Kavanagh's Budgens Reviews Summary

Product Selection

Pros:

• "BUDGENS Belsize Park. Excellent local supermarket. I love the produce they sell from fresh fish. Unique Cheeses from France. Salami cures at local places in Italy. Lots of unusual foods from around the world."
• "All favourite products in one place!"
• "Great selection of items, particularly the freshly baked breads, vegetables and exotic fruits."
• "They have an amazing variety of products from Britain and other countries."
• "One of the biggest fresh food selection (Whole Food Market style) you can find in London, from all over the world."
• "Great selection of produce from local suppliers and the juice bar is brilliant."
• "A decent selection of organic fruit and veg and cheese, meat, and fish counters with excellent quality and variety."

Cons:

• "They are also over priced."
• "Some of their prices are absurd, and an obvious exploitation just because it is located in Belsize Park."
• "However, the prices have gone up with it. Count on things costing 2-3 pounds more than a supermarket."
• "It is, however, a rather pricy store, eastern european products too close to expiry."
• "Prices here are a joke. For example: Viakal is £5.75, in Tesco Express it’s £3."
• "A lot of the products are very over priced."
• "Everything is Totally overpriced."

Customer Service

Pros:

• "Fishmongers staff are the best in town they offered us free oysters and champagne."
• "All the people working there are superbly polite and professional."
• "Most of the staff are extremely lovely and always happy to help!"
• "I GET ON WELL WITH STAFF."
• "The staff are always so helpful."

Cons:

• "Be prepared for some of the most sullen, unfriendly counter staff ever if you need to use it."
• "The female supervisor is the worst and seriously needs customer service training."
• "Customer service is only thing that let's this shop down staff are indifferent at best and make you feel like you shouldn't be in the shop which is a shame - please acknowledge a thank you or hello from your customers."
• "Staff are rude! I was checking out, and a member of staff thought it was ok to grab my apple out of the basket and hand it to me."
• "Most of male stuff are rude and unprofessional...."
• "Staff are miserable apart from the really nice tall guy on the fish counter, he’s too good for Budgens and the juice bar."
• "Incredibly overpriced, often rude, not a place for the community, just exploits its position in Belsize Park and lack of competition."

Store Environment

Pros:

• "Thought M&S was the only full grocer in the hood. Unassuming from outside, Budgens is like a Tardis, unfolding like a beautiful flower as you wind your way into Unfolding food isles."
• "Budgens is fully stocked with organic fresh produce of fish vegetables and specialised deli,mini post office fruit smoothie kiosk and more."
• "Great renovation. Comfortable trolleys, can be operated with one hand, wow. Wide aisles."
• "So much light so much room to walk around."
• "It has a very nice layout and lighting!!!"
• "The new layout is easier to navigate, things are clearly signposted and the food-to-go areas are majorly improved and looking very modern."

Cons:

• "It stinks of rotting meat which makes shopping unbearable."
• "The whole shop feels dirty and that’s why I barely shop there anymore."
• "The smell of the hot food counter at the end of the aisle is really strong and not particularly pleasant."
• "Unfortunately the store is unbearable at the moment, about 30 degrees C inside."
• "The selection of products is also limited and the staff are unhappy and overworked."
• "Quality of produce is atrocious. Fruit and veg are either tasteless or overripe/rotten."
• "During our Hampstead visit last year the shop was much better stocked, however the whiffy odour was slightly depressing."

Sustainability and Eco-friendliness

Pros:

• "Very pleased to see minimal plastic packaging."
• "I noticed the fruits and vegetables were not wrapped in plastic packaging that's what made this shopping experience worth while as it's very environmentally conscious."
• "This store has loose fruit, veg, herbs, bread, and grains. It has a laundry liquid and detergent refill station, a vegan section, gluten free section and a slushie machine with vegware cups."
• "Great local supermarket with lots of ecologically sound products, gluten free and amazing frozen gourmet meals."
• "Any environmentalist will commend its 'cut plastic out' policy making it one of the first supermarkets in the world to introduce plastic free areas."
• "Great selection here in all departments, and it's wonderful that the fruit and vegetables are free of packaging."

Cons:

• "Also it’s a shame they gave up on being more plastic free, there is still so much plastic in use."
• "Now however, huge amounts more plastic are in every aisle and multiple product lines where unnecessary."
• "Recently, they have decided to go plastic free and they are doing it in the most stupid way I have ever seen."
• "They have tiny, flimsy paper bags to pack the vegetables/ fruits in."
• "If you buy 3 oranges, those bags are too small and break easily."