For a small town grocery store, Zup's Food Market is pretty impressive. They offer house smoked meats, sausages and jerky and you will not find that at your typical grocer. While I shopped, I felt like I was shopping at a Aldi's or Trader Joe's. Saying that, I mean I saw brands I typically do not see in my grocer back home. Being from the mid-west, some of these brands here were totally different. However, I will say, those that we bought to cook at my cousins cabin were good quality. One thing that really impressed me was, the Amish unsalted butter in a roll. There's just something about the freshness and homemade flavor, that makes it stand out. Being a small town grocery, everyone knew each other, so the service had that down home feel. read more

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Staying in Ely for a couple of days, we stopped in here for a few groceries and deli items; to satisfy an in-room meal, overlooking a lake. This well-maintained facility has a nice variety of items (deli & grocery), from which to choose. The deli staff person was friendly and accommodating. If one is staying (or living) in the area; this location provides a solid resource. read more

We were staying in a cabin about 30 minutes from town. We wanted to cook most of our meals. Zup's had everything we were looking for. Although they did not have organic produce, they still had items we wanted - cauliflower, whole garlic, cilantro, asparagus, bell peppers. They have sales going on through the week, so keep an eye out. For example, one bell pepper was $3.29 but the sale was a pack of 3 mixed color bell peppers for $3.99. Aside from produce, I picked up some beef bouillon and they had the brand I wanted! They also had quite the selection of refried beans so I was able to get the brand I wanted. Zup's seems to have its own generic brand which is a good deal, probably the best deal on most items if there is no sale. I picked their fresh salsa and it was delicious. It's in the produce section. For dairy, their selection is a bit limited. They have all the items you're looking for, but you won't find the varieties - no grass-fed or organic items. They have a ton of meat, but the meat prices are very high. There are sales throughout the week on different days though, so keep an eye out. Zup's has some souvenir items for visitors. I picked up a lovely coffee mug. It was by no means cheap. Service is friendly. Items were packaged with care. No errors on my receipts. Large parking lot. Carts available. Paper and/or plastic bags for your items. They do not sell alcohol but there are plenty of liquor stores nearby. read more

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Made the mistake of shopping here. The self checkout register didn't work and wouldn't accept my payment for about 10 minutes. The employee who had been planted in the self checkout area was absolutely unwilling to help. I don't think they receive any training. The prices are too high, the store is crowded and the owners obviously don't care about their customers. read more

BACON BACON BACON .... I love their pepper bacon, if you go there you must get it! They have a huge fresh meat selection as well as local fare from all around Ely and the North. They have local wild rice, bread, pasties, baked goods and seasonal items. They have just about anything you could ever want to eat or drink including Elakefe coffee. Really great prices on mac and cheese and butter. Our first stop on the way to the cabin once we hit Ely. read more

Absolutely devastated with my experience here. I tried to order a birthday cake( had been back and forth with the bakery manager) a week before it was needed. I talked to 2 different lady's in store and gave them my order and was told I could pick it up Friday morning. Well Friday comes I go in to pick it up and not only do they not have my cake but the lady showed me the cakes that were delivered and made the comment "are you sure this isn't yours it says god bless you Brandon" (I describe a sheet cake with pink and yellow frosting and this is cake was blue and my name is not Brandon) then I felt like I was given the run around only to find out they didn't even make the cake....to many details to get into that should have all been avoided and I wish the mistake was owned better instead of them trying to put it off on me. They ruined a keep part of a birthday that I can never redo. They knew this was important because I told them the story behind the cake and now I'll never get to redo it because today was my only day. read more

Prices are a bit higher, but when you are out at the end of the road like Ely is, ya have to pay a little more to get goods shipped that way. They have a good selection of foods, and their in-house homemade sausages and meats are awesome. Just the smell of smoked meats as you walk into the store, invites you in! This is the place to get groceries in Ely! read more

If you've been to a Zup's before you know what you're getting and this is by no means a bad thing. Zup's transports you back to grocery stores in the late 90's. It's difficult to explain but they aren't like our huge grocer chains we have in the cities. Decent prices and tons of meat and cheese. If you're looking for staples and stock food Zup's will be just fine for everyday needs of small town folk (this is not a negative, you'll know when you feel it!) read more

The first thing we noticed walking into Zup's was the smell of smoked meat. They make their own sausages and jerky (among other things). Both times we were there it was crazy-busy so there wasn't a lot of opportunity to browse -- the deli smelled great but the line was pretty long. We did buy a couple of steaks to grill and they were fantastic and their bacon is excellent! The prices were comparable to what we pay back home - produce was a little more expensive but that's almost to be expected. The aisles are narrow and can be hard to maneuver when it's busy, but the staff is friendly. They bag your groceries and load them in your car for you. This is a great place to stock up before starting your Ely adventure. read more

Quality of produce is not good, not to mention it all comes wrapped in highly unnecessary plastic (if you're familiar with microplastics you know the health concerns that come along with that). They bought out the other grocery store in town and drove up the prices. Not a good look. I wish there was somewhere else to go but Zup's owns all the grocery stores in a 50 mile radius. Welcome to America- greedy business people selling shitty food that costs way too much is par for the course unfortunately. Also, with all the barriers removed at checkout and masks being optional I don't feel safe there during COVID. read more

Zup's is a great grocery store located in Ely. It's one of only two grocery stores in town. They offer a nice selection of products at competitive prices. They have a meat department. You can find most anything that you need here for home or to take with you into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. They even sell the local root beer. read more

