Whole Foods in Lake Grove!?

[nancy thereader]

The Stop & Shops near Babylon are really pretty nice. I have never had any problems with the young cashiers. That's just how teenagers are, sadly enough.

Uncle Guiseppe's has a wonderful array of food. I wish we had one (and a Trader Joe's ) on the South shore.

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by RoleModel

I don't know how someone could be pleased with King Kullen, unless they don't have a Stop and Shop near them.

We have S&S, WBN, & KK all in a row in Setauket.

The Stop and Shop was remodeled a year or two after the KK opened. It is cavernous and excessively bright in comparison to King Kullen. It's not conducive to run-in & run-out if you need something on the fly. I find that there are certain sizes of products that S&S doesn't stock and you have to ask them to order. The bakery is run of the mill.

When I grocery shop I want groceries -- not DVDs, Starbucks, and other distractions.

The KK is smaller, quaint and well stocked. The butcher has been very accomodating when I have special requests, I've brought home some delicious cakes from the bakery. The store is clean, has a wide variety of items and doesn't feel like I am shopping in Giant Stadium.

I used to frequent WBN, but find myself using Ann Maries Farm Stand in Setauket for organic produce.

One thing I have noticed is consistency in all S&S stores I've shopped -- Setauket, South Setauket, & Smithtown. They are all tremendous.

The two Waldbaums I've shopped are akin to S&S wannabees.

The King Kullen in St James is run down, drab and dirty compared to the Setauket KK.

Uncle Guiseppe's and it's Latin staff have them all beat -- hands down. I was in there earlier today and couldn't locate something. The person I asked (English his 2nd language) was very helpful, smiled and gave a favorable impression of UG. The older white woman at the checkout was a little tired looking, but she still smiled and was very pleasant.

I do wonder, though, if UG's is not a union shop because it is a small, privately owned business.

[villager-li]

I find the Stop & Shop in Lake Ronkonkoma to be the best supermarket in the area. New building, huge, good selection, and I love the handheld scanners you can use while you shop. I won't go anywhere else. The Stop & Shop in South Setauket is not as good. Just check out the bathroom they have - yuck!

I can't stand other supermarkets around here: King Kullen in Lake Ronkonkoma, Pathmark in Centereach, and Waldbaums in Stony Brook - all are crappy.

I like Trader Joes for certain things that they have a good price on - like smoked salmon. Waaay too expensive at Stop & Shop.

[ResearchMom]

Originally Posted by OhBeeHave

The older white woman at the checkout was a little tired looking, but she still smiled and was very pleasant

The older white woman from Uncle Giuseppe's must be the one we've been going to since my son was born! How funny. Now they are on first name basis. Yes, she always seems tired, or perhaps shy. That is why we like her, she's so real ;-)

[Sandra Rufolo]

Originally Posted by OhBeeHave

The person who wrote that is a 2X poster whose two posts were complaints. S/he gives their location as Holtsville in the profile; I never realized Holtsville is the ideal upon which all LI communities should be based.

My posts were not complaints. They were observations. You'd have to be Ray Charles not to see the boarded up stores where the Stop&Shop used to be, including the Hallmark card store, etc.. That's what i was referring to. And your post is not exactly a bright spot in anybody's day. So what do you consider the ideal upon which all LI communities are built? I'm not originally from Holtsville anyway and am fully aware of the area outside of the development I live in. And you can assume I am a she. At least I go by my full name. P.S. I also own a home in Nesconset. Have a nice day.

[Sandra Rufolo]

[quote=OhBeeHave;10029687]First -- You should have called the store as soon as you realized the item was not in your bag. Apparently you realized this shortly after emptying the bags, but decided not to inform WBN until a 'few weeks later' when it was convenient for you./QUOTE]

Guess you work there. I don't usually go back to stores, return items or otherwise complain. The manager was out of line. He was yelling at me and my elderly mother was standing there. The veins were popping out on my his neck. All I did was come in with the receipt and kindly ask for a refund of the cheese that was left out of the bag. If they would hire people that can work, maybe this wouldn't have happened. You would never see that in any upscale supermarket such as Kings (you probably never even heard of that). They shouldn't pretend to be something they really are not. As far as asking for a refund of filet mignon, maybe you're the kind of person that would do that. Besides, you'd be hard-pressed to find such a cut of meat like that there.

[RoleModel]

Originally Posted by villager-li

I find the Stop & Shop in Lake Ronkonkoma to be the best supermarket in the area. New building, huge, good selection, and I love the handheld scanners you can use while you shop. I won't go anywhere else. The Stop & Shop in South Setauket is not as good. Just check out the bathroom they have - yuck!

