I have slipped back into my dark trench coat, mysterious hat and dark shades for a one time guest appearance.  Money is tight and the Incognito just cannot afford to keep reviewing these mediocre businesses anymore.  What is it with businesses anyway?!  You would think (especially in times like these) that they would go above and beyond to please their customer.  They are not.  They are trudging on like business is normal, all the while wondering how they are going to pay their electric bill for the month, not to mention their rent…  Where is the creativity?  Where is the service?  Where is that special “oomph” that will make us, as consumers, want to go back to their establishments? 

This goes out to all business owners – wine and dine us.  Make us feel like you actually want us in your store.  Treat us with common decency and we will in all probability respond as return customers.  After all, that IS what you want, right?  Sales, good word of mouth, income…?  Step it up!  Make us feel special. 

Okay.  I am off my Incognito Soap Box. 

Terry’s Supermarket

5101 Gus Thomasson Rd.

Mesquite, TX  75150

972-682-9804

You would think with a name like “Terry’s”, you would find a fairly vanilla supermarket.  However, the outside sign soon confuses you with words like, “Mexican Imports, Luggage, and Western Union”.  What?!  Well, it is what it is and my kids and I went in for further investigation.

As we were walking in, my kids got scared.  They didn’t want to enter.  I realized that it was not the people, smell, or overall feel they were concerned about.  It was the location warp we were entering.  Allow me to explain.  Not to brag, but I have been several places out of the country.  When you go into an authentic, foreign store you can “feel” the difference.  You can absorb the culture of the other country through your senses.  Well, amazingly, on American soil, Terry’s Supermarket was able to take you to a market in Mexico.  I don’t think this is something they were trying to do.  It just happened.

You walk into Terry’s and are greeted with old time Tejano music, the smell of Pine Sol mixed with south of the border spices, and side stores.  Yes, side stores.  There is a small room (about 6 x 20 ft) that carries clothing, boots, wallets, belt buckles, and music CD’s on the left.  Just past that, there is a booth that displays Quiencinera dresses.  Then, butting up against that is a booth that has brand name TV’s and electronics.  You can’t forget to stop by and get your washer and dryer as well.  Now, normally, you would think this is like a discount store with groceries.  It is not.  It is a grocery store with other stuff thrown in to make more money.  Not in a bad way, just a really weird, out of place way.

As you begin to actually take in the rest of the store, you will find ceramic Rottweilers, ceramic boots, and other ceramic “necessities” for $10.99.  The paint seems to be flaking off on all of them though, so you might want to pass and buy these items at the local dollar store.   Below the ceramics are some “Dickie” work shorts for $16.99.  In the same isle, you can also pick up your wooden tortilla press.  There was no price though, so I guess it was free.

You can also get a 12 pack of Crush soda for $2.99, five packs of Kool-Aid for $1.00, and a large tropical plant (about 3 feet tall) for $9.99.  Overall, the grocery prices are comparable to other grocery stores in the area.  However…

The front third of the store was filled with items imported from Mexico.  (Just like the outside sign promised.)  My kids and I decided to get a few things that we have never tried before.  First, we picked up a candy called “Skwinkles Rellenos”.  Think of a moister gummy worm, covered in “pika pepino con limon”.  It is a spicy lime sprinkling that coats the candy part.  We were all scared to taste this “treat”.  We opened the package (after purchase), smelled it, and reluctantly bit.  To all of our surprise, it was actually good!  A word of caution though – take small bites!  Otherwise, it does not taste that great!  We also purchased “Fresas con Crema”.  You guessed it – strawberries with cream.  It sounded great, but we did not know just how we were supposed to eat it.  It came in a small milk like container and was completely frozen.  Were we supposed to eat it frozen?  Let it thaw and drink it?  We had no idea.  We ended up bringing it home and eating it through the different thawing stages.  It is best when you can let it thaw just enough to stir it up into a softer than ice cream consistency.  It was very good!  For $1.29 though you could get much more ice cream and put strawberries on top.  (The pint sized milk like container wasn’t even half full.)

I would like to comment on the employees, but there is really nothing to say.  They were quietly stocking shelves and avoiding eye contact with us.  I think they might have been a little uncomfortable with our presence because they did not know English.  That is okay though – it adds to the ambiance!    

We meandered around and found many Hispanic items mixed in with the American selections.  We even found the fruit sprinkle that was on our gummy treat!  It was time for us to go though, so we headed up to the cashier.  Everybody in there was speaking Spanish, so I was pleasantly surprised when the cashier spoke to me in my native language.  We wanted to buy a bag of cotton candy that was strung up above the registers, with the piñatas, but was still in the location warp confusion.  It was quite a bit to take in being there.

It was a fun trip!  I felt like a welcomed outsider.  Will we go back?  If we need some authentic Mexican items – yes, we will for sure go back to Terry’s Supermarket.  I won’t make it my weekly shopping stop though.

I give Terry’s Supermarket 7 interesting stars out of 10.  It is a hidden “stay-cation” attraction.  Just pretend you are in Mexico.