Vons

Here are the cons of shopping at this Vons:
— the service; checkout lines are excruciatingly slow and only 3 are open at a time, on any given day, at any given hour including after-​work rush crowd. The express line is no quicker than the longest available line, ever. It takes 20 minutes to get out of there with a single carton of eggs.
— the selection; this location carries mostly national brands. You only get a couple of brand options for many items, and often 1 or none of those brands contains healthy or non-​chemical ingredients. I need food that is safe to eat. We all do.
— the prices; I actually save more money buying overpriced Target groceries, without even using Cartwheel or coupons. Now that’s just ridiculous.
The only reason I set foot in this store at all is because Smart & Final is the only other grocery source near my house and I don’t always need bulk, and I don’t want to drive to the other end of Simi for just one or 2 things. Albertson’s, Haggen, and Fresh and Easy have come and gone… boy do I miss those days. Even Haggen was a better experience, and their prices were outrageous. I’ve lived here since 1981 and the quality of service and customer care at this Vons has gone from outstanding to virtually nonexistent. Once Sprouts is finished being built in Simi, I will happily forget about this God-​forsaken «supermarket.»
I haven’t listed any pros because all of the important pros are official cons.
I’d also like to point out that I was able to write this long-​ass review while waiting in line. Do yourself a favor and skip this store location.

Lines are always backed up not enough cashiers and baggers for that matter, and as Von’s always greeted they customers through the isles or asked if we’re finding everything ok doesn’t happen anymore, sure can’t wait till smart and final extra opens

I’m so upset that you guy’s discontinued my favorite refresh mixed berry, lime and lemon naturally flavored electrolyte water essence vapor distilled!!! You guys carry all that horrible artificial flavored water made by refresh!!! Your also always out of the o organic white tea with spearmint. I’ve been ordering these by the cases!!! The water was my family’s favorite! Why is this???

Management needs to wake up. Service was always bad but even worse since Albertsons closed. Was just there and no joke 2 lines open and 15 people in each line. Cashier called manager for assistance and nothing. This has been very typical of late. It’s almost like they know they are the only choice at the east end of town and customers can take it or leave it.

Vons should really check their veggies and fruits before putting them out. I just bit into a rotten apple. I’m beyond disgusted.

I loathe this store. Not for the products or condition, but for crying out loud install some self checkout machines!!! They never seem to have more than two registers open at any given time causing long lines with slow witted customers and employees. Just scan and get out of the way!!! I’ll have two items to buy and it takes 15 minutes just to get out of line! This would have easily been my «go to» store when haggens was still around, but management here doesn’t seem to have a clue. For now this is my most «convenient» option until the smart and final is finished or I find a better alternative.

I’ve given this store chance after chance to prove to me that I should shop there. Today was the last straw. The checker Nancy greeted and had a conversation with the young, white male in front of me. He made it a point to be flirty and friendly to this woman. It was my turn. No looking up, no greeting, just ringing up my shit. Only when I neglected to push a button on the credit card swipe did she speak to me. After the transaction I honestly didn’t expect a thank you, but surprisingly she thanked me. Then the customer behind me was next, an older white male and she greeted him. All I could exclaim was, «Wow!»
No customer should feel invisible nor neglected time after time. I have been in the customer service industry for over 30 years and I treat even the most difficult people with respect. I’ve lived in this town for almost 50 years and feel more at home when I visit family in Hawaii. It’s embarrassing to live in this town which has the reputation of being redneck and does nothing to change that.

A lot of stuff is close to or past the sell by date.

I seldom ever write bad reviews, but this just really annoyed me. This morning, around 715am, I went to get a coffee and something for breakfast before work. My friend waited for the Starbucks line, and I waited by the deli sandwich area. One worker was putting things out, and she kept looking at me but would not come over, not until an off duty coworker told her to help me out. This was about 10 minutes after I stood there and workers were talking right behind me. Finally the worker gets to the counter and I order a Pastrami and Swiss sandwich. She says «I have no meats cut for the day» ok that’s fine, so I order a Bacon breakfast burrito, she goes to get the tortilla, and says «I have no more tortillas, so I am gone for the day. Sorry. I do have smaller ones, but I am not allowed to use those.» She then goes back to what she was doing on the sales floor. And I grab a pre made Italian wrap from the cooler. But, Um, but breakfast is to be served 6am-​11am. It says that on their sign. What is she going to do? Turn everyone away? Not to mention, a manager began walking the floor not too long before this happened. I wanted to take it up to the manager then, but I was so irate and was going to be late for work, so I let it go. I also did not catch the employees name, she was not wearing a name tag. Just a warning, if you want a hot breakfast fast, don’t go to this Vons. At least the Starbucks was good. One star for that.

