Smart & Final

Never been to a Smart & Final (SF), but heard about it thru word of mouth. Always remembered it as being exclusive to members back in the 90’s, but that’s no longer the case. Asking a SF employee about membership was like a caveman coming out of hibernation. Times has changed. Age is just a number.
Walking thru each of the aisles, I’ve found the place to pass in the bargains in bulk. Savings were found on items substantially here and there. Others, not so much. On this visit I’ve found good buys on wine as well as hard liquor. Also, seen a customer checking out with a ridiculously giant drum of ice cream. It’s a one stop party source for sure.
What makes the business format great is its convenience. Getting in and out of there is effortless. Everything is organized for an intuitive experience.

It’s an extremely interesting store that stocks items you may or may not use. It’s sort of fun to shop around just to see what they might have in stock.

They have the worse customer service ever. They are very disrespectful, they talk back to customers. The manager think he knows everything but unfortunately he doesn’t know what he is talking about!!! I shopped there many times, vegetables and fruit are really bad most of the time and some of their supplies are OLD!!!
I WILL NEVER SHOP THERE AGAIN NEVER EVER NEVER EVER NEVER EVER!
very very bad customer service !!!

The manager gave me such a hard time for being in a rush and left one of the dry food in the wrong shelf… He came strait to me and yelled at me in a super rude way… I told him that he should not talk to his customers that his answer was I have been working her for 15 years and this is my way!!! Such a mean person that made me never go there again.

I shop at this Smart and Final for events and special occasions. They have several items that Costco does not have and they have smaller packages so I don’t need to throw perfectly good stuff away.
Recently, I bought a few hundred dollars of stuff for a pancake breakfast that a non profit was doing. I got reimbursed from the non profit and they in turn were to be reimbursed, but alas, the receipts were missing in the mail. What happened next was amazing.
The store told me that duplicate receipts could be generated by the HQ. They gave me a complete list of information I should send. Off went my email to Customer Relations on a Sunday night. By Monday morning, they had found my transactions and emailed me the receipts. Fast, easy simple and so helpful.
Big thanks to everyone at Smart and Final!

I really like this location. The staff are always friendly and helpful. I like smaller warehouse like stores verses Costco. Smart and Final has a pretty good selection. I have always found what I needed or was looking for. Plus, it is less crowded than Costco.

Low prices without the long lines! Love it

So disappointed. Super small. Unimpressive prices. When the woman in front of us had completed her transaction, the cashier walked away without saying a word. WHAT.

My friend dragged me into Smart and Final because they like it.
Why?
It tries to fit into a little niche between warehouse megastores, discount food stores, chain drugstores, liquor stores and party stores.
It Fails.
–You are better off going to Costco for a greater selection (plus hot dogs!).
–Better to go to Party City for party supplies
–FoodMaxx has more food at cheaper prices
–TJs has much better variety of desirable food
–Target has a wider selection of everything
–Bed, Bath and Beyond has better kitchenware
–BevMo has 100 times more booze
If you want Italian Soda mix, they do have it here pretty cheap. And their plastic cup selection isn’t bad. And they do have a decent selection of stainless mixing bowls. Otherwise, the values here are pretty…
Random.
I like my Unilocal friend Ivy R.‘s name for this place:
Fart and Smile

Why do I even bother to come here in the first place? Their stuff is sometimes miss marked or not marked on the shelves at all. Other than one person working there, the employees are nasty and argumentative. I dared to asked one what the price of something was and she told me to go look myself. I had already done that.
Today it was paper towels. Do you know for the exact same brand, same colour and same square footage there are different prices depending upon how the towel is cut? The one with more cuts (select a size) is actually less because it was on sale. The employee, who’s name I won’t mention, huffed at me when I told her I wanted the other one. Why huff at me when I tried to ask you earlier the price and you blew me off.
After this, there was an olive mix I was buying. The scanner would not rind, and she went and looked. $ 6.99 she put it. I told her to wait a minute they were $ 4.99. Now she argues with me again. I take her to the shelf and she goes «oh I put in the right number.’ Umm, no you did not.
When I get back to the register I told her I want it for free as per their price guarantee policy and she says «No, I caught it before we finished the sale.» At this point I knew I was dealing with someone not too smart. I told her to get her manager. The manager scolded her for not doing it right. I finished my sale and thanked her.
I felt sorry for her in some ways; this person will never have a good job unless they learn how to work.
Unfortunately, I will return next time I need flats of water fast… well faster than running across the Target store.

Fart & Smile is what my aunt who lives in Phoenix call Smart & Final. Not for any particular reason other than a good juvenile laugh every time we say it.
This was my first foray into a Smart & Final. I had been told its like Costco but smaller and with better selection of stuff and prices.
I wouldn’t go that far.
Produce selection is small. Chip selection is small. There are odds and ends cooking products in giant quantities. Like the giant jug of red food coloring I saw.
I got most of my small shopping list filled. The one thing that disappointed me was the apples I bought. My husband usually eats the apples not me and he told me they were the worst apples hes ever had. Poor guy. I had to throw half of them away after a few days.
Prices were nice and is what will probably keep me coming back when I’m in the shopping center. Its pretty small in side also.
Its just an odd little store with its own thing going on.

The Smart & Final here is an expansive version of the one in old Oaktown e with wider aisles, easier checkout and a large parking lot.
lines are shorter than costco and prices may be a tad higher. there are also lots of items you can find here but not at costco and vice versa.
it’s no secret smart & final caters to the small restaurant trade. there’s also bulk pack items that are suitable for large families.
random eats.
-.99 cents arizona tea (large bottle) nice
–sardine 79, came from chins, kind of fishy tasting
–tuna salad w/​chips (1.55) celery bits, mayo, not recommeded.
–cited hormel meals (2.69?)
–gotta lay off these impulse buys, not healthy.

So my job requires me to prepare monthly luncheons for 30 – 40 people. Where else would I turn but Smart & Final? It allows me to publish my meals by weight. (as in «10 lbs of turkey, 5 lbs of cheese, 8 lbs of tomato sauce and 2 lbs of lasagne noodles = this week’s luncheon. enjoy!)
I like that they open at 8, so I can stop there before work. The staff people are quick to help when I start to get that dazed, wander-​around-​the-​store look.
Sometimes I get that look just from trying to comprehend the amounts: 5 lbs of canned nacho cheese, for example.

A nice alternative to Costco, Sam’s Club etc. (Also nice that you don’t have to pay a dime up front to shop in the place.)
This store has many excellent items for singles, couples, and small & large families – basically everyone. Some product quantitites are huge, while others are more reasonable and just fine for those smaller households. Great prices, too. Overall:
–kitchen gadets, cookware, serveware
–some produce
–prepackaged deli items
–snack foods
–alcohol
–frozen goods
–canned & prepared items
–cleaning & paper products