Now that Melbourne is staring down another six weeks of self-isolation and staying at home under the second wave of Stage 3 restrictions, it’s time to seriously look into getting more essential things delivered to limit our exposure to others. Taking my weekly supermarket visit online is my challenge for Shutdown 2: Electric Boogaloo, so I’ve rounded up a bunch of great local Melbourne grocers doing non-contact deliveries and pickups of produces boxes, pantry essentials, and other treats.
For local, independent stores and grocers, another shutdown could be the straw the breaks the camel’s back, but we can help keep the lights on by ordering online over the next while. If you’re a serial online shopper, it’s like you’ve been training for years for times like these.
10 Melbourne Grocers To Order Your Weekly Shop From Online
1. CERES Grocery
One of a couple of inner-suburb urban farms along Merri Creek, CERES is now pulling together farm-fresh produce boxes for pickup from its home in Brunswick East. With two options to choose from – either a pre-packed box from $50 or a personalised one based off your shopping list – these boxes can be made and ready to go on the same day if you order before 1pm. There’s also the option to tack on a few other items like milk, eggs, honey, or anything else you’re after.
CERES Grocery is open from 9am – 5pm seven days a week, and the Grocery Café is open for takeaway only during the lockdowns, closing at 3.30pm.
2. Ted’s Grocers
Running out of Theodore’s up in Brunswick, Ted’s Grocer & Bottle Shop is doing orders for pickup and delivery every week. Starting off with fresh produce boxes from $29, you can also pop in a bunch of other treats for snacking on, like sourdough crumpets, mushroom & red lentil paté, seasonal jams, sourdough starter (!!!), and other pantry staples.
They’ve also got a fab range of beers and wines from local producers like 3 Ravens Brewing, Burnley Brewing, Little Reddie wines, and new kids on the wine block, Dazma Wine Company.
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3. Murph’s Food Co-Op
Kicked up during the COVID-19 pandemic, Murph’s is a locally-run, sourced, and distributed weekly grocery and home-cooked treats from the kitchen of Melissa Murphy (and her Rolodex of hospitality supplier mates.) A friend of mine gets a box from Murph every couple of weeks and does an unboxing on her Instagram – a true and wholesome delight during the binfire that is 2020 – and everything just looks so bloody good.
With fresh fruit and veg coming in from Ease Organics, and other treats like very bougie choccy from Monsieur Truffe, you can start with a $30 box and just go from there with your spoils.
Yes, I’ll be ordering this week.
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4. Spring St Grocer
We love it for its insane cheese cellar, but Spring St Grocer is also delivering groceries and essential foodstuffs for your kitchen over the shutdowns (and beyond.) Think things like everything you need for an indulgent Sunday brunch, market-fresh fish, and vegan cheeses, they’ve got it.
For now, Sping St Grocer is servicing the Deliveroo Deli in Melbs, but there’s the promise of their own website coming really soon. Gonna need to keep an eye on that one, I think.
5. La Manna Fresh
La Manna Fresh has been a mainstay in the Melbourne grocers scene and Brunswick icon since 1993 and delivers everything from fresh produce boxes to flowers, snacks, and toilet paper. LaManna delivers locally, and throughout the inner north, inner northeast, inner northwest of Melb and further afield into the northern suburbs, or you can opt to pick up your delivery between 1-6pm Monday to Friday, 1.30-5.30pm Saturdays and 12-3.30pm Sundays.
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6. Northside Fruit & Veg
Though they’re currently servicing Ted’s Grocer that I mentioned above, Northside Fruit & Veg are also doing their own locally-sourced produce boxes, made up of seasonal fruit and veggies from local farms and farmers around Victoria.
Northside normally provides produce to kitchens across the Melbourne CBD, but while things are a bit quieter, they’re now delivering to homes twice a week. With boxes starting at $59.99, you can also pop in things like eggs, pasta, and milk.
7. Early N’ Fresh
For those in the south-eastern suburbs looking for Melbourne grocers to order from, Early N’ Fresh are your new best pals. They start by picking up things from the wholesale market out in Epping, before visiting a few farm friends for extra bits and pieces, and then boxing them up and delivering to your door.
Instead of the mixed box of produce, Early N’ Fresh lets you grab everything you need and want for the week, so there’s less chance of wastage from things that don’t get eaten in time.
Deliveries happen from Monday to Friday, and orders placed by 10pm will be delivered the next day. You beauty.
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8. McCoppins
After starting things as a wine bar back in the late 70s, McCoppins has slowly evolved into a little chain of grog shops and supermarkets across Melbourne, nestling in with the grocers servicing the inner east and inner north.
You can either get your order delivered throughout the week or pick everything up from their Hawthorn East store, and they’ve got just about everything to keep you fed and watered for the next few weeks, and after that too.
9. Collingwood Children’s Farm
Not only are they selling their honey from their very-hard-working bees through a few other Melbourne grocers and providores, Collingwood Children’s Farm is also selling its own fresh produce and other trimmings through The Farm Café.
With add-ons like the café kitchen’s baked beans, curries, pickles, and preserves, or pantry staples like coffee, milk, pasta, bread, and charcuterie meats, yoou’re totally spoilt for choice from the Collingwood farm.
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10. Open Food Network
If you can’t seem to find Melbourne grocers that’ll drop fruit, veggie, and other essentials to you, or you want to support a local farm and its current seasonal produce, Open Food Network is a really great resource to track down and buy locally to you. It’s all based on buying in sync with the growing and harvesting cycles of farmers around Australia, in efforts to get Aussies into a more ethical food system at home.
