Market Basket

I was a loyal customer at Oxford Market Basket, the word is was not anymore. I go to the market on Wednesday morning, the fish department didn’t have the fish that was on sale, this happened the past two weeks, told that the truck hadn’t arrived. Then I proceeded to the meat department and asked the manager if he had any Delugi turkety burgers again said that he did not have any, this has happened many times. I was told that I can’t help it if a customer bought 25 packages, not too helpful. Again you struck out, two strikes against the store. The final strike was when I went to the produce department and there were not red grapes to be found. I also bought a bag of potatoes, and half of them were rotten. I don’t know who’s running the show, but I give them an F. I am now going to a different store for my needs. Gail S

I laugh at all of the negative reviews about Market Basket. If you grew up north of Boston, you know shopping at MB is another world experience. Some tips…
Don’t go on weekends in the middle of the day — your loss. I would recommend early evenings or as soon as they open on Saturday or Sunday…
Don’t spend a half hour waiting at a full deli counter. They preslice popular meats and cheeses ahead of time…
Navigate the lanes aggressively but with caution around the corners — God forbid you should hit an old grandmother or block a soccer Mom in her tracks…
Read the aisle signs if you can’t find items. Don’t rely on the high school aged stocking staff to help you. Be wary of their bagging skills too…
You’re going to get some great prices here, way better than Stop & Shop, Hannaford’s, or Wegmans. Just be vigilant and steadfast and you’ll make your DeMoulas experience a slightly pleasant one. More For Your Dollah Make Ya Hollah!

LOVE LOVE LOVE this location. The employes are very friendly and helpful. The store is clean and organized.

Probably the worst shopping experience of my adult life. I was sent to pick up a few items for an older family member who swears by this place and wanted very specific items. So I go, thinking I’m a shopping pro and that I can be there and back quickly. Nothing could have prepared me for the hell I was about to endure. The parking lot was one cluster after another. That should have been the first tip that this was not going to go well. The aisles are entirely too narrow for easy navigation. I couldn’t find the very specific items I was sent for so i asked for some help but got a blank stare– like «how can you expect me to find that» kind of look. So helpful. In this day and age, is there ANY reason for long lines? Even with all lanes open? Why were there so many people? There was no snow storm, no hurricane or other occurrence to cause mass purchases. Is this the ONLY grocery store in all of Tewksbury? The rest of the customers looked as miserable as I felt. One actually hit me with her cart because I apparently was in her way and instead of saying «excuse me» she thought it appropriate to ram me. Sigh. One star for moderate prices and a decent selection but I will not be going back to this location. Ever. Don’t ask me — the answer will be no.

I grew up with this supermarket chain and was lucky enough to grow up in Tewksbury where the headquarters is located. This review is for Market Basket as a company not just this Tewksbury location.
Market Basket or Demoulas like a lot of locals still call it provided most of the area teens their first jobs as baggers or cashiers and continues to do so.
The bakery is great and their is never a time that I have gone that I do not find warm bread and a great variety of baked goods, donuts, pies and cakes.
The deli is diverse and has a huge variety with great prices. The Market Basket butchers in the meat and poultry section are great and if you need a special cut, just ask them and they will do what they can to complete your request.
Market Basket supermarkets also have a good variety of seafood and fish from which to select. For the lobster and crab lovers, you won’t regret stopping in.
Lastly, the supermarket does a good job surveying the local demographic and will stock their international section to reflect the area’s makeup. Very cool.
I still love coming here to shop when I’m up to visit.

We started shopping at Hannafords. Pretty similar in prices, surprisingly. Much nicer to shop in and better quality items.

A lot of the newer and more recently renovated Market Baskets are really impressive; this one is about as good as it can be without having a renovation. It’s got a few basic specialty stations. It’s well lit, and the aisles are really wide. As I’ve come to expect from the various Market Baskets I’ve visited, the produce and meat departments are well-​stocked, and employees are constantly on the floor stocking, cleaning, etc.
As well stocked as it is, the produce and meat are still a bit higher in price than I want to pay. A lot of the front of the store is crammed with tables devoted to junk food — I guess they’ve cornered the market on packages of sliced pound cake (okay, it’s strawberry season, but it was still excessive).
All in all, it’s a pretty good store. It’s not someplace I’d visit every week to do my regular grocery shopping, but I’d definitely go there if it’s on my way, or for sale items.

