Thoughts on Ashley Market?

So, it's been open a while, and wondering what folks thought about Ashley vs Eden.

I general, I think it's fine, probably slightly less satisfying than Eden.

They've kept Marty the butcher, so the meat selection is still the best around. Freemans is still handling the fish, but I wish they would match the selection at the Freemans in Maplewood. Produce seems about the same, perhaps a slight decline in quality. The brands on the packaged good seem to be shifting, but even Eden had a challenge keeping the same things in stock consistently.

One this I have noticed is that the staff seems, well, less hospitable.

Take today for instance. I had three bad customer service experiences within a couple minutes:

First, I went to customer service to ask if they would restock the Frontera salsa. The woman at the counter didn't seem to know what I was talking about, so I spelled the name a few times and she wrote it down. The phone then rang, she answered it, and began talking to a customer. I stood there about 30 seconds, not sure if the conversation was over. She continued talking to the customer on the phone. I walked away to the checkout.

At the checkout another customer asked a bagger if she could reach a bottle on a high shelf for her. The bagger responded "No." I then stepped over and handed her the bottle. The customer said that it would have been nice if the staff could have found someone to get the bottle for her instead of saying
"No" and having another customer step in. I didn't mind getting the bottle for her, but she was right.

Last, and least, when I was done paying, I thanked the cashier. No response. Normally, I wouldn't even mention this, but with the two previous examples of bad customer service fresh in my mind it stood out.

I feel a bit like a cranky old man, but I have noticed that I've gone to Ashley less than I used to go to Eden.

Having an upscale grocery in this location is one of the best things to happen to SO since I've lived here. I'm hoping that my experiences are just anomalies.

I don't shop anywhere they don't kiss my ass.

Oldstone said:

I don't shop anywhere they don't kiss my ass.

LOL

Oldstone said:

I don't shop anywhere they don't kiss my ass.

And quite an ass it is... ;-)

The market is fine but that garage worries me. I'm always convinced I'm going to hit one of those support thingies.

8675309 said:

The market is fine but that garage worries me. I'm always convinced I'm going to hit one of those support thingies.

I once saw a Mercedes SLS in that garage, in fact I parked next to it. You know, the kind with the gullwing doors? Whoever owned that car and parked it in that garage had to be insane...

I let Mr. L. drive into that garage. I figure if someone hits a pole, better he should be the driver. But I like Ashley. It's a pleasure to have a market that's clean and well-stocked, and close by. I haven't run into any rude employees; they've all been lovely to us.

i agree with m baldwin. the changes are slight, but noticeable. maybe slightly fewer great sales on produce, for instance. still, i am eternally grateful that I can mostly avoid Pathmark at all costs, and not have to drive to Shoprite every few days. It's a tremendous convenience for those of us who live in S.O.

marylago said:

8675309 said:

The market is fine but that garage worries me. I'm always convinced I'm going to hit one of those support thingies.

I once saw a Mercedes SLS in that garage, in fact I parked next to it. You know, the kind with the gullwing doors? Whoever owned that car and parked it in that garage had to be insane...

Either that or they are still in it...

I took off my front fender on one of those poles. I saw a couple other CR-Vs in town with similar scars.

I miss that butcher. Nobody knows what "meatloaf mix" is in California.

I haven't been.....since long before Eden "closed". Looks like I'm not missing much.

Marty (the butcher) is awesome. If he doesn't have it on display, he'll make it for you.

And, yeah, I busted up the side of my car on one of those pillars when Eden first opened.

IMO Ashley is essentially the same as Eden. No better, if anything maybe a smidge to the downside.
Customer service has always been hit or miss - employee turnover is high or at least highish. I'd be surprised if the pay scale changed w the new ownership.

8675309 said:

The market is fine but that garage worries me. I'm always convinced I'm going to hit one of those support thingies.

I don't mean to be snarky, but for future reference, those "thingies" are called columns. And I've never seen a garage with bulkier columns that are so intrusive when attempting to park. The only garage nearby that comes close is at the E. Hanover Loew's (AMC), which has narrow steel columns that are just as frequent and hard to avoid. Either the designers of the structure had never needed to support a large building above a garage, or SO officials lacked the ability to foresee the hazard such columns represented, or a little of both. The garage under Gaslight Commons is a breeze to use, so I can't figure out what went wrong here.

