H-E-B plus! — Local services in Brownsville

It is always easier to just tell a customer "no"rather than help. Traveling hours from out of town for our daughter's wedding in South Padre, I was already at a disadvantage trying to order the wedding cake- a 4 layer, 8 inch-for the small ceremony. I called around to several places before settling on HEB. Not knowing the area, I was directed by one to store in Corpus Christi to the one located on Waldron where a very nice young lady in the bakery went out of her way to help with the order. When the day arrived this past Friday to go pick up the cake, to my absolute shock and disbelief, my GPS read that the location was over 2 hours away from where we were and the wedding was starting in 4 hours and was 30 minutes in the opposite direction. I immediately started to cry over my colossal mistake. I called the store and apologized profusely and explained the confusion and the circumstances. It was then that I learned that I should have stressed SOUTH versus just saying "Padre" island because by Corpus Christi it's North Padre--which I never heard of. Talking to the bakery manager, I was directed to try another store near me but to not ask for anything fancy, opt for a plain 2 layer and not to expect that anyone could help. Nearing this location, I asked if she would be able to talk to the manager and she told me she could not, I asked if she could send a picture of my original order, she said no because she had no way of communicating with the other store. I asked if I could have them call her. No, she didn't know who took my order. Every answer was a no when it came to helping even a little. I told her I would pray, thanked her and called the the bakery at this location in Brownsville and still sobbing, was greeted by the bakery manager Paula who listened attentively and then asked where I was. I told her I was turning into the parking lot. I thanked the LORD when Paula told me to come on in and she and Sylvia would make the original order cake for me in time for the wedding. These two ladies were so kind and demonstrated exactly what it means to go above expectations and beyond limitations. They could have easily said no...instead they said no problem.

The cake was beautiful...

i had planned to make arrangements for the mom’s in our family…. I visited all the HEBs in brownsville and figured I’d find Hydrangeas in one of them. The lady in charge of floral dept at last HEB (paredes and 802) i visited suggested we were not gonna find any… i kept asking if they’d have some tomorrow or day after…Monday? “No”, “No”, “Nope”… she said that even if they get anymore, they weren’t gonna sell them….. she said “oh, we have some but we’re not selling any because we know we’re gonna need them”! So, it turns out that HEB advertises hydrangeas pk for $7.96 but even though they have them in stock, they make them into arrangements and sell them at higher profit. One of the managers on sight at same HEB said that all HEBs were doing same thing!!! So what happened to “community partnership”? It’s mostly upsetting because i think about ‘how many people living in brownsville can afford a $65 arrangement’? Anyways, stop saying you have Hydrangeas or bulk fresh flowers because the only flowers you were offering were some wilted roses, carnations, baby breath, green pom poms and a couple of green fillers… none looked as nice as the flowers in the arrangements…....

This HEB is my favorite in Brownsville! The staff are on point and they have a variety of products that are not found in other heb locations.

My only concern is that I see so many people carrying pets or having pets near fruits and vegetables in this location. I thought only service dogs were allowed but these are pets! I see their owners carrying their pet and touching fruits and vegetables!!! My mother is severely allergic to dogs and cat dandruff and saliva!!

Update: HEB most definitely listened to my concerns and new poster regarding only allowing service dogs were in every HEB. Thank you!! And I haven't seen any pets in carts or being carried anymore. I will bump up my rating. Again Thank you!!

2nd Update: nevermind. For a while it was obvious this location was being under investigation with the pet situation. Which I felt heard. But as time passed it went back to the same habit of allowing pets. Dogs in carts or carried. I think it is either someone in management allowing this or the public in general are just rebellious on forcing their pet into places. Both can be...