The thought of going to this Market Basket is enough to ruin my mood for an entire week. There are so many things wrong with this one that I would end up writing a five page paper, but for everyone’s sake I will just name a few. First, be wary of buying there bakery/​food items. Purchased a coffee roll and it was raw, purchased a sausage, pepper and onion sub and … you guessed it, the sausage was raw. Second, they keep expired food on the shelves, so look twice. Third, the teen employees really have go to go, only the management here is not any better. Every time I go in there, there are managers consulting with employees in the middle of the small aisles. They do not move nor do they apologize for being in the way (extremely rude). The front end of the store is poorly run and quite frankly I do not care what these kids are doing that weekend or how so and so is dating so and so. All I care about is my bread not being smushed by the ice cream. So, with all that being said (and a lot not being said), take the trip to the Wilmington one, better parking and better snotty chatty employees.

LOVE THE BASKET!
Shopping here is the best. It’s not fancy like Whole Foods, but you can get the same stuff for way less. Groceries are cheaper and the staff is helpful. Coming here on a weekend is like a zoo, so visit on a weekday and you’ll be fine. 7:00am is the best!
I like the precooked chickens, they’re quick and easy. I usually eat them hot for dinner, then turn them into chicken salad, and then I boil the bones for chicken soup. Best $ 4.49 you’ll ever spend!
My only complaint is that all of the seafood has additives. I was excited to see frozen wild caught salmon, but it has an additive so I’m not going to get it.

This is probably one of my least-​favorite Market Baskets around, which is a shame considering how conveniently located it is.
The parking lot is this monstrous free-​for-​all with tight, squishy spaces and that awkward road that cuts straight through the middle. Getting in and out of this plaza (and the parking spaces themselves) can be a huge hassle.
The store itself is also a bit on the squishy side, and during a Sunday rush it can be stressful to maneuver your cart around tight corners and shoppers with carriage-​road-​rage. There isn’t a lot of space at the back of the store by the deli and fish counter either. This is frustrating when there’s a long line of people waiting.
However, the most infuriating thing about this Market Basket is how willy-​nilly they are with the stock. Like a certain brand of yogurt? Buy several cups then come back next week to get more and whoops – ! There’s absolutely none in stock. Or even worse: the shelf is full of your yogurt, except every single cup expired two weeks ago. It feels like if Market Basket doesn’t get the price they want on what they stock, they simply choose not to buy it, meaning you could go weeks (sometimes months) without finding what you’re used to buying just because MB decided not to buy it.
Granted if this is how they work it’d make sense that it allows them to keep low prices, but it can be absolutely awful when you’re limited in what you can eat and that *one* brand of sour cream that you can eat hasn’t made an appearance on the shelf in two months.
Younger employees are rude and unprofessional (not all, of course). I called up asking if they carried glass pie plates and was assured they did. I went in to pick one up and couldn’t find any, went to the customer service booth and was ignored for several minutes while the girls admired someone’s new ring, only to be told (after an annoyed sigh – yes, I’m so, so sorry I interrupted you while you were admiring someone’s jewelry) that nope, there were no pie plates and that they’ve never carried them.
The new Wilmington Market Basket is only a few miles away, and it is a much better shopping experience! I would not recommend this location if you can help it.

Being from central Texas I’m used to HEB. HEB is a chain of supermarket that I’ve been going to since I was born and I’m used to their layouts, brands, and style of supermarket. Honestly, I seriously miss HEB.
The love fest aside, Market Basket isn’t horrible. I really enjoy this Market Basket over the other one closer to my house (in North Andover). This MB has the lighting just right, and I really like how their floral department and produce area is presented. The layout in the produce area could definitely use some work seeing as how people bump into each other quite frequently and the aisles are barely two carts wide.
The rest of the store is also laid out a bit wonky to what I’m used to. Examples: hair care and body care are in the middle of the store as are the the cleaning supplies, and the hair care doesn’t have as much product breath and depth. I have issues with the fact that MB (as a chain) has their personnel stocking during the middle of the day… even on the weekend. That’s just poor management in general. Have your stockers refill the shelves at night when there are no more customers in the store. Being at the supermarket on a weekend during the rush is bad enough, but maneuvering a cart around three old ladies AND a pallet of ramen is just annoying.
Overall, 4 stars for being stocked well, and for the fact that i don’t feel like shooting myself when I come into this location.

