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Commissary - Love it or Leave it.
- Thread starter pourts
- Start date
I'm down with the OCONUS concept - makes sense there. Maybe it was "for the troops" back in the day, but the kiddies aren't shopping at the Commissary - it just ain't cool. If it's supposed to stretch people's food dollar, how about we boost people's COMRATS and get rid of the financially insolvent dinosaur.
Brett
Brett
For the single line complainers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5Ri_HhziI0&feature=player_detailpage#t=96s
Not saying this works in practice at the commissary, but that's the theory behind it.
Not saying this works in practice at the commissary, but that's the theory behind it.
You know, you don't have to tip the baggers. It is, after all, a tip. If they did a lousy job, they deserve to be rewarded as such. If they did a good job, then great. You also have the option of bagging your own groceries, which I have done a number of times
My pet peeve used to be the self-checkout line (at Little Creek in particular). The machines were set up so that once you scanned and bagged each item, you had to go slowwwww and wait what seemed like a long time before scanning the next thing. Otherwise it would lock up and the attendant would have to come over and swipe their magic secret squirrel card to unlock it.
Also, for some reason the machine always wanted the attendant to come over and verify very routine things (such as ensuring a bunch of bananas was, in fact, a bunch of bananas).
Then the random hits from the annoying "you failed to place the last item in a bag" sensor, which means another visit from the attendant...
Also, for some reason the machine always wanted the attendant to come over and verify very routine things (such as ensuring a bunch of bananas was, in fact, a bunch of bananas).
Then the random hits from the annoying "you failed to place the last item in a bag" sensor, which means another visit from the attendant...
I wanted to weigh in on this thread in response to specific claims, but by the time I got to the bottom after one day's worth of existence I decided to say "fuck it".
I've been in the training command for nearly 3 years at 4 different bases. All of the commissaries have been decent, some better than others. I have never seen a "single line" commissary. The baggers have never been rude (don't want to tip them? use the self checkout lines). There should be no drive time for a married couple (one of you works on base, except during deployments). The majority of the (few) uniformed people I see there are single. The commissary in Meridian has the best meat selection in the local area.
I've been in the training command for nearly 3 years at 4 different bases. All of the commissaries have been decent, some better than others. I have never seen a "single line" commissary. The baggers have never been rude (don't want to tip them? use the self checkout lines). There should be no drive time for a married couple (one of you works on base, except during deployments). The majority of the (few) uniformed people I see there are single. The commissary in Meridian has the best meat selection in the local area.
I always use the commissary. I always bag my own groceries. I know I save a significant amount of cash on the deal here in Hawaii, although it was a good cost savings in Corpus, too.
Don't like it? Don't go!
Don't like it? Don't go!
Commissary and NEX in Pearl vs anywhere else is Nordstrom and sears. Let's be real here.
Baggers: I'll pay a few bucks to have someone bag my stuff and take it to the car. YMMV. No use getting pissed about it. In regular grocery stores, you still may be expected to tip, yet virtually none still have car service.
IMO, the commissary is a fair bit cheaper than grocery stores. Generally you get name-brand stuff for the same price as generics would be in town.
It's a worthwhile benefit--for a base. Now, keeping commissaries and PXs just to serve retirees, as in Brunswick or Orlando? They can get bent.
I just don't get the commissary hate. I've never had any problems. If you're a hard-core foodie, fine. go to Whole Foods, Trader's, or Fox and Obel and pay out the ass. A lot of bases just have Food Lions, Piggly Wigglies (ugh), and Winn-Dixies outside, so the alternative may not be any better.
IMO, the commissary is a fair bit cheaper than grocery stores. Generally you get name-brand stuff for the same price as generics would be in town.
It's a worthwhile benefit--for a base. Now, keeping commissaries and PXs just to serve retirees, as in Brunswick or Orlando? They can get bent.
I just don't get the commissary hate. I've never had any problems. If you're a hard-core foodie, fine. go to Whole Foods, Trader's, or Fox and Obel and pay out the ass. A lot of bases just have Food Lions, Piggly Wigglies (ugh), and Winn-Dixies outside, so the alternative may not be any better.
