05/25/09

Whole Foods is a Better Bet

by DenverShopper

I agree, writeon1, Marczyk has fallen from grace. I think the Marczyk brothers might actually think they won the world series. Their ego has gotten out of control. I was a frequent shopper and have gripes about their inventory and prices, but they are also incredibly misleading.

I bought a decent Malbec from their wine shop and was told it was distributed only to them. What a joke! I saw the same bottle at two nearby stores for $3 less! In fact, you can ALWAYS find the wine they sell for much less within three blocks. We had a question about cheese and on two different occasions the staffer said, "um, let me see" and never came back. What?? It's a very small store. Customer service and staff expertise like that does not support their prices.

The Marczyk bros have bought into their own hype. I'd avoid this place if at all possible. There is a Whole Foods very near by.

• Pros: Nice shop
• Cons: Expensive, Unfriendly, False Advertising

12/18/08

Another one bites the dust

by writeon1

Marczyk's used to really stand out. Their quality and selection rivaled even shops of this ilk in Chicago and NYC. Unfortunately, things have completely changed in the last couple of years. The stocking seems to be haphazard, with no rhyme or reason to it. In addition to the downgrading of their cheese section, they also decimated their olive selection and the produce is really almost nil. Yes, they have nice agreements with certain local and organic farmers, which is great, but the selection is completely erratic and the prices for what they do still have really can't compete with Whole Foods. Also, the daily soup selection used to be much more inventive and what happened to the smaller containers of the once-excellent gazpacho in the summertime? Literally everything has gone downhill, even the bread and pastry selection. I don't understand why. And let's not even talk about the wine shop! The girl in there does not know the first thing about wine. Did the Marczyks really think we wouldn't notice (Hint: Go to Above the Rim instead!)?? The meats are still decent, but when you are a purveyor of imported and specialty items, you really need to invest in a staff that knows their business. Unfortunately, between the dumbing down of your stock and the hiring of less-than-knowledgable staff, I have lost interest in Marczyk's. It can no longer call itself anything other than a neighborhood shop, bereft anything out of the ordinary and lacking in the basics.

• Pros: The location is good and the meats are still high quality
• Cons: Service and selection have been completely downgraded

10/21/08

Downward turn

by moses240

Sadly, Marczyk is not what it once was. They no longer provide the variety of or service for their cheeses. The butchers are apathetic. And their overall customer service is bordering on rude. This shop was once my favorite.