We go back in time with nostalgia in our hearts, remembering when this store was the most stocked in the area, with people queuing in front of it

 

Nowadays, there are different offices and a dental clinic in the building, but until the 90s, this establishment was the universal grocery store in the area.

Kuchuk Paris’s Hali is located at the beginning of the neighborhood. Right in front of the building, there is a monument to the Bulgarian refugees - people from East and West Thrace and the Belomorie, killed in the liberation wars for the Bulgarian union on June 2, 1988.

Photo: Facebook

Elderly people remember the building as the most stocked store in the whole area. They also recall that the butcher’s counter was huge, with meat hanging from big hooks, sliced as needed for the customer. The mincemeat was made on the spot, guaranteeing its freshness and quality. Some people state that they traveled from Karshiyaka to Kuchuk Paris just to get lamb sweetbreads.

Other impressive goods for its time was the live fish counter, which was very similar to the one in the Central Hali. The aquarium, paneled with white tiles, where the live fish swam, was admired by customers and children alike.

People queed in front of the store from the early hours of the day. On Saturdays, people waited from dawn to buy kiselo mlyako (yogurt) and milk - 2 cups of kiselo mlyako and 1 liter of milk in their bags.

The Small Hali functioned as a universal grocery store until around the 90s when it gradually started to empty and took on a new function as an office/business building.

However, this building remains one of the landmarks in the neighborhood, known by the elderly as “Halite”, and they often use the location as a reference point.