We've been using Instacart now on and off for a year now but my very pissed-off wife just cancelled it.

We still cannot figure out how the people who pick the groceries don't seem to give a flying fuck about what they are doing. Rotten cucumber? Put it right in there! Nasty lettuce? Good to go! The customer asked for 4 individual bananas? Why I'm going to shove 4 giant BUNCHES into this bag here!

That and some bizarre substitutions like getting a frozen pepperoni pizza instead of Naan flatbread and just outright screwups like giving us two big 6-packs of paper towels instead of two rolls. Oh and there isn't an order where something isn't forgotten or is "out of stock".

We are done. We will just schlep to the grocery store like regular old people.

We did curbside for a little while. Convenient & just a $4 service fee.
No real complaints other than the occasional 'out of stock' that was actually on the shelf.

We've since gone back to going to the store with a list. I just toss in my headphones & get it done. A bit of 'me' time, I guess. Just not the fun kind.

Mrs. Flash and I are very picky about the fish, meat and vegetables we buy and there is no way I'm going to let some minimum wage kid pick them for me.

quote:

Originally posted by Flash-LB:
Mrs. Flash and I are very picky about the fish, meat and vegetables we buy and there is no way I'm going to let some minimum wage kid pick them for me.

Bingo. No way in hell for me. I'm too picky about my ingredients. I'm not going to let some stranger who probably thinks McD's is "dinner" pick out something for me to cook.

I've also had poor experiences with produce when ordering curbside or delivery.

I also got frustrated with items being noted as "out of stock" when they aren't.

Curbside is still sometimes handy for orders that consist of simple items and nonperishables. But I go inside and select my own meat and produce. And delivery is rarely worth the upcharge.

(Also, speaking of grocery delivery stinking, 2 of the 3 times I ordered grocery delivery with Instacart last year, both the driver and my groceries showed up reeking of weed. I guess many of the potheads have decided to take up full time "gig work" like Instacart, since there's no drug tests needed to get hired.)

 
My wife is using Safeway's new delivery service. The "picker" is a very experienced Safeway employee, and the delivery is handled by an independent contractor. So far she is quite pleased with the service, but my take is that is due to the quality of the picker.

Grocery Delivery Service? Never used it.

I live a mile away from a Super Market. Last year, I lived across the street from a Super Market.

Why would I pay extra for a food delivery service?

I'm going way back here, I remember in the late 1940s, my mother would do the shopping at a grocery store, pay at the register, and the store would deliver the groceries.

The delivery guys had bicycles with small front wheels and a very large basket in front of the handlebars, over the front wheel.

I've had good luck with Shipt no issues and solid deliveries, Instacart and the store specific services on the other hand have been a mixed bag.

Because these are contracted services, like ride-sharing, much comes down to the individual doing the picking/servicing; leave a bad review and they'll be pushed out of the service. Sit on your hands and stew, and the service has zero chance of making corrections and improving itself.

Publix has an online ordering system, they use their employees to do the picking. You drive up and they load it up.

Used the Wal-Mart pickup, it's done by Wal-Mart employees who seem to care about doing a good job, everything is brought out to the car, only issue is things they are out of and you don't offer up an alternative and you end up having to stop at a different store for products.

Both seem to do well, and the advantage is you don't pick up extra items.

Wife tried it for awhile, it sucked. The last straw was when the 4 cloves of garlic requested equaled 4 lbs delivered! What moron thinks that a normal household needs 4 lbs of garlic?

quote:

Originally posted by Rev. A. J. Forsyth:
Wife tried it for awhile, it sucked. The last straw was when the 4 cloves of garlic requested equaled 4 lbs delivered! What moron thinks that a normal household needs 4 lbs of garlic?

An 18 year old kid who has never cooked in his/her life.

The guy who delivered our final order before my wide cancelled it (see OP as to why) pulled up in an $80,000 black Mercedes...

I don't get it.

quote:

Originally posted by Rev. A. J. Forsyth:
Wife tried it for awhile, it sucked. The last straw was when the 4 cloves of garlic requested equaled 4 lbs delivered! What moron thinks that a normal household needs 4 lbs of garlic?

That's hilarious!

My wife was like "I TOLD THESE IDIOTS I WANTED 4 BANANNAS! NOT 4 BIG BUNCHES!"

And who would pick up a clearly bad cucumber and think it was acceptable to put in an order?

Someone who just DGAF, that's who.

That will kill this industry I predict.

Peapod associated with Giant worked generally well and I don’t recall having any of the problems you mentioned with their service. I haven’t used them in a year since I am home full time now and the service is no longer needed by us.

quote:

That's hilarious!

My wife was like "I TOLD THESE IDIOTS I WANTED 4 BANANNAS! NOT 4 BIG BUNCHES!"

And who would pick up a clearly bad cucumber and think it was acceptable to put in an order?

Someone who just DGAF, that's who.

That will kill this industry I predict.

I was the Johnny Garlicseed of the neighborhood. "And you get some garlic! And You get some garlic"!

quote:

Originally posted by Rev. A. J. Forsyth:
Wife tried it for awhile, it sucked. The last straw was when the 4 cloves of garlic requested equaled 4 lbs delivered! What moron thinks that a normal household needs 4 lbs of garlic?

Clearly you've not married into an Italian family,

I barely get out of the house now so grocery shopping is not drudgery to me anymore. That and I agree with others that I’m too picket to let someone else choose for me.

I am waaaay to type-A to have someone else pick out my groceries...well, other than my wife. What if a competing brand is on sale?

I put way too much thought into each items than to have some barbarian pick it out for me!

quote:

Originally posted by Flash-LB:
Mrs. Flash and I are very picky about the fish, meat and vegetables we buy and there is no way I'm going to let some minimum wage kid pick them for me.

Exactamundo.

Of course, we're world-class stick-in-the-muds.
We shop once a month and treat it as a "day out".