A In Pleasant H.
Yelp
I wrote a review almost 3 years ago. How I'd been a long time customer since this location originally opened as 365, and how it seems to be going downhill. I'm starting to believe the internet hype about the Amazonification of Whole Foods.
I was there today. Almost 5pm, the hot bar and salad bar was a disgrace. I'd understand at 3-4 pm, but not as dinner approaches. Many hot pans were empty, but worse were the one that had crusted over or had had burnt out food around the perimeter of the pan. Take the stuff away if there's no replacement... I'd be hard pressed to believe they're meeting any time-based standards. Most of the pizza looked dried out.. I decided to take two slices anyway. As I walked away, I watched a toddler pick the pepperoni off the slices, while his mother watched. Yech!
The Salad bar side wasn't much better. I frequently make a salad there and put the flaked salmon over the top. I looked at it, couldn't even believe it was food... I thought they'd put gray pencil sharpenings in the salmon pan.
I'm sorry I didn't think to take pictures of how bad the offerings looked.
I used to love their desserts, would enjoy a slice of cake or two. Not only have the slices gotten tiny, the last few times I tried, old favorites tasted awful. There's no way they they haven't cut back on quality... old favorites like Berry Chantilly and Chocolate Eruption cake taste awful now. I bought a 1/2 pie last month to try, and had to throw it out... I think the #1 ingredient was Vaseline.
The produce room has been decimated compared to years past, but I knew to expect that.. so can't complain when something meets expectations. Shockingly, the olive bar remains high quality.
At checkout, I asked the cashier to tape my pizza slice box. I was politely told they no longer have tape. Really? The staff member was actually very friendly, and even laughed when I exclaimed, "thank you Jeff! How much are you saving on tape?" I'd already paid, but I returned my pizza. Those slice boxes never stay level in a grocery bag, and I wasn't having the slices slide out into my bag. To repeat, the staff member handled it all perfectly. As I walked away, I asked where customer service was located... the cashier gestured towards the woman working behind him. She was also great. I dont want to cause trouble for her, but she agreed about the tape... I felt she was on the customer's side! They couldn't put my pizza back - I sure hope saving a few inches of tape made the waste worth it.
Sadly, when I got home, and reviewed my register tape, I found items that had a 50% off yellow sticker on them were not discounted. I don't know if that should be caught by the scanner or the cashier. One of three stickers was applied.
This used to be my go-to store. Now, more and more, I go to Lunardis for a nice experience or drive into Berkeley for great produce and prepared foods at Berkeley Bowl. It's not really convenient, but I'm retired and I'd I'd rather spend the extra time than be repeatedly disappointed.