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2006-01-06 22:54:17 I saw the video of the egg farms. They were disgusting Wegmans people were so arrogant —ColagedoBaldosomo
2006-05-26 22:44:41 Wegmans' alcohol policy, although respectable, can also be inconvenient. My boyfriend, who is 22, wanted to buy some beer for himself, so knowing that they wouldn't sell it to him if I were there (I'm 20), we walked through the store separately, doing our own shopping, and planned to meet back at the car. I saw he was taking an extra long time at checkout—apparently while he was checking out, an employee approached the cashier to inform him that my boyfriend had arrived at the store with someone else, and they needed to card me if he wanted to buy beer.
Neighbors of ours, both in their mid-20's, went to Wegmans one day and the man went in to quickly buy some drinks while the woman waited in the car. While the man was checking out, an employee approached the car asking to see the woman's ID. Isn't this going a bit too far? I understand and respect what they are trying to do, but at the same time, I would be interested in seeing the exact wording of their policy. What if I had gone with my parents instead of my boyfriend? Would they have been prohibited from buying beer because I was with them? —RachelBlumenthal
2006-06-28 08:08:08 More on Wegmans's insane alcohol policy: Once, I ran into Wegmans to buy beer with some friends —I was 21 and they were 19 and 20. They went in, bought pop and chips, and left. I was buying a twelve pack. After putting the beer in my trunk, a security guard approached me and demanded that I returned to the store with him and the beer or else he was going to call the police. He was extremely rude, even after I pointed out that my friends had bought themselves pop. As we walked in, he told me that the video cameras had taken a picture of me, and they would watch me in the store and in the parking lot whenever purchasing beer in the future. He then led me to the customer service desk to return the beer. Tell me that wasn’t extreme! —CarlGo
2006-06-28 08:25:12 I am probably going to sound like some kind of crabby devil's advocate, but I've been a cashier in a grocery store, and Wegmans policies mostly match up with what I was told to do at the store I worked in (different chain in NY state, about 15 yrs ago). And the scenarios that the commenters describe match pretty exactly how underage folks go about obtaining beer - going around the store separately, or having someone wait outside. So it doesn't seem that weird that Wegmans looks out for these behaviors. That said, I myself have been frustrated when my wife and I have been prevented from buying some beer (she forgot her wallet), when we were shopping with our 2 squabbling kids - and we are both over 35. —ChrisYoung
2006-06-29 08:23:18 I had a bad experiences with buying beer at Wegmans. I went in with a friend and we shopping for 10 minutes before picking up a 12 pack. The cashier said she saw us talking to someone else while shopping (we never did) and had to see their ID before selling it to us. We told the we didn’t, they didn’t care. I finally said okay and picked up the 12 pack of bottles, saying I would put it back. Somehow, it "accidentally" fell on the floor, breaking two bottles. I apologized but they said we had to pay for it. I said ok, but I am taking the 10 unbroken bottles. They said I couldn’t have them but I had to pay for the damaged 12pack. I said I’m not paying for something that is still partially usable and I can't keep. I said take my money & give me the beer or I’m leaving.
