Broadway Marketplace - Cambridge, MA

Broadway Marketplace

Opened: ca. 1970s in this building, 1930 previously

Owner: Charlie Bougas

Previous Tenants: none

Cooperative: none

Location: 468 Broadway, Cambridge, MA

Photographed: July 21, 2019

Welcome to Broadway Marketplace, the 12,000 square foot independent supermarket just east of Harvard University in Cambridge! This store dates back to 1930, but opened in this building around 1970. It's been renovated since, but still has an old-school feel that results in a timeless feeling more than an outdated one.

The attractive exterior fits in nicely with both the architecture of the neighborhood and that of Harvard itself. Inside, the store is somewhere between a specialty market and a mainstream supermarket.

You enter to the grand aisle, which is front and center. Produce is right at the front, with bakery on the left side. The grocery aisles, along with dairy and frozen, are in the back-right corner, with beer and wine in the back-left corner. Meat, deli, cheese, and prepared foods are on the right side wall of the grand aisle.

The bakery also has a coffee shop. Like Wholesome Fresh, this store seems to cater mostly to college students, but clearly has something for others in the neighborhood too.

I don't recall seeing a storebrand here, and as far as I can tell, Broadway Marketplace isn't a member of any cooperative.

Dairy in the back-right corner of the store with the grocery aisles opposite.

As you can see, unlike Wholesome Fresh, this store is definitely a full supermarket. You could do your whole weekly shopping here no problem. But as I recall, it's on the expensive side.

Frozen foods at the back of the store. Some parts, like this lettering, look older but painted fairly recently. In fact, I think my very old iPhone pictures don't quite show how nice the store is. Check out this photo from Google Maps. It's a really well-maintained, attractive independent supermarket.

The back of the produce department also gives you a look at the general setup. In the below picture, I'm at the back of the store looking towards the right side. Grocery, dairy, and frozen are straight ahead; beer and wine are behind me below.

And on the right side of the store are the meat and deli departments, along with cheeses and prepared foods.

Again, I have to assume this section is targeting the college students.

And a look at the front end...

Tomorrow we're headed to the next-closest supermarket, about half a mile northeast!