their collective jaws. Hit Tradiciones for lunch or dinner and then the market for those tortillas steamin' in the bag OMFG there's little finer in life!! Their homemade chorizo is spot on, produce is good (and CHEAP!) . I want one in Moon Valley!
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Everything about this place rules the bakery, my fav is the pan dulce and they have never ending varieties of everything, the kitchen part is great food to order great prices, the refresco cold drink bar with fresh fruit yummm. It is a huge place and has lot's of elbow room. If you are into meat you will love their meat dept. it is muy gigante! FUN FUN place for everyone for sure!!
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This place is great! For starters, when you enter, its very colorful. There was some spanish music playing overhead, and loads of things to look at. They have a huge meat department, groceries, bakery and everything im between.
I wandered through the isles and liked what I saw. I ended up eating a breakast burrito at thier food bar at the far end of there store. I think this is a truely southwest expereince to come here, and I wish I had known about it when my friend Jason came out last October.
They also have a lovely resturant attached to this place (as if the store itself won't do it for you) and that it authentic in itself.
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What makes Ranch Market so great is that it creates a fantastic experience for its customers. When you enter through the sliding doors for the first or thousandth time, you immediately understand what Ali Baba must have felt when he uttered, "Open O Simsim". For if you've entered through my favorite entrance (the West entrance), you'll be flanked by rows of 7' glass pillars filled with bejeweled pastries for sale. The experience only gets better from there. Truly, Ranch Market is more of a destination for me and less of a stop. Highlights for me, include but are not limited to:
- having a smoothie made for you from fresh fruit and vegetables that are both peeled and pureed for you
- a produce area that reminds you of that great farmers market where the wooden carts are pilled high with produce so fresh you can feel the earth still holding on to the vegetables
- fans dancing throughout the store with streamers hanging from their blades
- a cafateria style food service area that rivals most modern mexican restaraunts
- ceviche that both tastes like the ocean and smells like limes hanging on tree
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My husband and I lovingly refer to Phoenix Ranch Market as Food City on Crack! This place is amazing, but be prepared for a bit of culture shock as this is a truly authentic Mexican grocery store. I have only walked the perimeter of the store, which is the bakery, fish market and carneceria.
The bakery is phenomenal, I would especially recommend the dulce de leche cake. Next stop fish market, with an excellent seafood spread. You can order food-to-go straight from the market, I recommend the shrimp ceviche. Next stop the meat market - Wow! Some interesting food you would not find at your local Albertson's. Carne Asada (marinated) is an excellent and cheap choice to take home and have a mexican bbq in your very own backyard.
The restaurant next door is also very good - great seafood enchiladas. There are also soom little shops with items you would expect to find at a border town shop.
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Phoenix Ranch Market III is an absolute MUST for any person visiting Phoenix, Az. Forget the upscale breakfast and faux southwest shops that dot and line Scottsdale. Forget the 'burbs of Peoria, Goodyear, and East Mesa. Don't let your visiting family leave without making a trip down to the Phoenix Ranch Market on 16th st and Roosevelt. Yes, this is south of the I-10 freeway and far away from your faux mexican food at Macayo's Cantina. At Phoenix Ranch Market you'll find a side of the city that nearly all of the transplanted surburban population seems to want to ignore, or just completely forget. This is Phoenix being Phoenix, not Phoenix trying to be a new Los Angeles or anyplace else.
After having breakfast at a carbon copy brunch eggery, I was in need of something less perfect and faux. I found exactly what I was craving. When you can hear the sounds of mariachi or radio campesina from your car parked at the other end of a packed lot, you know this isn't the local Kroger you're about to enter.
Part grocery store, part food court, part village market, PRM is huge, it's overwhelming and it's surprisingly clean and comfortable - this isn't a low rent grocery like Food City. With a fresh seafood section two or three times the size you'd find anywhere else in Phoenix, and with parts of animals you've probably never prepared at home, it's fun to just look, but even more fun to buy. Want meat? Want better options? Better cuts? Want an entire skinned cow's head with the eyes intact and staring at you? Check. It's all SO GOOD.