They said they were going to call the cops and I said ok, I’ll sit there on the bench and wait while calling my friend who’s a lawyer. As I sat down & dialed, they said I could leave w/o paying. I told them to F-off and they were lucky I was too lazy to sue them for discrimination. The fact that while walking out, I "tripped" over a newspaper rack, knocking it & me to the ground and sending dozens of "car for sale" fliers spilling over the floor is merely another coincidence. —BadFish
2006-09-15 05:28:14 Well, having NO trouble buying beer, I'm going to comment on the stores themselves. They are great and I have no idea why I love them so much, but I do. Everyone I know that's moved from Rochester misses their Wegmans! Great variety of foods, clean and inviting. I am also addicted to their soda-water. Awesome. Sometimes, the Wegmans "brand" of things are better than anything else. Croutons, dressings etc all all wonderful. —KarenMask
2006-09-15 07:51:20 A follow up to my Beer buying story. That was about 12 years ago and I have matured...at least a little. They were still jerks. We both had valid ID and had it out. I didn't mind getting IDed and understand if they have to ID EVERYONE regardless of how old they look. That said, I still miss the hell out of Wegmans. I have lived out of state for over a year now and miss by twice weekly trips to the evil empire. The Pittsford Wegs was my fave. —BadFish
2006-09-21 18:26:44 Urban legend has it that wegmans came close to loosing their beer license for selling to underage customers. Management took the bone-headed approach, and just proofs everyone. The best you can do is vote with your feet and purchase your beer where the clerks are allowed to think and use their own judgment —MrPhil
2006-11-17 11:00:04 "Ask someone what there is to do in Rochester, and they will mention Wegmans." WHAT? Give me a break. That is so lame. It IS a grocery store. Saying crap like that must make our city seem like some sort of backwater town to outsiders. Ya'll come back now, ya hear! —CarlGo
2007-02-28 21:57:25 And yet we always make sure to bring our out of town guests to Pittsford Plaza and they are always awed, even the ones that shop regularly at Whole Foods. I know it sounds weird to say that a grocery store can be a tourist destination, but it has turned into one and we might as well enjoy it. —DaveMahon
2007-03-25 09:33:02 My Mom works for Whole Foods and since Wegmans opened in the MD/VA area she has not had good experiences at Wegmans. Frequently I take photos of the produce offerings at the Super Wegmans with my camera phone and send them to her as she works in produce for Whole Foods. I do agree that the wegmans in Md and Va are pretty bad, they are nothing like the Rochester Wegmans. —KimBee
2007-04-11 19:24:44 i try to only shop at wegmans. i trust the cleanliness and order of the place. and i agree that wegmans brand is often as good as name brand. —JadeRaven
2007-04-14 20:21:57 Commenting on the first few comments about Wegman's quote "insane" alcohol policy coming from a Wegman's cashier: 1) It IS state law to ID everyone in the party, whether they are 21 or 81.
2) Often times, your cashier there is only a high school student, it is very hard to judge age when you are young. I am 21, and still am surprised by the birthdays I enter into the register for the purchasers of alcohol.
3. They routinely send cops, etc through the lines to check if every Wegman's is maintaining a good alcohol policy and following the law.
4. As the cashier, if your manager catches you a few too many times not proofing people, your job is most definitely in danger, because you are not showing adequate responsibility. —JoannaLicata
2007-05-21 08:12:49 I gave up on Wegmans when they abandoned the Upper Mount Hope Neighborhood. I heard an unconfirmed-but-I-believe-correct (that is, reliable source but I have no citation) story that Wegmans included a clause on the sale of their property on Mt. Hope Ave. that said that the purchaser may not open a grocery store at the property (the eventual purchaser, the University of Rochester Medical Center razed the building for a parking lot.) Wegmans sympathizers say this is "standard practice" — yet it is Wegmans exceptional behavior that makes them great; when they use "standard practices" like anti-competition clauses, they breach into monopoly territory. Anyway, Tops and ALDI continue to maintain a significant grocery presence in the City of Rochester. For most needs, though, I stick to Abundance Cooperative Market or the up-and-coming South Wedge Green Grocer, using Tops or corner drug-stores for cleaning products and drugs. —JasonOlshefsky
2007-06-23 00:35:21 If you're disabled or impaired in any way, they let you get away with just about anything. And don't even fire you for it. —Anonymous
2007-06-28 00:27:02 I certainly understand the frustration with Wegmans alcohol policy and, as an employee for 6 years (and cashier for nearly 3 of those), I can offer some insight. Wegmans did come close to losing their liquor license, so they instituted the policy of proofing everyone. It's not a boneheaded response—although it causes some customer irritation, imagine the irritation if they had actually lost their license to sell alcohol altogether! And BadFish, I'm sorry for the rotten experience you had—that is NOT typical Wegmans policy in any way, shape or form and I am shocked. At my store, I have never heard of or seen anything like the horror experiences people describe here. Also, Wegmans will certainly sell alcohol to parents who are in the store with their children. Those relationships are generally pretty clear. I have found the policy frustrating at points, as well, when I happen to be shopping with an underage friend but I understand that liability makes it a necessity. —ChelseaAllinger
2007-06-28 13:19:11 I've never had any trouble myself buying alcohol at wegmans, but I have seen other people have trouble. One time I saw them ask for ID for a kid who must have been 11 or 12 from his parents who were buying a six pack with their groceries. Kind of crazy, but I can't say I blame them.
