Second Chance Foods — Local services in Topeka

Too many good things to say in a short review; but this little grocery is delightful! Second Chance is not your typical grocery store so don’t walk in expecting to pick up some Wonder Bread and chocolate milk on your way home– ya likely ain’t gonna find it. BUT, the other unique items are a treasure trove of delight and are well worth the visit. The prices are a fraction of what you’d expect at full price. Many name brands. Many unique and specialty diet items. I have even seen caviar here. (Personally that’s a hard pass.) YES, some things are close to date, but that is definitely not everything and they mark those items WAY down. (Large bottle of Key Lime juice for 25 cents?! Yeah. That kind of markdown.) I get bags of chips, Lunchables, yogurt and tater tots for my kid’s lunches to name a few.. (I’m one of those moms that packs one for him every day and we all know how expensive pre-packaged lunch food it.) I have found Swerve, cases of sparkling water (Love!!), Braggs ACV, Lily’s Chocolate Bars, and a huge selection of my favorite brand of tea for at least half off of ticket price, if not more. My husband has scored giant bags of jerky, sports drinks and instant noodles. Do I do my main shopping here? Nope – but I visit on a regular basis and have yet to leave empty handed. And that’s just their stock. The store itself is clean and clearly organized with attention to detail and by someone who cares. They get in new stuff allll the time.

The owners are wonderful people. If you go in, talk to them about why they have opened up this grocery and what they intend to do with it – how they are serving the Topeka area and what a blessing they are to have here. Readers – this is a great local shop to support. I can't recommend them enough. Go! Don’t just take my word for it, find a great deal...

This was my first visit, and I was so impressed with the quality and variety of stuff that they had. The prices seemed too good to be true, but they are that low. The owner was so friendly, and I enjoyed chatting with him about his business. Everyone is struggling to stretch their money in this economy, so I highly recommend that you check this place out. You won't believe how much money you'll save. They have pet food, too. It was nice to walk out with bags of groceries and not be bothered by the amount of money that I spent. We need to support this store.

Edited: I've been returning to this store since I originally posted this review. I felt like it was important to address the negative ones. I don't care what store you shop at. You'll bring something home at some point that is either expired or close to the expiration date. This small store doesn't have a large employee base to constantly restock. That's one of the ways they keep the prices so affordable. I know they do their best to make sure the food they are selling is of high quality. If you're concerned then check the dates as you are shopping. It's a small thing to do to get items at discounts of 50 to 75% off. I'm usually amazed at the variety that Second Chance has in stock. Please don't let the negative reviews keep you from...

This is a great little store! It has things you'll see everyday at your big name stores (Wal-Mart, Dillon's, etc.) abut also ones from overseas, off Amazon, or other parts of of the USA and unless you went searching directly for a certain product you'd never find it (like preserved lemons used a lot in North African cuisine). Then there's the killer good prices. Even if you can get it at the big box stores, I see things in here sometimes that are a 1/6th to 1/10th the Walmart price and it's still in date. That is the one thing you have to watch for if it's a big concern for you as the best buy used date (still safe to eat!) date may have passed. Chuck and the other lady who works there are both very helpful and friendly. I sent a good 1.5 hours slowly going through the place to get an accurate read of it for future trips. Everything...