A Spirited Perfect Ten

[flynnibus]

Would you believe that someone on twitter argued with me that Publix was better than wegmans?

Just solidifies that whole FL is crazy notion

 

[flynnibus]

Unless you move out of Florida to an area with lousy supermarkets (like Washington, DC). Then Publix suddenly becomes greatest supermarket of all time.

WhatchuTalkinBout Willis? DC area has Wegmans, Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Harris Teeter, Safeway, (home town) Giant, Superfresh, and Food Lion. We basically have most of the players but some of the west coast chains like Krogers.

Giant used to be great when it was based on service... but stores like Wegmans are in an entirely different level. Publix was never more than a run of the mill chain like Superfresh to me.

Alas Harris Teeter in this area is more prolific than Disney Pin shops.. there are literally SEVEN Harris Teeters within a 5mile radius of my house. Zero exaggeration. Luckily.. there are two Wegmans within 5 miles too

 

[Tony Perkis]

I'm talking about leaks. NOTHING almost ever leaks out of UNI compared to WDI.

Huh? Kong and Volcano Bay haven't even been announced yet.

 

[Californian Elitist]

I really wish I went when I was in California. The people I was with however didn't see value in going. I'll probably go next time which should be after Harry Potter is already open.

It's not the best time to go anyway. There's construction everywhere.

 

[flynnibus]

I can't stand how Wegman's has their stores laid out, not that any other supermarket is better. I can't understand why meats, deli, and seafood isn't near the freezer section. That way you can get all the cold foods right before heading out the door, instead of some to start and then at the end again. I think the supermarket layout folks must have worked on airplane passenger loading before.

What you walk past (or heavily influenced to walk past) is no accident and a big part of what supermarkets manipulate. Its just another form of marketing. I used to hate my wegmans mainly because it was pure chaos and traffic city. But once I learned to only use the secondary entrance and avoid the 'crossroads of the world' that was the main entrance of produce, cafe, and bakery... all was much better. And unlike Disney, Wegmans offers a premium product at a DISCOUNT compared to it's competition.. not a markup.

 

[flynnibus]

Just a reminder the real story isn't always captured online.

If someone would crack the nut to get people bus'd off disney property without customer resistance... things could get nutty. Imagine setting up a bus terminal right across from Disney Springs, etc Getting people to break the bubble still is the biggest issue.

I wonder if Disney could stop on-demand pickups from happening on property?

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

I wouldn't even say Publix is the best grocery in Florida, let alone elsewhere in the US. I prefer both Whole Foods and Fresh Market to them. And i'm not even counting their statuses as healthier food stores (which is a plus admittedly), their employees are generally much nicer, more helpful etc than most Publix stores in my area. Trader Joe's is another, again a different and more healthy sort of product than Publix but their employee force is much better either way. I think Publix is starting to grow out of control and some of its stores are showing signs of a lessened shopping experience (at least in regards to their employee force) from what they once were. Though it varies from store to store.

My best experience with Publix stores was back in my original home of Nashville TN. Shortly before I moved to Florida, Publix had expanded further north to Tennessee. They were generally better stores from an employee perspective there than they are down here in Florida. My guess is because they're already an established and popular chain down in FL, they don't see much of a need to try to compete as much. In Tennessee they had to contend with the large and successful grocery chain called Kroger (though Publix's employees definitely beat Kroger). As well as the somewhat successful (if smaller) chain of stores called Harris Teeter. The greater competition seemed to drive the Publix stores up there to try harder. Down where I live now (Naples FL), the only other traditional large-ish grocery chain (not including Walmart or health food stores) is Winn Dixie. And from what i've seen of Winn Dixie, they do a pretty poor job at competing with Publix for the most part.

I know it shouldn't count given that it's a membership only store, but i'm quite fond of Costco. Again a dramatically different type of store than a general grocery, but it's generally quite a pleasant experience and the employees are usually very nice and know what they're doing.

I've never visited Wegmans, but most comments on it indicates that it's a fantastic grocery. Wouldn't mind them expanding somewhat, Florida could use some extra grocery competition (Sweetbay also bit the dust not long ago and was taken over by Winn Dixie in my area, further thinning out grocery diversity).

