H-E-B — Local services in San Antonio

🌟 A Heartfelt Experience I Can’t Shake Off 🌟 I’ve always loved shopping at this H-E-B. H-E-B SoFlo It’s been my go-to for convenience, a great selection, and let’s be honest — some of the best pizza and salads around! But something happened yesterday that really broke my heart, and I feel compelled to share it. While shopping, I witnessed a young man being approached by store security. He was accused of stealing — no explanation, just told he had to leave. Visibly confused and emotional, the young man offered to open his H-E-B tote bag right there to prove his innocence. He was calm, respectful… and vulnerable. But security refused to even look in the bag. Instead security said wait here and they walked away, returned later, and told him they didn’t need to explain anything further — just that he had to leave the store. I couldn’t ignore what I’d seen. I left my cart and stepped outside to talk to him. He told me he’s a student at UTSA, working hard toward a nursing degree. He holds two jobs — one of them in hospitality in the center of our city and the other at another H-E-B — and recently moved back home to help support his mom and younger siblings. He said, “I know I look bummy, but I was just grabbing a few snacks before catching the bus to my second job.” He opened the bag for me: inside were a work shirt, a water bottle,half a bottle of mouthwash, a wallet, a book, some loose change, and a bit of cologne. That’s it. No one from the store came out to speak with him. No one took a moment to see the human in front of them — a young man trying to survive, help his family, and build a future. I want to say this clearly: I love H-E-B. I admire all they’ve done for our communities. They are a Texas treasure, and I hold them to a high standard — because I believe in the good they represent. But this moment? It didn’t reflect the H-E-B I know and love. It showed me how easy it is for someone to be judged unfairly, to be dismissed without cause, and to be made to feel like they don’t belong. This young man may have been alone in that moment, but he wasn’t invisible. I saw him. I heard him. And I hope by sharing this, others will see him too. Even great companies have room to grow. I still believe in H-E-B — and I hope they reflect on this story and use it as a chance to grow in compassion and understanding. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity. Especially when they’re just trying to get through the day. 💔💛 #HEB #CommunityMatters #KindnessFirst...

"Fernando's Bad Night" Upon arriving at the store with a group of more than one hundred other riders, I entered the open gate on the west side of the store's patio area and parked my bicycle. Less that fifteen minutes later, when we went to leave, we found the gate inexplicably closed. Odd. The store was still open. A large volume of customers were entering and exiting. Knowing that using the front exit would create unnecessary conflict with the busy foot traffic, I opened the gate and went to retrieve my bicycle. A few seconds later, I found a surly employee, Fernando had appeared from out of nowhere and was now physically blocking the gate. Gleefully proclaiming that the gate was "Officially Closed" to the crowd now trapped inside it. I pointed out the obvious facts that it was the very same gate that we had entered a short time earlier and that rolling a bunch of bicycles through the crowd at the front door was not a good idea. Thus the existence of the side gate. Nope. "Gates Closed" bleated a smirking Fernando, clearly looking to needlessly create and then escalate a thoroughly ridiculous power trip. By this point, several other customers that were also trapped behind Fernando's gate of ego driven power struggle began to plead with him to simply step aside and let us leave the premises through the very gate we had recently entered. "Gates Closed!" retorted Fernando. When we informed him we would be happy to close the gate behind us he instructed us to "Go Around!!". Which would have been acceptable, but again, Fernando blocked our exit and pulled out his cellphone, apparently hoping to create and post a viral video. This exercise in grotesque comedy would have been funny if Fernando hadn't been so needlessly and menacingly smarmy. Instead it was just deeply upsetting. It seems unlikely that this is Fernando's first foray into odious behavior, he seemed fairly proficient at it, and it almost certainly won't be his last, unfortunately. But for the dozens of us that witnessed Fernando's bad night out, it was definitely our last visit to that HEB. There are plenty of other options. Most of them without a single Fernando. And we will be happy to serve as witnesses for the prosecution when Fernando takes his tendencies to their...

As far as grocery stores go, this H-E-B manages to pack a fair amount of variety in regards to food in something slightly larger than a Dollar General. However, with the reduction in space also comes with a reduction in some options. There's no dedicated meat market, which along with the bakery, deli, etc. was replace with a pizza place that I haven't tried. It's probably okay, but given the time of posting this, I'd much rather cook for myself if given the chance.

It definitely caters to a more "jet-set" crowd, with an excellent selection of bottled drinks as well as a higher "class" of items reserved for the upscale H-E-B's in the city, like the Lincoln Heights location. It even offers a few things that Central Market (think Whole Foods, H-E-B edition) occasionally lacks like shallots (which is more a fault of CM than a boon here), but the dearth of fresh veggies outside a few interesting picks is obnoxious when this is your closest location.

Also, while the store manages to pack quite a bit into a small square footage, it does so at the cost of aisle spacing. Aisles are barely navigable with two average people standing shoulder to shoulder, much less having a cart. I would have been annoyed by this pre-2020, but now it's absolutely infuriating.

Think of this H-E-B not so much as a tiny grocery store but as an expanded bodega/convenience store and you're probably going to be okay with it. It's perfect for picking up a few essentials or a cold soda and pizza after work, especially if you're from out of town and don't expect to be cooking anything crazy outside of a burger. Otherwise, I would recommend trying another H-E-B in a decent-ish neighborhood to get the largest selection of what you need without having to make due with the somewhat gimped...