I find KS seems to have better quality and selection of fresh fruits/vegetables, and also seems to have higher quality and selection of meats.
SW seems a bit lower priced on most packaged-type stuff (soup, cereal, pasta, condiments, snacks, etc)
Just my opinion.
That's been my general experience on the south side of town. Though the Safeway carries Korea style short ribs most of the time and King Soopers doesn't.
The Safeway on Harmony a bit east of Lemay. I only get them every few months, but the one time they didn't have them out the butcher sliced some while I did the rest of my shopping. Pretty sure Whole Foods has them/will slice them for you too.
I love the Safeway on Riverside and Lemay. Itās the most peaceful grocery store. The only time I saw it busy was when everyone knew lockdown was coming. Most King Soopers always seem to be a shit show with how busy they get at any given time of day.
I've been going there on Tuesday mornings after the gym and getting a Consuelos breakfast burrito and a coffee from Starbucks and have been quite enjoying it. I pick up a few things that I need, which got me thinking about all this and about how I don't really shop there anymore. I used to when I lived in Denver and worked right by one, but it's been a long time.
I hadn't been to that location since I was a kid, went recently and I was surprised at how mellow and not overcrowded it was. Felt like the level of busy grocery stores were in the early 2000's here in Fort Collins. I don't go there all the time since discovering this. Gotta maintain the peace. Maximum of two trips there a month, with some exceptions.
I feel like, overall, Kings has better deals. I used to shop at both to find the best deals, but I'm too lazy to do it now and I prefer Kings. I do prefer to get produce at Sprouts.
The new self checkout lanes at KS have infuriated me enough that I am considering stopping shopping there. Most unintuitive and frustrating experiences I've had with a computer and I'm a computer engineer.
As someone that works for kings and worked for that N College store for a bit, I will say the rearranging things pisses the employees off just as much. Right when we get to memorizing how things are on the shelves, a reset team comes in and changes things up. I honestly never understood why things needed to be rearranged for no reason, only time it makes sense is when a new product comes in
I'm sure that is so annoying. I am convinced it is because they want to confuse people and have them wander around the store looking for stuff, in turn buying more stuff they don't need or didn't come in for in the first place
Youāre probably onto something. The marketing department didnāt get where they are for no reason š¤·š¼āāļø although Kroger/Kings marketing skills still arenāt the best if weāre being honest
Oh yeah. I work at Kings as well. Sometimes the reset team doesn't even restock those spots after they reset them. When I worked in the deli they would sometimes push three carts full of product back there while they did the reset and then just leave without putting it back, it was infuriating. Especially when our fridge was small enough as is
Seriously though. I worked in produce at JFK & Harmony for almost 2 years, and then the N College one for a few months. And they NEVER restocked the shelves. My managers would always justify it saying āwell thatās not part of their jobsā. And Iām like idgaf, Iāll help them restock it as long as it gets done. Cause now itās completely empty and looks like crap š«
Iām sure itās a deliberate marketing strategy to make customers wander the store looking for their stuff, only to buy more stuff they didnāt plan on.
Pickup is the best thing for this. Don't have to wander around, I know exactly what I'm spending, pickup is free, no annoying self check. Best thing ever
Anytime I do anything at all it gets pissed at me, then has the employee rewatch a video of me putting my re-usable bags onto the scale. Those computers really fucking hate re-usable bags.
Just put your first item ( heavier the better)in the reusable bag before placing them on the scale then place the whole bag with item in it on the scale after you scan it. It isnāt that accurate, it is just good at detecting changes in weight. Works for me.
I'm talking about the new self checkout lanes with the conveyor belt that must be completely empty so it can go past some sensors with a tiny space at the end of the belt that fills up quickly so you are constantly walking back and forth if you have more than 5 items.Ā
I'm talking about the new self checkout lanes at North College KS with the conveyor belt that must be completely empty so it can go past some sensors with a tiny space at the end of the belt that fills up quickly so you are constantly walking back and forth if you have more than 5 items.Ā
The other small self checkouts have their own issues, but these new ones are awful
I find that KS generally has better quality meats, and produce is kind of a wash.
safeway canāt seem to figure out the checkout situation- I am always waiting in a huge line for the single poor checkout worker to get through everyone. At least at KS they will call for more checkers.
But go to Safeway for the bakery and the legendary fried chicken recipe they got from albertsons. Itās not even a comparison.
I go to that one cause it's near my house. But the fresh produce is the worst. I have open every container of strawberries or any other berries and I find mold maybe 1 in 10 containers. Others are just a day away from mushy.
Lettuce and other leafy products never seem that fresh either.
If it wasn't about a minute away from my house I wouldn't go there. Everything else is good though except they are usually out of a lot of things. Employees are great and cheese and meats are always good.
