| Author | Message | ||
     greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 6523 Registered: 5-2001  |
Has anyone else been having problems with rotten or dated foods? In early December, I purchased chicken parts. The sell-by date was 3 days away (I'm neurotic about sell-by dates). Got it home, put it in the freezer and then defrosted it two weeks later. The smell was god-awful. The same weekend of the spoiled chicken incident, I purchased stew beef, again with the sell-by date two days out. Took it home, stuck it at the back of the fridge and opened it the next day to make stew. Phew! That, too, was spoiled. The pieces under the nice, juicy red ones were gray and gross. While shopping on January 1, I had to search thru an entire shelf in the dairy section to find cottage cheese that did not have an sell-by date of December 9th. I contacted King's Customer Service manager, and she was lovely. I told her that I was a loyal customer who is now afraid to shop there. I also filled her in on some other issues (cashiers with cell phones, etc.). I was quite pleased with her concern and am confident that they really are trying to fix quality at that store. But then, yesterday, after going to get fresh bagels, we opened up the vaccum-sealed smoked salmon, purchased from Kings on January 1, with a sell-by date of January 31. Nothing smells worse than bad fish, as you probably know. I do not think that it is us; nothing else goes bad in our fridge. Milk and other perishables last quite well after being opened, and I never have problems with the meat or chicken that I pick up from Wegman's. My friend recently had the same problem with King's Short Hills chicken - spoiled when she opened it the same day she bought it. | ||
| brusin2 Citizen Username: Brusin2 Post Number: 40 Registered: 6-2003 |
We've had problems too. We bought some Stilton cheese and it smelled off when I opened it. Since it does have a powerful smell, i thought it was probably fine until i took one bite -- very bad and kind of ammoniated. | ||
| Pippi Supporter Username: Pippi Post Number: 1619 Registered: 8-2003  |
I very suddently stopped shopping there about a month ago. Never had problems with spolied food, but reading this makes me very glad I no longer shop there | ||
| Hank Zona Supporter Username: Hankzona Post Number: 5108 Registered: 3-2002 |
Maybe they dont turn over their product enough...I was told the total sales figures for the Maplewood and Short Hills Kings are comparable (in per square foot sales, Maplewood Kings blows them all away). Or maybe they kind of got confused about freshness dates in all the excitement of their renovations. | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 6527 Registered: 5-2001 |
Something is sure going on. I was told that they are planning a consumer panel for that store. They wouldn't be doing it if things were going well. | ||
| papayagirl Citizen Username: Papayagirl Post Number: 479 Registered: 6-2002  |
They did a consumer panel at that store last year. I was supposed to participate, but it ended up being the night of a snowstorm, so i had to bail. So i don't think it's necessarily related to recent complaints about poor quality. | ||
| Camnol Citizen Username: Camnol Post Number: 201 Registered: 3-2005 |
I used to have the same problem with the Kings in Berkeley Heights. That store received far less traffic than the Kings in Short Hills. Kings hasn't been the same since it was taken over. | ||
| peteglider Citizen Username: Peteglider Post Number: 1695 Registered: 8-2002 |
Happened to me with deli items -- bought them 2 days before xmas -- and when I opened them up -- inedible (at $10+ a lb!). (couldn't have been the $1.99 liverwurst from Shoprite!) I rarely shop there, but wanted some "better" deli things for visitors/holidays. Remember the "meat" expose a few years back about the Maplewood A&P and the SO Pathmark? Should we send 60 minutes to Kings? /p | ||
| Jhcmom Citizen Username: Jhcmom Post Number: 33 Registered: 1-2004 |
I had the same chicken problem in early December. Bought it from the SH Kings one day and opened it the next day to cook...it was rotten. Fortunately, Maplewood Kings exchanged it. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 10221 Registered: 5-2001 |
There is a good chance that the refrigeration got turned off during renovations, that are apparently going on. Some stores will shut down the refrigeration when closed to save electric costs, although I find it hard to believe Kings would do this. Since most of the products mentioned here were within the "sell by" date, this has to be a storage problem. | ||
| kmk Supporter Username: Kmk Post Number: 899 Registered: 5-2001 |
Wow - should I do my "big shop" at the little Kings now? I have found myself going out to the Short Hills Kings less often because what I can't find at the little Kings I can find at Whole Foods usually...(or Costco). | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 6531 Registered: 5-2001 |
