Grocery Shopping in Cue

Pixie at Bell’s Emporium in Cue. The store has been in her husband’s family for generations and little has changed.

Grocery shopping in Cue is an altogether different experience. Bell’s Emporium opened in 1904 and is still operating from the same premises all these decades later.

Owned by Ross and Pixie (and previously owned by Ross’s parents), this shop has changed little over the years. There’s all the usual food supplies displayed behind the counter running the length of the shop, and tucked away on the opposite wall, behind the upright fridges, you’ll find the hardware section. Though no longer used, the ropes and pulleys of the old cash carrier still stretch overhead across the store. Delve deeper inside and there’s a row of old tills, sitting on a shelf in the order in which they were retired from service, faded metal bulk food containers collecting dust on wooden shelves, and original posters still on the walls…and suddenly the grocery store feels more like a museum. It’s truly a glimpse into Cue’s past.