RSS FeedCity Safeway…T Minus 1
The Safeways in DC all have nicknames. We all know of the Social Safeway, Secret Safeway, and Un-Safeway to name a few. Yesterday afternoon, the PQ Living writing staff were kindly invited to a VIP Reception at what we’re now knighting as the City Safeway, although Super-Stocked Safeway might be a better name after witnessing today’s sneak preview. The corner of 5th and L Streets NW never looked so good.
This beautiful store has wide aisles, an enormous wine section (wine steward included!), large fresh produce section, coin counting machine and really everything else you would expect from a showcase store. Everything was lined up so nicely, we weren’t sure if this was a food museum or a retail store. Safeway management was especially proud of their nut bar. That’s right: a Nut Bar. All sorts of nuts for sale – some even had toppings.
The DC VIP list included several council members, DC Representative Norton, and more Safeway corporate management and staff than we’ve ever seen in a grocery store before. There were speeches galore, most trumpeting what a difference this store will make in this part of DC.
We’re not sure how long this will last, but lots of items had the price cutter red tags indicating Club Card sale items in this store. Some items had amazing sales. We know we’ve had some comment on our stories who think this store is too far away from the PQ to be an everyday grocery store. For those of you who feel that way, give this store a chance – one visit is likely to change your minds. We were able to walk from the Verizon Center to this Safeway in under 15 minutes and you’d be surprised how many groceries you can fit in one of those grandma carts.
But we didn’t need grandma carts because on this day we were fine toting a few groceries home and feeling a lot more urban doing it. We hope readers get to check out this store soon and find this City Safeway to be a great asset to our neighborhood. T minus 1 and counting.
Ed. Hint: Most hyperlinks link to photos so click around a bit to get an inside taste of the store!
Ed. Note: WaPo also has a story on the new store.
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Comments
“we’ve had some comment on our stories who think this store is too far away from the PQ to be an everyday grocery store.”
?? Where are they going for groceries now? CVS?
Perhaps they mean it’s too far to go there for groceries every single day. I guess that could be true if you live near, say, the Navy Memorial.
We have one of those “grandma carts.” Well, two actually. I beat them to death going to Whole Foods and back. An older cart got so bent out of shape that I stripped it for parts. That particular cart is the best I’ve found, but one we just bought is literally coming apart already.
It will be good to have a store close by to pick up small things. If the produce is good I might even go to Whole Foods a little less.
I can honestly say I’ve never been more excited for a grocery store, let alone a Safeway. After you posted this, a coworker (who lives in the suburbs and clearly doesn’t understand how much this means to a carless, urban person) made fun of me for being “obsessed.” I told her to imagine what it would be like without a grocery store for a few years!
You can bet I’ll be shopping there very often. I only hope that they will maintain high quality products and service without a major competitor. Wegmans, anyone??
well..i personally… am tickled pink..because YES..i have been shopping at CVS for years!!
i ALREADY have my super saver card!
xoxo
The ad in today’s (9/11) Washington Post (District tabloid section page 5) says preview party today 4pm to 8pm, receive 10% off all grocery purchases of $50 or more.
The ad also has four items listed for the 12 hour sale on Friday. Nice bargains, too!
Originally the opening for Busboys and Poets was supposed to be Sept. 15th but it looks like it was push back to “late September.” From walking by it just this weekend, I would give it several more weeks.
Here’s the Mt. Vernon Square blog post on it:
http://lifein.mvsna.org/index.cfm/2008/9/8/BP-projected-to-open-Sept-15th
HALLELUJA! – - HALLELUJA! – - HALLELUJA! – HALLELUJA! – HALLELUA! For the Safeway our grocery store omnipotent reigneth!
I feel like it’s Christmas Eve and I am waiting for Santa! We are all so excited at 555 Mass. We have all been waiting for a long time!!
Yes, there is parking there. And according to the sign, the first 60 minutes is free for Safeway shoppers.
Opening just in time for me to enjoy for one week.
Being transferred out of the area to California, where there are grocery stores on just about every corner.
Enjoy everyone. It looks to me that it is walking distance for all of Penn Quarter.
The walk will do you good.
I went on a tour of the store today. AWESOME. Blew by my expectations. Rivals or exceeds Harris Teeter in nearly every regard. They’ve even got a few shopping carriages with video screens for the kids.
The Triangle blog will have a post linking to a flickr stream with dozens of photos in about 60-90 minutes.
But here’s the question: does it have self checkout?
That’s the one irksome thing about most DC-area stores: the lack of self checkout lanes. Give me the lanes!
What a FABULOUS new Safeway!! I’m at Gallery Place and it was a short, pleasant walk to get there. After I sampled all the delicious yummys from the unbelievably cheerful staff, I walked out with TWO bags of groceries. “What in the world…,” said I, “how’re you gonna carry this home?!” Well, I stopped in at the hardware store, a few doors down, and bought one of the those “grandma carts.” Voila! I practically skipped all the way home. Off the chain!!
it should be called the trans-sexual solicitation safeway in honor of the previous business located there.