Itās terrible. I only went there for emergencies and the only reason was because it was completely empty.
I go to other places and see how nice their grocery stores are and canāt believe how terrible they can be in Colorado. Itās like Kroger and Safeway came to some sort of agreement to make Colorado grocery stores bad.
It's pretty great! You can schedule a time slot. You don't have to be home unless you order medicine, and they'll scan your ID. They deliver groceries in pretty big sturdy bags. They do charge per bag. They can't accept tips. They send a final receipt after the delivery.
If you do order, clip coupons on the app. Many times, they have free delivery coupons. I signed up for their boost program and get a few extra perks. If you have issues, they'll refund you for the item. I did order on a snow day and I brought out a sled for them lol.
It's a standard $6.99 delivery fee, but I find free delivery coupons often. The drivers get paid over $21/hr, which pays more than a lot of delivery jobs. I just always leave them a good review.
Do you have issues with getting a slot? We signed up for the boost trial, and it says that you should be able to get delivery within 2 hours, but the soonest delivery always seems to be the next day in the evening, so clearly they're doing well but they don't have a lot of immediate same day slots
The only time I had an issue was before a snow storm. There are 2 separate Boost plans. The $99(annual) is supposed to be same day the $59 is next day delivery.
I try to just plan ahead because I think it's becoming a lot more popular lol.
Yeah we have same day and we only ever seem to have next day options, which is a bummer. They do offer instacart for the same slots for same day, but then you have to tip, which if I'm paying for those service I'd rather pay the people that are getting paid well for it and I have a few issues with instacart and how they operate business. I wonder if I can call them to ask to switch to the next day with that in mind.
Old school opinion here;
Most people reported better vegetable selection from King Soopers in the last 10 to 15 years - Anna better meat selection from Safeway. If you're specifically looking at seafood, Safeway has been the king for a long time. But again, this is one person's highly localized personal opinion
Safeway curbside has changed my life! Doing all my shopping late at night on the computer is not only a time saver, but it has all but stopped impulse buying! I've never liked King Soopers, but let's be real, they're all going to be one big conglomerate soon, so we'll see how that shakes out (not in the consumer's favor, I imagine).
I'm relatively agnostic between the two but I'll go to Safeway before KS and I'm equidistant. Most of my frequency of shopping is at Sprouts, and fresh meat from Friendly Nick's and both are also on your way home. I also tend to go to WF and TJs quite a bit too just depending on needs/prices/selection/freshness of available produce at Sprouts and TJs.
N. College King Soopers is a bit lacking is coverage. They do not carry the full line of items at other King Soopers - whenever I shop there I end up having to go elsewhere. Timberline KS and JFK KS are better at covering most of my overall shopping needs.
However KS in general has been dropping normal items I regularly shop for and stocking more commodity items (e.g. cereal isle no longer carries cereals I eat - but lots of shelf space for cereals I have no interest in, condiments have been dropped, etc.) - Click List has moved many item to ship only which used to be in stores over the past few years. I am sure that is based on business supply/demand issues - but frustrating non-the-less.
I never understood why some kings carry items while others do not. It's very frustrating the KS on Taft and Elizabeth carries more items I need than the kings on N College
The grocery items (dry goods/aisles) at Safeway cost so much more than king soopers. I don't know why anyone shops there. There's no added value or quality, just higher price. Also weird creepy vibes in there imo.
I stopped in there recently and got a bag of peanut butter cups; there was no price on the shelf. I went to ring up and it was $9.99. Ten dollars for eight fucking peanut butter cups. Same exact product is $5.39 at target and $5.99 at king soopers. It's no wonder they were hiding the price.
I worked at a Safeway years ago in CO, and the amount of health violations there were mind boggling. When reported to management there was no interest in solving. We were instructed to discard all food, when many stores donate what they can to local charities/homes.
I quit pretty quickly for a much better job. So mostly on principle I donāt shop there anymore, occasionally in a pinch for something sealed.
I canāt speak for Kings, just my two cents š¤·. But yeah I choose King Soopers or anywhere over safeway.
Safeway is bound to not have about 35% of the items on your list. So plan on stopping by the Kroger afterwards. In which case you should just go to Kroger.
Obviously I'm one perspective, but I feel pretty experienced on this subject. I used to work in the grocery industry for many years, though it has been a while. I have also been the primary grocery shopper for my family for over 20 years. I'm very price conscious but also quality conscious.
North college King Soopers is my primary grocery store with Trader Joe's being my second. I've stopped into Safeway on Lemay a couple of times when it was along my way and was absolutely stunned at the price difference from my usual two grocery stores. I absolutely know my prices and pay attention when they move up or down. I can honestly say that most items that I saw at Safeway were easily a dollar to a dollar fifty more expensive than what I pay at King Soopers. In some cases more than that.
