Price Chopper/Market 32

[powersbt]

Originally posted by Marc82
Do you work odd hours or are you an insomniac? One of the daytime cashiers had to work overnight the other day and she said their were only three types of people who shop in the middle of the night: People Who Work Odd Hours, Insomniacs, and stoners. You don't strike me as a stoner. :bigsmile: So that's why I ask if you're a person who works odd hours or an insomniac.

I can add a couple of other types for ya: College Kids (who have nothing better to do than to hang out at a Supermarket in the Middle of the Night on a Weekday) & Freaks (AKA Midgets, Transgenders, etc.). I've seen all kinds. One of the Best Nights is Halloween.

[XISMZERO]

Originally posted by Marc82
Do you work odd hours or are you an insomniac? One of the daytime cashiers had to work overnight the other day and she said their were only three types of people who shop in the middle of the night: People Who Work Odd Hours, Insomniacs, and stoners. You don't strike me as a stoner. :bigsmile: So that's why I ask if you're a person who works odd hours or an insomniac.

Heh, nope I'm not a stoner. I don't really do any grocery shopping after 11 unless I just got out of work. I prefer to do it around 8 and 9 when the markets are largely empty and/or devoid of crowds. I'm one of those quirky people who could spend a good hour in enjoying browsing a supermarket looking at things I want and/or don't particularly need. What can I say? I love food shopping.

It's usually just my luck I get some freakin' old hag holding up one of the only lines because she chose 10PM to do her weekly shopping with 80 coupons she failed to note expiration dates, or some other silly reason she can't save $.50 on four boxes of fish sticks. Did I mention this also happens when I go into Stop & Shop around noon to get salad bar and have to move to various lines because of these type customers (typically clogging the 10 items or less checkouts).

Supermarkets, I'm convinced, are a place to find the world's problems in the form of human beings. You name it, some of the strangest, mental deformities come out at all times of the day. When I asked a friend of mine why this could be, the answer was simple: even they have to eat.

[Marc82]

HAHAHAHAHAHA! Seriously dude we need to meet up for snack and a soda in the Price Chopper Food Court or something. In all the years working in grocery stores I've met all kinds of crazy characters. I won't tell them all here (or else I'd have nothing to talk about if you want to meet up for a soda or something). One of my favorites though would have to be when I was working at the Shaw's in Bristol. Some middle-aged woman left a shopping cart full of groceries in the middle of the aisle and walked out of the store empty handed because the manager wouldn't make some guy who was shopping at the store button up his shirt. He was a nice guy. He used to shop like that every week during warm weather. Then the first chilly week of the fall came and I saw him. He had a wifebeater on and his same unbuttoned shirt and I said to him "Gee I hardly recognized you with a shirt on". He thought it was funny and started laughing.

[mikey7290]

Here is a pic of the Price Chopper in Ogdensburg, NY.  Located in the Gateway Plaza, this was taken last year before construction began, enlarging the store from 38,000 to 50,000 square feet.  Construction is nearly complete and should be finished in about a month.  The store now has a new bakery and deli, plus a food court.  The stores located between the Price Chopper and Fashion Bug (Simply Sandwiches, the former Carbino's Jewelers and the former Fins, Feathers & Friends pet store) have all been demolished.  Price Chopper's new food court now occupies the space.

[mikey7290]

I will try to take a pic soon of how the outside of the store looks now that it's been remodeled.  There is now an office where the windows on the left were and the right side goes right up to the Fashion Bug.  As soon as I am able to take a pic and save it to my computer, I will post it.

[david121]

I live in watertown, NY and they didn't do anything fancy for their 20th anneversy.

[david121]

Hey Marc, is your Price Chopper doing a thing called 5-S? My price chopper is, and it's cutting my hours back. Time for a new job... :(

[Marc82]

Yeah, we're doing 5-S, tho I ain't too sure what it is.  My hours aren't getting cut. In fact my supervisor tells me I'm one of the best workers so I'm the first one who gets asked to work extra hours. He wanted me to work 7AM-3PM on Easter. I told him "Not on your life buddy." Holiday or Sunday Pay or not, there's no way I'm gonna get up at 530AM on a Sunday!

[mikey7290]

Originally posted by mikey7290
I will try to take a pic soon of how the outside of the store looks now that it's been remodeled.  There is now an office where the windows on the left were and the right side goes right up to the Fashion Bug.  As soon as I am able to take a pic and save it to my computer, I will post it.