I think it should be called Suburban Safeway.. and I don’t mean that in a bad way. The store is *huge* and I’ve never seen so many brands of products in a Safeway before. After shopping in all of the tiny Safeways in Dupont, this one feels like that breath of fresh air you get when visiting a suburban grocery store – so spacious!
I can’t wait to use all of the discounts I received in the mail this week!!!! What a great way to attract local customers.
We need about 5 more Trader Joe’s in DC. They take up about half the space of a traditional grocery store and have a good variety. Suburbia gets lots of them but DC gets one??
The linked post forgot about the Not-so-Safeway near the Rhode Island Avenue Metro stop. That place is g-to-tha-hetto.
Living at 7th and E NW, I’m excited for the new store. We’ve been going to the Harris Teeter on Capitol Hill, and while it’s nice, this is much more convenient (even if it does mean walking with our “grandma cart”). I’ve been to a few renovated Safeways in the ‘burbs, and if this store is anything like those, I’m sure it’s very nice.
NOT YOUR GRANDMOTHER’S SAFEWAY
I just walked down to the new safeway and I was duly impressed. It is like a Fresh Market, Publix and very nice Harris Teeters all rolled into one.
Everyone was pleasant and said hello. There was even an attendant directing you to the next open cashier.
The store is well stocked and the produce looked great. Some of the prices were good and some could be better.
There is a great selection for those who just want to pick up a prepared meal to go.
All in all, it was a pleasant experience.
No more hunting for milk on Sunday nights, yeah.
This store is GREAT – great selection of foods, produce, fresh breads, prepared foods, and organics. I love Harris Teeter and Trader Joe’s, but I’ll be doing 99.9% of my shopping at this store now and avoiding car trips to VA.
Also, for those who are interested in a less “granny-looking” granny cart, Container Store has a nice model available.
They have nice non-looking granny carts at the Safeway for a good price.
It is a black bag with a rolling suitcase type handle.
Urban living we are so thankful in cityvisita for the Safeway that no matter what the weather may be we will have wine and cheese and bread without feeling the weather.
Thanks to Urban Living
gmb
Sorry to say, but based on it’s location, it will end up being dirty, unsafe and unusable just like 7TH street teenage hang-out zone in a short amount of time.
I asked the general manager yesterday if there would be carts available to take stuff to your building (like Bed Bath and Beyond does if you’re in the area)he said he was a resident of 555 and that he is trying to get some of the condos and apartments to become part of a program where there will be carts available to do just that. The current carts self lock.
He told us to talk to our concierge…
Just had a delightful experience at the new Safeway. It rocks! I live in the Clara Barton (7th and E) and it took me all of 3 minutes to drive there. Parking is a breeze. And the store is very beautiful, well-stocked with interesting brands, prepared foods, cheese, baked goods. I have never been this happy to have a new grocery store open!
I already loved the new Safeway, but I love it even more after winning an iPod shuffle at the checkout line today 
We checked out the new Safeway this afternoon. Fantastic to have a grocery store nearby, but the prices of some items we checked were considerably higher there compared to Wholefoods and Wegmans (which we can’t cycle/walk to of course….).
A couple of examples: 4 cans of Hansen’s Natural Sparkling Water are $3.99 at Wholefoods and $4.99 at Safeway; Colombia Crest Merlot-Cabernet is $5.99 at Wegmans and $10.99 at Safeway ($8.99 with Club Card); Tide HE detergent is $9.99 at Wegmans and $13.99 (or maybe even $14.99?) at Safeway
I was equally excited as many of you about the opening but I am with the most recent “anonymous” posting, the prices were outrageous!!! The produce was slightly marked up, but some of my usual staples products like soymilk and cereal would just be extremely overpriced if they were not red tagged this week. My bill said I saved $40–thats with the 10% off and many new opening specials. It make whole foods look like a bargain. One toothpaste tube was $9.00! Not to mention the selection on some products like cereal and healthy frozen food was just abysmal.
The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful…except when I asked where the organic spinach could be found and they told me they don’t carry it…until a manager overheard that and corrected him by saying they were just out.
You get a free hour of parking (underground lot).
Overall a very convenient experience.
Are PQ residents the laziest city dwellers on earth? Archives is outside walking distance? You drove from Clara Barton?
This location can’t be more than 10-15 minutes walk from any part of Penn Quarter or MVSq.
I drove yesterday to check out the parking experience which indeed was very convenient. the garage is brightly painted and well lit. the customer service counter validates the parking ticket. as much as I like working out, curling 50 lbs of items in hot, humid weather for 3/4 a mile isn’t my idea of a good time.
prices for things I buy, none of which are organic, were about the same as any other Safeway or Giant. is there a Wegmans nearby in DC or Arlington?
Outrageous prices? You don’t get a discount grocer at a prime location like this. Their costs are higher because their overhead is higher. And this store is much nicer and classier than any of the comparisons here.
I bumped into some friends from Shaw at the new Safeway; Giant and Whole Foods won’t be getting their money anymore. Why are they willing to pay more? Top quality, a beautiful store and convenience. If you want bargains, there are plenty of places to drive to.