I really like Wegmans either way - I've had bad customer service experiences in Tops (especially in Buffalo, where I went to school) and I'd rather shop where I'm going to be treated kindly and have a great selection of products. I also like the little (or big) cafes in Wegmans and their bakery departments. —SaraChristine
2007-06-28 20:59:03 As Chelsea pointed out, the policy is for liability's sake. Be thankful it's just Wegmans that cards 100%; the entire state of Georgia is 100% proofing.
Also, I dunno which stores your mom is visiting, KimBee, but the Fairfax, VA Wegmans is one of the nicest Wegmanses (is that proper? probably not) in all of Wegmandom. A $50mil store that rivals Pittsford for square footage and has its own wine shop... Hardly a "bad" Wegmans. —CalebKelsey
2007-06-29 14:32:32 Thanks Chelsea! Just to be clear, I commented above and am not sure if any other reply comments were pointed at me. I had no problem being IDed. The folks at Wegman's would not let us buy the beer because they said we spoke with another customer or customer(s)in the store (which we did not do) and they said we might give beer to underage people. They said it was our responsibility to identify the people and have them show ID. Ironice since there were no other people. I was polite at first but acknowledge I became quite a jerk well after they were rude. My problem was that they said I talked to someone else in the store when I didn't, then implied that I was lying about it, then accused me of possibly intending to break the law with no probable cause. "100% IDing" isn't fun, but alcohol can be real dangerous in the wrong hands or even the right hands with poor decision making. I have worked behind a counter before and understand the difficulty. That night at Wegman's they got a little too heavy handed. —BadFish
2007-08-11 23:37:20 A note on one of the Virginia Wegmans: I think one has a wine/liquor shop (Fairfax) and one does not (Dulles). Dulles is the same layout as Pittsford only flip-flopped right and left. I think my boss's boss told me that one day when I was conversing with him. (I worked at Wegmans for a long time.) —JoannaLicata
2007-09-24 22:49:01 Wegmans seems to be getting people upset around here. No more stores in Rochester besides, East Ave. Kind of sucks to have to go to tops or leave the city to get grocieries. —JohnJoseph
2007-09-28 13:06:43 I read an article on the D&C online about how wegmans products are being featured in this season's episodes of The Office. Neat! —SaraChristine
2008-09-09 20:26:38 We shop around with different criteria: ALDI, BJ's Wholesale Club, and Wal-Martfor value - each has distinct special values. We do some shopping at [Hegedorns"], but Wegmans is still a big part of our shopping. The reasons are the shopping experience, helpful employees, quality and variety. We are very proud of Wegmans and take our out-of-town visitors for trips through the Pittsford store - everyone has been impressed, even our high-end Swiss clients who expect and demand high quality and service. We also have family and friends close to the new Wegmans in Virginia near Dulles International Airport. This store is now a DESTINATION for the the folks in the DC area and from more than a 100 miles away. The DC merchandisers were Awe-struck when the store was finished by the end of the summer, but Wegmans would not open it for the "Christmas Shopping Period" - simply because they did not have a fully trained complement of the final permanent store employees. This was unheard of among DC retailers and a tribute to Wegmans standards. Many folks in the DC area are now impressed how the Wegmans competition drove Giant and Safeway to upgrade their stores and ways of doing business. —BradMandell
2008-10-21 09:31:41 I used to be the most loyal wegmans customer until I realized that I was wasting money on expensive groceries. The prepared food section is unbelieveably overpriced and I think all of their food items on the wokery bar taste the same. I have found that I can save money by shopping elsewhere like Wal-Mart and Aldi's and their generic items all are high-quality. —ShannonLane
2008-12-07 20:22:56 To Wegmans credit, they have been aggressively competing on price regarding basic food items. —MrPhil
