Stores I Miss in Waterbury: Town Plot IGA

'You can't go home again' is a phrase that has come out of my mouth a few times when I've driven through Waterbury. I use it to describe the sad feeling I get when I try to return to a place from my past, and it isn't the same. I've always considered the Town Plot neighborhood of Waterbury my home, and damn I miss Town Plot IGA.

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I liked the changes that the new owners did when it became Key Foods, and I've been in to it since it became a Banana, but it's not the same warm store that I was used to. My grandma loved grocery shopping, she took us to a different store every day. We went to the A&P on West Main, both Pathmark locations, and Everybody's on South Main, but our favorite was always Town Plot IGA. It was less than a mile away from our house on Oronoke Road. There was always a member of the Schnaars family warmly greeting you in every aisle. What a contrast compared to now. my last time in, I don't think a single employee made eye contact.

I don't want to make this a moan-fest about the old days, I love that Bob and Town Plot Auto Body, Commissioner's Cigar Lounge, Dollar General and the Rite Aid are all thriving. Banana Fresh is still a shining oasis in the middle of the Town Plot food desert, but if the property becomes available again, please let Rich Schnaars know about it.