After this Von’s was part of the Albertsons Safeway merger the quality of the produce section went down. The selection is smaller and the fruit are green and tasteless.

I shop here because its close, convenient and the employees are very nice. But I always went to Albertson’s for the Deli Roasted Chicken.
Not sure what has changed the cooking process or the person doing the roasting, but this Von’s now has the best Roasted Chickens. In my opinion better than Costco or Albertson’s.
So far three for three each were completely moist and perfectly cooked.

The people who work in the grocery part are cool but the Starbucks employees are the worst. They look like they hate their life.

lol… xx/​oo…

Employees here enjoy the immunity of being solid union members, and they act like it. I was in there today solely because it’s very close by. Not a single word from the cashier, then as my stuff being bagged, she literally heaves a large item from the next batch at the bagger. Guess something else was going on, but their generally sour attitude is very consistent.

One of the worst experiences I have ever had. Wish I had the option of giving zero stars. I walk up to the deli to order a sandwich. The gentleman that was there took 30 mins to make a sandwich if not longer. Wth!!! Why does it take so long! I gave up and said never mind after he proceeded to overcharge me. Went to the checkstand to get some ice and this lady that calls herself a supervisor didn’t know what she was doing. I live close there but I won’t be shopping there anymore I would rather drive to Albertsons. Save yourself a trip this place is full of morons. I can’t wait when haegens takes over and gets rid of the employees…

Seeing as how Von’s is the closest grocery store to me, my review may be biased. Overall it’s a clean grocery store with a great selection. The meat is decently priced, but the produce is way over priced. Take the time to go to Valley Produce or Jons because those prices are dramatically cheaper than Von’s. The employees are great and check out is always fast! Well, unless you have someone writing a check, but that is not anyone’s fault who is working there. :)

The store smelled really bad, the seafood didn’t seem fresh, and. the lines were long. I wouldn’t shop here again.

The bagger was clearly drunk both times I visited. How is that acceptable? The store itself wasn’t in bad condition it was clean. Their variety in soy /​tofu products were better than most stores. Not like trader joes but better than the walmart neighborhood market. The customer service is poorly one day and then average the next. I’ve been to nicer and friendlier vons before this store isn’t special. I come here purely out of convenience.

QUICK UPDATE: Went to Albertson’s on LA and Stearns, just a few minutes away. TOTALLY WORTH IT. Go there instead of here, TRUST ME.
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I’ve complained to the managers before, and they brush me off with annoyance… maybe they’ll pay attention if I lambast them on Unilocal.Wait! Most of the other ratings on here are terrible, too, and they’ve done nothing about it! So… this is just for you then, dear reader.
Other Unilocalers have mentioned that there are ALWAYS lines here. Always. This is true. But it gets worse; here is an actual conversation I had with the manager who was ringing me up:
ME: You know what might help with these lines? Those self-​checking lanes!
HER: Yeah, but that would take away from our hours. We don’t want those. We will NEVER get self-​check lanes here.
ME: Um. Well, then, maybe hire a few more clerks?
HER: That would take away from our hours, too! We don’t want too many new people, either.
Yup! That’s how Vons cares for their customer’s experience in the store. They don’t! They just want to make sure their paycheck remains the same. Get this, though: if you hired more checkers or got self-​check, you might get more customers through word of mouth and Unilocal ratings (since right now, it’s pretty unanimous that you stink). Ever thought of that?
They also regularly have old, rotting produce out in the store. I’ve brought it up two or three times to different people, which is when I got the annoyed brush off («Yeah, we’ll tell the produce manager…»). And yet, when I return… smushy, spinach in bags. Rotting tomatoes with flies on them. Visible mold spots on fruit. It’s just the worst in there. But I suppose as long as the checkers get their hours, they don’t much care.
The only reason I go here is because it’s only a few blocks from my house. How unfortunate for me. The drive to my old store is totally worth it. Less customers! Less hours for your checkers! Who knew?

Since moving to the east side of Simi I have been relegated to grocery shopping at this particular Vons. Nothing against Vons or Pavillions but this location isn’t one of my favs.
I’ve been here multiple times and I still cannot figure out why the layout is so screwy. I always seem to be going back and forth attempting to find everything on my list. The only good things about this location is that customer service is pleasant and helpful and there is a Starbucks located inside. The worse thing about this Vons is that there is no self-​checkout. I always seem to be waiting in the longest lines. One time I waited nearly 30 minutes to checkout! After my wait I had planned to get some Starbucks but when I went to the counter the employee told me they had closed at 7. It was 6:59!!! I guess I could have planned my time better if I would have known I was going to wait half an hour to check out (in case you can’t tell the sarcasm is thick in that sentence).
I’ll probably stop coming here and go to the Albertson’s on Stearns because their layout is much more user friendly, they have self checkout, and they also have a Starbucks.