Kowalski’s Market

This is my favorite food market in the entire Twin Cities. 15 years ago when we arrived from VA, we discovered this location and loved it instantly. But our new home after the initial temp rental was 30 miles away. Last month we moved to St Paul.
First the selection of brands by food category are truly excellent — even better than famous CA chain Ralph’s. Hunting reading each label makes meal design fun creative and more delicious! The quality of different ice cream mfgs is thrilling to test and my new favorite brand is now «Coolhaus» ice cream — not as heavy in richness as Haagen Das, and made with perfect subtle flavorings. For Super Bowl they had 3 varieties of mini hot dogs — never seen 3 under one roof. The selection of mustards is heaven. The prepared foods are good not outstanding. the Teriyaki chicken wings sauce is unique home made superb w fresh ginger. This store is not huge so the fruit /​veggie selection is not as grand as elsewhere, but exploring the shelves corners slowly reading the packaging is an exciting exercise.
The careful design and use of indirect sheltered low soft lighting is what makes shopping here so inviting and relaxing. The warm darker accents of wood and natural colors create a truly enlightening experience while grocery shopping.
My other favorite market is the newly built People’s Food Coop in Rochester, Mn.
Enjoy‼‼

I once reviewed this location at FIVE stars. But after three weeks of going in and talking with the butcher staff and leaving my contact information pertaining to a meat order I’ve never once received a return call. I shouldn’t have to chase you to give you my money. All you had to do was call me back about a requested order. Bad move, won’t be purchasing my meat products from here for awhile.

Got a full Thanksgiving dinner in a box from Kowalski’s this year, and man! Was it good. To my surprise and delight, there was a piece of paper in the box that told me when to put things in the oven, starting with the turkey, so that right before dinner everything came out at once (just a little after the turkey, so you can slice it if you want to). The yams, mashed potato’s, and especially the stuffing were amazing. The cranberry sauce was delicious. I would not hesitate to do that every year, but I know I’ll try something different, cuz that’s what I do, and that’s what got me to Kowalski’s this year. Cheers!

I used Kowalski’s to cater our Halloween party. I ordered the Sushi Medley Party Tray, the Hybrid Go Sushi Tray, the Fruit and Cheese Tray and the Focaccia Appetizer Tray. The only thing we had left over was some cheese and fruit, everything else was devoured! I got a lot of compliments on how delicious everything was.
Ordering was super easy, I did it on their website a few days before the party and showed up at the time I had set and everything was ready to go. When you place your order, you can choose to pay then or pay when you pick it up.
I will definitely be using them again for my parties!

Their Apple Crisp is damn good. A tad pricey, but well worth it.
Love their little kid carts. My son loves pushing this around and really enjoyed trick or treating through out the store. What a nice thing they do for the kids. It was not busy when we went through. They gave out a lot of nice treats around the treat stations in the store.
Apples, String Cheese, Peanut Butter packets, cookies, chocolate milk, mini things of pop and a bunch of other treats. Most of them going to my work give away table, but nice treats.
Thanks, Kowalski’s for the trick or treating experience.

We used to do our shopping between Trader Joes, Rainbow and Kowalski’s. Now that the Rainbow has all changed ownership and their name to Cub Foods, we’re down to two grocery stores. Trader Joes is really good for many dry good items but other than that, Kowalski’s it is.
Kowalski’s does cost a bit more than a Target or Cub but one is always guaranteed to get top quality groceries and I don’t feel like I’ve just run a marathon when I’m done shopping. If there is ever an issue with anything they sell, bring it back and they will stand behind their groceries. The best things are their fruits and vegetables because they are consistently better than anywhere else in town.
I would prefer it if there were a Byerly’s or a Lund’s in the neighborhood, since the competition would be good, but until that happens Kowalski’s will be our main grocery store.

One of my absolute favorite markets (ever). Love their focus on sustainable/​organic options, and also their boutique like offerings — it’s fantastic I can go one place to get my Mom’s favorite ice cream (Jeni’s) and a birthday card and candle… and pick up my groceries at the same time! Kowalski’s really cares about the communities they serve, and the complimentary coffee is always a big plus.