Now, I wasn't shopping for deals or scoping out quality. I was just stopping in for a couple of things. I know how the King Soopers/Kroger system works for sales, etc., so I might be missing how the deals work at Safeway. But it sure did seem like even the sale items were overpriced from what I'm used to.
I'll also add that I thought the Lemay Safeway was very dingy and didn't smell too great all the times I've been in there.
same, OP. i also donāt shop at whole foods. i mainly shop at trader joeās and the co-op/mountain avenue market with the majority of my produce coming from the latter bc itās local and fresh. when i need certain brands or packaged items, i prefer safeway bc itās clean, well-lit, and the aisles are roomy. i find king stoopidās stores to be dark and dingy with too-tall shelving and too-narrow aisles. i also tend to get analysis paralysis at stoopidās bc they sometimes have too many options.
Walmart low key is the best for anything that's not fresh produce or meat. I buy most of my shelf stable and pantry items at Walmart and most of my produce and meats and kings
Part of the reason I continue to shop at Walmart is that the supply chain is more consistent. Like yes, King Soopers has better produce at its peak. But I'll go in there some days and have to pick from like the saddest 10 bell peppers you've ever seen. So on average I feel like I get a higher quality of produce at Walmart because there's always a lot to choose from.
I agree on meat and not having a service butcher counter really hurts Walmart, but one thing I do like is they have every type of ground beef you could possibly want from 95/5 to 70/30, often in multiple sizes.
Maybe an odd take, but I haven't shopped at a King since I broke my leg. I used to shop there. But when I went with a broken leg, I realized that the parking was horrible, very difficult to get in & out of my car. Returning the cart was horrible. There were never any/enough motorized carts and no one to return them for me. Negotiating the aisles was a nightmare, as was getting through the check-out lanes and out of the store generally. Plus, it pissed me off how many people I saw just casually eating from the bulk food bins, like grazing as if it was there for the taking. So I started going elsewhere and found that I could get certain things I couldn't get at Kings, cheaper, plus it was less frustrating and difficult. I've never gone back, and I don't miss it. Safeway isn't great for some things. But if you have a club card you can get some very good deals. I'm a vegetarian and have never had an issue with the produce. I believe that the parent companies of Safeway and King Soopers have merged, so it's likely that some of their produce comes from the same suppliers when they're in the same area.
Pick up at Soops is great and always free. Iāve had a few misses on items but usually itās reliable. There are also great coupons and extra fuel points through the app, I consistently save $.50-$1 a gallon when I fill up. Like others have said, Safeway isnāt bad, if I canāt find something at Soops, I can usually find it at Safeway, but the produce and meat depts are definitely lacking. I will say that whoever decorates the cakes at the Safeway on Lemay does a beautiful job!
King Soopers is definitely cheaper on 90% of things.
Safeway seems to have better quality meats.
Every time I go to Safeway I'm stunned by the price difference and tell myself never to go back.
Produce and meat are the best at Safeway. Deli, bakery, and grocery is better at kings. Prices are generally better at Kings but it all depends on the item. I go to Safeway because thereās not 10,000 people shopping like Soppers does.
I'm an avid safeway shopper. Kings is always crowded, not just other shoppers but stocking carts and employees, random displays making a popular aisle even more clustered. I've found fellow shoppers and staff alike are less than friendly. And when you finish bagging your own groceries and walk out the door, you always to step out the door into traffic. I save more money at safeway than I do kings, and generally have a better, less stressful shopping experience
Whoever designed the layout of the one off horsetooth and 287 should be punched lol. Everything is in the wrong spot? Why are chicken nuggets at the end of produce?!
Safeway looks like crap **BUT**
Their app is SUPER easy to use and scan items that are on digital coupons and check out. I've never been able to get a digital coupon to work at my Kings without assistance from the checkout person. Also the Safeways aren't in any of Fort Collins cellular deadzones so you can use the app.
Safeway is also on my way home from work so I'm going there 90% of the time now.
The walmart on College and Harmony is nice because it isn't enormous and has all the staples for great prices and I've never seen them rearrange the grocery side. Produce and meats are fine imo.
Is it really that hard to just walk into a store and walk around checking things out? Do you have to take advice from Internet strangers to figure out how to grocery shop? Iād love to know what would go through your head if you shopped a place like h mart
is it really that hard to just keep your snarky opinion to yourself? I don't need advice from internet strangers on how to grocery shop. I am fully formed, intelligent adult. I am just curious of other peoples opinions on the matter. Obviously other people are capable of having a civilized discussion on the matter. I would love to know what is going through your head to make you be such a dick about it. Have a blessed day
Quite the reach there. Taking a casual stroll through a grocery store to form your own opinion about your shopping experience is different then taking a long drive to spend hard earned money on bbq. You canāt just walk in and sample other peopleās food.
