The “Water Cooler” is a feature on Claycord.com where we ask you a question or provide a topic, and you talk about it.
The “Water Cooler” will be up Monday-Friday in the noon hour.
QUESTION: What’s your favorite grocery store, and has it been your “go-to” store during the shelter-in-place, or did you decide to shop somewhere else?
Talk about it.
BevMo!
I don’t have a favorite grocery store, I detest shopping and only do it out of necessity.
Judging by the crowds I see, it has to be Safeway, but I’m sure there will be lots of Trader Joe fans. Personally I like Lucky’s just for the fewer crowds
Any store that has toilet paper, paper towels, lysol etc
Groceries by appointment within an hour – 7 days a week with valet attendant. Never been out of TP or paper towels yet.
Don’t even have to get out of my car.
https://www.maverickscatering.com
Yesterday CVS on Clayton Road had paper towels, no toilet pater. Dollar Tree has both.
Winco in Pittsburg, Lucky for meat/fish.
Lunardi’s!!!
Always shop at Veranda Whole Foods and have continued to do so. I go to store about once a month and get delivery weekly. The only change I made was to add a farm box for fruits and vegetables once a week to minimize trips to the store.
Trader Joe’s. It’s always been my go-to store. They were ahead of all other grocery stores with hand sanitizer and wipes when you enter the store. More days with “senior” hours and doing their best to keep shelves full. And employees are very courteous and friendly. Shout out to the store at Treat and Oak Grove.
It bothers me that they wear rubber gloves without changing them after handling everything in sight and groceries, cards and cash. What’s the point, if you touch your faces too.
One new guy took veggies out of plastic bag to fondle then weigh with his gloves on and put back in bag…no hand sanitation to be seen
Nob Hill in Walnut Creek is my favorite, had been going for years. It has not been my “go to” store during shelter-in-place.
I go to Lucky’s, larger store, just a bit closer. Many seem to have the same idea, because it’s become quite crowded, so may have to mix it up between the two.
99 Ranch, H-Mart (Korean supermarket) in San Jose, Hankook Market on Monument, Cardenas in Concord, and the Clayton Safeway were my go-tos pre-plague. Cardenas closed down, 99 Ranch has constant long lines, and Safeway never has anything. Not to mention those stupid one-way stickers that make it impossible to actually socially distance.
I’ve taken a couple of trips to H-Mart for stuff you can’t find here. I mostly shop at Lucky now. Hankook and Bombay Trading are backups, along with Mazar. The owners at Mazar, Bombay, and Hankook are the sweetest!
Lucky’s because it’s the closest and easy parking.
Equally Sprouts in Walnut Creek and Nob Hill in Martinez. Several things that I must get from Safeway from time to time, Virginia Hills Safeway has the best customer service.
Piggly Wiggly
Lunardi’s
No one else’s service and quality compares.
Lunardi’s & Farmers Market is ours, but there are a few others we go to for the items they carry. So, no change with us in with SIP.
Yes I miss Farmer’s market on Todos Santos, hopefully they will be back. Years ago when I lived in San Carlos I would go to Lunardi’s a lot. Now it is not convenient, Sprout’s has kind of taken their place.
@ Hanne~
Concord Farmers Market has re-opened and the new location is at Concord High School. On Tuesdays and starts at 9 am. 🙂
Grocery Outlet is closet to my house. I go once a week. been going there for years.
Pro customer service, prices, and location
coms. limited food and no backpack allowed.
Safeway is great for if you need to get something and I went this morning at 6:00am to have the whole store to my self. works out great that way so you are safe from bumping into shoppers. Yeah those stupid one way sticker dose not mean anything all it means social distance but, shoppers dose not care they go any direction. This is not a cruise ship it a grocery store LOL because you only worry how people walk forward in the store and the cruise ship LOL
Pro everything you got except today staff members were still stocking things up. Opens up very early in the morning so, you can be first class and customer service
coms prices yes I mean price it very much the same as the whole food and location is Okay.
Trader Joe’s is top notch love going there to get some yummies. TJ got a lot of good stuff you can imagine always stocking up items right away.
Pros GOOD FOOD, customer services, early bird for senior/disabled to enter the store
com Location too far from everything, price is not the best and they do not allow food delivery with instantcart or other service I know of that you can order items to be deliver to your house from TJ.. Trader’s Joe is very tight about security on health crisis.
I want to try food delivery and only go to store once a month would be nice. thinking of using sprout for food delievery on instantcart.
Speaking of food I need help if any of you can help me if not that Okay. I am still struggling what food to get for high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I looked online but they are confusing and considering to get a nutritionist. but, gonna wait for my doctor to get back to me to give more ideals.
Any recommendation or suggestions highly appreciated if not, that Okay I understand.