But that's just the meats. They make their own tortillas onsite with a literal factory and small army of workers churning out the flat corn and flour awesomeness. Hungry? Want mexican food? Want great mexican food? ALWAYS consider going here. Think of anything on a restaurant menu and you have it here. Prepared fresh, and a la carte. Seriously. Tamales of any kind. Horchata! Cow Tongue! Burritos of immense size and stuffed with anything you want. Some of the best beans in town, rice, and parts from a pig that still actually look like parts from a pig. This isn't the mall food court.
The place is packed with mostly hispanic families but you'll also notice a few adventurous types, including my asian self. Most of the employees speak english very well so language is not a barrier. The only times you'll need help is when asking what is that? And like mentioned above, the answer just might be cow tongue (which by the way, is good, however I can see how the texture would turn some people off. Imagine a soft almost too mushy beef...)
Oh. The food is also cheap. You'll get more than full off of $5, you'll explode at $10. It's seriously like heaven here. Music, people, atmosphere, food, drinks, desserts, baked goods. All of it awesome. I met up with my friend Amy.The.Kidd for 'lunch' and we ended up spending almost 4 hours just walking around, back and forth, trying each new item we found, or trying the standards but knowing they were going to be better here. Mmmm. Horchata, great corn tamales, rice, beans, empanadas, warm fresh tortillas... bring everyone. This is a place that should be in people's minds when they think of Phoenix, not just the golf courses, or upscale Scottsdale, or Frat/Sorority Tempe... but South Phoenix. No matter how scary it is for suburban soccer moms to venture down there.
Phoenix Ranch Market on 16th St and Roosevelt. Take me anytime.
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Oh my jesus is this place fantastic. I experienced Ranch Market for the first time last summer. I'm not familiar with the holiday, but it's the one where they bake tons of cakes with little babies in them..? Someone help me here. Back to the point, it was EXTREMELY festive, and I don't know if it was the heat, or that I was tired, or that the place was just so decked out in colors and people and decorations, but I got sick. Sick to where I had to wait outside by the car for my company. Hilarious. Needless to say I was a little frightened, so it took a little while for the curiosity to pique again.
Second time was yesterday evening. Perhaps it was because instead of being a busy Saturday it was a slower (still busy, though) Tuesday that I was able to survive this visit. The boy decided to use it for a school project so I tagged along to see if I could help. The second we walked in the door however, all hope in my helping him was lost. My mind was in a frenzy as I decided where to stop first. The Jugeria for some Horchata? Or the restaurant for some asada? Or maybe the bakery for something sweet...?
Found out the Horchata is way too sweet (but delicious) to drink alone so I shared with the boy. Grabbed some kind of sweet roll from the bakery that we practically fought over...and oh my! It was Taco Tuesday at the restaurant! I ordered 4 asada tacos for $2.99 and thanked the lord my boy is a vegetarian. Best carne asada ever!
And the atmosphere in here is great. Oh! And they're open late. 6a-11p. The employees are friendly and the customers (mainly families) are just so full of life and happiness (or maybe it was the Spanish music blaring on the loudspeaker?). All in all, this is a new fave. I will most definitely be looking into more of the daily specials and sweet rolls.
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Gotta love this Market. I take people here as a sort of a tourist attraction. They have everything and it's all fresh. A total culture shock, but fun none the less.
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super clean, surprisingly cheaper than food city on certain items...
annnnnnnnnd a huge selection on mexican ingredients/foods.
what i love most? the "food court". didn't get a chance to try any foods (which smell/look amazing, i might add), as i wasn't hungry, but i did get the papaya agua fresca. SO.GOOOOOOOD!!!!
so 5 stars for the amazing agua fresca and for being so gosh darned clean!
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There isn't much to say about Phoenix Ranch Market that hasn't been touched on by other reviewers. Still, there are a few points I'd like to reiterate/emphasize:
- SENSORY OVERLOAD. On my first visit, I was so overwhelmed by the number of colors and people and smells that I literally got sick.
- I never imagined that there could be so many varieties of rice pudding.
- Remember the first time you went to Krispy Kreme, and how much fun it was to watch the hot donuts roll off the conveyor belt? PRM has a tortilla factory like that, and I'd take a dozen of their corn tortillas over a dozen donuts any day. And then I'd eat them all in one sitting.
