Lunds & Byerlys

I went to Lunds & Byerlys to look for something yummy for our Christmukkah party next Saturday and was so disappointed. There were hardly any holiday related cakes and when I asked some very basic questions about the ones they had, the person behind the counter could barely answer them. There were no other customers at the counter. She suggested that a cake designer could help me. She let the cake designer know that I had some questions and the designer said she was waiting for a phone call. I left. I’m going to look elsewhere. In the past I bought a princess torte and a yule log with generic winter designs that were so beautiful and tasty.

I like the food and groceries but the service is HORRIBLE. I waited to get some food from the display case in the food grab and go area, there were two ladies cutting meat and packaging food that refused to look up from whatever they were doing. Then there was a girl, maybe 17 – 18 getting mashed potatoes etc for some older ladies. So i waited for awhile and when those ladies left it was just me and another guy waiting. I stood across from her and she was just finishing up a package for a lady and while doing so, she looked up at me and we made eye contact for a split second. She then looked at the guy and back at me (still packaging). When she was done, she went to the other guy and asked what she could to for him. What the hell??? Good thing the guy told her I was there first and then she looked stupid and helped me. The whole time she was rushing and was really just being rude. I understand that she mightve just been anxious and unaware of what she was doing, like maybe it was her first jib and they hired her seasonally… But her supervisor was there and was ENCOURAGING it… Not much left to say.

This store is so hit or miss with service I’m at a loss. Some days I am treated like a valued customer, and other days I am made to feel like I am an absolute burden. Today must have been one of those ‘burden’ days. Deb at the service desk, where are your manners? No please, thank you, and you’re welcome? Thank you for barking orders at me, I’ll be sure never to use the service desk again while you are working.

First the wrong: Bakery prices ridiculous. A little brownie for $ 4? That must be some brownie. Deli prices are fairly ridiculous too but that is true everywhere. I do admit the salads look delicious. So why five stars? Because I’ve decided that Byerly’s is my favorite lunch spot in town– especially on work days. Name me another place where $ 8 gives you the opportunity to buy a fine fresh salad or sushi or any number of hot entrees, sandwiches and meals? It’s quick, efficient, tasty and the servers are always nice to me. Nice clientele too– which is a plus.

You can’t beat this place for finding a perfect little sumpin-​sumpin for a loved one in a real hurry. Simply make a dash for the bakery counter where you can find single-​serving decadent desserts for under $ 6. I have brought one of these confections as a hostess gift more than once and been the instant favorite guest. Bottle of wine hostess gift be damned! I sent a private message to the guy who was upset with their service after Byerly’s personally delivered new product to the guy’s house. Some people — ya just can’t please ‘em.
The only reason I didn’t give this place five stars is because I feel the cashiers/​baggers could use a little sprucing up.

I shop at Byerly’s weekly and I am consistently pleased with their service and food quality. I’ve read a few reviews where shoppers have had bad experiences, but I have never been disappointed with this store.
The lot is always clean and free of carts.
The bakery, deli, meat department and produce area have extremely high quality goods. I also like the florist area (the flowers are quite reasonable compared to stand alone florist shops) and I’m impressed with the cheese shop.
The store is orderly and the cashiers & baggers are extremely polite and attentive.
Yes, the store is a little more expensive than other markets in the area, but Jimmy and Eddie Byerly certainly aren’t going to put themselves through junior college, so that extra cash you pay for dry goods is sorely needed.
It doesn’t take much to exceed the experiences at Cub, Walmart or that ghetto-​bodega Rainbow. However, Byerly’s doesn’t allow their competition to be the benchmark. They set the standard for grocery stores in the Twin Cities.

Not too bad. Like a Whole Foods, but in Minnesota. Prices are higher but it’s understandable.
I went in for seafood. Everything was frozen, which was not what I wanted, but on Christmas Eve, the fact that they even had any seafood was a plus.
I’d probably shop there again if I lived in MN.

I dropped in to pick up a lunch. Got a Hissio Sushi to go. It was terrible, horrible, awful. First the sushi rice had way too much sugar in it, secondly the sashami was very small, and thirdly it was a tasteless mess.
Now I know this is grocery store sushi, but it was a severe inedible disapointment.
Steer clear of the Sushi.

