I’ve been seeing those FreshDirect ads around Manhattan for a while now. I have fond, fond memories of Kozmo my first year in New York, so I decided I’d give FreshDirect a whirl since it seems to be of approximately the same ilk, although the emphasis is on groceries rather than movie rentals and a weird selection of other products. FreshDirect probably doesn’t let you rent Dirty Dancing with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s and a bottle of conditioner at 2am, but I figured it might be worth it nonetheless. My grocery shopping here is limited to what I can carry, reasonably enough, since I don’t own a car, so a web-based grocery delivery service has a certain appeal.

I tested my own zip code and wasn’t surprised to see FD doesn’t serve my part of Brooklyn - I’m about as far from Manhattan as you can get and still be in one of the boroughs. What really amused me, though, was the same error message when I tried the zip for my old apartment in Manhattan (10003): apparently, Greenwich Village is not included in “metro New York”. Thank goodness I have FreshDirect to give me an urban geography lesson - otherwise, how would I have known?