Today marks day 35 of being a Des Moines resident. Ya know what my favorite thing about Des Moines is? It’s not the short commute times, the friendly people, or the $2 pints of Peroni at The Lift on Thursday nights, it’s Hy-Vee. Hy-Vee is the most incredible grocery store that I have ever been to in my life. I have been to grocery stores all over the United States of America, and Hy-Vee takes the cake. Sometimes I go to Hy-Vee just to look around…ok I admit, I don’t have many friends yet. Hy-Vee is huge and the aisles are wide enough to accommodate two grocery carts. Everything is shiny and more importantly clean and the people that work there smile at you for no reason and want to help you find what you’re looking for-they even walk you over to the product. Try finding that in New York City. Here are the top 10 reasons why Hy-Vee is incredible:
1) Some Hy-Vee stores are open 24 hours a day and if you go shopping after 8pm nobody is there. I don’t know what everyone is up to in this town after 8pm but it certainly isn’t grocery shopping:

Wide aisles!
2) For some reason there are Jamba Juice dispensers. I have never seen a Jamba Juice dispenser outside of a Jamba Juice store in my life:
3) There’s an entire section reserved for Jelly Belly:
4) There are pharmacies within the store-some even have doctor’s hours. Oh and there’s a pharmacy drive thru:
5) There’s an entire gluten free section:
6) There’s a coinstar machine! Do you have any idea how much change I have as there are no coinstar machines to be found in NYC? I could buy a months worth of groceries with all of my change:

7) There’s a Passover section with lots of Manischewitz products:
8) There’s a yellow section:
9) There’s a decent Chinese restaurant. It was even voted the best Chinese in Des Moines:

10) You can bring your grocery cart all the way to your car! In Manhattan there is only one grocery store that has a parking lot! One store with a parking lot! Then grocery stores in the outer boroughs have metal barricades set up that are narrower than the grocery carts so nobody steals the carts. Hy-Vee doesn’t care if someone steals a cart…probably.

This post may seem like one big advertisement for Hy-Vee, and no they didn’t pay me to write this.
Having a decent grocery store in my life that isn’t small, dirty, and packed to the gills with people still feels like a luxury. I’m enjoying the comforts of life in Des Moines.
Seriously?
It’s all about Publix, Lisa
But it’s so damn cold!
Hi Craig! I have been to Publix in Miami and I still think that Hy-Vee is superior
Wow!! Thanks for the wonderful comments. Is this the Urbandale store on 86th & Douglas?
Have you had HyVee’s cake yet?! It’s very delicious!
Right, friends?! James Aaron Chris
Also note; “Hy-Vee is the most incredible grocery store that I have ever been to in my life.”
Sorry Kaci and Chelsea ! (teasing!)
I don’t like Hy-Vee at all. NEVER shop there. The way they treat their employees is disgusting.
Perhaps the #1 thing I miss about Des Moines since moving to DC 3 years ago is Hy-Vee chinese food.
Miami pretty much says it all, Annick, LOL! If I could have my dream grocery store wherever I lived it would be http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/HomepageView?storeId=10052&catalogId=10002&langId=-1&clear=true
Which Hy-Vee store had the Jamba Juice? I am curious.
I will also never understand the obsession with their Chinese food, especially with the good assortment of Asian restaurants in this town. It’s average at best!
Oooh thanks Craig I’ll have to check out a Wegmans!
Lisa let me know where to get good Chinese food, I’m new to the area and still figuring things out.
That looks like the Windsor Heights Hy-Vee WHere the Jamba Juice thing is. I bet her mind will be completely blown if she goes to New Urbandale Hy-Vee.
Hi tracy! The Hy-Vee at 7101 University Ave (Windsor Heights) has a Jamba Juice and others do too!
Hy-Vee! Wow I can’t believe you blog too! I’ve never been to your store on 86th and Douglas-I’ll check it out.
It’s massive.
I heard a rumor that there’s a gelato stand in the urbandale store- is this true?
RT @annickmarie: Going to the grocery store in Des Moines is thrilling:
http://t.co/vZ5SUkRcMa
Cafe Fuzion on 14th and University has incredible thai/Asian food.
Des Moines has amazing Thai and Vietnamese food. Chinese is mostly lacking, hence how Hy-Vee wins for best Chinese every year. Great China in Urbandale is pretty good though.
Who knew writing about @hyvee would spark such a conversation? http://t.co/WewtU2j7WD
@dsmisnotboring @HyVee Where is there A JAMBA JUICE MACHINE
@joshdreyer @dsmisnotboring @HyVee WHAT. No way!
I’ve been to a couple good Chinese places in Des Moines but HyVee is great because it’s convenient. Also, I would think any suburban grocery store would beat what they have in NYC just because of space. Dahls, HyVee, Ralph’s, Albertsons; they’re all about the same, just with slight differences.
Thanks so much I’ll check out Cafe Fuzion and Great China. It’s true Fallon I’m pretty wowed by the space. Dahls is pretty great too – I haven’t been to Ralph’s or Albertsons yet.
We recommended Wasabi Chi to Annick off line.
Annick, yes it is true that Urbandale has a Gelato stand. Which location were you writing about in your blog? We would love to let them know how much you like their store.
Hi Hy-Vee. I have been to quite a few of your Des Moines locations-I wasn’t really writing about one store in particular. I like the MLK, Merle Hay, and Windsor Heights locations but that’s because they’re the most conveniently located for me.
We drive to Waukee to eat at Shanghai–consistently excellent food and service.
Annick I feel I should clarify– Ralph’s and Albertsons aren’t in Iowa (as far as I know); I just found them to be very similar. But yeah Dahls is great; they used to be tons better than HyVee but not anymore now that HyVee is also spectacular!
Sam’s Egg Roll (located in the strip mall next to Save Alot on the corner of SW 9th and Park Ave) makes the best chinese food I have EVER had. Sam doesn’t make anything until it is ordered, so his food is always hot and fresh! It is a family restaurant, ran by Sam and his wife, and their daughters. Give it a try and I bet you’ll become a regular customer there!
I would rather have Safeway back or a Krogers. They have a simple rewards card you swipe at the register and you automatically get the in store specials/sales. The 2 Hy-Vee stores by my house are “generic” compared to the one in your pictures. They are like the forgotten children.
Well, I imagine Iowa WOULD seem interesting to a girl from the boonis of Maine 😉