To the person who picked my Waitrose order this morning

[inmylifeIlovedthemall]

I just want to say a MASSIVE thankyou to you.

I know my requests for green bananas, underipe avocados, lean bacon etc. etc. might be very irritating, but the fact that you and your colleagues do actually send me those things means a great deal to me.

I have been isolated now for 13 weeks, only going out to my allotment. I have no one here with me and only see friends / family on video. The food you deliver to me is my only treat.

I order once a fortnight to save slots for other people and you help me to make my order last two weeks.

So, please be aware that the care you put into picking my order is very much appreciated. I wish I could meet you to say thank you, or know who you are so I could tell Waitrose just how much you do to make this customer very, very, happy.

THANK YOU

AlternativePerspective I don’t think Waitrose are being difficult, it is my experience that they don’t deliver in areas where Ocado is available.

That might have changed over the last few years but Ocado don’t deliver here, Waitrose do

I love my Waitrose pickers and delivery people
Couldn’t fault them at all

On the Avocado front I am surprised that people have problems with ripening. I didn’t know that was a thing.

I keep mine in the fridge and take them out two days before eating. They then live on the window ledge.

Now nectarines.......... my home ripening purchases remain like bullets and rot from the stone outwards.

My best sub from Tesco over the lockdown period was a 4 pack of snickers bars instead of a box of Fruit & Fibre 😊

I haven't been able to get a Waitrose delivery at all so far.

Riftgibbon I think they are only offering them to people on the shielding list.

If you are and are not over 70 you then you have to fill in forms etc and have evidence from your My Waitrose card of previously having shopped with them.

It took me five weeks to get my first slot.

Im in the US and we can order delivery from Whole Foods here. The Amazon link has really helped with improving their technology as the pickers have an app that lists the order they are picking, and if you submit a mobile phone number with your order, they will text you while they are picking to check possible substitutions and allow you to confirm or deny them live. It also sends you the pictures of the substitution options, so you really know what they are talking about. You do have to be available to text while they are picking though and you cant be completely sure how far in advance of delivery that will be!

That is lovely - best wishes to you. Thoughtfulness and being grateful are wonderful qualities.

Could well be, OP.
My in-laws meet the criteria but haven't been able to get a slot either. MIL went at opening time in mask and gloves.

We're not shielding but doing our best to minimise risk as we know many vulnerable people who we often help out. Have managed Tesco and ASDA but there is a difference in quality.

Meanwhile Asda send me overripe bananas and past their best mushrooms

Asda and Sainsbury must be working hand-in-glove.

Our local Co-op has been delivering to us since lockdown started. Always on time, safely packed, sensible substitutions, fresh food with good best-before dates. I didn’t often shop there before, because it’s not our nearest supermarket. But I will in future.

We tried to get Waitrose first, but couldn’t book a delivery as it was all so chaotic back in March. I don’t blame the supermarkets, as they had little time to prepare. But we’ll stay with the Co-op now. I’ve been a bit surprised how good the Co-op food is, given that it’s noticeably cheaper. Sorry to sound like a snob!

You're not doing it right. What you have to do is focus all your attention on your avocado, for 2 days solid, 3 - 5 days after you bought it. At some point, you will have a 30 second window, within which you can enjoy your avocado, perfectly ripe

I can confirm this.

Except that you need a tinfoil hat so that your avocado cannot read your thoughts. If it knows you are waiting it will put all of its considerable power (there Power of VEGETABLE AND FRUITMATTER), into holding off on the ripeness until you are having a wee.

And then it will ripen and rot in the space of 45 seconds.

You will hear it sniggering.

I do like Waitrose.

Oh how I wish our Waitrose had slots. I’ve been stuck with Sainsbury’s which has been dire.
The first week I used click and collect and waited 90 minutes after my slot before the vans arrived with my order.
The second time I arrived to be told my card had been declined (for no apparent reason) but I could call their helpline to sort it out. When I called the helpline there was a prerecorded message saying there would be a very long wait so I went into the store and did it myself.
At this point I switched to delivery but then over half the list were subs and the quality of veg was horrendous. The tiniest bananas you’ve ever seen and brown broccoli

I miss Waitrose soooooo much. None where I live and no deliveries.