2009-01-16 19:58:39 Many a discussion in my day have revolved around what makes Wegmans Wegmans. I still can't put my finger on it but I think it lies in the prepared foods section. They put a lot of effort into making good food and presenting in a classy way. The quality of their prepared food gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling about buying your groceries there. On top of that, the workers seem to truly enjoy doing their jobs. You don't get that feeling from the white, cold environment of Tops. —BatGuano
2009-01-26 18:49:35 Awesome place to shop! Would never shop anywhere else again! —ELapp
2009-02-18 00:22:17 I shop late at night and have never had any difficulty finding what I need. Having a disability, I still get assistance without any trouble. Always been impressed. Recently their pharmacy had an error stating I had an allergy that was not correct but it was taken care of effortlessly. —PeteB
2009-11-10 06:10:29 Here is my review of Wegmans as an Albany native...
GREAT prepared foods. Unrivaled. GREAT international foods selection. Unrivaled. GREAT customer service. Unrivaled. GREAT beer selection. Unrivaled. GREAT cold cut/cheese selection. Unrivaled.
Where it SEVERELY lacks is in its meat, fruit, and seafood selection. Being an Albany native I grew up on Price Chopper, which is Schenectady based and only goes as far west as Syracuse. Compared to Price Chopper, the meat, fruit, and seafood selection at Wegmans is pitiful. I did not realize this until last Sunday when I went to get supplies for tailgating a Bills game. I knew exactly what I wanted and was shocked at how little there was. Rochester natives who grew up with only Wegmans and Tops will not realize it, but the meat, fruit, and seafood available at Wegmans was about 40% of the standard I'm used to growing up with Price Chopper. Price Chopper doesn't compete in the Rochester market but absolutely blows Wegmans away in meat, fruit, and seafood. In those areas and those areas only (well, and price too.) —NickCassaro
2010-01-25 09:57:18 Wegmans has it's good and bad points like any store, but you don't appreciate what you have until it's not there. I grew up in rochester and worked in both tops and Wegmans as a teen. Since then, I lived in so cal for 12 years and now I'm in Oregon. I miss Wegmans! The supermarket offerings in the Los Angeles area are pathetic, long lines and any store you go to will always not have something on your list. Albertsons in Portland, OR is decent, but it's no Wegmans :) and Safeway is pretty much useless. —PeterBelanger
2010-09-26 19:24:03 what can I say about the best grocery store in the United States except...THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! Shopping is a pleasure and can't wait to go again! Nothing compares or even gets close to Wegman's! —LaurieStrole
2010-10-27 01:22:01 Wegmans is good, but overrated. Lacking in the meat department, as has been stated, and I usually end up spending more than I would at Tops. Also, it seems to me that the shopping populace seem to be very good at cutting you off (and being rude in general). The prepared foods area in the Pittsford Wegmans is a jungle.—SargtGrumbles
2010-12-06 17:02:31 Love shopping here, can't stand working here. The selection and quality of the various products is incredible. However, if you can't find something, customers tend to be incredibly demanding and tear your head off if you're not near-perfect (at least in some of the larger stores, such as Pittsford, Calkins Rd., even Lyell Ave). I've even heard stories of customers asking workers to shine their shoes! I realize this accounts for a small amount of the general population, but please remember, we're people too! —slowpoke
2011-04-01 13:22:34 At the Market Place Mall store my wife has gone there on a few occasions and has heard this from our neighbors themselves that the loser males in the meat department continuously make foul comments at women passer-by's. She has been followed and yelled at to turn around while walking down an isle to be looked and rated. These truly ugly people or insecure about their sexuality pigs are why we shop some where else. Trying to cover to look masculine to each other shows how weak you are as well as the sexual harassment and demand to over power and demean. Decent souls or attractive people don't act this way at others. We thought Wegmans was better than this. This has happened for years. My wife is quite attractive but makes no difference and is very uncomfortable. They are low life pigs.