KM - that's exactly what I told the King's manager; that Maplewood residents drive past WF to get to the Short Hills Kings. Although, we also have had bad meat experiences with WF, which is why we started getting our meet from Kings to begin with. Bob - I was thinking the same thing, that it must be storage or handling problems. We've been buying more meats from Costco or Wegman's. There is also an excellent butcher (Prisco's) on Springfield, next to the Exxon station, where we get special cuts of meat (crown pork roast, etc.). | ||
| kmk Supporter Username: Kmk Post Number: 903 Registered: 5-2001 |
I buy "organic" for some items - but I don't need my beef to be $22.00/pound so I skip Whole Foods for the meat. I admit that my husband brought home a nearly 3" thick steak from the big King's this weekend. It was a beautiful slab of well-marbled meat and we grilled it to perfection. ( Served it with oven roasted brussel sprouts and garlic bread.) Even the kids were asking for more. | ||
| dave23 Citizen Username: Dave23 Post Number: 1225 Registered: 5-2001 |
greenetree, What were your bad meat experiences with WF? I bought some ground sirloin there a few weeks back. It was very pink and fresh-looking on the outside but looked brown-ish and dated on the inside. (I don't know enough about meat to know whether this is normal or not.) | ||
| Earlster Supporter Username: Earlster Post Number: 1437 Registered: 8-2003  |
If you want to make sure that your meet is handled properly, always refrigerated and you want to see what you buy before it gets wrapped, go to a real butcher. Like the Union Pork store, Lutz's or Prisco's. And at least at the Union Pork store you will be pleasently surprised by the prices. (Haven't shopped at Lutz's and Prisco's to much to remember the prices). | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 6532 Registered: 5-2001 |
Dave - pretty much what you experienced- funny colors and smells on beef and chicken. We don't buy fish there. We have gotten that at King's in town. The good thing about fish is that you can't hide that smell. Earl - you are right. We need to get into the habit of going to Prisco's on the weekend and buying meat & chicken to freeze. We bought two crown pork roasts there a month ago, about 28 chops (don't ask) for $75. It was much cheaper than the price quoted by Kings. | ||
| Valley_girl Citizen Username: Valley_girl Post Number: 92 Registered: 12-2004 |
For a second I thought you were talking about a gang! | ||
| BGS Citizen Username: Bgs Post Number: 487 Registered: 10-2003 |
The Shop Rite across from Kings has a good butcher department. As a matter of fact, with their expansion, their meat department is much larger and I find that the service is very good. I have called the butchers when I wanted a boned leg of lamb and they did a great job for me. Also worked with me when I wanted a rib roast for Christmas...made sure that they had a piece of meat the size that I needed for the number of guests that I was having. I really like their cuts of meat and have never had a problem with the quality of the meat there. They are almost finished with their renovations and you would be surprised at all that they have added including organic vegetable area and prepared foods and a bakery. | ||
| Camnol Citizen Username: Camnol Post Number: 203 Registered: 3-2005 |
dave23, It's not unusual for ground beef to be pink on the outside and brownish on the inside. Just make sure it smells "fresh." From the USDA's Web site: When ground beef is exposed to air, the ferrous iron in its myoglobin pigment is oxygenated to form a ferrous iron-oxygen complex. Myoglobin is a purplish-red color in its unoxygenated state, and becomes red when the iron complexes with oxygen to form oxymyoglobin. This is what gives fresh beef its red color. But if meat is stored for long periods of time, is stored above proper temperatures, or is exposed to too much air, the ferrous iron loses an electron to become ferric iron. The resulting ferric pigment, known as met-myoglobin, is brown. Consumers associate bright red color with high quality (Lynch et al, 1986) and are frequently concerned when ground beef appears red on the outside and brown on the inside. Different levels of oxygenation at different locations inside and on the surface of the meat can account for this coloration (the grinding process allows air to contact more surface area of the meat). If ground beef loses contact with the air, as with the inside of the package of ground beef, it will turn grayish-brown. Likewise, as ground beef is stored, even for as little as one day, it might also turn prematurely brown (USDA-ARS/FSIS, 1998). http://www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/pubs/colortech.htm (more than you ever want to know about the color of ground beef)  | ||
| dave23 Citizen Username: Dave23 Post Number: 1228 Registered: 5-2001 |
Thanks, Camnol. That's what I was looking for when I mentioned that I didn't know if it was normal or not. | ||
