RSS FeedHowto: Find Groceries-Delivery Options
A few months ago, PQresident composed a three part series on local grocery stores that service the Penn Quarter area. But while the Shaw Giant, the Waterfront Safeway, the Foggy Bottom Trader Joes and the Logan Circle Whole Foods are good options for many, they just don’t work for this workaholic. So, like many Penn Quarter residents, I have my groceries delivered.
So, for those urban dwellers who have been thinking about giving grocery delivery a try, this post should serve as a comparison and a critique of the two major providers–Safeway.com and Peapod.com (a service of Giant).
Delivery: Safeway costs $9.95 for orders less than $150 and $7.95 for orders exceeding that amount.
Peapod.com charges $9.95 for deliveries under $75, $7.95 for orders between $76 and $100, and $6.95 for orders over $100. Peapod also offers small discounts for delivery windows exceeding two hours, but who can be home from 7:30am to 1:00pm?
Product Selection: Of the two companies, Safeway has the superior product selection offering a wider range of goods/brands and more choices than Peapod. However, my Safeway orders often arrive only partially filled due to some items being out-of-stock. Usually the items that I want most are the ones that don’t show up.
Both companies also offer an increasing number of organic products and specialty items. They also provide customers with the ability to request that items not listed be stocked in the future.
Product Quality: For many people, grocery delivery is not an attractive option because it eliminates the ability of the consumer to choose his/her own produce and dairy products.
For my part, Peapod has the most consistent quality of the two companies. Produce almost always arrives fresh and milk and eggs arrive at the earlier part of their shelf life.
My experience with Safeway has been less consistent. Fragile fruits like peaches often arrive bruised and sometimes produce arrives moldy. But these are not an every delivery event so much as an occasional inconvenience.
While I am generally happy with the quality of products that I receive, there is one notable exception. Peapod packages my items in toters containing small amounts of dry ice to keep frozen items frozen. Safeway does not. I no longer order ice cream from Safeway, period.
Product Prices: One thing I like about delivery services is the ability to find good deals. I will often shop the specials section of the website first, and then fill the gaps in my grocery list with regularly priced items. I find shopping for discounts easier on the website than in the store.
Peapod also allows customers to give their delivery driver manufacturer’s coupons and have that amount deducted from their total before their payment is processed.
While the prices of most items on-line are comparable to the in-store prices, some items are more expensive. A 1lb package of 90% lean ground beef is $4.49 at Safeway and $4.99 at Peapod.com. My neighbor assures me that 1lb of ground beef at a nearby grocery store cost her $3.91.
Similar markups on beauty products, personal care items and other products can increase the price of a week’s groceries significantly. I guess you pay extra for the convenience.
Customer Service: Both companies are good about refunding money for incorrect items or items of poor quality. But Peapod processes these refunds in a more timely manner. Peapod also allows customers to contact service representatives by e-mail. Safeway can only be contacted by phone and the hold times can be lengthy.
Both companies also offer no-nonsense, pleasant drivers who do their job efficiently. Peapod encourages customers to tip the drivers, but Safeway does not allow tipping.
Website Quality: While neither website is particularly challenging to navigate, Peapod’s is a little bit easier to navigate and more visually appealing. I find that it takes me about 20 minutes less time to order groceries on Peapod than it does for me to navigate Safeway’s more complex system.
My number one complaint about the Safeway website is that the pictures of the items do not always match the item title. For example, a picture of Twinkies next to the title Artisan French Baguette made me laugh pretty hard.
Also, if you are ordering from Safeway.com, remember that decimal points are important. Last week, I ordered .5lbs of dried sweetened cranberry and received 5lbs of the product. Apparently, the computer can only read the decimal if it comes after another number. So, if I had ordered 1.5lbs, I probably would have been okay.
Little Extras: Peapod usually throws in a product sample or two with every order. These products range from toothpaste, to salad dressing to cereal. This is a handy little extra that allowed yours truly to discover a really great salad dressing (Annie’s Green Goddess) that I would have never otherwise tried.
Despite some challenges and limitations, grocery delivery from either service is a convenient option for those of us without cars and/or without time to shop. But there is simply no replacement for going to the store yourself. I am still a big believer that Penn Quarter needs a grocery store.
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Comments
one of the key points of the article was to have the groceries come to you and not the other way around.
Harris Teeter does offer Express Lane where HT will pick and pack your items on your shopping list before you get there so you don’t have to get out of the car but that’s still not delivering groceries to your front door.