Unless we use self-check here, we don't have the option to self-bag. You have to fight with them just to get them not to go to your car with you. And self-check is only for 15 items or less, so the whole "don't use the baggers" thing doesn't really work.
I've never been to a regular grocery store where I was expected to tip for just the bagging service. Having them put my apples and chicken in a bag is included in the price of the items.
It would make a lot more sense CONUS to just increase BAS (or add a new grocery allowance, similar to the uniform allowance) and consider that the cost of being able to do away with a cumbersome, money-losing entity that offers sub-par service and a sub-par product. That 1.3 billion annually would cover a decent grocery allowance for every junior enlisted person.
I've never been to a regular grocery store where I was expected to tip for just the bagging service. Having them put my apples and chicken in a bag is included in the price of the items.
It would make a lot more sense CONUS to just increase BAS (or add a new grocery allowance, similar to the uniform allowance) and consider that the cost of being able to do away with a cumbersome, money-losing entity that offers sub-par service and a sub-par product. That 1.3 billion annually would cover a decent grocery allowance for every junior enlisted person.
Damn, this thread exploded.
The food at the commissary in Lemoore is pretty good--and it should be with all the farms around. The self check-out has most of the bugs worked out of it. I also shop for one so I never tip, bring re-usable bags, and carry my own stuff out. My problem is the hours. It is designed to have the home-maker spouse pick up groceries during bankers' hours.
For me (single guy) it would be super convenient to stop by the commissary on the way home from work, but that almost never occurs before 1700/1800 when they close. Instead I do the no-pants-dance in my car, change into civvies, and buy some food at Fresh-and-Easy. Go to any regular grocery store and see when it is busiest... I would say 5-7 pm-ish.
I agree with Brett; if we need to cut some fat, maybe this is it.
The food at the commissary in Lemoore is pretty good--and it should be with all the farms around. The self check-out has most of the bugs worked out of it. I also shop for one so I never tip, bring re-usable bags, and carry my own stuff out. My problem is the hours. It is designed to have the home-maker spouse pick up groceries during bankers' hours.
For me (single guy) it would be super convenient to stop by the commissary on the way home from work, but that almost never occurs before 1700/1800 when they close. Instead I do the no-pants-dance in my car, change into civvies, and buy some food at Fresh-and-Easy. Go to any regular grocery store and see when it is busiest... I would say 5-7 pm-ish.
I agree with Brett; if we need to cut some fat, maybe this is it.
That was a good one. Have you ever tried to talk to an on base "service" about their crappy hours, or less than stellar service, etc.? I like your optimism though.
We were told there wouldn't be a deli put in at NAS Whiting because , and I quote "It's not what the retirees want."
So much for it being our commissary :-(
I suppose I haven't seen a commissary yet that didn't offer a decent price on most of its products. In general, if you shop around the outside of the commissary, you'll find some of your best deals. That includes meats, dairy, eggs, and sometimes produce. Typically, my wife and I save around $40-50 per month by just shopping on those type of items alone. If you shop the sales throughout the rest of the store, you'll find some pretty decent prices there as well, and has already been mentioned, you're paying generic/store brand prices on the name brand items.
Thus far, the commissary has proven to be a great asset for a family on a tight budget (mine). Do we still shop in town? Occasionally, when the local grocery store has a better sale going on for specific items. The funny thing is, when we go shopping there on the weekends, they have local high school groups bagging there for, you guessed it, tips as a fundraiser. So, don't think that the commissary is the only place around that expects you to tip your baggers. Furthermore, you don't have to tip the bagger if you don't want to. If you tried to bag your own groceries, and they wouldn't let you. . .to hell with them. They just told you that they would rather work for free.
Tried with comment cards, never in person though. I don't want my ice cream melting while I wait. Have also tried multiple times to try to change stuff at the gym also with comment cards and in person. Allways respectful of course. In person they say "that's an interesting idea, we'll think about it" and never get back to me. They never reply to the phone or email I leave on the comment cards either.