 

[TP2000]

WhatchuTalkinBout Willis? DC area has Wegmans, Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Harris Teeter, Safeway, (home town) Giant, Superfresh, and Food Lion. We basically have most of the players but some of the west coast chains like Krogers.

DC sounds like it's well covered. I miss Harris Teeter.

But I don't think Krogers is a West Coast thing, it's headquarters are in Ohio; we don't have Krogers here in SoCal, nor up north in Portland or Seattle. Krogers does run the Fred Meyer chain in Portland, and QFC in Seattle, but the "Kroger" brand doesn't exist there. (Portlanders particularly would flip out if they perceived their local stores were run by a corporate borg from out of state, especially from the Midwest)

Safeway is definitely a West Coast chain, but it was just bought out and taken over by Albertsons from Boise, Idaho. The rebranding of the Safeways in NorCal and Vons stores in SoCal is not going to go well when they slap Albertson's on them.

As I struggle to get this back OT, I think if you're in a DVC or condo the Publix on Buena Vista Dr. is the most convenient for WDW groceries, and the Vons in downtown Anaheim on Lincoln Ave. is the best for Disneyland groceries.

 

[flynnibus]

I've never visited Wegmans, but most comments on it indicates that it's a fantastic grocery. Wouldn't mind them expanding somewhat, Florida could use some extra grocery competition (Sweetbay also bit the dust not long ago and was taken over by Winn Dixie in my area, further thinning out grocery diversity).

Not a clip that emphasizes how they differ... but if you just want a peek of just some of the elements and often.. pure scale of a Wegman's.. look at this short clip

 

[flynnibus]

DC sounds like it's well covered. I miss Harris Teeter.

But I don't think Krogers is a West Coast thing, it's headquarters are in Ohio; we don't have Krogers here in SoCal, nor up north in Portland or Seattle. Krogers does run the Fred Meyer chain in Portland, and QFC in Seattle, but the "Kroger" brand doesn't exist there. (Portlanders particularly would flip out if they perceived their local stores were run by a corporate borg from out of state, especially from the Midwest)

Ack - sorry got the west coast mixed up. In this area we've had safeways for decades even tho they are west coast based and were the dominate chain along with local Giant until recent years. Giant sold off in the 90s.. and is a sad story of how organizations change when part of a conglomerate

As I struggle to get this back OT, I think if you're in a DVC or condo the Publix on Buena Vista Dr. is the most convenient for WDW groceries, and the Vons in downtown Anaheim on Lincoln Ave. is the best for Disneyland groceries.

Pubix has location... but I think we still hit walmart grocery on the way down to Disney.

 

[5thGenTexan]

If you're against In-N-Out, you're against America.

Nope, just grew up in a part of the county with a superior burger.

 

[ChrisFL]

I wouldn't even say Publix is the best grocery in Florida, let alone elsewhere in the US. I prefer both Whole Foods and Fresh Market to them. And i'm not even counting their statuses as healthier food stores (which is a plus admittedly), their employees are generally much nicer, more helpful etc than most Publix stores in my area. Trader Joe's is another, again a different and more healthy sort of product than Publix but their employee force is much better either way. I think Publix is starting to grow out of control and some of its stores are showing signs of a lessened shopping experience (at least in regards to their employee force) from what they once were. Though it varies from store to store.

I don't consider Whole Foods and Fresh Market regular grocery stores, more like high-end specialty grocers.

 

[Smiddimizer]

There's plenty of evidence that plants can respond to certain outside stimuli to some extent, it is not however evidence of self awareness or actual pain in the sense that animals experience. Just autonomic preservation responses to the environment (as much as it can muster without a central nervous system). Pain is a brain's interpretation of harmful stimuli, it goes beyond simple autonomic responses exhibited by simpler living organisms such as plants. Most living organisms, even the most base, have some sort of self preservation mechanism built into their genetic code. Even certain complex DEAD animals can still exhibit movement to stimuli for some period after their death. A beheaded snake body can continue to move for some time after, and the head can even bite things that "provoke" it. And there are videos of dead octopus where soy sauce is poured over their bodies and their limbs move quite a bit due to an electrical response in the nerves. Doesn't mean the organisms are still alive and "self aware" or that they can feel pain, it's relegated to simple autonomic chemical responses to certain stimuli (such as nerves that are still active after the brain ceases major activity).