Having groceries delivered to me is great for many reasons, but nothing would be better than a grocery store going up in the 7th street space that was to hold Balducci’s. Period.
I’ve been curious about Safeway’s quality versus Peapod’s. I started out a Peapod girl, and just haven’t ventured to the other side.
Another plus to Peapod (and, to be fair, I’m not sure – Safeway may offer the same feature) is that you can hold onto weekly sale items indefinitely. I usually go in on a weekly basis and add in things I like off the sale listing. It keeps it in your basket and even if you don’t check out for months, you keep the sale price. Love that trick!
I’ve had great experiences with Peapod. Definitely recommend.
I disagree on Peapod’s produce quality. Vegetables have usually been OK, but any fruit softer than a green apple will arrive covered in dents, bruises, and brown, mushy spots. I don’t order fruit from Peapod anymore. PS–Soft bread apparently gets the same treatment, typically arriving re-formed to fit the shape of whatever other groceries it was packed with.
There’s nothing better than going into a grocery store and personally picking out the best produce and bread.
As for the grocery store on 7th, you should accept that it’s not going to happen.
Too busy to pop your head into a grocery store for 30 minutes a week? Your life must be a whole lot more hectic than mine.
I have had pretty good luck with Peapod, although they are not always on time. It works best when staples are ordered, ie laundry and cleaning supplies, dry goods, etc. Safeway has been my least favorite, as they always seem to be out of anything I order.
Regarding fresh produce, I prefer to shop at Whole Foods or a farmer’s market. When I have ordered produce from either store, it was not fresh and certainly not what I personally would have chosen.
The balance of my shopping goes to Trader Joes and Harris Teeters.
If a grocery store was nearer by, I doubt that all of the problems would be solved. We would still be in search of better produce and prices, and spread out the shopping among various stores. This has been my experience in all the places that I have lived throughout the country.
For veggies try Washington’s Green Grocer. They deliver weekly or bi-weekly right to your front door. Just fresh vegetables though. No grocery items.
Tim: Thanks for that link, I’m going to give them a try to see how it works. I wish DC deliveries were early in the week rather than late, but may not matter that much.
Ben, it’s more than “30 minutes a week” particularly if you don’t have a car. Many of us (like me) choose to be carless, and are limited to the amount of groceries we can schlep ourselves, say in a wheely cart. So that means fairly frequent trips, and taking public transportation can add time.
(I’m not complaining exactly – it’s good exercise and I’m used to it. But in Cleveland Park, I could just walk up the street to 2 little grocers whenever I wanted.)
Maybe getting rid of the car wasn’t such a good idea in a neighborhood that is more tourist than resident friendly.
if one is making a trip to the grocery store only (no other side trips) and one doesn’t have (or use) a car, budget 30 minutes for total travel time alone. add 30 minutes for shop time and you’re looking at a one hour minimum. if you want to go somewhere that everyone would generally regard as safe at all times of the day and week, tack on 20 to 30 minutes to the total travel time (door to door).
I can’t imagine buying all my groceries for the week in 30 minutes without Franco Harrising everyone in the store. especially on a weekend.
CBD is dead on.
Maybe I’m just a more efficient shopper? Dunno…but I live in Logan, a few blocks from the Whole Foods (and a few blocks more from Safeway). I, too, walk to these places. And grocery shopping for the week is hardly a blip on my radar screen. But, hey, people find time for what they want to find time for, I suppose…
Tim: You are my new favorite person. Green Grocer it is.
Ben: It’s not about hectic. It’s about cost. By the time, I rent the zipcar, drive to the store, get the groceries, unpack em, return the zipcar, etc. It’s been an all morning event.
The real problem though is that I’m a country girl and driving the beltway takes years off of my life.
Anon: I am NOT giving up on having a grocery on 7th. I was promised there would be one when I bought my condo, and that is a promise I am holding someone to.
Anon: Regarding promise of grocery store on 7th..
You can’t get blood out of a turnip and you can’t EVER believe what a realtor/salesperson tells you about what will be built in the neighborhood. They have no control, unless the developer is buidling it themself.
Chalk it up to a good lesson learned.
Not every neighborhood has a store within walking distance, inclding the burbs.
I found Peapod to be perfect for ordering sodas and heavy items — even with a car — its great to have them delivered. Safeway never quite got it right for me either. Both of them are fantastic about refunds. I take the metro to eastern market for fresh food, cheese and meat. Its much cheaper than any store.