At Pittsford there is or was this unattractive female cashier. Sorry but she does look piggy but non the less is always whispering to other cashiers and making comments. I believe staff knows this but does nothing because you feel sorry for her and feel she's suffering enough. Doesn't matter. This causes anger and fighting. Rest of staff is so keen on doing a good job with customers and then here's this mean type female slob. If you scolded her she'd probably look better over all because she's gone even more down hill and been left to rot. I would think she would make other cashiers uncomfortable to as they would try to conform to her behavior and rather not especially when new working there. I have gone there where I have seen her act this way towards others and then myself. Another time the whispering went down the line through other cashiers on me. The low life. Any other store, even a dollar store would be fired for these actions. They are like cheap dogs attacking anyone to group together. I'd fire on the spot actually for her behavior so again someone is special treating her. We haven't been there in a while maybe things have changed but the memories haven't. —JohnWuden
2011-04-01 13:54:00 And you signed your real name to that? —DamianKumor
2011-11-21 17:02:07 This is a review I originally posted on Yelp, about the East. Ave store:
I've had a love/hate relationship with Wegmans for years. Yes, they have nearly everything (at MOST stores, that is), but they charge you an arm and a leg for it. Still, shopping at MOST Wegmans stores is a pleasant experience. Not at this one, though...
Firstly, the parking lot here is an absolute zoo. It's cramped, the main drive goes right past the main entrance, and the external bottle-return section attracts all sorts of can-pickers, bums, and ragamuffins that would otherwise never be seen in this part of town. (Add to that the careless disregard for pedestrian safety shown by any of a number of these people who wobble their brakeless bikes down sidewalks while carrying 5 large bags of bottles, and you have a real public safety issue here).
So, once you manage to get through the parking lot without being run over, you next have to navigate through the "portal of hell" to get in. This 6' wide entry handles EVERYBODY entering and exiting, and also has door outside in 2 opposite directions- a real choke point if I've ever seen one!
As far as the shopping experience goes, think of it as a large Wilson Farms-basically a glorified convenience store, except that it's becoming less and less convenient every day. They sell overpriced lunch wraps ($5.00???? Give me a break!!), yet on any given morning, they will have NONE available for those looking to pick up a quick lunch for later. Lately, they've been sporadically 'forgetting' to put the Sunday NY Times metro edition out (or putting it in the wrong slot, or not putting the inserts in it, or not having it at all), and the 'help' there is, frankly, no help at all!
I've never seen a Wegmans store that had so many employees standing around, not only doing NOTHING, but also blocking your way. And those 'helping hands' guys outside are completely useless! It seems that the type of person who get a job as a 'helping hand' is somebody who otherwise would be considered unemployable. The checkout people (with a few exceptions) look like they are all counting the minutes left in their shifts (god knows they AREN'T counting your change...).
Wegmans, you'd better get your act together. If you keep dropping things I want from your stock, I'll have to drive a bit further and start shopping at Tops. I really can't imagine what kind of cluster-**** your store is going to become once the construction starts!
2011-11-23 17:49:03 Just wanted to elaborate on the can redemption area at the East Ave. Wegman's: I hope that they do away with this in the new design, and, if they feel the need to have a place where 'professional can redeemers' can turn in their bulging bags of hundreds of cans, it be elsewhere.
