Checking Out: The End of Genuardi's

Though it still stands in the shopping center at Ridge and Butler Pikes, Plymouth Meeting's Genuardi's is one in a dying breed.

The Genuardi's supermarket chain was once a bustling, top-of-its-class supermarket that offered superior customer service and even more superior grocery selections.

It was the Wegmans of its day; a precursor to Whole Foods.

When the family-owned chain sold out to Safeway in 2001, its customer service, premier selections and history went with it.

Now, a decade later, Safeway is giving up 16 of its Genuardi's chains to . It is also selling off another eight Genuardi's to prospective buyers and shuttering the remaining three.

The Philadelphia Inquirer takes a historical look at the rise and fall of one of our area's most respected supermarket chains.