Although I’m writing of a situation that happened years ago, I thought it should be noted. Swore this place off due to the rudest customer service you could ever encounter. Went shopping for my mother who was diagnosed with diabetes at the time (since has passed away). Noticed a few kids that worked there were peeking around corners, made me real uncomfortable. Then a manager came up to me with an officer told me to leave and do my shopping somewhere else. I left all my groceries and workers asked what happened, told them I guess I was shopping too long. They said that’s bs, she shouldn’t of treated you like that. I left and the manager was reported to the owner. Was then told it would never happen again. I decided to test it out and went back a week later. After shopping for about 2 minutes that same manager came back and told me «I told you I don’t want you shopping here anymore!» I told her the owner said it was ok. She said «ok!» And quickly headed to a phone. I didn’t want no trouble and at this time was done doing business with these people soo I just left.

My girlfriend and I have developed a healthy habit of cooking 4 – 5 times a week and we stop at this Kowalski’s every Sunday (oh yeah — that’s why I have such a hard time putting up restaurant reviews all the time!). Have never been let down by the customer service, quality or selection here!
Few things I have come to love:
–The meat counter guys. These guys rock. Fairly often we see a cut of prepackaged meat that’s too big. They never have a problem cutting it down for us and dividing it into two packages.
–The charity receipt wall… we take turns choosing a cubby to push our receipts into each week. My understanding is that they choose the cubby (each labeled with a different charity) with the most receipts at some given time interval, and donate the total sum of those receipts to that charity. Pretty cool!
–The cheese ladies. They have never failed me at finding these weird cheeses I often need. Impressed they have such a big selection!
–Checkout lines are always moving quickly it seems like! They do a good job to keep the your stop from taking too long.
Only gripe… the parking lot. Being on Grand means it can be a pain sometimes to get in and out of this place, but we always seem to find a spot somehow. Love this location!

Great chef at Grand Ave. location… Try any of the soups or hot dishes… Better than most of the restaurants in the area.
As for grocery shopping–
It’s the same as anywhere but it does irritate me that these places don’t want you to use a cart but then ask you if you want help with your bags as if this is asking too much. If they are not letting us take the cart to the car, then just make the assumption and grab the customers bags. This is the same at Byerly’s in Eagan so it is just a pet peeve of mine.

I love this Kowalski’s. Deli is fab and they carry a ton of specialty items. Nice salad bar too.

Deli is amazing. Great MN company. Supports local businesses by distributing their brands. Employs ppl w/​special needs. Thank you Kowalskis!

Today, I had my first shopping experience at Kowolski’s and it was AWESOME. Kowolski’s had everything I was looking for — and provided an opportunity to discovered some new favorites.
That’s a big deal. Why? I’m picky. When I go grocery shopping with my wife, I drive her crazy because I like a wide selection of specialty food items and organic brands that are only available at specific stores. Instead of shopping at one grocery store, I’ll sometimes collect items from several locations. I’m a big fan of the Mississippi Market and Lund’s. I also shop at Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.
Even though Kowalski’s isn’t the closest grocery store, spending a few extra minutes driving there may save me time in the long run.

We got home on the afternoon of Christmas Eve. I had my husband put away groceries. When it came time for desert, I said, «Where did you put the pumpkin pie?» «What pumpkin pie?» was the response. Today on the 26^th I called and said, I had no receipt and was wondering if someone had fund a pumpkin pie at the check out counter. The answer, «No, but come on in and get a refund or a new pie. Just say you spoke to Jean.» I explained I had no receipt. The answer, «No problem.»

It kills me to give them a «low» rating but there are too many inconsistencies and inconveniences. I’m use to shopping at tres high end stores here, London, DC, VA, and Seattle.
Cons
1) Their house shredded cheddar cheese is gross.
2) Their house bread is gross and they put IMPORTANT items in small print. So I thought I got white/​wheat bread. What I really got was vegan white/​wheat bread. The last house bread I got went bad in two days. I shouldn’t have to put it in the fridge.
3) The have two brands of pickles? What the heck? Supposedly there’s a brand that does Minnesota «blue ribbon» pickles. I want a somewhat diverse range.
4) Selection overall
5) Inconsistent service at the deli counter. Ex: I opened the deli sliced cut cheese today and pieces upon pieces were caked together. Other staff place them on layers of paper, without being asked, most of the time.
6) I find their carting of groceries pretty odd. If I am using the smallest size cart I want to at least be given an option. How about just not overpacking the bags? Especially when I brought 10 of my own?
Pros
1) Their staff are generally great.
2) Store is organized well
3) Parking lot is generally really good
4) Meat quality is great
5) Produce quality is great
6) Deli options, and generally the service, is really good.
7) The store layout is pretty good.

