Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Fairway used to be my favorite store. But about two years ago, they decided to try to set records for the speed and amount of price increases. Their prices have increased so much over the past two years (in some cases they've more than doubled from what they were when the Paramus store opened almost five years ago), that I pretty much avoid them now. In addition, they seem to have cut help and quality of some items.
So, where do I go?
My #1 favorite store is Corrado's in Wayne. Good quality stuff, and (mostly) dirt cheap prices. OK, you could say the produce isn't quit up to Fairway's standards. It's still fine. And when I'm paying a dime for a lemon that would cost $1.00 at Fairway, or $7.99 for a gigantic fruit bowl that would've cost me $20+ at Fairway, I can live with that. Prepared foods are as good as Fairway's, at about half the price (or less) in most cases. Their bakery is kind of lousy, however.
Other stores I like and frequent:
Maywood Market - The mini Corrado's/Fairway. Good prices on prepared foods and deli. Incredible homemade potato chips. Produce is good, but sometimes a touch expensive. Good bread and muffins, but other baked goods are lacking. Cheeses tend to go bad quicker than those I've gotten at other places, but their parmigiano reggiano is good and usually about $10 per lb.
Market Basket - I wouldn't have been caught dead in Market Basket as recently as two years ago, but I've started to like them. The Grey Poupon crowd there can sometimes be annoying, but they actually have some good deals. Their deli meats are reasonably priced, and their bakery is very good and also reasonably priced. Prepared food prices are ridiculous, but they do mark them B1G1 Free when they near their sell-by date. The cheese department is excellent too.
Trader Joe's - Great stuff, especially frozen foods and bottled juices, but some items are starting to get expensive.
Aldi's - Trader Joe's of 'da Hood. Good quality stuff, dirt cheap. There is a lot of similarity in product offerings compared to Trader Joe's (the companies are each run by members of the same German family). But, for putting a quarter in the cart, bagging your own groceries, giving up the fancy packaging, and shopping in Lodi instead of Westfield, you get the stuff at Aldi's for half the price.
Shop-Rite - The crowds drive me crazy and the sales ain't what they used to be, but it's the best of the full supermarkets in North Jersey until Wegman's gets here. Their Shop at Home service is great, and worth the $10, even more so when they have online shopping coupons. Stores vary wildly based on owners and location.
Foodtown in North Haledon - I don't know how Foodtown stats in business, but I'm glad they do. The North Haledon Foodtown has good sales and an outstanding deli with great prepared foods at reasonable prices. The store was remodeled a few years ago and looks great too.
Places I'd frequent more if they were closer:
Wegman's - The prices in the departments can be expensive but the quality is unmatched. Great service, and a pleasant shopping experience.
Stew Leonard's - Absolutely love this place. Great everything. And while Fairway has been raising prices through the roof, Stew has been pretty much holding the line on them. Please build a store in NJ!
And the stores I avoid...
A&P - What happened?!? About seven years ago when they remodeled their stores, they were great... for about a year. Then they just gave up. Now, sales are terrible, quality of many items is poor, and help is minimal in the stores. Too bad.
Pathmark - When A&P took over Pathmark, it's like they decide to take all the worst qualities of both chains and apply them to the Pathmark stores. Stores are tired, run-down, and sell poor quality stuff. They're more expensive than they used to be too.
Kings - Extremely overrated. The stores look nice, but the quality of most items isn't any better than what you'd get at Shop-Rite. It's just a lot more expensive.
And, my all time least favorite supermarket is...
Stop and Shop - Very low quality items. Prices that are beyond ridiculous. Virtually no help in the stores. Horrible sales. Yup, that's Stop and Shop. My all-time least favorite supermarket chain.
I like Wegman's, but it's fifteen minutes away so I don't go often.
I go to Acme. It's close and easy to stop by on the way home from the train, and everyone in my store is so friendly. They carry the type of cat food one of my catters likes that I can't find in most other stores.
My only complaint, which is the same complaint I have in a lot of other stores, including Whole Paycheck, is that they go to the Moron Sign Company to have the signs made for their aisles. "Can Vegetables". Yeah, OK. That extra "ned" would have cost you so much more?
Whole Foods near me has a beautiful, expensive-looking sign over their supplements area stating that you can ask any of their associates in that section for "advise". I tried to point out to the cashier that there was an error in their sign in the supplements section, and he just looked at the sign and back at me and seemed confused, so I didn't pursue it further.
