Jay International Food Co — Attraction in St. Louis

We were so excited to go buy up some stuff as we were heading out of St Louis. The experience we met at this store was anything but that. Six years we've had to go places with a special needs child. And many times he'd be loud or whiny or that of a typical one year old or less. He is gdd along with multiple others conditions. People have come up and tried to help, or ask questions but never made fun of or insulted us as caregivers. Of course, I never even thought a store employee, owner would do this. For one, they'd lose business. At least ours anyhow. We had a cart full of things mostly not available at a regular grocery store. Id guess at over two hundred at least . We also had another typical child with us . As we are in the checkout, one person in front of us , the employee yells " can you get control of him, he's acting like a baby" . My response, " I wish we could, he's disabled" " sorry" . She responds again with crying actions and mocking faces telling us again how much of a baby he's being. The child with us (7 year old sister) says very upset " he has autism" . My daughter picks him up and goes to car , telling me to do what I want with my stuff. She's already crying and as any mom would be , very upset her special needs son was being discriminated against in such a shocking way. I wait for the person in front of me to finish up, debating back and forth with getting the stuff we were excited to find, or walking out. I opted for the latter. I told the boys sister to put back her sweet find and she did. I very politely pushed my cart over out of the way of the other customer coming up behind me. As I'm walking past the employee, she loudly asked do I not want the stuff. I say , yes , I did. But not now after what you said to a disabled child. She then, and this one got me, asks me to put the items back. They were in the cart. And they were going to be bought. And we were next in line before she rudely verbally assaulted a special needs child. I don't think she'd if really wanted me staying in there any longer. So, to future customers, buyer beware. You might get what you want with an extra dose of...

I visited Jay International Food Co on this past Sunday. I'd been here only briefly before, but this time I took my time. I was amazed at what I saw available in this market. First of all, when they say international, they mean international. There are foods from all over the world in here...Asian, African, South American etc. Everything I saw had English names on them and many the foreign name for that food as well. There was a large section of fresh produce to choose from all sorts of greens to fruits and other vegetables. There's several frozen food cases when they had everything from frozen meats/non-meats to desserts. There's a fresh meat section in the back of the store from chicken to seafood. And of course, many isles of stocked food items to choose from such as pastas, seasonings, snacks and pantry style items. There was people in the store with some aisles a little crowded, but it was fine as I looked around. Everyone seemed nice and friendly and from a variety of cultures. As I checked things out I saw some awesome deals on things and I'd recommend you take your time to shop to find some of your own. I found big blocks of you for less than $1.50 when they're a lot more at other stores. I bought a package of cooked noodles as well as seasonings. Y'all I love experimenting with different things and couldn't wait to try these items out. I am looking forward to returning so that I can find more food items to create meals with. The store does have a small parking lot on the side, but it's usually crowded. I'd suggest parking on the street. The store is wheelchair accessible with aisles wide enough for a wheelchair. Do utilize your cell phone to research items you may be unfamiliar with. This is what I ended up doing as well. Checkout was two lanes, but not that long of a wait. They accept cash, debit and credit cards. This is my new food market that I'll be frequenting more often. Hopefully, you explore and feel the same. You won't regret...

UPDATED 5/9/2019: I moved back into the city of St. Louis recently and have resumed going to this location. I was primarily going to the Global Foods location in Kirkwood. Today I encountered an employee named "Muhammad" who I was told would be able to help. Rather than help me, "Muhammad" proceeded to refuse to help me, look at me with disdain and then talk about me in his native language. When I decided I would pen a complaint, after not being able to talk to a manager, I realized that I didn't know "Muhammad's" name. I returned to the back of the store to ask him his name. He gave it proudly and proceeded to laugh at me and comment in his native language.

Do I think this review will close this establishment? I wouldn't want it to because at least 2 of my former students work here and it serves a need. But, I think people shopping here should know that the back staff are not typically very helpful and would much rather get back to unpacking boxes.

This type of behavior makes me question the management at this location, which serves a larger black population than the location in Kirkwood or the Delmar Loop. I was asking for the same type of help from "Muhammad" that I ask of the back staff at the Kirkwood location. Is the difference in service because the Kirwood location services more white patrons, albeit they may be immigrant too. If you decide to shop here and happen to be Black, know that the experience my be a diminished one. I guess the improvements that I mentioned in my earlier post were only focused on how the store smells and not how customers are treated.

FIRST REVIEW POST: One of the only places I go to in the city of St. Louis to buy international products. The other locations are owned by other brothers of the same family. This isn't the cleanest location but it has improved significantly...