Help me love Wegman's

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not all Wegmans stores are created equal. I’ve been going to the Germantown Wegmans since the day it opened and I love it. It’s almost a one-stop shop for us. I checked out the new Rockville store as it is much closer to my house but it’s smaller and more chaotic and didn’t have some of our staple purchases so I’ll continue to make the drive.

+1. I was so excited for Wegmans to open in Rockville but totally disappointed when they did. I’m used to the Germantown location but it’s a trek. Rockville is a small store and a good sized section is devoted to prepared food/dining so they have limited brands/selection in the rest of the store. And I really hate the parking garage there. The one thing I do like is the produce which is better than HT and Giant. I would really have liked a one stop shop nearby but it looks like I’ll continue going from store to store to gather groceries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really dislike Wegmans and don’t get the hype so it’s not just you. I get everything I need from Whole Foods, Costco, and Trader Joe’s.

+1
Although I throw Lidl in there too.

[Anonymous]

I live very close to the Chantilly wegmans and love it but we don’t make enough to shop there unfortunately. It has good produce and I tried the cheddar jalapeño burger patties and they were delicious.

[Anonymous]

DC Wegmans is a city Wegmans, so it does have less selection and more of an emphasis on Wegman's products... but wegman's products are REALLY good.

If you go out to the big Wegman's in Fairfax, it has everything under the sun, like wiht pasta—it will have every American and major Italian brand, fresh, frozen, dried, etc. but the DC one, will have Barelli, and the Wegman's house brand. But the Wegman's house brand is incredible.

So, yeah, it doesn't have the broadest selection of products, but the products it has are generally the best.

It DOES get runs on stuff, so for example, broccoli, but the staff are extremely well-paid—Wegman's makes a big thing about paying their employees a living wage—so the guy you see frantically restocking in the produce section, is probably a longtime employee and if you snag him and ask about broccoli, he will probably be desperately happy to run to the back and get a new box and bring it out. They make me uncomfortable with their level of willingness to please.

And when you go to the meat section and the fish section—those are actual butchers and fishmongers. They're people who get up everyday and go to work in the fish section—if you pick a whole fish, they scale and clean it for you. If you ask a question about what's freshest, they'll tell you. If you're unsure of what to choose to feed 8, they'll give you a recommendation. Same with the butcher—if they don't have a cut of meat, they'll hook you up.

Also, the quality of the food is so much higher than giant where there is no fresh fish (just frozen and previously frozen) and some minimum wage dope who can't tell you anything. I gave up buying chicken at Giant and Safeway because it's often rancid when you open it at home—I complained and they just shrug and give you a refund. Wegman's doesn't sell stuff like that.

I love the bakery too—Giant just has someone opening bags of pre-made dough and popping it in the oven, and open boxes of donuts. Wegman's has people who are in early in the morning fresh baking the whole range.

No comparison.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really dislike Wegmans and don’t get the hype so it’s not just you. I get everything I need from Whole Foods, Costco, and Trader Joe’s.

I like Trader Joes, for certain things, but you can't compare the two.

Wegman's has actual fishmongers, with a whole range of fresh fish. Trader Joe's has frozen fish that can't sell anywhere else.

Trader Joe's is the place to go for frozen treats and a single-person, pre-made high sodium meal... It's not a grocery.

Whole Foods is comparable to Wegman's in terms of quality and professionalism of the employees, but Wegman's house brands are very affordable and high quality so you can shop for much less.

[Anonymous]

I know this has been done before, but I’ll provide my recommendations:

- pre-shaved Brussels sprouts. So easy to drizzle with olive oil and roast for 20 minutes

- the new-ish greenhouse grown salad kits are great. I like the Caesar.

- the refrigerated salad dressings are good, and I am someone who makes most of my dressings from scratch. I like the Caesar and the buttermilk Ranch.

- I always keep the Wegmans brand spaghetti and marinara on hand for the kids. Nice price and very reliable.

- they carry Siete brand texmex products, which are my new favorite

- Lundberg wild rice cakes

- fresh mozzarella, goat cheese, feta, blue cheese, Gorgonzola are all reliable and well priced

- I’m not crazy about their canned beans but they carry Goya

- their organic cottage cheese is less expensive than that Good Culture and just as good

- their fruit salsas are great on fish tacos, fish bowls, etc. They carry them fresh and jarred.

- the jarred pesto is amazing, especially the sun-dried tomato pesto

- good frozen meatballs. They also carry Rao’s in sauce if you prefer that brand.

- EU organic salmon filets

[Anonymous]

I find Wegmans too expensive, especially the produce.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find Wegmans too expensive, especially the produce.

Yeah but it’s not rotten.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find Wegmans too expensive, especially the produce.

Yeah but it’s not rotten.

That’s not the only alternative.

[Anonymous]

I do not understand the appeal of Wegman's. They have replaced like 80% of stuff with their own in house brand. It is just a bigger and more expensive trader Joe's. Mediocre quality for a lot of stuff because the only choice is the house brand.

[Anonymous]

Wegmans is a zoo. Unless they offer a shopping and delivery service like Whole Foods, I won't be shopping there.

[Anonymous]

I do Whole Foods and supplement with Trader Joe’s. I went to Wegmans in Rockville over the weekend and I really regret my decision!

I felt very disoriented and felt that the supply was very limited compared to what I was expecting. I’ll stick to Whole Foods.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not all Wegmans stores are created equal. I’ve been going to the Germantown Wegmans since the day it opened and I love it. It’s almost a one-stop shop for us. I checked out the new Rockville store as it is much closer to my house but it’s smaller and more chaotic and didn’t have some of our staple purchases so I’ll continue to make the drive.

+1. I was so excited for Wegmans to open in Rockville but totally disappointed when they did. I’m used to the Germantown location but it’s a trek. Rockville is a small store and a good sized section is devoted to prepared food/dining so they have limited brands/selection in the rest of the store. And I really hate the parking garage there. The one thing I do like is the produce which is better than HT and Giant. I would really have liked a one stop shop nearby but it looks like I’ll continue going from store to store to gather groceries.

I heard horror stories about the Rockville parking, so haven’t gone there yet. Have they ironed out any of the parking kinks since opening?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find Wegmans too expensive, especially the produce.

The bakery and meat is too expensive.

Some produce items are priced reasonably.

Wegmans house brands are reasonably priced.

The Fairfax one is closest, but it's still 25+ min. away and parking and navigating is equal to that of Costco.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find Wegmans too expensive, especially the produce.

Yeah but it’s not rotten.

Right, this is key! I used to feel it was expensive, but I was throwing out lots of produce without using because it was rotten the day after I purchased it, or oddly rotten on the inside but looked great on the outside. That rarely if ever happens at Wegmans.

Another vote for Wegmans brand products - everyone in the family is happy and some products (e.g., their protein granola bars) are preferred in our house. Not the case at Giant or Safeway.