Zabar's

Zabar's is a staple of the Upper West Side, or so I've been told. It's a specialty food store located on Broadway, complete with two separate rooms. The first of these is a small diner/coffee house-like

location. I think the first thing I noticed about it was the smell. Zabar's just smelt old. It had that musty weight to it, like it wasn't dirty but could certainly use a washing. There was a long table in the center, and it was filled up by women, who at their youngest were probably approaching fifty. They all appeared to know each other, conversing deep in thought.

The whole environment just had a very claustrophobic feeling to it. The walkways in between the counter and the long table, and in between the long table and the smaller tables against the window were very narrow. A person could comfortably stand in them, but it wasn't quite ideal. There wasn't a whole lot of room to lean one way or the other. I suppose this wouldn't be a problem if I were here with a group of close friends, but this was just after my first class, and I was feeling a little uncomfortable. Even the bathroom was way smaller than I like, and maintained the cramped feeling of the rest of the place.

I opted not to get food, but a few of my classmates did. They waited in line for a noticeably long time, and once they got back, they were complaining about how it was all pre-packaged food as opposed to new, fresh food. I can easily see how this would be disappointing, especially considering the wait. With the amount of people here, I figure they must have some sort of special connection to Zabar's.

The second room, which wasn't connected to the first by a hallway but rather had you go back onto the sidewalk, was less crowded. It was a deli, and the smells of the different cheeses were

overwhelming before I even entered the room. I'm a big fan of cheese, but the strong smells caused me to lose any appetite I would have had. I decided to skip these too, and headed upstairs.

Once upstairs, it felt like a completely different store. Gone were the strong smells, replaced with the smell of hardware. Gone was the chatter and noises of the street, replaced with soft music. Gone was any food, replaced with more tools to make food than I even knew existed.

Upstairs did retain the super-cramped feeling of narrow corridors, but this time it wasn't because of tables and chairs, but of all the shelves, each one filled to the brim with kitchenware. From pots and pans and spatulas and blenders and toasters, I saw more types of kitchenware here than I did in the kitchen I worked in at the time!

I greatly preferred the environment of the upstairs. It was simply easier for me to take in, and actually kind of relaxing. Fewer people were upstairs, and those who did were pretty silent.

Zabar's was an interesting environment for sure, but I don't think I'll be heading back any time soon. For the wait time on those lines, and prepackaged foods, I think I would be better off dining elsewhere.