Sears is an erstwhile example; Macy’s or Dillard’s might be more apropos for the here and now (then again, do other folks in the U.S. still go to department stores?).
Back to the topic, I always call them by their names (as opposed to {super-}market), just in case I can pick something up for the other person. For example, I’m going to Trader Joe’s want a snack? Yes. I’m going to Safeway, want anything? Heck no.
I think that I tend to do the same now as I pick up different items at different stores. All depending on what’s available in the international aisle and not all breads that we enjoy are offered at each store that I visit.
Interesting, Harters. Growing up in Almost the North, we went to the shop or shops. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone in the UK refer to an independent shop as a “convenience store”. And to me, a supermarket is part of a chain, but then I’d just say “I’m going to Sainsbury’s”.
I wonder just how common it still is, to refer to many of those shops by a racially offensive name.
Welcome to the forum, by the way.
I’m confused (or not quite awake yet), but… how is “convenience store” racially offensive?
It isnt. But many of such shops are owned by the Asian community and are often known as “Paki” shops. “Paki” is as racially offensive a term here as the N-word is amongst black communities (although that, IMO, may not be the most offensive British slur for black people).
Gotcha! Thx for elaborating.
P’ Pines? I used to live in Hangtown for a bit.
The store, grocery store or the store by name ie: Lucky’s, Safeway, etc. Market was the name we called the smaller businesses that had market in their name.
I saw this today, and it reminded me of this thread. I grew up in Queens, NY, not far from Long Island.
Interesting piece. Little Neck raised here. I didn’t realize Queens had seceded from Long Island, which it was on when I was a kid……. and think it still is. 
Waving!
Well…technically, while Brooklyn and Queens are on the island, they are boroughs in NYC, rather than one of the counties ( Nassau, Suffolk), of “Long Island”. Politics, area code 212, public transportation, school districts, the “po-po”, the demographics, employers ( both parents worked for NYC , taxes, and that sort of thing, made it different, at least in my 60’s-80’s time there.
OTOH, Queens was never NYC enough, I always had to take a bus to a train, and the LIRR essentially ran through my back yard several times a day.
My family members in The Bronx and Brooklyn thought we lived in the “country” but we had family members in Hempstead that we considered LI.
I moved to L.os Angeles in 88, and I assumed my first earthquake was a train passing.
Edited many times as I thought about why I think of them as different.
Yeah. Little Neck is as far as you could get from ‘the city’ and still be in it. Best part was back in the day you could drive at 16 in Nassau, but 18 in NYC, so I got my license (using a relative’s address) and would sneak across the block and a half in between. I don’t remember it being that different but this was a very long time ago and Great Neck was not much different from Little Neck, except ritzier.
I’ve heard of them, but had to look up Great Neck and Little Neck! (embarrassed emoticon). I grew up in St. Albans, near Jamaica.
While I lived a few blocks away, I always have to give a shout out to Addisleigh Park.
I say store or market. A store stores a ton of stuff. A market is smaller, less storage, more fresh.
Big store=store
Small local shop= market
Anything in between I name the name. IGA is sort of a tweener, so I say IGA.
In Massachusetts, liquor stores are/were called “package stores” and often referred to as “packies” - so a very different connotation. This is the history of it
