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Post by jno on Mar 24, 2016 18:44:19 GMT
Insipired by: Rant With Stanton Apologies to those outside the UK for this week's vote but this topic needs voting on. There are some shocking cafeterias in UK supermarkets, doing their worst to entice us to spend more when we get in there complete with dirty cutlery, rubbish strewn all over the floor, bone-idle, stupid and/or rude staff and more uncleared tables than you can count. Ok, we don't expect Michelin stars but we should expect less of the aforementioned. But which is the worst? Surely there must be some good ones out there?! Pick TWO! |
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Post by jno on Mar 24, 2016 20:33:58 GMT
Tough call for me. Morrisons undoubtedly top of the crack pile here for me. Second place is Asda, just ahead of Tesco in thurd.
Surprisingly no real complaints about Sainsbury's although the one I was in today could have been cleaner.
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Post by daz on Mar 24, 2016 21:32:06 GMT
I've never been in Tesco or Sainsburys cafe and never saw a Waitrose shop let alone cafe. I refuse point blank to shop at M&S, detest the shop with a passion. I think it is more the people who shop in it than the actual shop
To be honest I would rather find a small independant cafe than give more money to supermarkets. After working in them for 8 years I try to give them as little of my cash as possible.
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Post by jno on Mar 24, 2016 22:32:34 GMT
M&S is my only hope where I am abroad daz and I regularly frequent their Bratislava store for my crumpets, Marmite, squash, Percy Pig biscuits, over-sized Garlic Naan breads and other such British (and Scottish!) food. In terms of a decent cuppa tea their café there is super cheap, clean and streets ahead of the poor imitation cuppas you get in most Austrian supermarkets. I agree about the customers in M&S though - when myself and Mrs jno went in an M&S cafe in Wales recently the average age dropped by about 50 years. Waitrose is cool, get yourself a customer card and its a free cuppa tea!! The same applies to the coffee/tea machines in the High Street 'Little Waitrose' in the middle of Cardiff city centre. Mrs jno has Scottish blood and is always interested in seeking out anything that is free of charge. I never complain of course. Waitrose is super expensive for everything else though.  |
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Post by daz on Mar 24, 2016 22:41:57 GMT
They don't have a Waitrose in Scotland, maybe they think there is no money to be made supplying us with our haggis, neeps and tatties, with a wee dram of 'pure' malt scotch to wash it down with. Oh well, at least we still have deep fried mars bars to keep us going I grudge paying for food out, I usually just wait until I get home. Funny though, the Wife never does much shopping with me, no idea why  |
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Post by gustav on Mar 25, 2016 0:10:30 GMT
This is a very important issue. One that needs voting on as jno says.
I have complained about Morrisons but - despite their considerable shortcomings - don't find them as miserable and unpleasant as Tesco. I actually don't mind Asda and have never been in a Waitrose. M&S is all rightish. However, the few Sainsburys cafes I have been in have been truly awful, especially near to closing time, the staff can't be bothered and the food is poor, although not as bad as Tesco. So Tesco and Sainsbury win my vote. Of course all of them should be shunned in favour of a independent local cafe as daz says, or even a reliable chain. But sometimes circumstances force you into such places and really there is no excuse for the poor service, unpleasant surroundings and bad food you find in most of them.
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Post by daz on Mar 25, 2016 8:07:40 GMT
This is a very important issue. One that needs voting on as jno says. I have complained about Morrisons but - despite their considerable shortcomings - don't find them as miserable and unpleasant as Tesco. I actually don't mind Asda and have never been in a Waitrose. M&S is all rightish. However, the few Sainsburys cafes I have been in have been truly awful, especially near to closing time, the staff can't be bothered and the food is poor, although not as bad as Tesco. So Tesco and Sainsbury win my vote. Of course all of them should be shunned in favour of a independent local cafe as daz says, or even a reliable chain. But sometimes circumstances force you into such places and really there is no excuse for the poor service, unpleasant surroundings and bad food you find in most of them. Most of these cafes are run at a loss, that is why they are now teaming up with large chains to run this part of the business. The big ASDA in Aberdeen has a McDonalds, as if it couldn't get anymore chavie, and Tesco has Starbucks, which I don't frequent under any circumstances. I think I am going to pop into Morrisons over the weekend and see if my old pal Wendy is still there. |
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Post by ace5150 on Mar 25, 2016 9:51:19 GMT
I love complaining to the cafes, LOVE it. ASDA dread me going in.
The food looks similar to a blocked drain after sitting under those lights for hours at a time.
I am very clued up on food legalities and these stores ALWAYS fall short with display counters.
Food should be probed regularly (ignored) displayed for a maximum time (ignored), food handlers adhering to HACCP and EHO guidelines (blatantly ignored).
