Stater runs a good basic supermarket. They are clean, orderly, and have efficient staff. They seem to have what I'd call a disciplined operation and it shows in the neatness of their store and the attitude of their staff.CalItalian wrote: ↑June 18th, 2020, 10:18 am Stater Bros doesn't seem to have a problem opening stores close to each other. They don't seem to cannibalize each other, either. In my area in Riverside County, there is a Stater Bros. on or just off the same road every two miles for 9 miles...and another one is rumored to occupying a new shopping center development in planning just over 2 miles beyond that 9 miles. Plus there are other Stater Bros. within a couple of miles of some of those stores. I really don't see the attraction of Stater Bros (coming from an area in West L.A. that was dominated by Ralphs) other than their convenience. But I've never been in a Stater Bros. that has no customers.
The meat department seems to be a high point of their perimeter. I don't think their produce is great at all, bakery is standard bakeoff stuff, and deli is largely pedestrian. Executed properly and with good freshness, the stuff is certainly acceptable quality but won't make you go wow. I did think they had above average fried chicken, but maybe I have just had good luck with them. In more recent trips to SoCal I thought their pricing was pretty lousy (seemed to be about like Ralphs pricing, but with fewer good specials) and their promotions didn't capture much of what I was interested in.
I think the main attraction for shopping Stater is more of a "why not shop there?" Nothing really great about it beyond the meat department, but nothing really wrong with it either. They seem to talk price and customers who shop there seem to be pretty convinced they are getting a good deal... Really I think the store does the job well enough but probably isn't worth going out of the way for. It also isn't worth avoiding. I think this chain has a lot of good long term clerks and managers who are keeping the ship going.