Great selection in a decently sized store.
I especially liked the gift shop area at the entryway. The staff was very friendly and helpful. Even the patrons were helpful when a display of french bread fell over next to me (I didn’t knock it over, I swear!), a few people came over to help.
I really liked this place, and my only quibble was that the overall pricing was a bit high.

Kowalski’s on Grand understands that customer service is key in the grocery market industry. I stopped in during Grand Old Day and bought a few items before beginning my trek back to Shakopee. A few days later I realized I had been charged the bulk rate for my produce rather than the bunch rate which, so effectively I paid around $ 5 too much. I called and explained that I didn’t live in the area, so they offered to refund my credit card over the phone. I was very pleased with that response as I’ve had similar situations with another natural food chain and I was never offered a refund without physically going back to the store so they could fix their own error.
Thanks for the great service!

Oh Kowalski’s I love you and I miss you. you are my favorite little neighborhood grocery of all time… I love the size of your store and how you can park and just walk right in you don’t have to walk a mile and a half to get in or even in the store. Your merchandise is always clean and well displayed and the prices are decent. I love the staff and how they always walk me to my car and I have such cute little paper bags with twine handles and not cheap bags either. You always have a wonderful cheese sampling and I have widened my knowledge of cheese and what pairs with it and how to dress it up… I have enjoyed many of your bakery products also… You make me happy — -

Kowalski’s is a really nice upper-​end grocery market. It’s got decent variety, high-​quality, fresh produce and a really killer deli area.
This is my go-​to place when I need certain produce items: apples (they have the best apples!), fresh herbs (why doesn’t anyone else stock flat leaf parsley?), serrano peppers instead of jalepenos and really good avocadoes. I also buy certain other items here, including Fancy Colby cheese and Izze juice drinks.
We’ve become big fans of their bakery area for fresh bread and baked treats. We really enjoy their garlic bread loaf, which is take and bake and soooo yummy. We also recently discovered that they sell four packs of fresh-​baked hot dog and hamburger buns! Wahooo! Finally, I can buy four brats and four buns to go with them! (anyone else seen Father of the Bride??? Anyway…) And their actual deli for lunchmeat and salads offers great variety and also really excellent service. A+!
Other pluses: they offer carryout to your car if you need it, and their cashiers are generally very nice and friendly.
Among the things that I like less:
–Well it’s expensive, or more expensive than some other grocery stores. But for these items I believe you pay for quality and you get what you pay for.
–Sometimes the variety is not what it is at other stores… instead of 20 types of pasta sauce, they’ll stock six. Instead of 20 flavors of something, they have two. You just kind of have to deal with it. If you like a specific variety of something, you might not find it here if it’s obscure.
–They have a manager who is always in a foul mood. The last time we were there, I was walking out with my bags and he literally threw one of the little shopping baskets (the plastic ones you carry yourself, not with wheels) directly across my path and onto a stack of baskets. He didn’t even look at me and he didn’t apologize. He was just angry at the basket, apparently.
–The parking lot takes awhile to figure out, as there are one-​way lanes everywhere.
I don’t do all my shopping at Kowalski’s because I am not rich, but there are certain things I like to pick up there and find it to be a generally pleasant and nice shopping experience.

I like this place. They have a great produce selection-​organic too! The prices are fair compared to other grocery stores in the area except Kowalski’s produce looks and tastes so much better. They have an outstanding cheese selection. WOW is what I can say. A ton of selection and variety. The deli looks outstanding as well. I will be trying the sandwiches soon.
The few times I have been here if have experienced friendly and good service. The checkout lines move fast (although they appear a little weird to me how they work, but oh well). Plenty of parking and the store has overall fair prices for all their goods.
Check them out. I recommend it!