Making Groceries
Jul 7th, 2008 by Nola
Growing up, my mother was the height of organization and cleanliness. My mother was a stay-at-home mother that cleaned and cooked. A lot. She’d fuss if we didn’t make the bed in the morning and if we dumped our school books on the kitchen table in the afternoon.
Twice a year, my mother would take all the food out of the pantry to touch up the paint that got scraped. She’d spring clean the closets and strip and redo her linoleum floors once a year too. All the while, she was preparing dinner for us every night. With five children, we rarely had leftovers.
I thought all mothers cooked and cleaned as vigorously as my mother. I learned that was not the case. We’d have friends over and ask if they wanted to stay for dinner. They’d inquire what we’d be eating, and I’d go look at my mother’s calendar—she always had her menu written down for the coming two weeks. My friends were amazed. Their mothers didn’t know what they were having until about an hour before they ate—no pre-planning went into it. But with a large family on a budget, planning was essential.
So, every two weeks my mother went to Schwegmann’s. She wrote her grocery list, organized by the order of the aisles, on an envelope and put her coupons inside. She’d buy so many groceries, she’d need two baskets. When the first basket was full, she’d take a note she’d tucked into her purse out and place it on top of the bursting basket, “Please do not touch.”
During the summer, I’d go with my mother to Schwegmann’s. I LOVED going to Schwegmann’s. We went to the store in Gentilly. This was their largest store; it was once the largest grocery store in the nation. Can you imagine? The Gentilly store had two stories; the upstairs had a pet store and the administrative offices. My sister and I would visit both. The women in the offices gave us candy.
Downstairs, there was a lunch counter (frequented usually by the working men in the neighborhood), a shoe repair place, shoe store (Shoe Town–remember Crazy Johnny?), hair salon, post office, florist, and even a bar room (also frequented by those workmen). The Gentilly Schwegmann’s was such a special place. It was just so big!
It was so big, in fact, that as a child it was the biggest indoor place to which I had ever been (apparently I never went to the Superdome as a child). And in my child’s eye, it was the biggest place on Earth. Once, I told my father I loved him and he asked, “How much do you love me?” And I responded, “Grocery store much.” He laughed and asked what I meant. I explained. Schwegmann’s was the biggest quantifiable thing I could imagine existing. It became our thing, for me to tell my father I loved him “grocery store much.”
I have many memories of time spent in Schwegmann’s, and all of them are positive. It was more than a grocery store, more than a Sav-a-Center Rouses or a Whole Foods. It was a way of life. And for us New Orleanians, it is very much missed even still, both the grocery and the way of life.
Update: Thanks Dail_m for the link to a few pics of the inside of the Gentilly store–click here and view the last one, No. 13, for an idea of the size of this place.
I love Schwegmann’s! I was so sad when they closed. You’re right, the Save-a-Centers and Rousses’ will never mean the same. I loved spelling the store name and the fun scripty font.
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If you’re hankerin’ for some pictures of old Schweggmann’s, check out the Louisiana Digital Library. the last 4 are interior shots of the Gentilly store.
(if that link don’t work try searching “schwegmann” at http://louisdl.louislibraries.org/
Have you seen the Schwegmann’s logo stuff at Plum? (http://www.plumneworleans.com/). Unfortunately, it’s not on their website, but they have glasses with green Schweg logos, as well as one’s with purple K&B’s. My only regret is that while I worked at a K&B in college. I worked at Winn-Dixie instead of Schwegmann’s in high school.
good post! i do miss schwegmann’s. used to go to the one on Vets (now a Lowes) with my dad all the time as a kid.
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Pete doesn’t remember, but going to the store in Gentilly was our big family outing when we lived in back of UNO ( when he was 5 years old) . Pete’s Mom
[...] Note: Nola’s post on da Schegmann’s jogged many memories. I started to share one in a comment, but it grew out of hand, so it’s [...]
I started a comment but it got too long and I’m turning it into a post. Check out “Cash Money.”
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This is such a wonderful story, Nola.
Signed,
She who could not get it together enough to make the groceries today
What a cool store! We had nothing even close to this when I was a kid. It even puts Super Wally World to shame.
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I keep forgetting that Rouse’s expanded to NOLA. I haven’t heard “making groceries” in forever–ha!!
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Your mom sounds amazing. I have ONE child. I barely shower daily, and rarely know what we’re eating for dinner until 1 hour before we eat it.
I aspire for half that level of organization one day…
“Grocery store much.”- *melts* So sweet
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I loved Schwegmann’s. You could get anything there. I remember shopping there with my mom, but my favorite memory shopping there is with my grandmother.
That’s another New Orleans thing…the Schwegmann’s bag.
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Oh, NOW I get why they called it “Giant.” The one on Vets I went to was big, but not THAT big.
“Grocery Store Much” – make sure you use that on Sun. It’s a great family thing to pass down. We play that game, getting progressively bigger, until Owl closes me out with “Infinity and Beyond!”
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So, I am not a complete freak with my menu for the week and grocery list on the laptop organized by store. Well, let’s just keep that to ourselves.
I remember the Schwegmann’s on the Westbank. Grandma use to take my shopping there every Sat. It will be forever burned into my mind.
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wow, I had never heard of it before. That place looks like it was huge!
I am not as organized as your mom was. I barely know what I am going to do from moment to moment!
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I accidentally stumbled across your site. Great post! I moved here in the 1980s as a teenager – I missed a lot of the “old New Orleans” stuff so I love to hear/read the stories! Although…I did work at Schwegman’s!
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Oh how I miss Schwegmann’s, and especially K&B. Ah, that K&B purple. I’d go into K&B to buy one or two things, and come out with a basketful and having spent $200.00. There was always so much cool stuff to buy. Rite Aid, which took over the K&B chain, just ain’t the same. Not even close.
And Schwegmann’s, of course, was the essence of New Orleans. I remember going to the old store on Airline Highway in Metairie (back when it was a WWII-era giant quonset-hut design) with my grandparents in the ’50s.
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That is a HUGE store. And I’ll admit, while I only do one week at a time, I like your mother, make a menu for the week, arrange my grocery list in aisle order and get ‘er done.
Also, if I drop chem, I’d love to babysit for food. Heck, just for the interaction with other human beings. Even if that human being is nonverbal.
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I love a good grocery store…in fact my family thinks I’m crazy because I love to visit unknown grocery stores in faraway places. Our local chain here is ‘Wegman’s'…rather ironic I think. I’ve always said I could never live more than 20 minutes from Wegman’s, I hope I’m never tested…
I don’t think I have ever seen a grocery store so big before.. And I am a list maker too when I go to the grocery store, but have to say that even when I get all the food home, I still don’t know what the heck to do with it..
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I remember kids week!!!! One year they had a large ET and he met you at the door and gave you a brown bag full of goodies and a balloon…I miss good old sweggies!!!
i think they made the best chilidogs in the South. Does anybody know the recipe for that chili. I’m serious! Get it 2 me asap. I still remember that awesome taste couldn’t wait until Saturday morning to go make groceries str8 to the snack bar I went I had 2 have a hot dog with chili!!!!
Yeah, you right!