Hope someone sees this quick- waitrose collection service

[lizardqueenie]

Help! Need a quick answer. After us having the most awful year for my poor DH's health we have decided (madly) to have all of the family over to us, possibly 10 adults and 3 kids. So, i was a bit late sorting this all out and cant get a waitrose delivery to home but can get a collection from te shop right up until xmas eve morning for the turkey etc. Has anyone done this before? Will it be a nightmare? will they have run out of food? Will it be elbows at dawn? Thanks to anyone with an ounce more experience of this stuff that me.

Goint to reply to keep the thread bumped. Not done this with Waitrose, but the M&S Christmas food to order service is very good. You collect from customer services instead of having to fight through the tills.

thanks for that. And is Christmas eve too late? I've also just logged on to tesco to see what thier offerings are. Sainsburys you dont seem to be able to book yet.

Surely if you've booked a collection it's like home delivery - they should definitely have what you want, all ready for you? I imagine the queue to collect would be long, but less risky than taking your chances they gave what you want on the shelves?

I've used waitrose on Xmas eve morning to collect our turkey, and to also do a bit of last minute shopping (have the main of it delivered on 23rd). In our waitrose there is a separate queuing system for the turkey / entertaining orders. Usually very well run, and they hand round free chocolates while you are waiting. It's fine. Don't forget your waitrose card to get a free coffee when you're done!

I do it every year without a drama

Thank you thank you! This is exactly what I needed to hear! Ok so as sainsburys hasn't opened yet I think I'll do most delivery to home with them & then go in & collect the turkey from waitrose store.

Oh yes my card for afterwards- how could I forget?!

I bought my turkey yesterday. It's in the freezer. It's a crown from a local farm shop. I did the same last year and it was lovely.

I also did big Sainsburys order to be delivered for the main shop and then did Waitrose on Xmas eve morning. Was queuing outside for them to open. Not sure what I will do this year. Big Sainsburys delivery definitely. Might do last minute veg from the Co-Op on Xmas eve. Someone on here does it. It's sounds much less hassle!

Thanks Cider! Having never done Christmas before and having the house the size of a kennel & plentiful relatives I'm a bit nervous & looking for the most foolproof options!

As you are having guests heres the xmas tips thread:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/Christmas/1913020-Christmas-tips-thread

Entertaining orders are made up for you specifically. Shopping is whatever is instore at that time. Hopefully great but what the customer sees as available, that is what you'll get too.

Ooh thank you! How did I miss that thread?!

Ah ok- that makes sense- so I'll order & it should be ready & waiting!

We collected ours from store last year - there were a couple of things out of stock which I then couldn't get anywhere. There were also things out of stock, but then we actually found them on the shelf. Collect in store is preferable to home delivery ime - at least if you need to get substitutions you're already there.

That was the regular shopping by the way, ordering from their entertaining food would be different. For an order from the regular food stuff, there's no guarantee everything will be in stock even if you have submitted your order on the first day slots opened.

Slot booking time makes no difference. Shopping is done the day before or on the day itself - So if it's there, you will receive it.

what?! There are no xmas slots left?!

Last year I missed booking a Tesco delivery slot so I used their "click and collect" it was really easy, I drove to a specified area of the car park, one car ahead of me, they checked my order number and brought it out to put straight into my boot.

I didn't even need to go into the store.

If you're in the right area, Ocado still seem to have delivery slots left.

DT- yes thats what I did think about the regular shopping at home delivery - sometimes if you do that on a weekly basis for your shop there can be things that you don't ever get, although Ive not really had many problems personally but my DM never seems to get her whole order.

Audit that sounds like fab service! I bet you drove away with a massive grin on your face! Which store was that? I wonder if its something that the offer in all of the big stores- ours has a multi-storey car park so you would hope so.

I've just ramped my panic levels right up!

Our Tesco is relatively small and they've just introduced click & collect so I'd expect the bigger stores to have it. Asda also have signs up saying they're introducing the same system soon