The first problem with the current setup is that, if you only have a mere 6 or 12 bottles to return, you MUST stand in line with these dirty, drug-addled people who dive into trash barrels all day long to make their 'income'. The redemption center stinks even worse than the people there, and many of these people have serious mental-health issues. I had a confrontation with one of these lunatics a few moths ago when I simply asked to go ahead of him (with no fewer than 5 bulging bags full of cans), pointing out that I would be done in a matter of seconds. He refused, I complained that he had way more than the daily maximum, and he went ballistic, eventually being ejected from the premesis. Another time, I was going in to the store, when one of these booze-and-drug-addled people was being escorted off the premesis, shouting at the top of his lungs "The proglem with this place is there's too many f*ck*ng n*gg*rs here!!!"
Another problem is that the marginally roadworthy bikes these losers tend to use are creating a hazard on the local sidestreets. Once, I was run-off the sidewalk on Winton by some rude-boy balancing 4 large bags on a bike that had NO BRAKES (I know, because he said so, as he ran me into the traffic lane). Another time, some piker with a purloined grocery cart filled to 7' high with bags was wobbling along on his bike, holding the cart with only his hand, when the cart failed to negotiate the curve on Park Ave (at the end), narrowly missing my car, but hitting a parked car. The guy then backed the cart up from the newly-dented door, and continued on his way!
It's one thing to try and help the 'less fortunate' by giving them a place to make a few extra bucks, but really, put this redemption center elsewhere.
2013-01-17 08:31:04 Opening date for new East Ave Wegmans is set for May 19, 2013. —EileenF
2013-01-17 10:18:59 Have they announced a 'destruction date' for the old store yet? —alex-c
2013-01-17 15:33:27 ![[WWW]](https://rocwiki.org/wiki/eggheadbeta/img/sycamore-www.png){kind=small}
Here we go. —EileenF
2014-04-13 22:55:26 I am 70+ and have been carded before I buy wine. In my community of well-to-do 50, 60 and 70 year olds, we are boycotting Wegman's because of their ludicrous alcohol policy. "It takes the guess work out of carding," said the manager. Well, I suggest white hair take the guess work out, or perhaps deep wrinkles around they eyes or mouth, or terrible posture accompanied by a cane. We are all taking our wine business to Harris Teeter thank you. They are not as stupid as the policymakers at Wegmans. —Laramiesullivan
2014-04-14 10:36:33 FWIW, Wegmans does not sell wine in any New York state stores (our liquour law does not permit it), and Harris Teeter is a southern grocery chain, so Laramiesullivan in not posting from anywhere near Rochester; she is probably in Virginia. —alex-c
2014-04-14 10:42:29 "In my community of well-to-do 50, 60 and 70 year olds, we are boycotting Wegman's because of their ludicrous alcohol policy. . ." Oh no! How dare people with money be expected to follow the same rules as everyone else! —EileenF
2014-04-14 11:04:11 What sucks is that technically, if I am 25 years old and required to produce my ID to buy beer, but the person behind me in line is 60 years old but not required to show their ID, that's age discrimination. We are both equally legally eligible to buy that beer but I have to complete an additional step to buy it because of my age. I am not saying that's a reasonable way to look at it, but in the letter of the law, that can be argued. The policy is likely the result of lawsuits and sue-happy customers. —badfish
2014-04-14 11:31:34 Do you hear that sound, it's the worlds smallest violin playing the world's saddest song. —Damiankumor
2014-04-14 12:11:37 I fully understand and support Wegmans' policy on ID for alcohol sales, for the liability and discrimination reasons noted earlier. Had Laramiesullivan indicated that they had been denied sales/service due to lack of a proper ID, that would have been somewhat different when they are apparently obviously of age. FWIW: my spouse, who attained legal drinking age multiple decades ago, has been known to kiss bartenders, bouncers and clerks who still ask her for proof she is 21 as she takes it as a grand compliment. —jgerek
2018-12-02 13:12:29 Lesson learned about Wegmans and beer: there are any number of retailers who show a little common sense with regard to the "companion" policy. I can understand carding me as I'm only 65, but carding my friend who is approaching 80? Really? —TomKrahl