The best is IKEA, the rest are poor.
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Post by ace5150 on Mar 25, 2016 9:53:49 GMT
This is a very important issue. One that needs voting on as jno says. I have complained about Morrisons but - despite their considerable shortcomings - don't find them as miserable and unpleasant as Tesco. I actually don't mind Asda and have never been in a Waitrose. M&S is all rightish. However, the few Sainsburys cafes I have been in have been truly awful, especially near to closing time, the staff can't be bothered and the food is poor, although not as bad as Tesco. So Tesco and Sainsbury win my vote. Of course all of them should be shunned in favour of a independent local cafe as daz says, or even a reliable chain. But sometimes circumstances force you into such places and really there is no excuse for the poor service, unpleasant surroundings and bad food you find in most of them. Most of these cafes are run at a loss, that is why they are now teaming up with large chains to run this part of the business. The big ASDA in Aberdeen has a McDonalds, as if it couldn't get anymore chavie, and Tesco has Starbucks, which I don't frequent under any circumstances. I think I am going to pop into Morrisons over the weekend and see if my old pal Wendy is still there. This is true, the profit margin is very low, but off set by stores huge profits. Compass lost the ASDA contract last year, ASDA now run their own cafes now. |
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Post by ace5150 on Mar 25, 2016 11:18:25 GMT
Watch the management $hit themselves when you take pics of the food on display. Congealed bean juice, dried yolks, sausages sitting in fat. Compare it to the advertised pictures. NOTHING like it at all.
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Post by jno on Mar 25, 2016 12:29:57 GMT
Camera at the ready ... |
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Post by daz on Mar 25, 2016 12:54:40 GMT
Most of these cafes are run at a loss, that is why they are now teaming up with large chains to run this part of the business. The big ASDA in Aberdeen has a McDonalds, as if it couldn't get anymore chavie, and Tesco has Starbucks, which I don't frequent under any circumstances. I think I am going to pop into Morrisons over the weekend and see if my old pal Wendy is still there. This is true, the profit margin is very low, but off set by stores huge profits. Compass lost the ASDA contract last year, ASDA now run their own cafes now. They should all be running their own cafes, it's not rocket science. A great platform to market their own products, but no, they go down the road of frozen meals with a bit of garnish on top. Even though I don't work in the food industry anymore I still get annoyed when i see a food business selling bad product/service, then have the audacity to complain when profits go down. |
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Post by Terry on Mar 25, 2016 15:13:39 GMT
Been in loads of UK supermarkets, but never in any cafe :-( So no vote from me...  |
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Post by ace5150 on Mar 25, 2016 19:11:01 GMT
Firstly, consider the risk. If it's minor, such as dried out eggs, the manager won't give a toss. I have seen food come out of ovens, not being probed to the legal requirement and assuming its safe. Now THAT is a major flaw. Ask for the duty manager and then ask for HIS area manager and contact details so when you contact your local EHO, you want to ascertain you are dealing with the right people.
Pretty sure he won't risk a meeting with his boss, chances are he'll mug you off with vouchers to spend in the store as a gesture of goodwill and closure on the episode, with a guarantee the cafe manager can expect a one way conversation with him later.
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Post by ltd on Mar 28, 2016 17:35:40 GMT
I've only been to the Sainsburys one in Hereford. Had the breakfast - very reasonably priced, staff very nice.
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Post by thewinchester on Mar 28, 2016 23:48:00 GMT
I find that they vary from store to store, rather than brand to brand what's good here maybe be bad some place els, hence why I try and find a local greasy spoon which a lot of the time represents better value.
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Post by Portland Road on Mar 29, 2016 8:14:31 GMT
I don't normally frequent any of them, so I cannot vote.  |
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Post by jno on Apr 2, 2016 4:49:22 GMT
I was in Sainsburys in Ashton Gate in Bristol last week, had a cuppa tea en route to the aeropuerto and noticed a lot of brown splats on the floor behind the counter:  ...and then on the hunt for a tea spoon I noticed they have a bottomless bacteria infested pit option for those looking for old packets of sugar:  Seriously, do customers have to see this in ANY sort of eatery? |
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Post by ace5150 on Apr 2, 2016 9:39:44 GMT
I do. In fact, I can't ignore it. Poor training, lazy staff and ignorant customers.
I saw a lazy staff member use the SAME J-cloth to wipe a high chair where a nappy wearing babe had been sitting, go on to wipe tables afterwards. No sanitizer, no change of cloth, nothing. It was an ASDA as well. No surprises!
