The long line for Kalshi’s free groceries taught me people care more about affordability than prediction markets

I arrived at Westside Market right before 1 p.m., about an hour after the store opened.

As I approached, I overheard some oohs and ahs at the gargantuan line. It flowed up Third Ave, all the way along 12th St, and then wrapped back around Fourth Ave.

A confession: I’m not a line person. I don’t believe in waiting for sample sales or hot restaurants or TikTok-viral shops. This would be a challenge for me.

At the back of the line, crypto influencers immediately swarmed around me. While filming, one said that it took “an hour” to reach the back of the line. (It did not.)

The crypto influencers were among several new-age bro-types to approach the line but not actually enter it. These were the people who seemed to care about online betting and prediction markets. Most of those in line around me did not; they just wanted groceries.

On multiple occasions, I saw men walk up to the line and say something like: “Is this for Kalshi?” The people in line would go silent or respond, “It’s for free food.”

Kalshi employees existed, though they were hard to spot.

Like many next-gen tech companies, Kalshi is pumping out suave, minimalist merch. Some of their baseball caps have logos; others have the word “Kalshi” stacked into (admittedly stylish) text. But employees only identified themselves with these caps, making it difficult to clock them.

At one point, employees came around with hot coffee. My cold, cold line-mates were grateful.

Later, Kalshi hat-wearers came around with big QR codes to scan. If we downloaded the Westside Market app, the $50 would be added to our accounts, and we could avoid waiting in the cold.

We filled out the Google Form, but many remained skeptical about giving up their spot in line. Most people around me stayed.

There are probably over 50 videos of me floating around on the internet, with my nose dripping and my face flushed red.

Want to see how big the internet economy has grown? Get in a line in New York. There were cameras everywhere. Influencers ran up and down the line, trying (and often failing) to speak to those queued up. Kalshi also filmed its own content, as seen above. Some TV stations also filmed the opening.

Then again, I’m not that different. I was also taking pictures of the line.

I bonded with my line-mate, Bryn Durham, about spirituality and the rising price of food.

Durham said he worked as a psychic medium and foot reflexologist. He grew up in New York, but spent about 20 years living outside Boston. His neighbor in Gramercy Park told him about the grocery promotion.

We spent a while thinking — maybe even fantasizing — about what we would buy. Durham planned to pick up some $9.99 sandwiches in the spirit of living it up a little.

I asked: Do you know about Kalshi? “About what?” he responded. What about prediction markets? “No, nothing.”

After about 90 minutes, I had made it to the inside portion of the line. It wasn’t particularly warmer, but it did prove that the end was in sight.

This was where I really had to lock in. I had just a few minutes left in my audiobook (thank you for the distraction, Emily Chang) and could no longer wiggle my toes.

I waited, and waited, until I reached the front.

I made it inside! It was an incredible, cathartic moment. This must be what it feels like to finish a marathon or get to the top of a Taiwan skyscraper.

Durham and I spent much of the line fretting about what the inside would look like. Would the shelves be wiped out? But the store was quite orderly, almost quiet.

This is why the line was moving so slowly, I realized. They were keeping the inside calm by leaving the chaos on the outside.

I expected Westside Market to be more Kalshi-ed out.

I spotted three big Kalshi posters in the store. One of these signs — the cover photo for this article — was tucked far away in the back of the store by the cleaning supplies. Mostly, it just looked like a grocery store.

I got a quick laugh when spotting a bunch of Kashi cereal. So close.

With $50 to ration across the store, people seemed to be judicious about their grocery choices. Some aisles were more full than others.

Meat and poultry were heavily dug through, and the premade meals were also popular. Produce was less so.

The emptiest section, by far, was the beverages aisle. Nobody seemed willing to waste a chunk of their $50 on a frivolous kombucha.

Fifty bucks isn’t what it used to be.

Prices around the store were sky high. Most premade foods that I saw — mac and cheese, chicken tenders, wings — started at $9. Beef prices are surging, and the store’s red meat options were often around $15.

Mass market, processed foods weren’t much cheaper. I spotted $9 chips, $8 cookie dough.

Of course, New York is an expensive city — but Westside Market is especially expensive. It struck me as a bit odd for an event that ostensibly recognized the affordability crisis to take place in such a high-priced grocery store.

Waiting in line, I heard more than a few jokes about Zohran Mamdani’s city-run grocery store idea. Would Mamdani’s store charge $9 for a pack of Oreos? (If I were a betting man on prediction markets, my money would be on no.)

Checkout was easy. (I donated my “purchases” to a local community fridge due to our newsroom policy on accepting free gifts.)

My general takeaway: I’m still surprised at how little Kalshi was referenced. I wouldn’t be surprised if most of the grocery shoppers never heard or thought of Kalshi once. It seemed to play better for the brand on X than in person.

Still, everyone was grateful for their free food.