And, as I promised, a look at what the store looks like now that the renovations are finished.  The store has been expanded from 38,000 to 50,000 square feet due to acquisition and demolition of the former Simply Sandwiches, Carbino's Jewelers and Fins, Feathers and Friends pet store.  All three storefronts were located at the right of the photo where Price Chopper's new food court is now.

[david121]

Turns out that's what wasn't cutting my hours - my store purchased a whole bunch of crap, so something had to get cut - the parttimers. But now I have a whole bunch of hours, so everything is peachy again.

[Marc82]

Yeah, I'm gonna try and get a transfer to another store. I need a full time position and we don't have any full time positions open at my store.

[AmesNewington]

Marc: I go to Southington with my family to shop at that Price Chopper. It is a very nice store. My dad hates stores, however, this is the only one he'll enjoy coming to. He likes how the store is so well kept and how the donuts are so nicely displayed. He comes here for the gas promotion. My mom refuses to shop at the Newington PC because of the help. Everyone at Southington is very polite and there are always enough registers open. It's a shame you want to transfer, but that's your decision. I have seen your manager, and she looks to be tough and wants the store perfect. That is a good thing!

[shakethis1234]

price chopper never has openings if they do they hire some with experience from another store

[david121]

Here either they aren't hiring people who are applying, or people aren't applying. It doesn't bother me that much, but when we hire six people and all of them are baggers and cashiers... uh-oh.

[david121]

Originally posted by d_fife
Tihs price chopper is in North Syracuse new york near this mall.

Wasn't that one torn down and rebuilt? I know a few years back there was a price chopper that looked like that near the Shoppingtown Mall, which is now the Shoppingtown Center.

I was in that area the other day, and it was torn down and a new building is in its place.

[shakethis1234]

what r u talking about new Price chopper is on milder ave right next to the red light district about a .25 of a mile from the old price chopper it still stands the old chopper is in the Former Hechender/price chopper plaza shoppingtown mall is still shopping town mall they r tearing down 100000sf to build a little 65000 sf plaza but that just been put on hold for another year for more planing because blue cross blue shield building their new head quarters next to the mall bring alot of business

[david121]

oops... I meant MARKETPLACE, not shoppingtown.

I get alll of the syracuse malls confused.

[mikey7290]

I went into a former Price Chopper a couple of years ago.  I think it might have been on Erie Blvd. in one of the Syracuse suburbs.  It was in a plaza that used to have what I think was a Hechinger at one end.  It was vacant at the time.  The former Price Chopper was next to a card and party store and at the time I was there part of the old Price Chopper was closed off and vacant while the rest of it was a Big Lots.  I could tell it used to be a Price Chopper because of the entryway to the store.  It looked just like the typical Price Chopper front, complete with the large concrete columns and glass gridlike panels where the sign was supposed to be.

[mikey7290]

Originally posted by mikey7290
I went into a former Price Chopper a couple of years ago.  I think it might have been on Erie Blvd. in one of the Syracuse suburbs.  It was in a plaza that used to have what I think was a Hechinger at one end.  It was vacant at the time.  The former Price Chopper was next to a card and party store and at the time I was there part of the old Price Chopper was closed off and vacant while the rest of it was a Big Lots.  I could tell it used to be a Price Chopper because of the entryway to the store.  It looked just like the typical Price Chopper front, complete with the large concrete columns and glass gridlike panels where the sign was supposed to be.

What I meant to say was that the former Hechinger was vacant at the time I was there, not the former Price Chopper.

[shakethis1234]

yea that former hechinger/ price chopper plaza the only place left now is old country buffet its a really nice shipping center but in a bad area at one time that plaza had a dicks sporting goods but moved in 2000 to shopping town mall than price chopper moved that was a nice store but what hurt that plaza was when hechenger closed they owned that store bankruptsy court took that store just realsed it to the centers owner past year its now called Taco Bell Blaza

[AmesNewington1]

I shop with my mom at the Newington Price Chopper on the Berlin Turnpike for weekly groceries. The main reason we shop there is for the gas discount. While PC is set up nicely and is nice in design, the service at this store is not as it should be. One scenerio would be last week we went on Saturday for our weekly trip. We got there way after 7AM. The food court opens at 7AM, however when we wanted something, the girl there said she didn't have the register and that we'd pay up front. The only good thing to come out of this was that the cashier up front didn't even bother to ring the drinks up at the end of our trip, so we got them for free. But is that how you run a business.