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Post by jno on Apr 2, 2016 10:04:08 GMT
I do. In fact, I can't ignore it. Poor training, lazy staff and ignorant customers. I saw a lazy staff member use the SAME J-cloth to wipe a high chair where a nappy wearing babe had been sitting, go on to wipe tables afterwards. No sanitizer, no change of cloth, nothing. It was an ASDA as well. No surprises!  |
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Post by daz on Apr 2, 2016 10:24:32 GMT
A bit harsh on Asda, Ace.
I had the misfortune to work for Safeway, Sainsburys and Asda over the course of 9 years and Sainsburys was by far the worst culprit hygiene wise and surprisingly Asda were the best, they at least still employed cleaners to clean food areas which is more than either Sainsburys or Morrisons/Safeway did, they also gave you cleaning products to clean which is more than Sainsburys did. You will always get staff with poor hygiene, regardless of the company. At Safeway the cafe cook never washed her hands after the toilet! That should be punishable by capital punishment.
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Post by jno on Apr 2, 2016 10:49:22 GMT
I think it probably comes down to a store by store basis. Perhaps the original question is a sweeping generalisation by comparing the complete chain other than 'from personal experience' of course.
That said, I think us forum members here are a good random sample of individuals which is certainly good for a general consensus and 'feeling'. This sort of info is certainly very interesting reading though daz as I was clearly in the dark think they all had similar methods of hygiene.
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Post by ace5150 on Apr 2, 2016 11:11:51 GMT
No professional pride with staff either, dirty whites, oven cloths slung over the shoulder, lack of hair nets, lack of food handling gloves, and that is ASDA.
Sainsburys don't have a cafe in our town, but pretty sure they're all similar.
Weak catering managers can be blamed.
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Post by daz on Apr 2, 2016 18:20:00 GMT
No professional pride with staff either, dirty whites, oven cloths slung over the shoulder, lack of hair nets, lack of food handling gloves, and that is ASDA. Sainsburys don't have a cafe in our town, but pretty sure they're all similar. Weak catering managers can be blamed. They don't employ catering managers Ace, none of them. When I was still baking they stopped employing bakers/confectioners, just took people on minimum wages and got them to work out of a book. No self respecting food professional would work in a supermarket, if they did they would be better off working on the checkouts as you have to leave professional pride in the car park. The uniforms are provided by the company and supposed to be cleaned weakly, but never happened and as for hair nets, aprons, gloves, etc, etc not a chance, you had to beg, steal or borrow. At Sainsburys we once went 3 months without proper over gloves, utter f***ing madness. I remember Sainsburys got this chef in to the cafe and he was really good, he worked on the rigs for years, made his money and was looking for an easy gig to wind down his years, lasted 4 days before he walked out, the day after the health inspectors made a visit and were going to shut the place, the bakery was close to being shut also. I used to enjoy working as a baker, but that place just killed my enthusiasm that I went back to college and retrained. I know they are not on the list, but BHS has a disgusting cafe in its Aberdeen branch, just double yuk! |
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Post by ace5150 on Apr 2, 2016 18:38:12 GMT
I have written to ASDA regarding their bakers and their filthy whites. Never had a reply.
When ASDA had Compass as their cafe and staff canteen contractor, they did employ Catering Managers. However, their spec was to achieve budgets and hit targets. Their 'title' of Catering Manager was just a title as training would be done by Compass.
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Post by ace5150 on Apr 2, 2016 18:46:00 GMT
If you ring ASDA HQ to complain they will just say that any issue you have is down to each individual store manager to resolve. A shambles.
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Post by daz on Apr 2, 2016 19:31:25 GMT
I should have said I worked for ASDA before they were part of Walmart, I suspect they went downhill considerably after this. A free coupon for a cup of tea and a cake in the cafe would usually help see off complaints of any sort in a supermarket. The best way to deal with big supermarkets is to ignore them and take you business elsewhere, this is why we shop at Aldi and Lidl and have done for many years, long before they were so popular. Off topic slightly, but one day at Sainsburys this woman turned up with husband in tow, complaining the condoms they bought were far to big for him and she wanted an exchange for a smaller size or her money back, they only used one! This was comedy gold and must have quickly drew a crowd of of around 15 staff listening in, the poor guys face was a picture. Working in supermarkets was dire on the whole, but every now and again something like this would turn up and brighten up our day. |
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Post by ace5150 on Apr 2, 2016 20:03:03 GMT
Off topic slightly, but one day at Sainsburys this woman turned up with husband in tow, complaining the condoms they bought were far to big for him and she wanted an exchange for a smaller size or her money back, they only used one!. Ouch! Been there myself before realising I'd used a bin liner! Easy mistake! |
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Post by jno on Apr 2, 2016 20:09:17 GMT
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Post by daz on Apr 3, 2016 9:30:55 GMT
Staff had their own car park in this ASDA, customers could not get in it, but to be fair if you work for a supermarket you cannot usually afford a car.
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