Kroger — Local services in Longview

Is it possible to give a -5 star review? Maybe not, but here goes. I have been to Kroger's all across the U.S, while traveling for work. I absolutely love Kroger's, especially the Kroger's Marketplace. Moved here to Longview 3 years ago and WOW!!! This is THE WORST Kroger's I have ever been to. Customer service, here, is non-existent (minus about 4 employees who have highly exceptional customer service skills: Jamoya, Bryan, Danny, Troni and miss Deborah). The rest? Horrible! Will talk to you as if you are supposed to know the answer to what you are asking (only because they don't know the answer and want to deflect onto you). They will rush you to leave the store starting about 2 hours before closing (they over do it on the P A system every 15 seconds letting you know they will be closing and you will be stuck out if you don't hurry and grab only what you need before closing... Nowhere else has that ever been done!!). Store is just as ghetto as any Walmart from the big cities. If you want to know what a real Kroger's looks like and how it is ran, visit the one in Saginaw, TX located at 4750 W Bailey Boswell Rd, Fort Worth, TX 76179. They are the best one I have ever been to (and I lived there for years). There is an older lady who will practically stand behind you and constantly ask you if you are ok and ask if you need help, every 2 seconds... and there is another older lady who is a real you know what. She nags and complains about any and every one and thing. All day long and all night long (depending on the shift she is working). She threatens customers to close the store down because she doesn't feel good, or if she starts crying out of nowhere and tells everyone her problems... makes it to where nobody wants to go there. She has her picks and lets only a certain group of people steal right in front of her and lets them walk out... meanwhile, as soon as they walk out, she literally tells the rest of us at self checkout how they were stealing and didn't care about the store and how if she would have known, she would have called the cops... and when asked why she let them do it (we all have seen her allow it), she goes into victim mode and starts a whole other rant. smh... The meats are nassssty!!! I know a great steak (I am a chef)... and their meat is super low-end and gross. Bought meat from there 1 time and cooked my steak medium rare... with a slight sear to it (2-2 1/2 min on each side) with butter. I did one of there "steaks" that way and it came out super dry, gray and tasteless. Never again will I ever buy any meat products from them. They use dye to make their meats look fresh.... but it most definitely is not. We'll just say it is on the line between growing something inside it and decaying. They add dye and wrap it up again and sell it. I have seen it with my own eyes. Kroger's Corporate needs to shut this location down completely.... because this town does not deserve...

So I used to think NOTHING could turn me off from Kroger until TONIGHT! Best sales…best selection & what I used to think was the best customer service but after tonight, NOPE! I’d say Walmart Supercenter has them beat. What store literally won’t let you check out when you’re in line with a basket full of groceries totaling over $150 that you need for the church Thanksgiving lunch b/c it’s 3 minutes after close? There was literally a man checking out in front of me! I mean it’s not like they had to do it b/c they had already shuffled us to the, “Do it yourself” line. I mean really? I drove over half an hour to get here!!!!! 3 minutes after close & you won’t let me get my stuff? The cherry on top was having to wait 10 minutes for them to unlock the door to let me out! And look…it’s 12:16…I’m already in my car & wrote a review! I think I could have gotten my groceries. Oh wait…people don’t do unto others anymore. This Thanksgiving I’m grateful that despite how others treat me, I don’t let it ricochet off me & screw things up for everyone else. My sweet senior citizens that don’t have blood family will still get to celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow w/what I promised them if I have to fly to the moon & go w/o sleep to cook it all for them. Kroger Karen won’t ruin it for them. Sometimes all you have is how you treat people. I just hope Kroger Karen feels better about herself. Now that she got to exuberate some of that authoritative energy on making sure everyone “didn’t” get what they came for…maybe now, she can use it for good & actually help people find what they need instead of turning off some of the lights at 13 minutes before close & making everyone feel like they’re on that supermarket rush game show. We know Karen…you get paid either way. News flash! Try going above & beyond. Maybe then, there would be less self checkouts reminding you just how much more stamina they have than you & less people like me reminding corporate that despite you physically doing less, the short interaction time I had w/you let me know you could care less if you ever had or helped a customer again EVER! You’re just doing your time. Prob one of the reasons there’s only one Kroger in Longview. Complacency kills & there’s always someone out there that would feel blessed to be where you are. You could have been a life saver & I would have remembered you for a completely different reason…. but instead, even when I told you how far I drove & what I needed it for you didn’t even care & then made me wait on YOU. If pulling rank made you feel better about yourself then I take it all back. Every dog has their day, right? Woof woof! Glad I could help in letting you get yours. God Bless Kroger Karen & people….if you can’t check out BY closing….step AWAY from the cart (no matter where you are in the store &/or what’s in it) & JUST LEAVE! Otherwise you’re just getting steps in...

I keep trying to shop there and support local, but they make it very difficult. The morning manager is a real enjoyable person (being extremely sarcastic there) and the other manager is nice, but doesn't really care about anything. I went to get a raincheck for an item and in the middle of doing that, she stopped helping me and went to help an elderly man - went to the office with a question and everything for him. Now, I was on my lunch break and I feel quite sure this man is retired. I even brought that to her attention and she didn't care. I'm 60 years old and am pretty "old school" on manners and helping customers and they show nothing like I was taught. Then when I pulled up Body Armor on my phone it brought up 6 packs for $4.99 in 2 different flavors and they had none and said they couldn't give me a rain check because it wasn't in the printed ad. I guess I'm going to stick with Albertson's and WalMart unless something changes at Kroger. I stayed away for several months and am trying to go back because it's a little more convenient, but I will NOT be treated like I don't matter and continue...