As for Eden vs Ashley, neither were my supermarket of choice, but of last resort. After Zayda's departure from Eden, our trips there became far less frequent, and without those big meat bills, I don't remember the last time I got enough points for a reward. I understand Eden paid cashiers a little more than the local chains, so one would expect a slightly more dedicated staff if that remains true. But it's a high turnover business no matter the pay. I also haven't experienced any negative treatment.

Quite simply, Ashley's selection is too limited and expensive for me to shop there. I'm more than happy trekking to ShopRite for nearly one stop shopping, kosher meat included, that is the lowest price of any store. Ashley's for take out or maybe produce I couldn't get at ShopRite.

For some items it is good. Meats and vegetables definitely fresher. Other items are more for a convenience and will cost more. I think it has gone down hill some and customer service is not as good.
Still glad to have it.

I went in for the two splurge items I occasionally get there. Both were out of stock.

To the manager's (or owners?) credit, he came over as I was going through every similar item hoping to find the one I wanted hiding behind them, then helped me look in the depths of the shelf, said more should be coming in soon, but suggested some alternatives, then listened to why I thought the others weren't as good. He then seemed to enter into his phone that the items I was looking for needed to be ordered/restocked.

That's service to appreciate!

Only place around with some decent fresh bread selections. Still missing Sonny's bakery in Millburn mall. :-(

We kind of stopped shopping at Eden after the Cheese Guy left (Daniel, I think?). Frankly, I found the customer service to be distinctly lacking even when it was still Eden. The only person we got great service from there was in the cheese department, and when he left, he took it with him, apparently. I can recall several occasions when I asked for help finding something and got exactly nothing from anyone there.

Same here. I used to shop there a lot, mainly bread, fruit and veg but now I rarely go there. It's just not a friendly place any more, customer service is indifferent and you really need to watch that what you want to buy is not past its sell by date or has a correct price on it. I'll go there when it's convenient but not on a regular basis.

hmmm I find everyone to be very nice, the sandwich guy remembers us every time, fish guy couldn't be nicer, customer service was responsive when we needed something, love the atmosphere happy to shop there

new207040 said:

hmmm I find everyone to be very nice, the sandwich guy remembers us every time, fish guy couldn't be nicer, customer service was responsive when we needed something, love the atmosphere happy to shop there

+1
I am still thrilled to be able to shop in South Orange...quite frankly, it's about the only thing I do in the village (except for the UPS store and KALM). Maybe I just have lower expectations or I know where the items that I shop for are, but I really don't care so much about if somebody can get me a can off the shelf. Is it a perfect store, absolutely not...I know what items they have, I know what I need, I fill in at Shop-Rite and Trader Joe's and Costco once a month.

While there has been some turnover (the original produce guy, the cheesemonger, the sandwich guy that looked like Mark Texiera comes to mind) so much of the staff is the same as when they opened. Sonia and Robin have always been in the Bakery, I think Inez JUST quit being a cashier to go to school. There are still plenty of people there from the start.

Went in last week to get some vanilla ice cream to go with a kid's cake and they were out of stock.

ETA: They were not just out of stock of one brand of vanilla ice cream, they were out of stock on all vanilla ice cream. 25 cartons of frostbitten Alden Brother's Blackberry but not a pint of vanilla.

One thing that I have learned when shopping anywhere is never to go on the day after a holiday weekend.
The stores need time to restock; in fact they need time to restock after any weekend. We shop at Ashley on Tuesdays to take advantage of the senior citizen discount, and we have learned that the best time to go is after lunch, around 2:30 to 4:00 P.M. They're restocking then, and things are freshest.

new207040 said:

hmmm I find everyone to be very nice, the sandwich guy remembers us every time, fish guy couldn't be nicer, customer service was responsive when we needed something, love the atmosphere happy to shop there

Me too. In fact, my experience is that the general friendliness and sense of service is better at Ashley's. I only buy a few things there (generally meat and produce), but I'm there every week and glad to have them.

Customer service has always been good. I think it was better under Eden Gourmet but still I am always greeted with a smile and all my questions, concerns are addressed. New inexperienced cashiers have caused delays but that is too be expected.

Many of the employees are the same as when it was Eden. However, I do find the produce is not the same quality and the prices overall have increased. I still find it incredibly convenient and do a lot of shopping there.
Never had a problem with parking and never have hit a pole.

I know they pay minimum wage, $7.25, as I had a friend who worked there. You get what you pay for.

They start employees at minimum wage for certain postitions. They do give increases as I also know some who works there who has gotten a few increases.