| kevin Supporter Username: Kevin Post Number: 582 Registered: 2-2002 |
Are you sure we aren't talking about the A&P on Valley? Did I just mention A&P in a thread about Kings? | ||
| cody Citizen Username: Cody Post Number: 898 Registered: 5-2001 |
I had problems with chicken from the Short Hills Kings back in December as well. Purchased w/i sell-by date, kept refrigerated at home, smelled horribly when I opened it within 2 days of purchase. | ||
| Rastro Citizen Username: Rastro Post Number: 2168 Registered: 5-2004  |
If you find dairy that is past its due date, call the manager over immediately. I believe it is illegal to try to sell outdated food. If the sell by date has past, the food MUST be taken off the shelf. I found a jug of milk that was out of date at Costco on 22, and they immediately (like, before i was even out of the aisle), started to pull all the milk from the refrigerator. Within a minute or two, there was an announcement by the checkout for people to check the dates on their milk. | ||
| CageyD Citizen Username: Cageyd Post Number: 534 Registered: 6-2003 |
Frankly, I have always thought Kings was a massive rip off. I only shop there if it is absolutely necessary. Recently, I desperately needed basil for pesto and went to Kings, they wanted $4.00 for a tiny amount of fresh basil. Shop Rite in West Orange sells lovely large fresh packages for about $1.99. I can't fathom why so many people willinglly spend at least 20% more for my groceries when 80% of what they buy is manufactured (cereals, coffee, etc) meaning there is absolutely no difference in quality between Kings and any other supermarket. I just don't get it. | ||
| Wendyn Supporter Username: Wendyn Post Number: 2610 Registered: 9-2002  |
Cagey, I do. Because I simply don't have the time to go to 3 supermarkets a week. I barely have time to go to 1. I used to do Shop Rite in Millburn (for pre-packaged) and Kings SH (for pre-packaged that shop rite doesn't carry and deli/meat/veg that suck at SR) and sometimes Whole Foods (because it is close). Just don't have time anymore. Tried the Livingston Shop Rite for a while and it is very nice but much more crowded on the weekend than Kings. So I gave up and started going to Kings SH exclusively. Haven't had any problems with rotten stuff btw. I know I need to get on PeaPod, but last I checked they didn't carry some of my staples. Arg. | ||
| Pippi Supporter Username: Pippi Post Number: 1626 Registered: 8-2003 |
wendyn - I just went to the Shop Rite in Livingston. It is a bit further than I want to drive, but one of the best supermarkets in the area, IMO I also checked peapod and found it lacking for my needs. | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 6540 Registered: 5-2001 |
I used to go to the Essex Green Shopright when I worked next door. They carried everything, but they were as expensive as Kings and much too crowded on the weekends. A great, one-stop shopping place is like the Holy Grail. If we do Peapod every 4-6 weeks for staples, it works out just fine for us. | ||
| Tom Reingold Supporter Username: Noglider Post Number: 11886 Registered: 1-2003  |
Agreed, greenetree. My wife goes to Whole Foods once a week, and I go to an ordinary supermarket once a week, such as Shoprite. Every two or three months, we go to Costco. I agree Kings is overpriced. But I'm fed up with Pathmark in South Orange. They don't even have their groovy music any more. And it's just as convenient to go to Kings in Maplewood for a quick thing or two as to Pathmark, and the experience is more pleasant, so that's my bodega. | ||
| Eats Shoots & Leaves Citizen Username: Mfpark Post Number: 2842 Registered: 9-2001  |
CageyD--you referring to the Shop Rite in Essex Green? I was there once and it is great--large, clean, well layed out. I hear the Super Stop and Shop slated for the Union/Millburn line is still tied up in litigation--that would be a nice alternative but it has been 5 years of lawsuits and I don't think it will happen anytime soon. | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 6541 Registered: 5-2001 |
Tom - it's more like our "Yupdega". But, then again, can people over 35 be classified as "yuppies"? I'm afraid that many of us may have entered "Bobohood".  But, that's another thread..... | ||
| ess Citizen Username: Ess Post Number: 867 Registered: 11-2001 |
The ShopRites in Livingston and Essex Green are both nice -- spacious, bright, seemingly clean. I go to Kings in Maplewood in a pinch (i.e., if I just need milk). I will not ever buy seafood there. Once, I witnessed the guy behind the seafood counter clipping his nails, so I figured hygeine was something that may have fallen by the wayside. In general with Kings, both around here and in Hillsdale, near where I used to live, I found that there were issues with sell-by dates. Spotted them regularly. Now I just check scrupulously. | ||
| BGS Citizen Username: Bgs Post Number: 494 Registered: 10-2003 |