Aha! See, Ben, you live within a few blocks of the Whole Foods! It’s different for us down at the Clara Barton. I shop at that Whole Foods too, but for me it requires either (1) walking from the Dupont Circle Metro, a 4-minute Metro ride (not counting entrance/exit/waiting time) plus a 10-minute walk; (2) walking all the way there, which takes me about 20 minutes; or (3) bumming a ride off some friend with a car. (I often go to the Waterfront Safeway, which is RIGHT atop the Metro – that actually ends up being a shorter trip usually.)
It definitely does make a difference having a grocery within a few blocks, as opposed to a mile or two away. It’s like night and day. Well, maybe not night and day. Maybe like 1pm versus 5pm.
Did Harris Teeter ever look at the Balducci’s space? It seems they’re really expanding in the DC area.
Actually, it’s not entirely true that Washington Green Grocer only delivers produce- they deliver cheese, milk, eggs and tofu, too. I have been very happy with them for the last eight months and Zeke will refund your money if you get the wrong item (in my case, curly parsley instead of flat leaf.)
This is off topic, but does anyone know what happened to Potatoe Valley on E street NW in PQ? It’s had a sign that it would be opening for months but no movement on it – haven’t even seen any construction going on. Is this still going in?
I think that space is probably too small for a harris teeter. Has the space officially been transferred from JPI to Doug Jemal? It’s been so long since I’ve heard anything about the space, and it doesn’t look like its on the agenda at the DCNA meeting. At this point, I’d even settle for a world market. At least they have wine.
I’m new to the area and I’ve never had groceries delivered but I want to try it out. Are you supposed to tip the delivery person and if so, how much?
Yes Ben, if we lived in Logan, we’d have better things to blog about that grocers, because we’d just be stopping by the store on the walk home from work. We find time for blogging about grocers because we don’t enjoy the convenience of nearby grocers that logan circle residents do.
Anon @ 5:50–Only Peapod allows tips, but I usually tip $3 for an order without heavy items and $6 for an order with heavy items.
I used the Green Grocer after they were written up in the Post — nothing but a bad experience — the produce was no better than Peapod delivery — which I find to be the worst of all. Zeke was gracious and tried to make it better, but ultimately I cancelled.
Boxed goods are easy for Peapod/Safeway. Produce is another story. And the so-called farmer’s market is not a replacement with $7 figs and $3 tomatoes.
I will continue to take the Circulator to the O Street Giant when I need a few things, or Metro to Van Ness’s nice new Giant. Or walk to Whole Foods and carry or cab back only what is necessary.
The one good thing about shopping in small quantities: no spoilage. There’s nothing good about throwing out old lettuce because you didn’t have time to eat it.
Whole foods is at the Tenley Town Metro exit, if you want an alternative to walking or busing.
I also prefer the Whole Foods at the King Street metro Exit in Alexandria(about 1 1/2 short blocks). This is my favorite Whole Foods in the area, and larger than the other locations.
Yeah I have been using Peapod since it’s inception. There is nothing like shopping on line and having it arrive all organized. Plus most of the stuff everyone buys is the same week to week, so you can basically just reorder what you got last week!
They also still offer a discount I think for first time users.
James
wow..sounds like im the only one still shopping at CVS…i dont remember what fresh vegetables are..
xoxo
This is not to insult PQ residents, but I have never understood the appeal of living in the area for reasons like these. I live on 16th and Columbia and I have easy access to the Super Giant on Park RD. Though some people in the neighborhood complain, we have great prices and pretty good selection. I might go to Whole Foods for baked goods or seafood (or the Waterfront market).
Why do you all live in PQ when you don’t have basic grocery store. It really doesn’t have any neighborhood vibe…
Let me see…how about a prime downtown location in the middle of the transit system, luxury condo buildings with great amenities, the home to almost every hip new restaurant and nightspot that has recently opened in DC, Verizon Center and walking distance to the Mall and the majority of the city’s museums. If you can afford and desire a car (w/ parking), groceries are not an issue and easy to get.
For all those who do live here, sorry to sound like every real estate flyer we get in the mail, but it’s true.
Remind me what’s in the Columbia Heights area again? A few things come to mind but I’ll keep them to myself.
I don’t understand the “PQ not a real neighborhood” posts, seems like this is a fine place to live to me. However I also don’t get the complaints about the lack of grocery stores in the area. I too wish Balducci’s had opened that 7th st location, but they didn’t. Still we can name in the comments section of this post alone, no less than 9 places to get groceries within a 5 mile range of PQ (and that’s not even counting the delivery options, which the post was originally about).
