Summat ASDA be 'appening in Barnsley. (Asda)

Member Name: paulhanton

Product:	Asda
Date:	27/06/08 (143 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap, fresh, local produce.

Disadvantages: It is a supermarket.

Quite an unusual thing for me to write about, a supermarket, but credit where credit is due, there seem to be some changes afoot that need to be passed on to the average consumer.

I like to go to our local market (Barnsley) for fruit, to the farm shop for meat and to a fishmonger for fish; it helps local businesses and is generally cheaper.

Just lately I have noticed a drop in quality in the market, and a hike in prices at the farm shop, so have been popping down to ASDA, which is what I did this afternoon after work. there is some good stuff to report:

~~~~~The Good~~~~~

Firstly, the prices; they seem to be very cheap, now I'm sure some folk will jump up and down and say that this is at the expense of the poor farmers, maybe, I dunno, but I was impressed at the prices.

British produce: I always try and buy produce that is as local as possible, and managed today to buy; Scottish fish, Lincolnshire pork, British strawberries, rasberries, cucumber, tomatoes, onions, celery and some other bits and pieces. This is a real reason to go to ASDA on it's own, less food miles. I have even stopped eating my favourite blueberries, as they come from South America.

Produce that is 'ethical'....I bought line caught tuna and Scottish farmed, sustainable salmon (that was tea, yum). The labelling is very clear on the ASDA products, so when I bought the outdoor reared pork from Lincolnshire, it felt like I was making a conscious choice. Yep, I am one of those folk that reads the labels and takes my own cloth shopping backs with me!

Helpful staff: really helpful folk who seem genuinely happy in their work. Not only that, their seems to be a policy of employing older folk and those with levels of disability, all good stuff.

Great choice: there really is pretty much all one needs, and I have to say I do buy George clothes, functional and cheap.

~~~~~The bad~~~~~

The constant moving of things to different parts of the supermarket. Alright, I don't go there that often, but when I do, it has all changed round again!

The deliberate nature of product placement.....if you want an item of say 'Sharwoods' you have to bend down or get on tip toes, whereas the ASDA own (often inferior) brand is just there, to hand.

Queues at checkouts, I don't need to expand on this.

The piped music, it makes me want to throw myself beneath a moving trolley. Combined with the ultra bright lighting I feel like I am being tortured at Guantanamo bay.

~~~~~The Ugly~~~~~

Some of the 'smart price' range, especially meats and fruit, it just looks 'ropey'.

The car parks, spaces too narrow and never enough spaces, and the chavs in 4x4's that park in disabled bays or parents and kids bays.

The cafe: Oh my god!! Stale, greasy and disgusting looking, and then there is the food!! I'm sorry, I try to live and let live but there is something quite obscene about an overweight, unshaved bloke with his hairy backside hanging out, leaning over a tiny table stuffing his face with a fatty bacon sandwhich, and a trolley 'parked' next to him with enough cases of beer to open a brewery. Okay so maybe I am not as nice a guy as I make out sometimes!!

Overall:
I do not intend to do a weekly shop at ASDA but it does have it's good points. To give you an example, I went to the fish counter and bought a few bits and was looking at the salmon fillets, which were quite samll so I was thinking "do I want three or four" as I was deciding what to make me and my wife for tea....the woman serving said, "They are a bit small aren't they, you would get much better value by buying a whole salmon tail, you save money just by being prepared to cut it up yourself". I did what she advised, and it was really nice.......cooking tip coming.......Slow grill the salmon tail, rub a little butter over it first (keeps the top moist), then black pepper and finely diced garlic. Serve on a bed of wild rocket with a light Dijon and olive oil dressing, champion.

So, ASDA for me, once in a while.

Summary: ASDA shopping.