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East Rochester, N.Y. —
People doubt him, but Paul Costantini remembers a time when there were 19 grocery stores in East Rochester alone. The Village Fair is the only one still standing on the village’s main drag.
He was just 19 when he first went into business in 1948, when “I didn’t know a pork chop from a steak,” he said.
Now 83, he takes pride in the fact that the grocery has never closed once for weekends, holidays, or even ice storms.
It began as a two-man operation and went by a different name. Gabe DiMassimo was his business partner for two years before Costantini bought out Paul and Gabe’s Grocery Market and renamed it Paul’s Food Market. In 1960 he moved the store to West Commercial Street, where it’s been ever since.
To this day, customers will tell you there’s something special about the place. With just 22 employees, many have family members who paved the way at the cash register or behind the deli counter.
“Everybody knows everybody,” said the owner. “It’s a happy place.”
Certain things make it different from larger chain grocery stores. For example, customers can call ahead for free delivery. Working families can count on it being open until 8 p.m. But perhaps the answer to why it’s been around so long simply boils down to the camaraderie and quality products — from the joking behind the meat counter, where seven different kinds of sausage are made every day, to the fresh produce on display.
“It’s the friendly atmosphere that’s kept this place open,” said manager Laura Sirianno.
Bobbi Haug of Pittsford has shopped there for two decades. Her father ran a meat market when she was growing up, and coming to Village Fair brings a feeling of nostalgia to mind.
“It’s like coming home,” she said. “Here, they treat you like you’re their family,” she said.
People doubt him, but Paul Costantini remembers a time when there were 19 grocery stores in East Rochester alone. The Village Fair is the only one still standing on the village’s main drag.
He was just 19 when he first went into business in 1948, when “I didn’t know a pork chop from a steak,” he said.
Now 83, he takes pride in the fact that the grocery has never closed once for weekends, holidays, or even ice storms.
It began as a two-man operation and went by a different name. Gabe DiMassimo was his business partner for two years before Costantini bought out Paul and Gabe’s Grocery Market and renamed it Paul’s Food Market. In 1960 he moved the store to West Commercial Street, where it’s been ever since.
To this day, customers will tell you there’s something special about the place. With just 22 employees, many have family members who paved the way at the cash register or behind the deli counter.
“Everybody knows everybody,” said the owner. “It’s a happy place.”
Certain things make it different from larger chain grocery stores. For example, customers can call ahead for free delivery. Working families can count on it being open until 8 p.m. But perhaps the answer to why it’s been around so long simply boils down to the camaraderie and quality products — from the joking behind the meat counter, where seven different kinds of sausage are made every day, to the fresh produce on display.
“It’s the friendly atmosphere that’s kept this place open,” said manager Laura Sirianno.
Bobbi Haug of Pittsford has shopped there for two decades. Her father ran a meat market when she was growing up, and coming to Village Fair brings a feeling of nostalgia to mind.
“It’s like coming home,” she said. “Here, they treat you like you’re their family,” she said.
