Stop & Shop — Local services in Middletown

5/22/24 Come on Big Y! Had no choice today but to go in to S&S. I live less than a city block from this store, but have been driving to Big Y in Meriden (Almost to Wallingford!). I'm so sick of buying meat and the next day or 2 it's bad. Nobody wants to do anything either. I was told I was returning too often. I even checked all 3 of my fridges (yeah, I know - owned 2 and new house had 1). Their temps are working correctly. Funny, NOTHING I've bought from Big Y has gone bad, even with the extra drive! I figured I was safe getting can goods... Bagger put everything I bought (18 30ish oz canned veggies for soup) in one filled to the top bag, then proclaimed, "I'm not picking that up!!" I motioned to the scooter I was using, and said, "If she can't pick it up, I sure can't!" The cart guy and cashier separated it into 2 bags. Nobody offered help getting it to the car.

This is in the top 5 places in the state that is handicapped unfriendly! The scooters get moved around wherever they will fit that isn't in the way of EVERYTHING else in the store. They're usually only at one end of the store. I was parking on the R (when facing the store) so that I could be closer & then they got moved to the other end. They rarely get plugged in when they're brought in.

They also put propane tanks at one end of the store (makes sense), but the employees smoke 1/2way between the tanks & the door. Dangerous & stinks up the air close to the door.

This place is also incredibly mismanaged! The only worse manager is the one at the Cromwell Walmart!!

New visit update 11/26/2023: I bought a ham in there a few days before Halloween. I didn't have my glasses. Got home, and my granddaughter went to cook it, but said it smelled. Sure enough, the sell by date was SEPTEMBER 7th! I called. Over the phone, Jim seemed sincere enough. Told me he would not only refund the price, but replace it as well - his idea. The next day I took the ham in along with the receipt showing the date of purchase. He put the refund on a gift card, which was fine. I headed back to get the replacement. They didn't have any hams out. I did need something for dinner that night, so grabbed a couple packages of chicken, and finished the rest of my shopping. I stopped by, and told him they didn't have any hams. I figured he could check with the meat dept to see if they had any in the back. He pointed to the chicken in my cart, and told me he couldn't just give me anything! Give?! A refund and replacement was HIS idea.

Since then, I've bought very little meat from there, and then ONLY if I plan on cooking it that night, and I check the date! I've still gotten a couple packages that went bad within a day. You can think you’re going to cook it that night, and plans change - should still be good the next day. I should mention I live less than a city block from the store, so perishables aren't out that long...

Yesterday was the last straw! I bought a $20+ veggie platter because we were celebrating Thanksgiving (Saturday) to accommodate work schedules. To my absolute embarrassment, when we opened it, the veggies smelled so bad we had to put the platter outside and open windows. This is the 2nd time that has happened! Thank goodness Big Y...

Excellent service and sale prices. Always greeted with a smile in checkout line. Checkout employees are always extremely courteous and friendly, willing to help out in any way they can. Even go so far as to check a price on an item, and if, for some reason, the item was mis stocked, and not actually on sale, they'll still give you the sale price. That goes a long way in my book! Not everywhere will do that anymore. As far as the parking lot, I've found it very easy to maneuver through at any hour. The carts are always collected or in their cart area. If the patrons would simply put them where they belong, it would go a long way to keeping the spaces clear. Unfortunately, some people use the carts and leave them to blow around in the wind. Can't blame stop and shop for the laziness of others. One concern are the people that feel their "entitled " to park in the fire lane, and go shopping. This is dangerous for everyone. Middletown PD should take notice and ticket people. Perhaps then, they'd park where they're supposed to. There's always plenty of parking at the Middletown location. I watched a kid in a Porsche park in the fire lane, and walk 🚶‍♂️ in to go...

The service here may not be great, but it isn't the worst either. And there are some who are terrible, but there are the few who are absolutely wonderful. The thing I like about the store is the easy access to the sales items. This particular Stop and Shop is very keen on keeping end caps, sale aisle, and other department displays neat and full. Management was shaky in the past, but the current store manager is very kind and quick. The deli and grocery you may be most familiar with, but it's the older gentleman in the seafood department who delivers a good neighborly kind of service. He might be a little introverted, which is normal, but he likes to see people, and greet them warmly. Never too excited or pushy, just a relaxed hello. The cashiers seem distracted a lot, and sometimes are caught up in conversations with other employees, which is understandable, but some acknowledgement of some degree would be good. Mostly you get "Hey", or "Hi", and that's it. Whatever they could add to that would be much better than just a quick "Hi",...