(5 out of 5 hot dogs)

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Trader Joe’s and Trader Joe’s Wine Shop
142 E 14th Street (3rd and 4th)
Time: 9am – 10pm
Price: Cheap specialty groceries and cheaper wine

Picture this: Lines out the door and around the corner, crowds of attractive twenty-somethings clamoring to get in, wine served in little plastic cups. The hot new club in West Chelsea? Nope. Trader Joes: the best and cheapest place to get groceries (and wine) in NYC? Yep. I wouldn’t wait in line to get into a bar, or the Abercrombie on Fifth Avenue (gag me), but I will absolutely wait in line at Trader Joe’s. Even when I lived in Spanish Harlem, I would commute 110 blocks to do my shopping there (rather than getting shanked for my metrocard at the Pathmark on 125th). It is half as expensive as Gristedes or Food Emporium, and you can find affordable foods that are organic, gluten-free, vegan, or just plain regular. Exported French Cheese: $4.37, Organic Cage-Free Omega-3 Eggs: $3.99, Extra-Fiber Whole-Wheat Bread: $2.49. Employees give out free samples, and will pick something up for you if you’re already in line and forgot. There are rumors of new locations opening in Chelsea and Upper West Side, which should clear out some of the traffic.  Right next door is the wine shop, where bottles start at $2.99 for two buck chuck and $3.99 for a slightly fancier label. That’s the kind of bottle service I’m talking about!