Moron Sign Company must make a lot of money, but it's frustrating because the signs are too high for me to fix with my Sharpie.
***
I agree with "what happened to A&P?" Do they think we are such idiots that by putting some sort of fancy brand name label on their meat and jacking up the price we will say, "Oooo, look, there's a fancy name on the beef now--OF COURSE I'll pay another buck a pound!"
Another complaint I have with ALL of them is that not long ago, you used to be able to buy ground beef by the cut. So you could get ground sirloin, which was leanest, or ground round (my favorite) which was usually 85/15, or ground chuck at 80/20, good for the grill so all the fat could drip down and hiss.
Now all the packages are labeled with the fat percentages, but they just say "ground beef". Exactly what am I getting?
Another complaint I have with ALL of them is that not long ago, you used to be able to buy ground beef by the cut. So you could get ground sirloin, which was leanest, or ground round (my favorite) which was usually 85/15, or ground chuck at 80/20, good for the grill so all the fat could drip down and hiss.
Now all the packages are labeled with the fat percentages, but they just say "ground beef". Exactly what am I getting?
I imagine they're mixing the cuts to get the fat percentage they want. Or maybe fortifying with a little pink slime to bring down the fat percentage.
They're another store that's growing on me... a bit. Most item prices are still ridiculous, but once in a while they do have a decent sale item. The stores look nice and the service is great too. And now that Fairway's salad bar price is pretty much the same as WF's, I'll take the WF salad bar, which is much larger and has more variety. (Although the Fairway stuffed cabbage can't be beat.)
They all seem the same to me!
I do love Sav a Lot and Aldi's though,as its easier to navigate throught the aisles.
Shoprites(doesn't matter which one) I am always spending at least 1 hr in there
I do know which ones I hate and that's Super Walmart in Secaucus!
Extremely bad customer service.
Shoprite: I usually go to the one in Livingston as that's where I live, but I hate turning out of there to make a left. It gets really crowded which is also annoying but it's convenient and close to home. I like buying toothpaste, diapers and other home goods on sale there.
Shoprite in Millburn: I go here on my way to work sometimes. It's small but clean and it wasn't crowded when I went- on my way to work on a weekday morning.
Trader Joe's in Millburn- I like this store a lot, clean, friendly staff, spacious but sometimes produce is not that great.
She forgot to mention Whole Foods. Just the other day, she made me go out in a snowstorm so that I can get her winter wheat berries. I'm still not even sure what it is.
I go to Shoprite often, but frequent A&P, and go to Kings when I am by one, but would absolutely love a Top Tomato to come into northern or central jersey, I've been twice in brick, but that's too far and I don't want to pay the toll to cross the bridge to go into Staten Island
Also, I had a one month to BJ over a year ago, and went crazy, all of those style stores are OK with me (plus they have a great business model, although not the widest selection of brands.) Costo and Sams Club are the main ones
I go to Shoprite often, but frequent A&P, and go to Kings when I am by one, but would absolutely love a Top Tomato to come into northern or central jersey, I've been twice in brick, but that's too far and I don't want to pay the toll to cross the bridge to go into Staten Island
Also, I had a one month to BJ over a year ago, and went crazy, all of those style stores are OK with me (plus they have a great business model, although not the widest selection of brands.) Costo and Sams Club are the main ones
Top Tomato seems very similar to Corrado's. Even the font and layout of their online flyers are identical. They seem to be owned by different families, but I'm wondering if there's some kind of relation.
My only complaint, which is the same complaint I have in a lot of other stores, including Whole Paycheck, is that they go to the Moron Sign Company to have the signs made for their aisles. "Can Vegetables". Yeah, OK. That extra "ned" would have cost you so much more?
Whole Foods near me has a beautiful, expensive-looking sign over their supplements area stating that you can ask any of their associates in that section for "advise". I tried to point out to the cashier that there was an error in their sign in the supplements section, and he just looked at the sign and back at me and seemed confused, so I didn't pursue it further.
Moron Sign Company must make a lot of money, but it's frustrating because the signs are too high for me to fix with my Sharpie.
I'm glad that someone else shares my obsession with proper English. If you're going through the trouble & expense of putting up a sign than one would think that everything should be spelled properly.
I've been tempted at times to go in with a marker & correct the signage !
It's pays to compare prices, one may be cheaper on certain items & the other cheaper on others.
Sometimes Target can be good when certain items are on sale, i.e. cereal.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