I can't stand other supermarkets around here: King Kullen in Lake Ronkonkoma, Pathmark in Centereach, and Waldbaums in Stony Brook - all are crappy.

I like Trader Joes for certain things that they have a good price on - like smoked salmon. Waaay too expensive at Stop & Shop.

For the supermarkets around me:

Stop and Shop - Medford: It's decent, but most other Stop and Shops are cleaner, less busy, and less aggravating. This one does have a bank and Starbucks, though. This is also where one of the Peapod warehouses is located (the other three on LI are in NHP, South Setauket and Riverhead).
Pathmark - Patchogue: A good Pathmark? Sounds like an oxymoron. It's clean and usually well-stocked, which is more than you can say for any other Pathmark around here.
Waldbaums - Patchogue: Bleh. It was good in the short period of time between Waldbaum's grand reopening and Stop & Shop's renovation, but it's definitely a third wheel right now. Still one of the bigger Waldbaum's I've been in.
King Kullen - Patchogue: I don't particularly care for King Kullen. The way they keep the store is okay, but their prices are bad.

It definitely seems that most people in the Patchogue-Medford and Bellport area shop at either one of the first two. The other two supermarkets, you're more likely to see tumbleweeds.

[DeadPool1998]

I refuse to shop at Whole Foods now because their CEO came out against a public option for health care. I've taken my money to a local market instead. The produce is just as fresh, and in many case it is fresher.

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by Sandra Rufolo

My posts were not complaints. They were observations. You'd have to be Ray Charles not to see the boarded up stores where the Stop&Shop used to be, including the Hallmark card store, etc.. That's what i was referring to. And your post is not exactly a bright spot in anybody's day. So what do you consider the ideal upon which all LI communities are built? I'm not originally from Holtsville anyway and am fully aware of the area outside of the development I live in. And you can assume I am a she. At least I go by my full name. P.S. I also own a home in Nesconset. Have a nice day.

Actually I have been having a lovely day, thank you very much. Now to address your little missive.

Call them observations, I call it kvetching.

You complained about the way the WBN employee handled your returning to the store weeks later to complain the cheese was left out of your bag. You should have called when you noticed the missing cheese, taken a name, and then returned at your leisure.

Have you noticed the construction where the S&S was? The whole area is experiencing an ebb and flow. It's not like that area is going to turn into a shantytown. Levitz, Pizzeria Uno(?) need tenants, no argument there.

To answer your question: most of LI is a major FUBAR from a planning perspective. Too many greedy developers got the green light to erect hordes of homes with little concern as to infrastructure, public transportation and accessibility.

Nesconset? I'm so impressed. It's a step up from Holtsville, I suppose.

Word of advice: Using your real name on an internet chat board is a wise thing to do. Most people are harmless, but you never know who out there has other ideas. That's why many people on this site (and others) use screen names. Many of the regulars know who is from where, what our gender is, too, without revealing information which is sensitive in this day and age of hackers and ID theft.

Enjoy....

[OhBeeHave]

[quote=Sandra Rufolo;10333327]

Originally Posted by OhBeeHave

First -- You should have called the store as soon as you realized the item was not in your bag. Apparently you realized this shortly after emptying the bags, but decided not to inform WBN until a 'few weeks later' when it was convenient for you./QUOTE]

Guess you work there. I don't usually go back to stores, return items or otherwise complain. The manager was out of line. He was yelling at me and my elderly mother was standing there. The veins were popping out on my his neck. All I did was come in with the receipt and kindly ask for a refund of the cheese that was left out of the bag. If they would hire people that can work, maybe this wouldn't have happened. You would never see that in any upscale supermarket such as Kings (you probably never even heard of that). They shouldn't pretend to be something they really are not. As far as asking for a refund of filet mignon, maybe you're the kind of person that would do that. Besides, you'd be hard-pressed to find such a cut of meat like that there.

Sorry dear, you're way off on the line of work.

I don't buy your story the way you've described it, either with or without the frail, elderly woman. As I've written before, I am certain you were soft spoken and polite, almost to a fault.

The bottomline is that you have a receipt for a piece of cheese, you claimed (weeks after the fact) that you never received said cheese, and then you look for a refund for aforementioned cheese. The manager offered a piece of equal value in good faith.

Don't attempt to obfuscate the point that you appeared to look like a possible swindler to the WBN employee by bringing up a grocery chain in NJ or by trying to imply that I would behave in a manner such as you may have.

Filet mignon of cheese, trying to get a refund for a product that wasn't in the bag is the same thing. There are many pricey cheeses out there in line with the price of filet mignon. Ask any turophile.

You should have contacted the store as soon as you noticed the cheese was missing. You didn't. If you had done that and then had the problem, then you would have a real complaint.