Same as many residents in the area, I don’t have a car and rely on my feet, Flex/Zip Car, Metro, bus, taxi, peapod, and friends to get my groceries. Sure it’s not as convenient as it could (and maybe one day will) be, but the fact that we don’t have a grocery store doesn’t spoil the neighborhood for me. I rarely think about the lack of a grocery store.
The Whole Foods on P ST is actually closer to me now, from my downtown condo, than it was when I lived in Kalorama. There are several grocery stores immediately above metros very close to PQ, and even more that are just a few blocks away from the metro.
I really think we’re pretty well off, all things considered.
And let’s not forget that Safeway at 5th and K will be here within a year. While this new Safeway may not be immediately outside the front door of every residence in or near Penn Quarter, it is still awfully close. Yes, it would be great to have another grocery option on 7th, but we are not that bad off.
despite the Balducci’s dream, living in the PQ is as close as it’s going to get in DC to a great urban experience. there are other DC locales that make the grade but none quite have the magic combo. museums…check, movies…check, transit…check, interstate access…check, the Mall/green space…check and so on. it will never be urban NYC but I don’t want it to be. it just needs to be DC’s own incarnation. it is $500/square foot and you have to know urban survival skills (such as Handling Panhandlers 101, Creative Parking 201 and Tourist Assistance 102) but that’s true in many major concrete jungles.
the 5th and K store will be 6/10ths of a mile away from me – that’s a 15 minute walk which works. it’s not a 1 minute walk to 7th where Balducci’s would’ve been but hey, I’ll buy a wheelie cart and enjoy the exercise. if I want to stay in (unlikely) I can call up Peapod or Safeway.com or the Green Grocer.
there are still plenty of condos available downtown – now and going forward. did I mention the great neighbors I’ve met???
What’s with the neighborhood bashing? Each neighborhood in DC has its good points and its bad. I like the vibrancy that’s found in PQ. I often shop at the Bath and Beyond and catch the bus over the Hopscotch bridge to my section of town which is transforming itself into a bohemian neighborhood (Atlas District).
Being a transitional area it does have it fair share of crime. But hey this is the city. One of the good points about living there, is that it is only a ten minutes by bus or three minutes by car to PQ and the restaurants and night life.
As usual, the talk of a grocery story on this blog always spurs interesting comments from within the PQ and our neighbors outside the boundaries.
Even if a grocery store were to open on 7th, someone at the far end of the PQ would be unhappy that it is not outside their front door.
Let’s face it, did we really move to this location to be next door to a grocery store? I didn’t. Grocery shopping is such a SMALL part of life, at least it is mine.
If living within spitting distance of a grocery store is so important, perhaps this area is not the best choice for you.
We moved to PQ for all it has to offer. The area is alive, and escapes the trappings of the burbs (which I have escaped).
The topic of this blog is how to use the online shopping available to us. We have gotten way off the topic.
I didn’t say that I moved to PQ for a grocery store. I moved to PQ because I loved it. I bought into a particular building because there was supposed to be a store a stone’s throw away.
And while it is a challenge to get groceries, you don’t see me moving to the burbs because there isn’t one.
I have lived in Penn Quarter for ten years and the holy grail has always been a grocery store with each new developer promising one and some people actually believing them. A grocery store outside your door is not part of the Bill of Rights. There are several grocery stores nearby and I have found Peapod to be just fine, with the produce delivered often better than one can select in the store. For the most part, I’m with the blonde lady: what more does one need then CVS? It’s got milk and a very nice selections of cereal. Plus, I can’t help notice there are a few decent restaurants around. Just enjoy PQ. It’s a fabulous place to live.
This is Anon at 3:10. Like I said, I am not bashing PQ residents. I truly wanted insight on why PQ is a great place to live.
I am not hating. Repeat not hating. Infact, before finding this blog I did not know that many people lived in PQ. I guess it’s hard to tell the office buildings from the luxury condos…
I lived in Foggy Bottom for four years while going to school so I have some idea of living downtownish.
What are the boundaries for PQ. Is that in dispute?
My experience in the area has been going to Regal Gallery Place theater and being harrassed by crazy people and wild kids. Not as if Columbia Heights is too much better, but I do feel Chinatown is a bit more agressive, but I am sure people will disagree. We all have our own perspectives and experiences.
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Try the Harris Teeter in Pentagon City, it’s much better than both of these delivery options.