Also, when I drive to Safeway for major shopping that a granny cart won’t accommodate, it will be very nice not to have to compete for a parking space with taxicabs, as you do in Whole Foods’ garage in Logan Circle. It’s obviously a business arrangement with the store, because it’s been going on for a very long time and those cabbies are not shopping in the store.
Had Balducci’s been smart enough to open on 7th Street NW two years ago, we’d would have read similar rave reviews and similar complaints. Prime space, higher prices. But Bear Stearns wasn’t smart enough to keep their own business alive and went poof-in-the-night. Now, apparently, they’re considering it again, but they won’t be getting any of my money, even though the distance to their store and Safeway would be equidistant.
Since when is Whole Foods a discount grocer? Is the rent higher for Safeway, maybe. I understand this. If Balducci’s were here, I can justify the difference in price. Why? Because Balducci’s has a reputation of quality, and I can trust their product selection. Go look at the fresh fish selection at Safeway and compare to Whole Foods. I am willing to pay more money to Whole Foods because I feel I can buy a fresh cod fillet at Whole Foods without getting salmonella. I can’t say that about Safeway. In fact, the fresh fish selection at Safeway is pretty abysmal. That said, the fact of the matter is, it’s cheaper at Whole Foods, on the average, for the basket of goods that I buy, than at Safeway, which shocked the hell out of me.
Here is the analogy I make:
Say I eat at McDonalds. In the past, I have had to travel to Dupont to eat at McDonalds. All of the sudden, a McDonalds opens up right next door. Would I be ok that the same McDonalds chain charges 60% more for a McRib just because its rent is higher? For some, it may be worth it. For me it’s not.
CityLiving: I would understand if the prices were being compared to those at Shoppers or Costco or somewhere similar, but Whole Foods and Wegmans are hardly discount grocery stores, and are much nicer stores than the new Safeway in my opinion. Each to their own.
What’s the point of comparing the Safeway to a Wegmans? There isn’t a Wegmans inside the beltway nevermind the district.
I’ve never been able to do all my shopping at Whole Foods. The meat and seafood there are great. But for pete’s sake I don’t want to be forced into getting organic everything. I bet there are some things cheaper at Whole Foods than Safeway – but I bet the reverse is true also.
This new Safeway seems to be on the same level of a Harris Teeter. I’ve been shopping at the Jenkins Row Harris Teeter since it opened. I didn’t conduct any major analysis or anything but the prices between the too seems on par with each other.
Before I moved to the district I shopped a lot at Virginia Safeways in McLean and Arlington. You just learn that if detergent is on sale for $4 off with your club card get two bottles because it may not be on sale your next trip. If your willing to pounce on the club card specials when they present themselves you’ll make out well.
I’m the poster who compared prices at Safeway vs Whole Foods or Wegmans. Yes, I realize that Wegmans is not exactly convenient for DC residents (if only!) as indicated in my original comment, but is actually one of the two places we get our groceries from on a regular basis (the other being WF), which is why I made the comparison.
Yes, PQ residents are extremely lazy… in Brooklyn right now and everyone walks everywhere (without complaint). Get out of your car and walk you feux suburbanites.
Until now I haven’t shopped at Safeway, but based on one trip I think this new store is more in line with a Harris Teeter price point. So if you’re looking for different price levels, try (roughly least to most expensive) Costco, Shopper’s, Giant, Wegmans (discount side), Safeway, Harris Teeter, Wegmans (organic/specialty side), and then Whole Foods.
Safeway can be economical if you stick to the specials, as someone wrote earlier. Trader Joe’s has great food at great prices. I try not to shop in VA – with the sales tax on food there & none here, you’re already a few percent ahead staying here. With the doom & gloom in the economy getting gloomier every day, even Whole Foods is starting to have more specials. & if Alan Greenspan is right & this is the worst financial crisis in 100 years, well, maybe some rooftop & balcony gardens will be sproutin’ soon.
Meanwhile, if you see me selling apples out on Seventh Street, you’ll know I lost my millions. So buy an apple, & brother, can you spare a dime?
Maybe I wasn’t paying attention when I went into Safeway, but where is the Bergmann’s Cleaners that was supposed to be embedded in the store?
The Bergmann’s Cleaners is next to the customer service desk. If you don’t look closely, it looks like an extension of the customer service desk, and it’s not marked very well.
Washington really is a collection of small towns. A new supermarket is a big deal. This reminds me of time spent in a small town on the Central Coast of California, where a new Target and Safeway opened. Folks came hundreds of miles for the grand opening, searchlights racked the sky, speeches were spoken, babies were kisses, balloons were released, etc. This is wonderful news for this, my adopted neighborhood.
I have not noticed any difference in the prices between this Safeway and either the Harris Teeter in NoVa at Pentagon Row or Potomac Yards. As a resident of the District, I will be supporting the business on my home turf.
Is it true that there’s not sales tax on food in DC?
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re: distance from PQ – I am pretty sure it has underground parking correct? so even if you have to drive its still closer than any other grocery store.
Does anyone know what the hours are?