This set does look really good and is a classic modular building. It is one of the most detailed sets and does have a large piece count. This does include MANY sand green pieces and a few rare pieces such as a hair piece that is worth over $25. This has 4 minifigs that are classic for the time.

Pros and Cons:

Pros:

Looks nice and highly detailed

Get a lot of uncommon and rare parts

Around 14 inches tall

Cons:

REALLY EXPENSIVE 700-900 dollars used and 1,000-1,500 new.

It looks really nice in a row of modular buildings, though. I'm glad I got this for my city, just you need a high budget.

Overall Rating

5/5. This is a fantastic modular build (as all have been in my opinion). Green Grocer may be missing some of the interior micro-builds that others have, but the overall experience does not suffer in my opinion. It's a huge structure when finished and seems to dwarf my nearby Parisian Restaurant. The sand green really stands out as well. Just an overall amazing and massive structure.

Building Experience

Although I have all the modulars from Pet Store through Diner, it's been over a year since I put one together. When I saw a used one for sale at original cost, I had to pick this one up. This is really a great build. It may just be personal preference, but some similar sets seem to have sections that require placing a ton of similar small pieces or are overloaded with interior details (looking at you fishing store). Green Grocer does not suffer from this problem. The repetitive portions of this build might be placing the sand green and grey bricks, but that's so satisfying that it's not even a negative.

Parts

High marks for parts as well. The sand green 8x1 and 2x1 modified bricks are quite rare and also brilliant looking in my opinion. Worth $2.50 a brick? Maybe not, but they are fantastic. Other than that, mostly common parts and pieces, but certainly a lot of them for the price of $150.

Playability

My kids seem to love playing with the modulars and this one would be no different. Lack of much of an interior might seem to affect it, but it would be an easy change to add some furniture. This building makes a fine addition to the city and playability is still high with 3 stories and a good first floor grocery and top floor grilling balcony.

Value for the Money

Great price per part with over 2000 parts for $150 and a fantastic build for the time. I picked this one up for $150 with the intention of selling it in my Bricklink store as they go for $600+ Now I almost wish I hadn't built it... Parting with it will be hard.

This glorious building is rightly expensive (I've not seen one go for less than £300) and hard to find since it was discontinued, it's no surprise demand is outstripping supply, owners really shouldn't want to part with it!

It hardly has to be said about a modular set but the build is superb. It has fewer of what you would consider advanced techniques than most other modulars, but the hinged bay window as well as the grocer shop door and US style fire escape are in that sort of ball park. The base of the bay seems a little clumsy by later standards, but it's by no means bad. The fireplace and grandfather clock, as well as the little BBQ are nice features to build, and I absolutely love the fridge in the shop!
There are plenty of nice little touches too, the lights by the apartment entrance and at the back, the spire-roof and the feathers on the tip, the railings made with skeleton legs and hammers, and the general face of the building is really nicely rendered.
And the best things about it all is how sturdy the whole thing is. It seems a bit obvious in building a house, but it is well put together with bricks overlapping well throughout. The parts that are awkward for this, the columns of grooved bricks, are integrated well. The obvious issue with modulars this size is that they are 32 studs long, but there's no hint of weakness in the upper floors' width with good bracing of the floor the strong walls.

The parts you get are great, or more relevantly now, rare and hard to find! The sand green 1x8 bricks that are vital to the structure of the 1st and 2nd floors, the black 2x2x2 slopes that make up the roof, the brown parts, and especially the sand green 1x2 bricks with the groove are all very hard to find on bricklink in the quantities you need them or at a reasonable price. Because of all of those there's not a huge difference between buying one for £400 or part sourcing it yourself; I've a feeling part sourcing is actually quite a bit more expensive because of those and the larger plates, especially when actually owning the instructions will set you back at least £30.
So that's a great feature if you have one or can get one cheaply, but now it's delisted it makes it more expensive! Shame!

As you will have picked out already, the finished model is just superb!

The ground floor is truly magnificent, the grocer's shop is just so well made, and the apartment entrance is nice too. The tiling on the floors is possibly the best in any set - the apartment pattern looks great and flowing out into the street, and the design in the grocer's shop is delightful! The shop is brilliantly detailed with the crates outside, boxes within, the wonderful fridge, and the stock around the till. The cans and cartons in the fridge, plus the fruit, veg and croissants really make it. And the apartment entrance feels just like a concrete set of stairs should with the 2x6 bricks, and the mouse under the stairs with a hole into the shop is good too.

The first floor is quite sparse, but the balconies, the really brilliant curtains, and the great fireplace are enough for me. A sofa or two aren't so hard to make either if you're part sourcing anyway. The face of the building looks great with all the grooved bricks as well, even the white bricks round the window where you can hardly see the groove.

The top floor seems fuller with the really funky rug, the clock and the fantastic radiator under the window. The way the roof starts part way up and the way the bay finishes with the spire give it a very grand feel.

And the roof is great, making the roof in the 2nd floor really high and continuing the Gothic feel. My only criticism is that the balcony seems a little gloomy because of that, not exactly the carefree place to relax it should be.

There are a few things that I think could be improved. Just rotating the base plates gets rid of the needless gap in the back yard, and enough bricks go across the join that it doesn't hurt the integrity. The gap under the stairs with the mouse really needs so plates to stop it being green. And as I mentioned (and so has everyone else!) some custom furniture, copied from the later modulars maybe, wouldn't hurt. But for a set this big that's hardly much.

Pros

• Superb looks, styling and presence
• Brilliant detailing in the store, possibly the best in any set
• Fantastic to build, engaging throughout
• A great amount of rare parts, which is a pro, but...

Cons

• ...the rare parts make it very pricey now it's delisted - if you see it under £300, buy it!
• Just a few niggles with the clumsy beginning to the bay window and empty upper floors
• And it's the fault of the styling, but the balcony is rather gloomy!

A superb set, unfortunately hard to find as any modular street would be so much the poorer for not having it. There are a few clues as to its age, but the shop is second to none, the flooring is superb and the stock is marvellous. The figures fill it out well too, fitting quite nicely, but again, if you're part-sourcing it, they're quite hard to get. At £100 for 2,350 bricks it was an absolute steal, but it ain't that cheap no more! Pity, eh!

This is my largest set, and also my favorite. It is really big, was fun to build, and uses great rare parts. I really liked the freezer, clock, and grill. And, as the previous reviewer said, i like the distribution of age and gender with the minifigures. This set will provide a good, long, and fun build and hours of fun playing with.

On to pros and cons.

Pros

Sand Green Bricks

Clock

Heater

Grill

Fire Escape

Freezer

Fireplace

Variety of age and gender with minifigs

Finished model looks amazing

Cons

None

All in all, great set. Get it if you can. You won't be disappointed. It was worth every cent.