If you all are going to drive to Livingston or Essex Green for the Shop Rite, you really should try the one on Morris Tpke( Avenue) near (across from) the Short Hills Kings...it has just been renovated and reminds me of the Kings in Short hills before that stores most recent most recent renovations. It is very clean and there is so much in and out traffic because business people stop there to and from work and at lunch time that I never have a problem finding parking. Just wanted to throw this out to the Shop Rite lovers.... | ||
| Wendyn Supporter Username: Wendyn Post Number: 2611 Registered: 9-2002 |
I might try that BGS. I go to the one in Millburn on occasion and it is pretty gross, and I had heard the same about the one in Springfield so I hadn't bothered stopping. Maybe I'll take a gander this week. | ||
| Pippi Supporter Username: Pippi Post Number: 1628 Registered: 8-2003 |
BGS - I had no idea the Shop Rite in SH nears Kings was renovated. I went there last year and hated it. I will give it another shot thanks | ||
| Eats Shoots & Leaves Citizen Username: Mfpark Post Number: 2845 Registered: 9-2001 |
That's the one just past Bed Bath and Beyond? | ||
| Virtual It Girl Citizen Username: Shh Post Number: 3779 Registered: 5-2001 |
Mentioned this before but...I have been going to the Pathmark in Union (Rt. 22, same center as Ruby Tues. & Natl' Wholesale Liquidators) and it's much better than the SO Pathmark. I still don't know all the aisles yet, but their produce aisle is wide, clean and bright, so often I run in there for produce, juice, milk, etc. It's never crowded when I go and parking is convenient and plentiful. I know it's not the most convenient for most people, but I sandwich it between my Tues AM gym class in Springfield (straight down Milltown Rd.) and my daughter's music class. | ||
| Pippi Supporter Username: Pippi Post Number: 1629 Registered: 8-2003 |
VIG my problem with the Union Pathmark is that I only go to the supermarket on the weekends. I try to avoid all things Rt 22 on the weekend, otherwise I end up rocking in a corner when I get home! | ||
| Virtual It Girl Citizen Username: Shh Post Number: 3780 Registered: 5-2001 |
You don't have to go on 22 at all. You can go through Union or Springfield very easily. Really, no supermarkets are quiet on the weekend, so that's a tough one. Last time I dropped the girls in SI I went to the newish Waldbaums and it's a palace compared to anything I've seen around here. In the bakery, the french bread was in the oven, and I got two fresh loaves. It was almost impossible to drive home, I wanted to jump over the seat and tear it open, ahh that fresh baked bread smell! The produce aisle was easily three times the size of Whole Foods. It's so unfair! | ||
| Miss L Toe Citizen Username: Miss_l_toe Post Number: 431 Registered: 10-2003 |
We so badly need a Wegmans in this area; I thought that there was one supposedly going up on Route 10? They're like a British Tesco's or Waitrose and I was so shocked when I moved to New Jersey & saw how pitiful the supermarkets are in Essex county. In the larger British supermarkets they have dry cleaners, florists, banks, travel agencies, children's play areas, coffee shops where you can get breakfast and lunch incredibly cheaply, newsagents, their own gas stations. They sell top quality clothes too...even Asda (which is owned by Walmart - the 'George' label on some items sold in the US is from their British line). I can't believe how long it has taken for online grocery shopping to take off here - it's been popular for a few years now in the UK: http://www.tesco.com (They sell everything!) The next best thing to Wegman's in NJ is 'Shop and Stop' but it's a bit of a trek to Madison...what a shame the Royal Dutch Ahold dispute with Millburn & Springfield is still going on. I was shopping in the Short Hills/Springfield Shoprite on Morris Ave earlier today and it's a nightmare to get around now that they have renovated. There are many extra aisles but the products are located all over the place in a real hodge-podge and the list stating which goods are on the shelves in each aisle is only at the end of the rows where the tills are and they are still blank at the far end. I bought some body wash and about four aislesfurther along there was more body wash of different brands - some of it is with the shampoos and in the other aisle it's with the household detergents! Also at this Shoprite all the meat and dairy is located along the walls...butter and spreads are well away from the milk and yoghurts and hidden away behind the birthday cards. The last items I get when supermarket shopping are frozen foods and you have to back-track to get to some of the freezers located near the fresh meat section. It's taking me ages to get around the store now so I think I will mainly use the Millburn Shoprite and just go to the other one for a 'big shop'. | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 6551 Registered: 5-2001 |
Miss - if you are willing to drive, there is a Wegman's on 202 in Bridgewater. Thirty minutes in no traffic, all highway. |