Since I stopped eating grains, and especially wheat several years ago my blood pressure is always good now. It’s not easy, you pretty much have to make your food from scratch-no prepared or processed food, but it’s worth it. A whole lot of other things improved too. Nowadays I don’t even miss it, I know a bunch of substitutes.
Justifiable languor is right about flax seed, that’s really good stuff! I sometimes make a porridgy breakfast thing with it, too.
Whichever one has whatever I need on sale. If whatever isn’t on sale and I do need it, I then go to any one of several different ones.
I’ve only been there a couple of times but I was impressed with the Sprouts over in Brentwood.
Lunardi’s; Nob Hill and Diablo Foods.
Costco . . . almost like a modern day cattle drive.
Old television show Rawhide ran from (1959–1965)
An part of the cast was a younger Clint Eastwood.
Gil Favor cattle drive trail boss and his catch phrase which was,
HEAD ‘EM UP, . . . MOVE ‘EM OUT.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daNPcf8y7NI
After the initial grocery shortages in March and April, Grocery Store Outlet in Pleasant Hill. The owner posted daily videos on Facebook to let us know what he had and didn’t have in stock. He was as a real hero and their staff were awesome through it all.
It used to be Lupoi’s Market in W.C……..
Diablo Foods Lafayette. Incredible service.
Safeway in Clayton and Zanotto’s in San Jose. Our last two trips to the store were to Zanotto’s: very clean, good selection and not too crowded.
In a normal situation (non-COVID) I shop multiple places for best price but shop most consistently at Safeway on Clayton and Denkinger (but only buy sale items at Safeway–their everyday prices are high) and 99 cent store on Clayton, followed by Food Maxx on Clayton.
For the most part these 3 are my go to stores. Grocery Outlet, Trader Joe’s and Safeway. I like Sprouts, for healthy cereals and meat, but parking is tough, so don’t go that often. Since the virus mostly Grocery Outlet, always like their wine selection, I live closets to the one on Willow Pass, but I also like the one in Clayton, and if I’m in the area I might stop at the one in Pleasant Hill, all have a little different selection, the one in Clayton has good wine selection. I have not been to Sprout’s or Trader Joe’s since the SIP, because both have lines outside and whenever I wanted to go it was either too cold to stand in line (awhile back) or too hot. When I lived in Benicia I shopped a lot at Raley/Nob Hill, but now it is further away, however in August when Gravenstein apples are in season (5-6 weeks only) they are the only story who has them, and since when I was growing up in Denmark we had a Gravenstein tree on our property, I love them and buy them the weeks they are in season
Winco is the least obnoxious. No ridiculous arrows, little nazis ordering people around…just commonsense masking and disinfecting
Winco is also employee owned and operated. Can’t beat the prices.
Total Wine, They sell Deli Meats and cheese as well!
The Lucky on Clayton Rd has a staff that have a very pleasant attitude, not necessarily friendly, but unlike Safeway on Denkinger, which seems to attract socially unhappy staff.
Lucky’s in Danville
Lunardi’s in Danville
Worst: Safeway on Tice Valley Blvd. in Walnut Creek
“ In Alamo
IGA
Costco, Safeway, Trader Joes. depending on what we need and when.
Used to be Safeway in Countrywood, but they have lost many old school friendly, helpful employees. Now you have to deal with the angry, uneducated deli workers, the staff dating each other in public view and not tending to their jobs, just hanging in the backroom.
. They have been out of way too much during this crisis and I am ready to move on after many years of supporting.
Starbucks in store cannot even make a decent cup of java anymore.
Winco in Pittsburg where we do big shopping once a month & Grocery Outlet Pleasant Hill. Try to avoid Safeway at all costs.
Publix’s- Great Service with Friendly Cashiers.
I like Publix, and agree with you about the great service and friendly cashiers. But I’ve noticed that they are more likely to be out-of-stock on a lot of items for the last several months. I was chatting with one of their managers and he says that as a smaller company, they lose out to the buying power of the nationwide companies.
I don’t remember ever meeting an unfriendly cashier. I always smile and never make small talk.
Nowadays I unconsciously smile behind my mask, and then feel funny about it.
I miss Publix – where shopping is a pleasure, free sweet tea and coffee at the entrances, and they carry out your groceries – even hold an umbrella over you when it rains on the way to your car.
They have a great deli as well.
As a Californian I had never experienced this until I was dating (my now transplanted here husband) from Florida. When we retire in a few years back to Florida, I will once again get to experience how it should be.
7 11
I really like the friendly service at Grocery Outlet in Pleasant Hill. The store has great prices on food, wine, and beer. Seems to be a happy place.
Safeway mostly. I alternate between the Clayton and Walnut Creek locations. I do also run by Lucky’s when I need something quickly or if I can’t find it at Safeway.
Luckys. Near my house. Union store. Easy parking. Usually has what I want.
I will never go through a self-checkout / rat check out though. All that does is eliminate more union jobs.
Grocery outlet, bargain market!!!