Just Sayin'

At least one Gentle Reader was perplexed at my Wegman's comment on last night's post and one other Gentle Reader from Rochester got it.  For the record: buying groceries at Wegman's is an experience unto itself... a GREAT experience.  I've been around the block a few times and have lived and shopped ALL over this great country, from border to border and sea to shining sea.  There are no better food markets than Wegman's anywhere... and few equals... period, full-stop.  I'm not alone in making this statement; herewith some evidence.  First, from GMA:

Sept. 2, 2006

Shopping for groceries can be an exercise in frustration, fraught with experiences you'd rather avoid.

The ideal? Lots of checkout lanes, wide aisles, and consistently fresh meat and produce -- like at Wegmans, one of several stores which got top ratings in the October issue of Consumer Reports.

[...]

The Rankings

The top ranked stores were Wegmans and Trader Joe's. Top regional chains were Wegmans in the Northeast; Publix and Harris Teeter in the South; Raley's in California; and Hy-Vee in the Midwest.

"All of these stores, especially the regional ones, did well because of their selection and their produce and their convenience," Kleman said.

From a 2010 readers' survey in Daily Finance:

TOP 5 FAVORITE GROCERY STORES

No. 1: Wegmans

Headquartered in Rochester, New York, Wegmans was founded in 1916 by the Wegman family. Wegmans operates 75 stores: 48 in New York State, 13 in Pennsylvania, 7 in New Jersey, 6 in Virginia and 1 in Maryland.


Sample Reader Comments:

sweet sue 14218 says:
"Wegmans is absolutely the best food store I have ever shopped in. [It has] lowest prices, friendly and helpful staff and the store is always spotless. Another good thing is they have plenty of cart corrals to put your empty cart in to keep them from hitting anyone [else's] car."

Neesko says:
"One of the highlights of visiting my son and family in Rochester, N.Y. is going to Wegmans. [On my] last visit, I [took] the tour of the [flagship] store. Wegmans, please come to Virginia -- especially Virginia Beach!" 

Another thumbnail sketch (there's a slideshow of great markets at this link):

Wegmans, which originated in Rochester, NY, is a gastronome's Mecca. This supermarket of all supermarkets offers more than 70,000 products from the every corner of the world. From basics to the authentic sweets developed by one of France's top pastry chefs, Pierre Hermé. The fresh fruits and vegetables max out at over 700 varieties and are picked daily (sometimes twice) and delivered directly to the store.

Not to be missed: The bulk food section. Barrels of everything from candy to nuts to baking flour and can be purchased in various quantities.

More here, and at The Wiki.  Weggies really IS all that and a bag o' chips; my local Wegman's even had a sushi bar and the fish was EXCELLENT.  As Small-Tee said in comments below: "If you never been to one, you'll never understand."