The second problem was that when we went to the bread department and asked for a bread, which was already made and out on the table, the guy there told us they weren't ready. Again, they were sitting on the counter, he was too lazy or arrogant to get us one. My mom didn't want to speak up though. Things at this store are just not run properly. The baggers can't pack either, but that can be any store.

Another funny story was when a bagger was told to open the liquor cases, she didn't think she had to turn the light on in the case and acted surprised that there was even a light. How ignorant. I'm not a picky person and neither are my parents, but some of the activities we see at this store are just plain idiotic. Maybe it's just this town. No store in Newington has any competent employees, except Target and Shaw's, which I'd rather go to.

BTW, I like Price Chopper in general, and my family LOVES the Southington one; a very good group of employees and a spacious store. Sometimes I wish stores from other towns can be planted down here.

[Marc82]

A bagger was told to open up the liquor case? Only someone in management is supposed to do that - whether it be the store manager, grocery department manager, or the checkout manager.

PC registers are locked and unlocked with a credit card type device. The person in the food court is supposed to walk up to checkout department and get it to unlock the register.


If you're ever traveling in Bristol stay away from the PC on Farmington Ave (Route 6). The place is dirty, gross, and disgusting. The employees are rude and nasty. And most of the employees there look like they belong in the Kennel Club. (i.e. they're not very nice to look at).


BTW, is there still an attractive young woman working at the Newington PC named Lucy Kristoff? She was one of my supervisors in Southington for a few months.

[AmesNewington1]

You know I didn't even think about why a bagger would open a liquor case. Today, the case wasn't even opened at 8:30AM and supposed to open at 8AM.

The employee at the food court is simply too lazy. It's 7:15 by the time we get to the store. So, I got a milk there and again the lady says you have to pay up front. I just drank it throughout the store and threw it away at the register. If that's the way they are going to be, I can be just as fiesty!!! And that old guy at the Artisan Bread area was turning away the customers when they asked for a bread that was sitting on the counter. We didn't even bother.

I'm talking my dad in to letting me and my mom just go back to Shaw's. We feel welcome over there and they may not have the food court, but we never really walk out of Shaw's upset. Don't get me wrong PC over here is clean and organized, but don't let that fool ya!

[Marc82]

Price Chopper may be opening a store in Durham, Connecticut, their first in the Middletown area. However some interesting notes. First off they will not be allowed to use the name Price Chopper. They have to use the original name Central Market. And 2 they are not allowed to have a pharmacy in the store.

http://myrecordjournal.com/site/index.cfm?newsid=19182628&BRD=2755&PAG=461&dept_id=592754&rfi=8

[AmesNewington1]

I hate to complain, but here's some more rant on the Newington Price Chopper...

My mom and I decided to go shopping yesterday evening instead of in the morning. We had been going to Shaw's for two weeks with no problems but my dad hounds my mom to go to PC for the gas discount. I tried to keep an open mind but it's just ridiculous how unprofessional this store (location) is. In the deli, they are slow. We ended up getting this guy who talked to the other workers the whole time and breathed all over the deli meat. Then my mom asks for a pound and a half of ham, and we only ended up getting a pound. Then we go to the fish department and get waited on by this weird guy who dressed like a girl with earings. My mom asked for 2 1/2 lbs. of fish that was on sale. He only gave us a pound. Luckily my mom told him she asked for more. He looked mad like he didn't want to sell anything.

In general, the aisles of this store are way too small and on top of that, they have to put those displays on the floor in the middle of the aisles.

I sure hope Shaw's stays around for a long time. In the years I have went shopping with my mom, I never found problems with any other supermarket. We've shopped at Southington PC, Stop and Shop, Food Mart (A&P), Shaw's, and even to Big Y twice.

I fume about how the Newington PC is, not only because it's there, but that it was Ames and I wanted something to replace it to not be so unpleasant to visit. Oh well.

Is Bristol still bad? How is it compared to the Bristol Shaw's? I always hear Shaw's is a low end store, but I don't think so.

Out of all of these stores, I actually prefer the Food Mart in Berlin CT.