Zup's Food Market - Outside of the store. - Grocery Near Me - Ely, Minnesota

I encountered the worse experience I have ever had with this grocery store. There were cans of pop (individual 36 cans) sitting on a shelf. Directly below it was a hand written price tag which said : "Shasta Diet Grapefruit $4.49 2- 12 packs". To get clarification on this I contacted a cashier and asked to have someone come and confirm the tag. The gentleman said is .50 per can. I said "It says $4.49 for 2-12 packs and he said "Well than I guess that is right". I took them up to ring them up and told the cashier I was not sure how she was going to ring up my 24 cans for $4.49. So another person went and pulled the tag. A Manager (I think, in white shirt but with no name tag) came and saw what it said and pulled a pre-printed tag to show how it normally reads. I told him but this tag does not say that, nor does it say .50 a can. He was extremely rude and offered no explanation, tossed the tag and told me to deal with it and ran off. At that point I bought nothing nor will I from Zup's in Ely, MN. He would not even admit that it was not written properly. The pop I could care less about, but whomever he is that was the WORSE EXAMPLE of customer service I have ever seen in my life. I am 64 years old retired and spent +35 years managing mfg. plants and people and that was extremely unprofessional!!! read more

Smoked salmon. Smoked trout. Smoked whitefish. Homemade beef jerky. All smoked by Zup. Delicious. Also awesome: the pasties, which was the miners' lunch. Some of the iron miners had come from Cornwall so these pasties do derive from the Cornish pastie. Also: these fried ham-egg-potato dumplings with no name. Yummmmm. Also, the potica pastry. It is like a moist babka, an eastern European cake with many layers, baked at a low tenperature. You can taste the mining history here. read more

My experiences at Zup's have been average at best. As a family who visits the Ely area yearly, Zup's has been a staple to stop at to grab our weekly grub before heading to our final destination, but this will be our last time including Zup's in our routine. There are two things that frustrate me with Zup's: 1) Disorganization of the Store - the organization of this store can be summed up with one word: chaos. Maybe it's just me, but it just feels like everything is stuffed into this store. Aisles are crowded, it's difficult to maneuver around, and I have yet to ever have an employee great/talk/ask me for help. Which leads me to my second frustration... 2) Treatment of Tourists - I've actually talked to other non-locals and locals about this, but there are some (not all, but a good amount) of Zup's employees who seem borderline annoyed that you're giving them your business. My most recent example (less than a week before this posting) was going through the checkout line and the young woman scanning my food didn't great me, didn't talk with me (except for scolding me for combining my yellow and red peppers in the same plastic bag), didn't even tell me my total, and at the end didn't thank me for my business. The next customer up, though, who was local, was greeted, engaged, and thanked. Why the animosity to the people who are bringing money into your community? Unfortunately, this isn't the only time I've felt this sort of attitude at Zup's over the years, but this is the first time I've chosen to write about it. I wish the people at Zup's success going forward and hope that you grow our pesky tourists as a way that helps keep your business and local economy afloat. In the meantime, we'll be taking the $250+ we spend there elsewhere (even it if means more inconvenience). read more

It isn't like there's much other place to go in Ely, but the family has been shopping at Zup's before our canoeing trips since we were first introduced to the area years ago. It's always good to be back at Zup's buying steak for Day 1. Love their sausage too! read more

Zup's has been awesome for a long time. Must have-ham spread. They're known for their sausages, too.

Love coming to Zups every year! Try their peppers, pasties, potato and blood sausage, polish sausage, hot bologna and spicy mustard. Really can't go wrong with anything!!!! read more

Anyone going to this area for a few days, make sure you buy what you need in your hometown and bring it with you. Zups is overpriced to trap the tourists dollar. I feel bad for locals who have to travel to Virginia to get lower prices at Walmart or pay the higher prices, for their groceries. Item prices are jacked up on EVERYTHING and they can get away with it cuz it's the only grocery in town and in the area. An Aldi would put this place out of business for sure. read more

this place not only has the best tickeat bacon. there mock chicken legs are so amazing read more

I like this market. It carries just about everything I need, plus I enjoy the cheerful, friendly atmosphere. I think there's only one lady that seems snooty and crabby, while the rest are very nice, helpful, and fun to be around. The guys are great too, especially Henry. Any employee will drop what they're doing to help you find something. Also, they have a disabled person cart - a real plus for those of us who are now paying for our daredevil skiing days. This store also smells better than the other market in town :-) read more

Can't miss it. Great place to refuel and stock up before hitting the campsite. There's another grocery store along the strip but this one, "Zup's" just draws you in! Went here to get some pasties but they're frozen (except Wednesday's) with no place in the store to heat them. Ahhhh! Why not make them fresh and hot on Saturday? Why not a microwave to heat them? No place in Ely for hot pasties "to go". Craving pasties and this is the Mesabi Range! No organic selection here \ BUT you can get your organic goods at the "Evergreen Cottage" off Chapman St. read more

I will never shop here again. My child got sick from a kids crusine dinner my husband purchased the night before. I called to let them know and at first the manger didn't believe me! Then he finds 3 more out dated boxes in the display case! This isn't the 1st time we gotten spoiled food. I have gotten take home bread by the deli when I opened it at home there was mold on it. Manager says food spoils! Plus most cashiers are friendly and only a few workers have smiles on their faces. You should be able to trust wants on the shelves and I don't anymore. The manager didn't seem to have any sympathy! I will stick with ENM for my home town shopping. read more