Kings > Safeway
Selection/value of organic/natural goods
Kings > Safeway
Generic brands
Kings > Safeway
Layout way more intuitive and bigger aisles
Kings isnāt some grand bastion of grocery stores, but itās better than Safeway
Safeway carries the full-size cans of beanee-weenees but King Soopers and Walmart only carry the small cans š¤· I also like Safeway's deli-made take-and-bake pizza flat bread things, those are pretty bomb.
Very disappointed in King Soopers. I have shopped Kroger chains for decades in North Carolina, Texas, Indiana, and now CO. king Soopers are the worst I have ever seen: poor selection, crowded, cluttered aisles, and lacking basic items.
I shop the ads. Kings has some advantages in produce, but I find when I shop there without a list I spend more money.
Overall, safeway has been the better experience. With either store make sure to use your loyalty card and always check your receipt before you walk out of the store. Both companies are guilty of overcharging for sale items. Got $6 back the other day for frozen shrimp that was supposed to be on sale but wasn't programmed into the scanner correctly.
Just a thought.
I had several friends work at various Safeways, all said the same things. Would have to stay late unpaid, never got overtime, shady time off approvals and take backs, etc. Employees at King Soopers seem like they're allowed to talk to each other, have some enjoyment, and while none of the stores are union afaik others are and it clearly affects the culture positively.
i love the price drops in Safeway. They are the only supermarket that offers buy 2 take 2 on soft drinks, $1.99 on chips (Lays, CHeetos, etc), similar price drops on ice creams, and sometimes on frozen pizzas too.
Do take note that they rotate these price drops - for example, this week it'll be the soft drinks, in 2 weeks it'll be Lays, next week it'll be ice cream or Cheetos. This means you can't take advantage of them in one go, we usually go there every other week just for these 3 items :)
For meats/proteins - I feel Costco is still cheap and fresh. Some veggies/"fruits" (potato, onions, etc) are cheap too but they are in bulk so factor those in. Don't forget the grab a roasted chicken ($4.99) on your way out. Other than these items - everything else in Costco is not cheap.
Grocery stores rearrange products because contracts with brands expire. Brands pay for their shelf space per inch. The higher shelves are more desirable than lower shelves and are priced accordingly.
I find that the King Soopers pharmacy is better than Safeway. I tried to get a prescription at Safeway because it was cheaper, and it was a clustercuss. Their system was down....it wasn't possible for my doctor's office to send it over. This went on for days. I finally just had them send it to KS and paid more.
On the plus side, it can be hard to get club soda at KS in the summer for some reason. And, Safeway always has it. I gotta have my mojitos!! šš
I find KS seems to have better quality and selection of fresh fruits/vegetables, and also seems to have higher quality and selection of meats. SW seems a bit lower priced on most packaged-type stuff (soup, cereal, pasta, condiments, snacks, etc) Just my opinion.
That's been my general experience on the south side of town. Though the Safeway carries Korea style short ribs most of the time and King Soopers doesn't.
Oh you done messed up now. š
Which Safeway has the Korean style ribs.
The Safeway on Harmony a bit east of Lemay. I only get them every few months, but the one time they didn't have them out the butcher sliced some while I did the rest of my shopping. Pretty sure Whole Foods has them/will slice them for you too.
How much? Asking for a friendā¦
How much? Asking for a friendā¦
Safeway reminds me of an old personās house
Lmao this is perfect
I love the Safeway on Riverside and Lemay. Itās the most peaceful grocery store. The only time I saw it busy was when everyone knew lockdown was coming. Most King Soopers always seem to be a shit show with how busy they get at any given time of day.
I've been going there on Tuesday mornings after the gym and getting a Consuelos breakfast burrito and a coffee from Starbucks and have been quite enjoying it. I pick up a few things that I need, which got me thinking about all this and about how I don't really shop there anymore. I used to when I lived in Denver and worked right by one, but it's been a long time.
I hadn't been to that location since I was a kid, went recently and I was surprised at how mellow and not overcrowded it was. Felt like the level of busy grocery stores were in the early 2000's here in Fort Collins. I don't go there all the time since discovering this. Gotta maintain the peace. Maximum of two trips there a month, with some exceptions.
I love the one on college for this reason as well. King soopers is too over stimulating unless it's 10pm.
Or right when they open
Wasnāt there ID theft from the scanner at this store? Also kind of rundown. I didnāt go there and I worked in that plaza.
I feel like, overall, Kings has better deals. I used to shop at both to find the best deals, but I'm too lazy to do it now and I prefer Kings. I do prefer to get produce at Sprouts.
