Save On Foods

This Save On is undergoing renovations right now, but that hasn’t stopped them from still being one of my preferred locations to shop. Especially the man who is by the door saying goodnight to everyone. He’s wonderful!
The cashiers always ask if I had a good experience and if I have found everything alright (I usually end up buying what I don’t need) and I haven’t had a bad time yet! With them renovating, it seems a little cluttered but it’s coming along well. They have expanded into space next to them and the way it’s laid out is very helpful. Great location!

I usually shop daily for food. I’m on foot most of the time, so I take my hippie bag out with me every day and see what I can pick up along the way. I find myself going to Save On almost every day. I know where everything is. I don’t always get what I’m looking for, but the selection is better than it used to be. They carry Huttereite meats and other locally sourced products. Gluten free. Vegan. Organic.
With the rewards card, you save on all Western Family products and get redeemable points or discounts on many other items. The first Tuesday of the month is 15% off day!
I Like the self checkout as I only have one bag full. At times these checkouts are troublesome, but the staff is always there to fix the problem. For instance; you need a staff member to ring in your coupons at the self checkout. Sometimes a sku number is wrong and they must input it manually.
I don’t feel embarrassed to pay for my groceries entirely with coins at the self checkout. I would never do this to a human cashier. Or when my debit card is declined, I don’t feel like a tool when I have to fish out my VISA.
Occasionally, I’ll go across the street to No Frills, but it’s kind of zoo and it gets picked over really fast. The Planet Organic is nice for vitamins and supplements, but I can’t afford the food there. Same with Blush lane. The layout is awful and the prices are stupid. Can’t find a decent sausage there either.
The receipts are printed on BPA free paper. Save them and go to their website listed on the bottom. Fill out the survey for a chance to win $ 200.00 gift card.

I like this location. It’s in the heart of Whyte ave and has the usual amenities.
Every Save-​on is tuned to the local area so this one has a lot of healthy choices, natural foods and vegetarian items.
Their produce section is clean, this is always a big feature for me. I cannot stand seeing crushed lettuce stuck under my shoes, or fallen produce under tables. In my opinion it’s just sloppy looking. This location is very well kept.
Freezer section is extensive and they carry a good selection of some of our favorite Veggie items, plus a few we’ve not tried before.
There is a rather large bulk food section with lots of treats, grains and staples to choose from. The deli section could use a better cheese section and a few more bakery items in the bakery, but overall it’s pretty decent.

This grocery store is the closest to my home, but unfortunately I am not a fan of it. Of course, their produce is great and they have a nice selection of local and organic foods. They also have some great ready-​to-​go meals that I enjoy. Where this place MAJORLY falls short is with the staff working at the self check-​outs. In every single experience (and there have been countless) I have encountered terrible and extremely incompetent customer service. Just this evening I was struggling with figuring out how to pack into my cloth bags without the till freaking out, and the girl working shouted something over her shoulder when i asked for help. I also had difficulty finding a particular item in the system and after several minutes of this and feeling quite frustrated I asked for help, only to be told that she didn’t know what it was and I’d have to deal with it myself. Yikes! You would think I have learned by now to avoid the self check-​outs, and I have. Unfortunately the store is set up to encourage customers to use the self-​check outs, and the other tills have extremely long lines and have very few, if any, open.

I love how much they have in the little garden section at this Save On, it’s so nice walking past all of the flowers on your way to shopping :)

I can’t remember the last time I had a grocery store shopping experience this poor. And like, I really love grocery store shopping. It’s usually one of my favourite things to do all week. But it was late at night and I was already parked there to visit the café next door, so I skipped my usual grocery haunts and tried out this location of Save On Foods instead.
Never. Again.
First off, why are you going to even bother having aisle signs if they’re obscured by the aisles themselves? If I can’t read what’s in the aisle then what’s the point of having signs at all?
Why do you only have the not-​as-​good kind of guacamole?
How come the spray botttles of Pam were with the ketchup? And I only found that by fluke. I never could have found it using the signs, anyway, because the sign only said «condiments» and never mentioned baking items.
Where is your soup selection? Seriously, I went up and down every aisle twice and couldn’t find the soup.
I’m bumping this up from 1 star to 2 because the store was clean and the fruits and veggies looked really good. But no high than that, because a grocery trip of chicken, guac, hummus, chips, dish soap, and parmesan cheese took 20 minutes and came to $ 40. Cha-​ching! Pricey!