I am myself also a vegetarian of over 10 years (vegan for most of that), though it doesn't extend to being grossed out by the thought of eating meat. I'm no raging nut by any stretch of the imagination (in contrast to the obnoxious jackass hypocrites at PETA). Ethics do factor into it to some substantial degree (it was what made me try the diet to begin with), but it's a heavily health based diet for me as well (which is not something I expected going into this). Besides general health benefits such as some weight loss and blood pressure normalization, I developed various food intolerances in my youth that a non-meat/dairy diet helps to neutralize. Meat and dairy had always caused me digestive issues even as a child, and dairy in particular inflames painful respiratory problems I started to develop as a teen (certain vegetable sources such as grains, tree nuts and peanuts can even cause issues). I wouldn't say it's a diet that everyone should follow (though I would perhaps argue that more people could stand to experiment and dabble with it given the abysmal American diet), but it definitely works for me regardless of the ethics behind it.

^ This guy.

 

[Progress.City]

There's plenty of evidence that plants can respond to certain outside stimuli to some extent, it is not however evidence of self awareness or actual pain in the sense that animals experience. Just autonomic preservation responses to the environment (as much as it can muster without a central nervous system). Pain is a brain's interpretation of harmful stimuli, it goes beyond simple autonomic responses exhibited by simpler living organisms such as plants. Most living organisms, even the most base, have some sort of self preservation mechanism built into their genetic code. Even certain complex DEAD animals can still exhibit movement to stimuli for some period after their death. A beheaded snake body can continue to move for some time after, and the head can even bite things that "provoke" it. And there are videos of dead octopus where soy sauce is poured over their bodies and their limbs move quite a bit due to an electrical response in the nerves. Doesn't mean the organisms are still alive and "self aware" or that they can feel pain, it's relegated to simple autonomic chemical responses to certain stimuli (such as nerves that are still active after the brain ceases major activity).

I am myself also a vegetarian of over 10 years (vegan for most of that), though it doesn't extend to being grossed out by the thought of eating meat. I'm no raging nut by any stretch of the imagination (in contrast to the obnoxious jackass hypocrites at PETA). Ethics do factor into it to some substantial degree (it was what made me try the diet to begin with), but it's a heavily health based diet for me as well (which is not something I expected going into this). Besides general health benefits such as some weight loss and blood pressure normalization, I developed various food intolerances in my youth that a non-meat/dairy diet helps to neutralize. Meat and dairy had always caused me digestive issues even as a child, and dairy in particular inflames painful respiratory problems I started to develop as a teen (certain vegetable sources such as grains, tree nuts and peanuts can even cause issues). I wouldn't say it's a diet that everyone should follow (though I would perhaps argue that more people could stand to experiment and dabble with it given the abysmal American diet), but it definitely works for me regardless of the ethics behind it.

Thank you for answering this. You basically said what I had the urge to say, but I chose not to because you know how things can get here...

 

[Progress.City]

Nope, just grew up in a part of the county with a superior burger.

Really?! We've gone so far down the rabbit hole and digressed to this?

 

[Hakunamatata]

Nope, just grew up in a part of the county with a superior burger.

This is true. For drive thru fast food burgers hard to beat a Whataburger.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Really?! We've gone so far down the rabbit hole and digressed to this?

You of all people have zero room to throw the rabbit hole stone.

 

[danlb_2000]

Why does the Spirit thread always end up in a discussion of burger joints?

 

[the.dreamfinder]

Anna wants you to know she won't be friends with you if you and your kids are not vaccinated.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/kristen-bell-demands-friends-get-772242

 

[Nemo14]

Why does the Spirit thread always end up in a discussion of burger joints?

I"m pretty sure it has nothing to do with his secret identity...