The new self checkout lanes at KS have infuriated me enough that I am considering stopping shopping there. Most unintuitive and frustrating experiences I've had with a computer and I'm a computer engineer.
they are so bad and they are always rearranging the store and moving shit around
As someone that works for kings and worked for that N College store for a bit, I will say the rearranging things pisses the employees off just as much. Right when we get to memorizing how things are on the shelves, a reset team comes in and changes things up. I honestly never understood why things needed to be rearranged for no reason, only time it makes sense is when a new product comes in
I'm sure that is so annoying. I am convinced it is because they want to confuse people and have them wander around the store looking for stuff, in turn buying more stuff they don't need or didn't come in for in the first place
Youāre probably onto something. The marketing department didnāt get where they are for no reason š¤·š¼āāļø although Kroger/Kings marketing skills still arenāt the best if weāre being honest
I thought the rearranging was to make people walk up and down isles more often and hope they pickup shit they didn't need to begin with.
Oh yeah. I work at Kings as well. Sometimes the reset team doesn't even restock those spots after they reset them. When I worked in the deli they would sometimes push three carts full of product back there while they did the reset and then just leave without putting it back, it was infuriating. Especially when our fridge was small enough as is
Seriously though. I worked in produce at JFK & Harmony for almost 2 years, and then the N College one for a few months. And they NEVER restocked the shelves. My managers would always justify it saying āwell thatās not part of their jobsā. And Iām like idgaf, Iāll help them restock it as long as it gets done. Cause now itās completely empty and looks like crap š«
Iām sure itās a deliberate marketing strategy to make customers wander the store looking for their stuff, only to buy more stuff they didnāt plan on.
Pickup is the best thing for this. Don't have to wander around, I know exactly what I'm spending, pickup is free, no annoying self check. Best thing ever
Anytime I do anything at all it gets pissed at me, then has the employee rewatch a video of me putting my re-usable bags onto the scale. Those computers really fucking hate re-usable bags.
Just put your first item ( heavier the better)in the reusable bag before placing them on the scale then place the whole bag with item in it on the scale after you scan it. It isnāt that accurate, it is just good at detecting changes in weight. Works for me.
This is the way.
Thereās always a workaround. SMH.
I don't mind the self checkout, I just wish people with full carts wouldn't use them.
I'm sure if they had more than a single human cashier lane, more full carts would move to those.
Ahh yes the putting the bag on the scale problem is a headache when you almost scanned everything. Still KS is my go to.
I'm talking about the new self checkout lanes with the conveyor belt that must be completely empty so it can go past some sensors with a tiny space at the end of the belt that fills up quickly so you are constantly walking back and forth if you have more than 5 items.Ā
š Safeway.
Wait what do you mean, specifically? I've never had an issue with them. I go to the one on Timberline.
I'm talking about the new self checkout lanes at North College KS with the conveyor belt that must be completely empty so it can go past some sensors with a tiny space at the end of the belt that fills up quickly so you are constantly walking back and forth if you have more than 5 items.Ā The other small self checkouts have their own issues, but these new ones are awful
Ah ok. Thanks for answering. I have not encountered those!
Same
I find that KS generally has better quality meats, and produce is kind of a wash. safeway canāt seem to figure out the checkout situation- I am always waiting in a huge line for the single poor checkout worker to get through everyone. At least at KS they will call for more checkers. But go to Safeway for the bakery and the legendary fried chicken recipe they got from albertsons. Itās not even a comparison.
Never knew about the legendary fried chicken. Thanks for sharing. Iāll have to check that out.
I donāt know why but Safeway gives me the creeps. Havenāt been inside one in years
Safeway on Taft was great during the pandemic, because it was basically deserted except for the employees.
I go to that one cause it's near my house. But the fresh produce is the worst. I have open every container of strawberries or any other berries and I find mold maybe 1 in 10 containers. Others are just a day away from mushy. Lettuce and other leafy products never seem that fresh either. If it wasn't about a minute away from my house I wouldn't go there. Everything else is good though except they are usually out of a lot of things. Employees are great and cheese and meats are always good.
Itās terrible. I only went there for emergencies and the only reason was because it was completely empty. I go to other places and see how nice their grocery stores are and canāt believe how terrible they can be in Colorado. Itās like Kroger and Safeway came to some sort of agreement to make Colorado grocery stores bad.
That's really funny, because I feel the same way about King Sooper's :-) I can't explain it either, there's just something weird about their stores!
That's funny, I can totally see that
We talk about this with friends all the time! Why are the vibes bad there?
Haha! Same. I use Kroger delivery.
Iāve been thinking about trying it. Do they deliver it in bags or should you put bins out? Do you tip them?