- At the front of the store, next to the jugeria (which, by the way, serves the best horchata I've tasted), there is an ice cream stand that serves novel flavors like tamarind sorbet and chiclet gelato.
- The employees of PRM are really friendly and knowledgeable. I was initially worried about a language barrier, but everyone who helped me spoke better English than a lot of the people at my neighborhood Albertson's.
So, yes, Phoenix Ranch Market is a local landmark. This is going to sound sappy, but I always leave this place full, happy, and feeling proud to hail from the Southwest.
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This place is awesome.
The Traditional restaurant as well as the deli style restaurant inside.
The assortment of food items is amazing, too many good things to choose from. And the prices are great.
It is a great experience, if you like Mexican food you must go and check it out. This is the closest thing to Mexico without being there.
After eating it is great to explore the rich colors and products in the market.
And don't forget the Sunday brunch with tons of choices and lots of traditional entertainment.
When I want to feel REALLY white, I just roll on down to Ranch Market to confirm my suspicions that, yes, I am in fact not as Hispanic as I think I am. This store is what Food City WISHES it was! It takes the best of Mexican specialty stores and eateries and combines it all under one roof. Shoppers here are mostly Hispanic with a few adventurous gringos thrown in here and there. But workers there are friendly and know English - some better than others.
Holy crap! I can't believe it's taken me so long to review this place. I only go here ALL the time for cheap delicious down-home Mexican food, cheap produce, and Spanish rice like Grandma used to make. I've been going to Ranch Market for about 10 years at their stores in Bakersfield -- where they first started. I used to make fun of my mom for going to lunch here. Heh, look who's laughing now. I'm addicted!
The food here is no-frills authentic and seats inside are picnic bench style. It's not uppity Mexican fare like Barrio Cafe, but it's not Filiberto's diarrhea fare either. Everything from chile colorado, chile verde, calabasitas, sopes, mole, tortas, carnitas, chicharrones, tamales, ceviche. You name it, they have it. And that's just in the deli. They have a panaderia with all kinds of cakes, flans and pandulce (sweet bread). I LOOOVE pandulce. They even have a jugeria (juice bar) tortilleria, and a counter for fresh cheeses and cremas.
And the produce? Cheap and abundant. I got some bananas and tomatoes just a little over one dollar. Don't think about getting any organic veggies here. This isn't the place. This is also not the place for low-fat shopping either. But it is so many other great things that the other stores aren't.
Best of all is the atmosphere inside - it is REALLY festive - like you're at Tia and Tio's fiesta. Mariachis and bands abound here during the weekend. Dang!! Fry's, Safeway, Basha's - take note, por favor. You're on notice.
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stimulus overload!!! and i loved every moment of it. i SO wish i had a store like this near my house. each isle brought new delights to my eyes. specialty mexican items everywhere. my mind was racing with all the things i could make. unfortunately i'm just visiting and can't haul food home.
the fresh cheese section was intense, as well as the seafood, meat, produce and hot food booths. i seriously couldn't make up my mind what to buy and try. i was in this palace for 1 1/2 hrs!! a grocery store!!
i ended up with the carnitas burrito which was one of the best i've ever had...and it only had beans, rice and carnitas in it!! no shit. i also tried the camarones ceviche. coulda used some more limon y chili for my taste, but the fresh avo on top was bombey!!
the fresh jugo bar was insane. it was also cool being the only whitie in the building. this evening, i didn't see one other geras. just me.
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Get your passport, we're going to Mexico.
Can't find your passport? Still waiting for it from the State Department? No worries, pack your bag and head to the Ranch Market!
This place is the best! The food court is wonderful with so many tasty dishes. And the produce department is crazy! 2 lbs of grapes for 99 cents, 8 cucumbers for a dollar, 17 cents for a bunch of cilantro, 7 -- YES, SEVEN pounds of watermelon for 99 cents. You can go crazy with produce and not break the bank.
The tamales are huge and the tortillas, oh the tortillas.
Don't be frightened, don't get intimidated, it's just a grocery store people!
