H-E-B — Local services in San Antonio

Edit: As of 10/24, the store has gotten better again. There is still room for improvement, but a lot is right. The wine section is strong for it's size and the wine guy, Dante, is very knowledgeable. Also he's super helpful and will special order whateveryou need, including beer. There are more checkers on the registers. Bakery seems to have improved. Regular donut case is back. Still couldn't find bratwurst. However, it is back to being quick and convenient, though with a necessarily smaller selection given the size of the store. I'm really glad HEB got things back in shape because I can't stand Lincoln Heights when I'm just trying to do regular shopping and not waste time.

Prior review: Unfortunately, this HEB has gone down hill. I've shopped here for 20 years and its been my favorite HEB because it's generally more convenient than Lincoln Heights or Austin Highway. However, there's been an obvious change in management policies that has made the store less convenient. In fact, it seems like the managers have intentionally made the store less convenient and friendly.

The produce has been rearranged so the more popular items such as apples are now in a narrower row, causing back up.

The bakery is focused on single servings so the donuts are now individually packaged and you cannot pick out your own from the display. They do have pre-packaged dozens but only with glazed or glazed/chocolate iced. The 2 bite brownies we bought yesterday were liquid in the middle - severely undercooked.

The rotisserie chickens are pulled from that display before 8pm and are inconsistently available during the day. In fact, a lot of displays seem to be getting packed up in the evenings so you're kinda screwed if you want something for dinner late.

They do not carry bratwurst. You can several kinds of chicken or vegetarian sausage but not brats. Even on Memorial Day.

Shelves constantly have empty sections, especially on weekends.

The most egregious issue is that I routinely see the same three managers standing around talking instead of working. They stand right in the way, usually at the intersection of produce, bakery, and deli, with their backs towards all of the customers who have to go around them. This is a small HEB and it requires a good management team, people willing to support the folks on the registers and help customers around the store. We've been blessed with folks like that who have kept this HEB running well. Now, we seem to have managers who think running a small store is beneath them and are treating it like a convenience store. The regular staff are still friendly and helpful, although I'm not seeing some folks I've seen regularly for many years. But, on the whole, this HEB has gone from great to frustrating in a very short period of time. Because of the construction at Lincoln Heights, I'm now doing my regular shopping at Austin Highway, even though it lacks a lot of more expensive products and I only go to the little HEB to pick up odds and ends. I may stop doing that, though, if I have to fight a crowded produce section, work around lazy managers, and keep finding...

Basically you just try to survive. Firat Feat: find parking place. Plus 5 if you find one in one pass. Plus 7 if you park without having to remove 3 shopping carts and fight off someone coming the wrong way. Feat two: entering the store. Thus is hard. Plus 2 points if you make it through the narrow doors jammed up with junk vending machines and 47 people with parked carts oblivious to what they are doing. Plus 7 if you get a cart, get in , and only have to weave past 10 people or less trying to figure out how to get through that narrow door. Feat 3: shopping. Plus 2 if you manage to get jammed up in an aisle 5 times or less by a combination of hopelessly lost shoppers who are new to shopping and employees who decide its wise to stand around in groups, holding convos. Plus 7 if you can shop and only get sideswiped by shoppers 3x or less. Feat 4: checkout. You've made it this far, but this is the hardest part. Plus 2 if you get in a 15 items or less lane that is 17 people deep. This is normal, so just roll with it. Plus 5 if you manage to find a lane that doesn't close up in your arrival. This is a victory. Embrace it. Plus 7 if the manager notices there are 3,839 people in 3 lanes and opens a 4th. You are in the zone. Be happy. Plus 10 if you somehow manage to get in a line with maybe 3 people with moderate amounts of stuff and nothing weird happens, like 'do you take out of town checks and can I pay for part of this with monopoly money and can you go to the other side of the store for 14 cartons of cigarettes?' IF you get this, rejoice. You are doing something right. Even if they stop to change out cashiers right when it's your turn, do not complain. You're having a great run. Plus 1,000 if you park, shop, check out and nothing weird happens and you can get out alive and in 10 minutes or so. In 21 years of shopping there,this gas happened twice. Go out and treat yourself. Feat Five: getting to your car. At this point your blood pressure is approximately 250/175. It might be 325/260 if you tried to ask the manager 'have you ever personally tried to navigate this and shop here?' Dont ask. Instead of 'was there a problem?' You'll get a terribly defensive response. Just celebrate you are almost to freedom. Let it go. Take arginine and magnesium after. Lower your blood pressure. Go to the gym. Do something. Just do all you can to get to your car. Dont get distracted, because there may be grifters hiding behind cars. Be alert. Almost there!! Feat Six: Getting safely in your car and actually pulling put of your space. Plus 2 if you pull out without being harassed for bus money to Houston or a family of 9 standing behind your vehicle having a reunion. Plus 5 if you pull out without someone neglecting their kid who is about to run straight into your car because hes unsupervised. Plus 10 if you actually exit and get out of the parking lot unscathed. This is how you win at this HEB. 95% of HEBs are pretty good. This one has historically been a cross between hunger games...

HEB Oak Pak used to be a great smaller-sized grocery store. I have lived in the neighborhood and grocery-shopped there since it was Handy Andy! No more! It is awful. The people who work there are rude and unhelpful. The meat selection is ridiculously poor. The fish is not fresh-I have returned stinky, spoiled fish three times. The produce is sub-standard. My gosh, you cannot even find a bag of kale or a shiitake mushroom! The management puts all HEB brand or the very poor Hill Country Village brand in your face, often not offering an alternative. They have began to fill their aisles with junk food and junk products, even junk clothing! They obviously are not catering to the demands of the immediate neighborhood, but are now far more interested in the neighborhood across the freeway. It is always s disappointment to go there, even though I just use it as convenience store. They apparently do not know we have better options-Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods very close. They will get my business. HEB Oak Park loses my business. Unless you are desperate, do not darkened their rude, deficient,...