While visiting Minnesota, we made our first visit to Byerly’s. This store went beyond my expectations. It’s so clean! And carpeted! And the staff is so friendly!
From the moment that we walked in, I knew this was going to be a unique experience. I wanted to eat a little of everything in almost every case that we walked by. They really have a little of everything! And their bakery… they do gorgeous work!
After one visit by an out of towner, I felt they deserved an acknowledgment. Quality, but at a premium cost.

Ken P.
Maple Grove
I disagree with the two reviews I’ve just read. This is an outstanding store in terms of service, food quality, displays, and pricing.
The produce is fresh. The employees there are most helpful in locating an item. The deli counter staff freely give samples and help me with my selections for lunch on site and to bring home. They carefully package my cheeses and meats.
The meat cutters will sharpen your knives while you have a second cup of coffee. They’ve done special slicing of ham for a reception for 50. The grocery dept. manager will order an item you want if you don’t find it and then «track» it to see if it should be added to the inventory.
The staff helped me with a 21^st birthday present for a neighbor’s son named Jack. We located dozens of store items with Jack in the name (even in the liquor store) and prepared a Birthday Basket for him. That was terrific service. The liquor department packages beer baskets and wine baskets on special order for holiday giving and charitable donations. Terrific service!
I always marvel at the well trained and polite young people working at the checkout counters. The carry out/​car service saves my bad back.
The pharmacy department is outstanding. Manager Alyssia takes time to discuss the drug interactions of my prescriptions and calls my doctor if she sees a «red flag.» Even our dog has a Byerly’s pharmasist who visits with our vet about medication.
The Maple Grove Byerly’s gives to this community. The manager has donated food items to a number of charitable causes undertaken by the Rotary Club and the local Lions Club. They have provided a «taste of Byerly’s» at the Music Fest for businesses and their employees. This store has given me numerous non-​perishable baskets for silent auctions. The bakery has donated 9 dozen donuts and rolls for our Lions Club volunteers annual holiday basket assembly with the Maple Grove Fire Department and in cooperation with area churches.
Byerly’s is quite clean. The window washer seems to be there weekly. The restrooms are nicely maintained and even have fresh flowers. Our mother loves that!
The flower and card department are beautifully stocked. The staff helps me locate special cards for celebrations. The variety of fresh flowers is amazing. Those prices are most reasonable.
Maple Grove is most fortunate to have a store of this quality. They deserve our patronage.

I have to agree with the first reviewer. This Byerly’s location feels sloppy compared to others. One of my biggest frustrations has been communicating with employees. For instance, when I buy a small handful of things, I prefer to carry them without a bag. A bottle of soda and a bag of pistachios? I can handle those items without a bag. But even after saying several times, «No, I don’t need a bag, please don’t bag those,» I end up walking out with a blue plastic bag. This happens almost every time I go. It’s not that I hate bags. I’d rather the employees listen to me and not run on auto-​pilot.
Also, aisles here tend to be cluttered and poorly lit. The frozen food area gets especially messy and I wonder why nobody cleans or changes light bulbs more often. If I wanted that kind of shopping trip, I could just go to Cub.

I’ll start by saying I am a big fan of Lunds and Byerly’s on the whole but this is one of the poorer stores that I have been to. To bad it’s also the closest to my house.
There are many things I will drive to Lunds in Plymouth or another store altogether due to the poor quality from here. The bakery here is terrible. We ordered a birthday cake from here that you could tell had collapsed in the center. There was ¼″ of frosting on the edges, which in my opinion is way to much, and in the center where the cake had fallen it was almost ¾″ thick and grossed out even the 5 year old children. Many of their items have far two much frosting and are really poor tasting overall.
Last week I stopped and picked up a pound of Prosciutto for something I was making. I had picked up a pound a few days before but ran out, at $ 27.00 a pound it was tasty and just what I wanted for the recipe. I ordered the 2^nd pound from a grumpy woman and ran off to get a few other things. I stopped in and picked up my meat. when I got home I realized that the woman had clumped all the meat together without any paper. I had a $ 27.00 clump of meat that was useless. To their credit, when I called and bitched they had their delivery guy run me over a pound at no charge. That was fine but I was over an hour behind with a party deadline and pretty stressed by that point. Anyone should know when cutting custom meat like that it needs to be separated, simple.
Over all I find this location very sloppy, snobbish and poorly run compared to the other stores. A bad Cub foods with the Byerly’s price.
KT