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So I visited this unique market after reading some of the glowing reviews from other Yelpers and I must say the Phoenix Ranch Market is awesome. Like any good market the wide variety and abundance of fresh food at PRM makes shopping at the old chain store a boring old chore. The operative words here are fun, vibrant, and cheap. I went on a Sunday so I kicked it off with a steaming bowl of menudo, a beef tripe soup with a ton of garnishes so you can personalize your bowl. After I finished I wandered around filling up on fresh tortillas, dried and fresh chiles(my mole can beat up your mole anyday), my eyes were agog as I absorbed the sight sounds and smells of the bustling market. My favorite area was the meat counter where patrons bickered with the butcher over the best cuts and a peeled cows head stared blankly at me. I swear I saw that thing blink at me. Anyway a great place to visit if your in the mood for a tongue torta and some mariachi music.
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Today I wanted horchata.
Today I found horchata.
And a whole lot more.
Thanks to Massv Genius on Yelp here, I was handedly convinced to walk into and experience the Phoenix Ranch Market.
Man, what an assault on the senses when you walk in through the left entrance. An Elvis Crespo merengue track blaring from the store speakers. A giant food court in front of me - a section for cakes, another for other pastries, another for tacos/burritos, and many more, including the aforementioned jugeria (Spanish for jugeria). A guy dressed as a pantomime making kids balloon animals. And this is only 10% of the entire store!
I was kind of petrified because I didn't even know where to begin. I wanted to eat everything. I wanted to drink everything. I wanted to do grocery shopping now even though I had 4 more errands to do.
Horchata.
And so I went to the jugeria and ordered a large cup. Wow. I was chillin' on cloud nine with the first sip. I then took a leisurely jaunt around the rest of the store.
This place is MASSIVE. And extremely colorful. I can see people making a day of it. It's like a grocery store and a street carnival all wrapped up under one roof. But that's not all.
Mariachis!
Yes, Mariachis stationed by the other entrance, next to a display of "Ingles Sin Fronteras" CDs. This store is a kind of wonderland, with an adjoining section with a more sit-down restaurant plus stalls selling arts & crafts from Mexico.
I will definitely be coming back here many, many times.
This is it. My Mexican Disneyland.
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MERCADO DEL PARAISO. That is not my review, but rather what is written on the side of the Ranch Market building. After reading other reviews of this place, I already had a feeling it was going to be good...but the Paradise Market...hmmm... Made me ask myself what my idea of a paradise market would be. ( In case you were wondering, it would include Gael Garcia Bernal, Alejandro Fernandez, Juanes and other latinos guapos pushing shopping carts... shirtless.)
Anyway...focus!...Walking in from the parking lot, I could already hear lively music spilling out of the store. My blood started to sizzle with excitement. Then, right after crossing the threshold, I beheld a thing of dazzling beauty- carts and carts of aromatic and fresh pan dulce. I knew this place and I were just beginning a long and promising relationship.
My roommate and I wandered around the pan dulce display cases, salivating, pointing, giggling. We opted not to purchase as we have way too many holiday sweets left over as it is. We continued on to the jugeria where I had the best horchata I have had in a long, long time. Too much of the time horchata is watery. The Ranch Market horchata was so flavorful and creamy. I drank it just like a little kid who doesn't even let the straw leave their mouth for a moment.
We then wandered throughout the whole store. I know I probably looked awe-struck because it is overwhelming. It is bustling and frenetic and packed full of food treats, smells, conversation...LIFE. Be sure to pass by the tortilleria and take in the smell of freshly cooked tortillas. Also, don't miss the meats! Chicken feet! Tongue! Tripas! Oh yeah! AWESOME!
Who the hell would ever want to go to a Safeway again when shopping can be this entertaining?
I'll be sure to go back soon for some pan dulce, a raspado or some lunch. More than anything, I'll go back for the experience because that's what this place is- a cultural experience.
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white people dash into the grocery store to pick up a bottle of chard to go with their olive garden take-out, mexicans go to the grocery store to shop, eat some food, buy some bootleg cd's and see their cousin at the checkstand and make a day out of it. PHXRNCHMRKT embodies this tradition and so much more. the entire left side of this megastore is like 15 excellent restaurants all smashed together. after you order your food, walk to the jugeria (spanish for jugeria) and order a large horchata mixed with strawberry.
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