[Marc82]

Originally posted by AmesNewington1
Is Bristol still bad? How is it compared to the Bristol Shaw's? I always hear Shaw's is a low end store, but I don't think so.

I don't mean to bash the company that sign my paycheck PC in Bristol is blah. Dirty and disgusting. And the people who work there are not very friendly and most of them not very attractive.

That being said most of the time PC in Bristol does more business than Shaw's in Bristol, though on the day before New Years Eve Shaw's was busier than PC in Bristol. Shaw's in Bristol is dying a slow and painful death similar to the now-defunct Southington Store.

[AmesNewington1]

Luckily, Newington is still doing pretty well since Food Mart closed. When I am on residential roads in my area, I see mostly Shaw's paper bags in the recycling bin followed by Stop and Shop and then PC. I have seen the parking lot pretty busy, the same, if not more full than PC. I wouldn't think any business like a supermarket would do badly on the turnpike since at times like weekends, you can't get in some stores, or at least to park.

However, I have no idea how Shaw's will do once Aldi opens later this year practically in front of Shaw's plaza.

[Marc82]

Again I don't want to bad mouth the company that signs my paychecks, but I heard the Bristol Price Chopper doesn't do very well and is in fact "bleeding money."

[AmesNewington]

Originally posted by Marc82
Again I don't want to bad mouth the company that signs my paychecks, but I heard the Bristol Price Chopper doesn't do very well and is in fact "bleeding money."

Marc, can you explain what you mean by "bleeding money"? I'm confused!:question:

Anyway, how would you compare business of the Bristol PC to the Bristol Shaw's, since they are next to each other?

Of course, you have to consider the fact that Stop and Shop and ShopRite are along Route 6 as well, and then there is a Stop and Shop on Pine Street. I know Stop and Shop is now plenty big and inviting.

Personally, I really think something is not right with Price Chopper. When they expanded in CT between 2003-2005, the stores were great, but now I'm not so sure. Now Marc, I believe your Southington store is the best, only because that is the regional office location as well, and to me, the manager you have keeps things in order just by observing her by watching. Be lucky you are at Southington. If my dad could be off work to drive us there, we might shop there.

My mom is convinced she got food poisoning from the Blueberry muffins from the Newington store.

[Marc82]

Originally posted by AmesNewington
Marc, can you explain what you mean by "bleeding money"? I'm confused!:question:

It's an expression that means the store is losing lots of money.

Anyway, how would you compare business of the Bristol PC to the Bristol Shaw's, since they are next to each other?

Neither one of them was that busy today. My friend who works at The Shaw's said Wednesdays and Thursdays are typically slow. And there were certainly a lot more people at the Southington PC when I picked up my paycheck this morning before heading to Bristol.

I know Stop and Shop is now plenty big and inviting.

Even though I don't really like shopping at Stop & Shop (there prices seem really high to me), I love the new Farmington Avenue Store in Bristol. It's so much bigger, cleaner, and brighter than the one in Southington. I almost wish they would rip down what's left of the Shaw's Plaza in Southington and build a new Stop & Shop in its place.

Now Marc, I believe your Southington store is the best, only because that is the regional office location as well, and to me, the manager you have keeps things in order just by observing her by watching.

Yes. I believe you're right. And that's the problem. They spend way too much time making sure the Southington store is perfect they don't take the time to inspect the other stores to notice the problems I have observed. (in Bristol. That's the only other PC I've been too). And Yes. Ms. Blackington-Harris (the store manager) runs a very tight ship. She doesn't put up with any BS. I like her because I rarely see her angry. We just got a new assistant manager to replace Mr. Carnivale and I'm not so sure about him. It seems like this new assistant manager doesn't have a clue.

My mom is convinced she got food poisoning from the Blueberry muffins from the Newington store.

Again not to bash the company that signs my paychecks, but I'm convinced I got food poisioning from stromboli from the Southington Store. For the 3 days prior to Christmas they thought it was gonna be really busy, so they scheduled the regular overnight cashier for the regular 11PM-7AM shift and a backup cashier to work 10PM-2AM. The back up one was me. I got out at 2AM, bought a stromboli. Drove home. Microwaved it. Ate it and immediately got sick. I mean I must've barfed 4 or 5 times and had other nasty things happen to me. I was so bad, that I had to call out sick on Christmas Eve.