Lothian Grocers does exactly what it says on the tin. What sets it apart from the countless other newsagent grocers is something that I think has been slowly diminishing from such places of late: friendly, chatty staff and a good selection of affordable sweets.
Both aspects were the norm when I was a child, yet from my past experiences the norm these days has shifted to minimal customer service. Usually, I enter such places all happy and bouncy and when I get to the till I am met buy a scowl or a vacant stare and quite often the cashier will say absolutely nothing to me. Not so here, I was greeted by a little, cheerful old lady who returned my smile and was most polite.
Back to the important matter at hand: sweets. Gone, seemingly, are the days of packets of gummy sweets in newsagents at pocket money prices. At least around Edinburgh anyway. Here, there was fizzy cola bottles, gummy bears, eggs and chips etc. all for under 40p. Furthermore, the chocolate bars were of a more reasonable price and there was heaps of multi-buy offers on things such as five bags of crisps for £1! Great.
Aside from these, the shop was everything you'd expect from a newsagent grocery store. read more