Thank goodness for this Save On Foods. If not for it, I would be spending so much on food!!! The prices here are about «normal» … and by that I mean cheaper than most places in the University area. They also have a good selection of organic food, including organic produce. The produce here is noticeably better in quality and about half the price of that at the near-​campus alternatives.
Having this Save On Foods near Planet Organic means I can easily split my grocery list between the two supermarkets in order to get the best deals on organic items.
The line ups at this place are horrendous though. Even if one person is in front of you it seems to take forever. Maybe they need more staff, or better training, I don’t know.

This is my neighborhood grocery store and I come here quite often to get stuff to supplement my weekly basket. The veggies, as far as I’ve noticed, have been pretty good. They’ve got a very good collection of everything and their deli selection, fresh foul and fish and bakery are pretty decent too. I wouldn’t say they are over-​the-​top great, but I would certainly consider picking up stuff from here every now and then. They’ve also got a decent, but not exceptional, collection of organic produce but I go to my favorite store for that anyway. (Good Earth, I mean).
Now, be aware that with every grocery store there’s a good time and a bad. The good time at Save on is actually on Tuesday and not the weekend. That’s when they restock their veggies and produce. Also on the first Tuesday of every month, they have a 15% off on the entire bill offer. Of course, the crowds are plenty on that day, but if you come in early in the evening you could get some great grocery and produce at a discounted price.
Their bakery has this really terrific German bread. I forget what it’s called, but I recognize it. It’s so tasty that you could eat it just plain with butter. However, with cream cheese or real cheese — it’s divine. Not really sandwich-​bread.
I love coming here on Sunday evenings when I don’t know what to cook and pick up some nice food from their bakery/​food center or get an idea to sear some fresh salmon. It’s walkable, bikable and close to home. So I prefer it to say, The Superstore which is a drive away.

Good prices, fresh produce, friendly staff.
Extensive bulk section and natural/​health/​organic section.
Extended summer hours also helpful. Conveniently close to the police station in case you have a fender bender in the parking lot (I actually saw this happen there).

This is one of the smaller Save On Foods, but if you live off Whyte it is the best choice for groceries close by.
They have a stocked deli section, with prepared foods and even an organic section. There is nothing out of the ordinary but they have plenty of parking and can get very busy at the standard peak hours.
Overall, it is my goto place when I don’t want to travel.

This is, hands-​down, the worse Save-​On Foods in the city, unfortunately it’s also the one closest to my house. I rarely leave this store in a good mood.
While it’s a small store, I find that they’re often out of things they should really stock. Went to pick up pitas one day, and they didn’t have any. Went to get chocolate chip muffins (baked in store), and they didn’t even have a space for them. Went to get bulk popcorn, only to find it’s not stocked here, though they have the organic stuff (at a much higher price, of course).
The other thing that kills me are the lines. You should expect long lines if you shop on a weekend, but the middle of the afternoon on a weekday? I’ve stood in lines 8 – 10 people long in this store; they never seem to have enough tills open to service the customers.
I find myself driving to the downtown location more and more because this location is so frustrating.

This Save On Foods is really close to my place, so when I need something small and quick, I run over here to get it. Otherwise, I save my big shopping trips for Superstore, because it can get a bit pricey at Save On. Most locations have a clearance aisle or dollar section, but not this one, which is really too bad. I’d probably come here more often if they did.
I like the produce though, they always have really fresh, high quality produce here. And there’s often an elderly man standing there offering to scan your Save On points card to let you know how many points you’ve saved up so far. He’s so friendly and sweet, it makes me smile just seeing him.
They also have really fresh seafood and meats here. It costs a bit more than Superstore, but I think the quality is sometimes better. Also, I love picking up fresh flowers here once in awhile. They have a wide variety and they’re pretty cheap most of the time.
If you sign up for a points card with them, you’ll end up saving a lot more money on items that go on special every week. And it’s free to sign up, so why not?
P. S. Has anyone else noticed they don’t play tv commercials anymore, or is it just me?

I love this location of Save On Foods, because they have a large natural foods section. A lot of the same products sold here can also be found at the Planet Organic right next door. It’s not always cheaper though, but Save On usually has better sales more often.
This Save On Foods also has a great bulk section. They have these organic Thompson raisins that are the best raisins I’ve ever had. They are so sweet and soft, not like most dried out, hard raisins. I also like to get unsalted bulk sunflower seeds, flax seed, and pumpkin seeds. When I really feel like treating myself, I get the chocolate-​covered cranberries. These are so amazingly good, but I have to watch how many I buy, because they are not cheap. They are anything but healthy, but I justify by telling myself that it contains fruit. When I feel like being even more unhealthy, I get the bulk Jelly Belly sours. These are so addictive. Watermelon flavour is healthy, isn’t it?
If you’re into organic or super healthy foods, you’ll love this Save On Foods. Aside from the pseudo-​healthy treats, this place is packed with tons of natural products.