Sheffield Market...is this a joke?

julado · 08-09-2007, 18:14

Sheffield Market...not the most attractive (either to the eye or the nose).....but today I was in buying a few bits to make a Shepherd's Pie tonight......

Realised I needed an onion.....and approached a stall and picked an onion off the pile for sale....I went to hand it to the woman assistant who asked me if I wanted an onion.....I said yes....she picked up another onion and weighed it and said 15p....I held up the onion I had picked up and she told me I couldn't have that one as it was not self service....I had to have the onion she had picked....which was on the manky side to say the least....the one I picked up wasn't special.....just an onion in a brown skin......nothing unusual.......but I couldn't have that onion. So I tried to give her 'my' onion and she told me to put it back and have the one she had weighed.....so it is safe for me to presume that the stall is piled high with beautiful appealing fruit and veg and what you buy, what she sells you is manky and past its best.....I walked away in total disbelief and bought an onion from a different stall.

Forgive me here....I am not a Sheffielder.....is there something I am missing about buying from Sheffield Market? And they wonder why trade is slow because of the supermarkets...

Leipzig · 08-09-2007, 18:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by julado

Sheffield Market...not the most attractive (either to the eye or the nose).....but today I was in buying a few bits to make a Shepherd's Pie tonight......

Realised I needed an onion.....and approached a stall and picked an onion off the pile for sale....I went to hand it to the woman assistant who asked me if I wanted an onion.....I said yes....she picked up another onion and weighed it and said 15p....I held up the onion I had picked up and she told me I couldn't have that one as it was not self service....I had to have the onion she had picked....which was on the manky side to say the least....the one I picked up wasn't special.....just an onion in a brown skin......nothing unusual.......but I couldn't have that onion. So I tried to give her 'my' onion and she told me to put it back and have the one she had weighed.....so it is safe for me to presume that the stall is piled high with beautiful appealing fruit and veg and what you buy, what she sells you is manky and past its best.....I walked away in total disbelief and bought an onion from a different stall.

Forgive me here....I am not a Sheffielder.....is there something I am missing about buying from Sheffield Market? And they wonder why trade is slow because of the supermarkets...

Isn't this a bit like McDonalds?

Plain Talker · 08-09-2007, 18:22

If not a joke, she was certainly taking the Michael...!

julado · 08-09-2007, 18:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by Leipzig

Isn't this a bit like McDonalds?

Don't go in McDonalds....don't go to Sheffield Market that often but can't quite understand the connection....explain please

julado · 08-09-2007, 18:24

TBH I never thought in my wildest dreams I'd be starting a thread about an onion....it's just that the whole experience was surreal

Leipzig · 08-09-2007, 18:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by julado

Don't go in McDonalds....don't go to Sheffield Market that often but can't quite understand the connection....explain please

If you were able to but the same size burger they advertise on their posters - it wouldn't fit in the box!

Leipzig · 08-09-2007, 18:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by julado

Don't go in McDonalds....don't go to Sheffield Market that often but can't quite understand the connection....explain please

If you were able to buy the same size burger they advertise on their posters - it wouldn't fit in the box!

julado · 08-09-2007, 18:33

See what you are getting at....but I had the onion in my hand.....I was touching it.....only to be told I couldn't have it......

Maybe I should have licked it (or something else more gross) so she wouldn't have wanted it back..

Leipzig · 08-09-2007, 18:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by julado

See what you are getting at....but I had the onion in my hand.....I was touching it.....only to be told I couldn't have it......

Maybe I should have licked it (or something else more gross) so she wouldn't have wanted it back..

Cheaper than paying for it

http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x...ipzig/Lick.jpg

Stormy · 08-09-2007, 18:52

Reminds me of THIS advert

Swan_Vesta · 08-09-2007, 19:21

If she'd have told me I couldn't have the onion I wanted then I'd have told her to make like a chicken shove it up her arse...... Right before I took my business away from her scratty little market store and off to a disreputable super market

irenewilde · 08-09-2007, 19:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by julado

Sheffield Market...not the most attractive (either to the eye or the nose).....but today I was in buying a few bits to make a Shepherd's Pie tonight... So I tried to give her 'my' onion and she told me to put it back and have the one she had weighed.....so it is safe for me to presume that the stall is piled high with beautiful appealing fruit and veg and what you buy, what she sells you is manky and past its best.....I walked away in total disbelief and bought an onion from a different stall.

Forgive me here....I am not a Sheffielder.....is there something I am missing about buying from Sheffield Market? And they wonder why trade is slow because of the supermarkets...

I'm afraid it's fairly common practice in markets, not just Sheffield. I've been caught out by it several times. Some stallholders do pile the good stuff up on display, don't allow you to choose from that and give you the manky stuff that they keep out of sight. They don't do themselves any favours and for one onion you'd think she'd have kept her mouth shut!

gabby · 08-09-2007, 20:01

I was gonna say, you should have told her you'd been scratching your genitals before handling the merchandise, but i'd imagine that's standard practice in t' Market

tara · 08-09-2007, 20:08

At the bottom of the last row across from the ladies that sell boiled ham etc theres a large fruit and veg stall that a man runs he sometimes sells veg you cant get from the others and i think he lets you pick your own. Did you finish up getting your onion from there.?

sazzle1983 · 08-09-2007, 20:32

Aaaah good old Sheffield Market, see it hasn't chnaged much lol

Waffer · 08-09-2007, 21:25

That is such a funny story........

Waffer · 08-09-2007, 21:31

So you have to buy what she gives you,, ha ha i have known that before,,, and i think it is so funny, could you imagin it the other way round, they have to take the money thats given them, they would soon have something to say.

julado · 08-09-2007, 22:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by gabby

I was gonna say, you should have told her you'd been scratching your genitals before handling the merchandise, but i'd imagine that's standard practice in t' Market

Maybe I should have wee'd on it!!!

Leipzig · 08-09-2007, 22:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by julado

Maybe I should have wee'd on it!!!

I was going to reply "defecately not!!!" - but couldn't find the right opening.

chuffinel · 08-09-2007, 22:21

Can't believe that that crap is still going on.
It used to be standard practice 40 years ago when I lived there but I thought it would have gone away after people got used to choosing their own produce etc. on the continent and in supermarkets, for instance.
If they tried that in our market here, they'd be out of business in no time flat.
It must be tolerated or that stall would no longer be in business.
Stop patronizing it and the problem is solved.