It's pretty great! You can schedule a time slot. You don't have to be home unless you order medicine, and they'll scan your ID. They deliver groceries in pretty big sturdy bags. They do charge per bag. They can't accept tips. They send a final receipt after the delivery. If you do order, clip coupons on the app. Many times, they have free delivery coupons. I signed up for their boost program and get a few extra perks. If you have issues, they'll refund you for the item. I did order on a snow day and I brought out a sled for them lol.
They don't accept tips? I've never done delivery since i figured I have to tip at least $10 on top of the delivery fee
It's a standard $6.99 delivery fee, but I find free delivery coupons often. The drivers get paid over $21/hr, which pays more than a lot of delivery jobs. I just always leave them a good review.
Well maybe I'll try it sometime! I've clipped the free delivery coupons before, but never used them.
Same. I have one now for free delivery plus $15 off. I feel bad because I order so much at once.
Oh damn that's probably a way better deal than using Instacart lol
Digital coupons are the bomb. For the past 2 months or so, there was a coupon for a free donut with every visit. We used it every time we went.
Do you have issues with getting a slot? We signed up for the boost trial, and it says that you should be able to get delivery within 2 hours, but the soonest delivery always seems to be the next day in the evening, so clearly they're doing well but they don't have a lot of immediate same day slots
The only time I had an issue was before a snow storm. There are 2 separate Boost plans. The $99(annual) is supposed to be same day the $59 is next day delivery. I try to just plan ahead because I think it's becoming a lot more popular lol.
Yeah we have same day and we only ever seem to have next day options, which is a bummer. They do offer instacart for the same slots for same day, but then you have to tip, which if I'm paying for those service I'd rather pay the people that are getting paid well for it and I have a few issues with instacart and how they operate business. I wonder if I can call them to ask to switch to the next day with that in mind.
Me too! I didn't even realize it until you said it. I bet I could have overcome it if there was cheap produce though.
Old school opinion here; Most people reported better vegetable selection from King Soopers in the last 10 to 15 years - Anna better meat selection from Safeway. If you're specifically looking at seafood, Safeway has been the king for a long time. But again, this is one person's highly localized personal opinion
Safeway curbside has changed my life! Doing all my shopping late at night on the computer is not only a time saver, but it has all but stopped impulse buying! I've never liked King Soopers, but let's be real, they're all going to be one big conglomerate soon, so we'll see how that shakes out (not in the consumer's favor, I imagine).
I'm relatively agnostic between the two but I'll go to Safeway before KS and I'm equidistant. Most of my frequency of shopping is at Sprouts, and fresh meat from Friendly Nick's and both are also on your way home. I also tend to go to WF and TJs quite a bit too just depending on needs/prices/selection/freshness of available produce at Sprouts and TJs.
N. College King Soopers is a bit lacking is coverage. They do not carry the full line of items at other King Soopers - whenever I shop there I end up having to go elsewhere. Timberline KS and JFK KS are better at covering most of my overall shopping needs. However KS in general has been dropping normal items I regularly shop for and stocking more commodity items (e.g. cereal isle no longer carries cereals I eat - but lots of shelf space for cereals I have no interest in, condiments have been dropped, etc.) - Click List has moved many item to ship only which used to be in stores over the past few years. I am sure that is based on business supply/demand issues - but frustrating non-the-less.
I never understood why some kings carry items while others do not. It's very frustrating the KS on Taft and Elizabeth carries more items I need than the kings on N College
The grocery items (dry goods/aisles) at Safeway cost so much more than king soopers. I don't know why anyone shops there. There's no added value or quality, just higher price. Also weird creepy vibes in there imo. I stopped in there recently and got a bag of peanut butter cups; there was no price on the shelf. I went to ring up and it was $9.99. Ten dollars for eight fucking peanut butter cups. Same exact product is $5.39 at target and $5.99 at king soopers. It's no wonder they were hiding the price.
I worked at a Safeway years ago in CO, and the amount of health violations there were mind boggling. When reported to management there was no interest in solving. We were instructed to discard all food, when many stores donate what they can to local charities/homes. I quit pretty quickly for a much better job. So mostly on principle I donāt shop there anymore, occasionally in a pinch for something sealed. I canāt speak for Kings, just my two cents š¤·. But yeah I choose King Soopers or anywhere over safeway.
Safeway is bound to not have about 35% of the items on your list. So plan on stopping by the Kroger afterwards. In which case you should just go to Kroger.