Hi OP just to mention if you are on priority delivery with Waitrose you can also do their express shopping service in some places, they emailed about this the other day. Think it arrives the same day.

I’ve stopped using Waitrose. Their click and collect set up at my nearest store was a bloody shambles, involving DH having to go hunting in the store to find a member of staff, who directed us to park in the (very limited) disabled parking bays (!). They then wheeled a trolley of stuff out and gave it to us to push to the car, without wiping the handle or wearing gloves or anything. When we got the stuff home it was all due to go out of date the following day, except the bananas which were green and (minor detail but still fucking annoying) not in a bunch. Eight individual, bright green bananas.

This came after two deliveries that also were insanely short dated. It almost felt malicious, as if the picker had sorted through the shelves to find stuff that was going out of date to punish us for having a delivery/click and collect instead of going into the store. I could imagine them muttering, ‘Fuck you’ whilst squashing in the nearly out of date bread.

Sainsbury’s have been brilliant. Click and collect you drive up to a van in the car park, pop the boot, stuff gets put in, you drive off. Food has all been excellent quality with good dates.

I’m the queen of moaning if something goes wrong but I also email companies if I get good service, I always like to let them know if someone’s been good or given excellent service. It’s so nice to get shopping how you’d pick it, makes all the difference

most allotment contracts have clauses about not selling for profit

Glad you've had a good experience OP. I couldn't get a Waitrose slot (as a new customer) at the start of lockdown when Ocado (my usual grocer) stumbled - but I enjoyed browsing the website. You've reminded me to try them again now.

Like you I've been completely isolated and have only been ordering every other week, not through altruism but to leave room for a veg box delivery on the alternate weeks. I'm finding this works really well.

I’m stuck with Morrison’s as they’re the only place with slots (and loads of them for some reason) and their subs are terrible! The other week I ordered wine and they didn’t have what I ordered so they sent...nothing! No wine! Same with the joint of beef for Sunday lunch.

We could only get Morrisons for quite a while and I was annoyed by the subs they sent (there's no option with them to decline subs) - one week the subs cost me an additional £10!

We can now get Tesco slots and not only so they allow a note for each item and the option to decline a sub on each item, they don't charge you the price difference if they give a more expensive sub, which is what annoys me about Morrisons. No subs so far from Tesco, however.

I love getting deliveries or click & collect from Waitrose, they really do give the best customer service.

We had a click & collect slot yesterday for when DH finished work, but as he had gone into work all through the lockdown (keyworker) his manager said he could have the afternoon off.

Our nearest Waitrose is right by the station so he picks up on his way home. Our slot wasn't till between 4pm & 5pm and he was back at the station at 2.15pm, but he went in and explained and they gave him our shopping - no problem at all.

We have not been able to get deliveries with Waitrose but have had a few click & collect slots.

I like the fact you can give instructions and they always follow them and we have always had suitable substitutes.

We also ordered some items on a previous order and they had a short date on so they gave them to us for free - win win !

Armi surprised your husband had to go hunting for a member of staff at Waitrose, didn’t he see the permanently manned Welcome desk by the entrance?
Didn’t your husband take anything to wipe the trolly handle down with himself? But I suppose he was wearing gloves so that was ok!
Actually as far as supermarket staff wearing gloves I personally think it’s better that they wash/ sanitise their hands after touching a trolly .... a lot better than wearing the same pair of gloves for 8 hours.
Funny how your husbands experience was so different to everyone else’s ...... you don’t work for Sainsbury’s do you ?

Tbf, Frosty, supermarkets do vary across areas. And Waitrose don’t always staff their Welcome desk - I’ve had to wait for Click and Collect and John Lewis deliveries in the past and there was no one there. So it doesn’t necessarily mean someone works for a rival supermarket

I am having my first Oddbox of veg delivered tomorrow. I will review it here.