By New York Post (U.S.) | Created at 2026-08-04 22:51:17 | Updated at 2026-08-04 23:32:32
48 minutes ago
Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plan for five city-owned grocery stores has a shockingly bad business model, industry insiders argued, citing the administration’s newly released “request for proposals.”
The socialist mayor has long touted his plan to bring New Yorkers cheaper goods by opening a “publicly-funded, privately-operated” supermarket in each borough.
But the New York City Economic Development Corporation’s 44-page RFP released last week — seeking contracting bids from vendors to run the shops — reveal the “ridiculous idea” will only lead to “crappy” stores, Chicago restaurateur Nick Kokonas claimed.
“We have an efficient system… just change the outcomes,” Kokonas said in an X thread Monday blasting the city’s plan.
While the RFP states that bidders who “seek to run all five (5) sites” are preferred, so far only two of the locations – one in Manhattan and the other in The Bronx – have actually been identified by City Hall, Kokonas noted.
“Bidders are supposed to price unknown stores in unknown neighborhoods by assuming they’re ‘about 15,000 sq ft.’ Absurd,” Kokonas said, in the thread, which quickly went viral.
The RFP also notes the city paying for “the design and fit out of sites” – while the responsibility for the upkeep of the stores will fall on the laps of the operators.
“So NYC makes the capital decisions while someone else pays for the consequences,” said the businessman.
Other bizarre choices highlighted in the plan by Kokonas included the stated goal for the supermarkets to offer a “limited” variety of foods – while also carrying kosher, halal, vegan, dairy-free and diabetic options.
He also noted that the subsidized “Core Basket” of goods — items to be offered at 30% below market price, according to City Hall — could include “chicken salad, egg salad, potato salad, fruit salad and other deli-prepared foods.”
But the stores won’t have food preparation on site or a deli counter, according to the RFP, so “you’re going to ship them in every day prepared. Gotcha…,” Kokonas wrote.
Also eyebrow-raising, City Hall recently confirmed ID will not be required to shop — meaning anyone, regardless of income or residency, can purchase the taxpayer subsidized groceries.
“No means test. Anyone can shop there. So taxpayers will subsidize groceries for affluent shoppers who happen to live nearby, while needy families elsewhere get zero,” Kokonas said.
Other industry insiders were also befuddled by the RFP.
“None of the metrics fit in my experience,” Andy Arons, former owner of Gourmet Garage, told The Post on Tuesday. “They would be so much better by increasing SNAP benefits for those who need it.”
Fernando Matteo, of the United Bodegas of America group, called the grocery plan “a f—ing gimmick.”
“It makes no sense,” he fumed, adding that if Mamdani “wants to make a difference” on affordability, he should work with existing grocery stores.
The mayor’s office and the EDC did not respond to requests for comment. Kokonas couldn’t immediately be reached.