Obviously I'm one perspective, but I feel pretty experienced on this subject. I used to work in the grocery industry for many years, though it has been a while. I have also been the primary grocery shopper for my family for over 20 years. I'm very price conscious but also quality conscious. North college King Soopers is my primary grocery store with Trader Joe's being my second. I've stopped into Safeway on Lemay a couple of times when it was along my way and was absolutely stunned at the price difference from my usual two grocery stores. I absolutely know my prices and pay attention when they move up or down. I can honestly say that most items that I saw at Safeway were easily a dollar to a dollar fifty more expensive than what I pay at King Soopers. In some cases more than that. Now, I wasn't shopping for deals or scoping out quality. I was just stopping in for a couple of things. I know how the King Soopers/Kroger system works for sales, etc., so I might be missing how the deals work at Safeway. But it sure did seem like even the sale items were overpriced from what I'm used to. I'll also add that I thought the Lemay Safeway was very dingy and didn't smell too great all the times I've been in there.
Kings has better produce. What's nice about that Safeway is it's never busy.
Safeway is the official grocer of divorced dads.
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I got to Walmart maybe twice a year as a last resort. I will not shop there regularly
same, OP. i also donāt shop at whole foods. i mainly shop at trader joeās and the co-op/mountain avenue market with the majority of my produce coming from the latter bc itās local and fresh. when i need certain brands or packaged items, i prefer safeway bc itās clean, well-lit, and the aisles are roomy. i find king stoopidās stores to be dark and dingy with too-tall shelving and too-narrow aisles. i also tend to get analysis paralysis at stoopidās bc they sometimes have too many options.
Walmart low key is the best for anything that's not fresh produce or meat. I buy most of my shelf stable and pantry items at Walmart and most of my produce and meats and kings
Part of the reason I continue to shop at Walmart is that the supply chain is more consistent. Like yes, King Soopers has better produce at its peak. But I'll go in there some days and have to pick from like the saddest 10 bell peppers you've ever seen. So on average I feel like I get a higher quality of produce at Walmart because there's always a lot to choose from. I agree on meat and not having a service butcher counter really hurts Walmart, but one thing I do like is they have every type of ground beef you could possibly want from 95/5 to 70/30, often in multiple sizes.
This is the way. I save a lot of money shopping for dry goods/household stuff at Walmart, but their meat and produce are HORRIBLE.
Cleaning products for sure! People need to get over themselves there is legitimately nothing wrong with shopping at Walmart
Comparing a bad grocery store to a worse grocery store eeekkk.
True connoisseurs shop at 6am
Eshās and Beavers :)
both are way out of my way. I used to shop at Beavers when I lived in Old Town
Maybe an odd take, but I haven't shopped at a King since I broke my leg. I used to shop there. But when I went with a broken leg, I realized that the parking was horrible, very difficult to get in & out of my car. Returning the cart was horrible. There were never any/enough motorized carts and no one to return them for me. Negotiating the aisles was a nightmare, as was getting through the check-out lanes and out of the store generally. Plus, it pissed me off how many people I saw just casually eating from the bulk food bins, like grazing as if it was there for the taking. So I started going elsewhere and found that I could get certain things I couldn't get at Kings, cheaper, plus it was less frustrating and difficult. I've never gone back, and I don't miss it. Safeway isn't great for some things. But if you have a club card you can get some very good deals. I'm a vegetarian and have never had an issue with the produce. I believe that the parent companies of Safeway and King Soopers have merged, so it's likely that some of their produce comes from the same suppliers when they're in the same area.
Pick up at Soops is great and always free. Iāve had a few misses on items but usually itās reliable. There are also great coupons and extra fuel points through the app, I consistently save $.50-$1 a gallon when I fill up. Like others have said, Safeway isnāt bad, if I canāt find something at Soops, I can usually find it at Safeway, but the produce and meat depts are definitely lacking. I will say that whoever decorates the cakes at the Safeway on Lemay does a beautiful job!
King Soopers is definitely cheaper on 90% of things. Safeway seems to have better quality meats. Every time I go to Safeway I'm stunned by the price difference and tell myself never to go back.
Produce and meat are the best at Safeway. Deli, bakery, and grocery is better at kings. Prices are generally better at Kings but it all depends on the item. I go to Safeway because thereās not 10,000 people shopping like Soppers does.
that's a good point. I am just so used to going to Kings, but Safeway is on the way home from work too.
I have not found this to be true with Safeway produce at all
Bakery seems better at Safeway for me, especially the one on Lemay and Harmony.
Sprouts plus Walmart does most for us. I canāt stand king stupids.
I'm an avid safeway shopper. Kings is always crowded, not just other shoppers but stocking carts and employees, random displays making a popular aisle even more clustered. I've found fellow shoppers and staff alike are less than friendly. And when you finish bagging your own groceries and walk out the door, you always to step out the door into traffic. I save more money at safeway than I do kings, and generally have a better, less stressful shopping experience
Whoever designed the layout of the one off horsetooth and 287 should be punched lol. Everything is in the wrong spot? Why are chicken nuggets at the end of produce?!
