Alison Roman Shares What She Learned in Opening Her Grocery Store, First Bloom

After years of immersing herself in different aspects of the food industry, Alison Roman accomplished one of her biggest career goals last year: She opened a grocery store.

The cook and best-selling author opens up on this week's episode of the Marie Claire podcast "Nice Talk" about her journey toward opening First Bloom Corner Store, a market in Bloomville, New York that features her favorite products.

"It's always been a dream to open a grocery store," she shares on the podcast. "I love grocery store shopping. I love the experience."

Roman, who spent years working in restaurants before transitioning to food media, explains that she had money saved up to put into the project but found herself learning to be nimble with unexpected costs.

She says she chose to open the shop in the Catskills due to "utility," since so few grocery stores existed in the area she was interested in, and that the space she found was "basically a blank canvas." "It needed a new ceiling, and then we needed to build all the shelving that was custom in there," Roman says. "Then there's start-up costs of licenses and accounts and plumbing and installation for certain health code—things that I didn't see coming."

The writer/cook believed it was worth it to invest in her vision. Roman says, "I was like, 'Well, if I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna fund it myself, and we'll see what happens. Because I didn't want to be beholden to anyone else's vision. I didn't want to owe anyone money. But also, that means that you have a lot fewer resources when [it's] coming from your savings."

She adds, "But it was a dream...I wanted to spend my money on it."

The author of Sweet Enough and Nothing Fancy, and Dining In explains that, though First Bloom Corner Store opened in 2023 and launched its online store this fall, she has even more in mind for the shop. "I have goals and ambitions for the store and for the brand that exceed that space, but I also really want it to be authentic and I want it to be solid before I do that," she says. "It's very important to me that it functions as a solid, wonderful business without my name attached to it."

On "Nice Talk," Roman also shares her tips on how to be an outstanding host and guest.

Though it depends who she's cooking for, Roman reveals on the podcast that if she's cooking dinner for people, she tends to prioritize "deliciousness over anything fancy" and makes elevated takes on simple dishes. Her examples include a one-pot chicken and potatoes prepared in a way that will leave guests saying, "I didn't know a potato could be so good."

"I think that when people want to impress somebody, they either make too many dishes...or they feel like they have to pull out some stuff and also bake dessert," Roman says, "Not everything needs a hat. It's like [what] anyone who dresses well will tell you about fashion, I will tell you about food. You need five great pieces, because it's how you wear them, it's not what you wear. It's like how you cook things; it's not what you cook."

To impress as a guest, the author suggests a beverage you won't be able to finish in one sitting, such as a liquor bottle like amaro, that "doubles as a gift and something that you can enjoy together in that evening."

Roman talks more about the changes she's made in her career over the years, navigating brand partnerships, how she handles feedback from her followers, and more on this week's installment of "Nice Talk." The episode is out now wherever you listen to podcasts.