Strack & Van Til — Local services in North Township

My wife and I have been shopping here for the last 7 years (since we moved to Whiting). The store has always had a $2 rebate on Oberweis bottles and we have made it a habit to return the bottles in bulk. We've never had a problem doing so and we usually bring back 40-50 bottles at a time. We attempted to return our bottles tonight (09/17/24) and the woman working the customer service department (Vanessa, if I remember correctly) immediately copped an attitude when she seen how many bottles we had, stating that she couldn't take them all. It was about 8:50pm and the customer service area closes at 9pm so I believe that's what she was mad about. We explained to her that we have been doing this for years now and have never had an issue, after not being able to provide a valid answer as to why she couldn't take them all she asked if we'd like to speak to her manager about it and called him to the customer service dept. The manger who's name is Richard/Bob arrived and repeated what she said, adding that he could only take 12 bottles. I asked why, once again explaining that we always bring them back in bulk to which he first responded that he didn't have anywhere to store the bottles, however he also stated that he would need to check the Oberweis policy. I told him I could understand not having a place to store the bottles but not the part about "checking the policy" once again because we've been returning the bottles in bulk. I went on to ask him had things changed since a few months ago to which he responded that he wasn't sure and repeated that he could take 12 today. My wife asked if we brought the rest back tomorrow if he would be able to take them and he said yes... before asking that we call him in the morning to make sure... We decided to leave the 12 bottles and after loading up my vehicle and unloading it, I had to load it up again when he could had simply taken the bottles. I know for a fact that Oberweis doesn't have a limit on their bottle buy back policy because I used to get them delivered to my condo back when we lived in Chicago. I also know that the store doesn't have one because we've been doing this for 7 years now. The lady at customer service clearly didn't want to do her job and Bob's demeanor had us feeling/thinking that he thought we had stolen the bottle or something along those lines. Regardless this entire situation was unnecessary and we will return tomorrow to hopefully speak to another manager, if not I will personally reach out to corporate. In the 7 years I have been going there I have never had a problem with any staff members or any problem returning bottles. The entire store doesn't deserve 1 star because they are usually great but Vanessa and Bob's actions tonight have earned this 1 star rating and possible lost a family of...

I'm not sure where all the negative comments are coming from. Since moving to Whiting, Strack is my go-to store. The prices are always cheaper than the competition and they have a wide selection of cheeses and meats. I am here at least once per week and no one is ever rude to me or unpleasant.

Sometimes the younger cashiers seem like they don't care about being there, but they're young cashiers at a grocery store. It's a part-time job and they're making the best of it. I rarely have any questions for the employees because I kind of wander and get what I need or want.

The few times I have interacted with someone, outside of a cashier, they were always nice. I was looking at the milk one time and someone legit asked if I needed help. I put something back another time and one of the guys from the meat department thanked me for putting it back in its normal spot.

Overall, it's not huge like a Mariano's is. It's not going to have your organic, high fiber prunes that your doctor wants you to eat 3x per day. The normal worker will not know if your child Mackenzeigh is going to enjoy the ice cream you bought. But Strack does have staff with a good attitude and an overly decent selection for a...

Initially I was excited of this place because they offered a vast seafood selection that one would not commonly find in other grocers. Twice, I spent over $200 in seafood here and was more disappointed the second time I returned home vs this first. The lake superior white was spoiled both times. The first time I kind of excused it because I figured it was an off day for them, but I still maintained hope because I was in love with the thought of a grocer supplying such variety. A couple of weeks ago when I returned home to refrigerate the product, everything smelled rotten. I would rinse and individually wrap each piece, but ultimately that didn't do any good. The product was slimy and it's funny because it didn't appear that way in the showcased seafood section. Someone knows how to apply lighting well. The sad thing is, fish can sometimes smell fishy when it's a few days old. But when it taste like it's been in a dumpster for a week, one has no choice but to toss out the entire stock. It's almost as if they feel that people don't know or deserve better. I...