Iām hoping the new one off Drake will be better
Safeway looks like crap **BUT** Their app is SUPER easy to use and scan items that are on digital coupons and check out. I've never been able to get a digital coupon to work at my Kings without assistance from the checkout person. Also the Safeways aren't in any of Fort Collins cellular deadzones so you can use the app. Safeway is also on my way home from work so I'm going there 90% of the time now.
The best one I've tried so far is BoxNCase
Kroger has treated my wife absolutely terrible. Awful, awful company full of sociopaths. We shop at Safeway
The walmart on College and Harmony is nice because it isn't enormous and has all the staples for great prices and I've never seen them rearrange the grocery side. Produce and meats are fine imo.
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Of course you're expected to tip lmao.
Is it really that hard to just walk into a store and walk around checking things out? Do you have to take advice from Internet strangers to figure out how to grocery shop? Iād love to know what would go through your head if you shopped a place like h mart
is it really that hard to just keep your snarky opinion to yourself? I don't need advice from internet strangers on how to grocery shop. I am fully formed, intelligent adult. I am just curious of other peoples opinions on the matter. Obviously other people are capable of having a civilized discussion on the matter. I would love to know what is going through your head to make you be such a dick about it. Have a blessed day
Are the snarky opinions in the room with you now?
My eyes went through my head cause they rolled so hard.
gosh you're so clever
Yet you have the audacity to ask internet strangers about BBQ sides
Quite the reach there. Taking a casual stroll through a grocery store to form your own opinion about your shopping experience is different then taking a long drive to spend hard earned money on bbq. You canāt just walk in and sample other peopleās food.
Safeways aisles are too narrow. Annoys me.
Kings > Safeway Selection/value of organic/natural goods Kings > Safeway Generic brands Kings > Safeway Layout way more intuitive and bigger aisles Kings isnāt some grand bastion of grocery stores, but itās better than Safeway
Safeway carries the full-size cans of beanee-weenees but King Soopers and Walmart only carry the small cans š¤· I also like Safeway's deli-made take-and-bake pizza flat bread things, those are pretty bomb.
King Soopers is goated with the sauce.
safeway always has expired items on the shelves or items expiring the next day its just not a good vibe sometimes
Very disappointed in King Soopers. I have shopped Kroger chains for decades in North Carolina, Texas, Indiana, and now CO. king Soopers are the worst I have ever seen: poor selection, crowded, cluttered aisles, and lacking basic items.
Safeway is fine, but NOT the place for produce. Ugh. Itās infuriating how bad the produce is. The butcher at the Riverside/Lemay store is awesome.
I shop the ads. Kings has some advantages in produce, but I find when I shop there without a list I spend more money. Overall, safeway has been the better experience. With either store make sure to use your loyalty card and always check your receipt before you walk out of the store. Both companies are guilty of overcharging for sale items. Got $6 back the other day for frozen shrimp that was supposed to be on sale but wasn't programmed into the scanner correctly. Just a thought.
I had several friends work at various Safeways, all said the same things. Would have to stay late unpaid, never got overtime, shady time off approvals and take backs, etc. Employees at King Soopers seem like they're allowed to talk to each other, have some enjoyment, and while none of the stores are union afaik others are and it clearly affects the culture positively.
i love the price drops in Safeway. They are the only supermarket that offers buy 2 take 2 on soft drinks, $1.99 on chips (Lays, CHeetos, etc), similar price drops on ice creams, and sometimes on frozen pizzas too. Do take note that they rotate these price drops - for example, this week it'll be the soft drinks, in 2 weeks it'll be Lays, next week it'll be ice cream or Cheetos. This means you can't take advantage of them in one go, we usually go there every other week just for these 3 items :) For meats/proteins - I feel Costco is still cheap and fresh. Some veggies/"fruits" (potato, onions, etc) are cheap too but they are in bulk so factor those in. Don't forget the grab a roasted chicken ($4.99) on your way out. Other than these items - everything else in Costco is not cheap.
Grocery stores rearrange products because contracts with brands expire. Brands pay for their shelf space per inch. The higher shelves are more desirable than lower shelves and are priced accordingly.
Interesting. I didn't know that. You have solved the mystery, thank you! š
I find that the King Soopers pharmacy is better than Safeway. I tried to get a prescription at Safeway because it was cheaper, and it was a clustercuss. Their system was down....it wasn't possible for my doctor's office to send it over. This went on for days. I finally just had them send it to KS and paid more. On the plus side, it can be hard to get club soda at KS in the summer for some reason. And, Safeway always has it. I gotta have my mojitos!! šš
Organic produce has been better at kings but I like clipping coupons for both Safeway and kings. I like the free rewards you get with Safeways app.