This market basket is close to my parents house so I frequent it atleast once a week. I think the newer gluten free option they have been having in the store is great for someone like me with a food allergy.
I wish they would offer some more vegan options like Hannaford does. I usually go to this MB for vegetarbles, fruits, pasta etc, I dont buy my bread or other vegan items here,
Regardless, their fruit/​vegetable section is pretty good– alot better than some of the other locations in MA.
I really wish they would STOP playing the recording where a man comes over the loud speaker with the WORST and TRASHIEST Boston accent ever saying the days deals and repeating the word folks, It’s distracting and very annoying to shoppers.
One other thing: When I was in High School I applied for a job at this location, I was told I was not wholesome looking enough to work there due to a lip peircing I had at the time– So beware management is very discriminatory which is against the law– I would not allow my child to work here, Other Market Basket’s have plenty of alternative looking kids working in there locations– Not sure who runs this one?!

This store closed in June 2010. No great loss other than the fact there’s only one grocery store in Andover now, a cramped Whole Foods with Cambridge prices. Hey Trader Joes, that vacant space is calling! We could sure use one here as the closest TJs are in Tyngsboro and Danvers and both are kind of a hike.

Market Basket is cheap, and you always get more for your money. But here any day is a zoo in there. And most of the customers think they can do whatever they want to get whatever they want. It’s awful.
I try to stay positive when I shop here, as again I know I am saving money but it’s so hard to appreciate that when there are other customers using their kids as shields to move thru an already crowded store. The staff is great, for the most part, I have run into a few who are less than desirable for many different reasons but that’s retail.
You can’t even get into line at the deli or seafood department because there are 100 people standing around just bullying their way thru, and even to get a simple thing like milk turns into a UFC battle. I have seen people literally bully thru to get deals and seem to have no respect for anyone around them and the staff who is generally very helpful can’t do anything. They aren’t referees after all.
So before lamenting further about the crowds, I guess I’ll sum up by saying that the prices are great, the staff is good considering the circumstances, but the crowds are awful. Try to go at a less peak time. It’s a bit less crowded and people seem to get along better when they have room to breath.

Gotta agree with Jess. Plus, there is absolutely no savings to be found on average at MB vs Hannaford. That’s why I go to either the Lowell, Chelmsford, or Dracut Hannaford to do my grocery store. I’d have to say you’d still have to worry about expiration somewhat at the Lowell store, but the Chelmsford and Dracut stores have no problems as these locations do much more business. MB has much less of an excuse to offer past dated stuff since the store traffic is on average more per each store for this area (even though I don’t understand why its more especially right now especially at the Lowell location vs the other Tewksbury MB). Well, walked into MB today to use the bathroom (as it was a convenient place) and figured to walk down some aisles and compare some prices to see how they measure up these days against Stop and Shop, Hannaford, and Shaws (as I had nothing better to do). Still say MB and Hannaford are overall better choices when it comes to average pricing and it is still worth it to go to Shaws and Stop and Shop where appropriate for sales. More than ever, I found quite a few items that is much higher at MB than Hannaford, like store brand 8 oz yogurt: $.35 at Hannaford vs $.60 at MB; Philadelphia Cream Cheese at $ 1.50 at MB vs $.99 at Hannaford. Store brand milk, deli, and seafood is about the same, as there’s always good range of stuff to buy at the deli at $ 4.99 a pound. Produce is too close to call/​maybe slightly lower at MB, but not by much. Bakery is always lower at MB as compared to Hannaford (but I’ll still say Hannaford has a better bakery dept than MB so you pay for the quality). HBC and cleaning supplies like laundry detergent, as always, is higher at MB vs Hannaford and in some cases Shaws and/​or Stop and Shop is a better deal even at regular price as there is nothing like Xtra that quite a lot of store carry or the big 175 oz Shoppers Value detergent at Shaws. Still admit it is worth it to catch those CVS sales though out of everything else.

This is the worst store going. The employees are rude and my wife and I find that you have to pay close attention to the dates on the food you buy.

Totally revamped strip mall and store. Up to date, clean and fairly well laid out this place is a cut above the rest of the chain locally. All the basics for your grocery needs but not a great selection, just average. Prices are very good, but as is usual with this chain the produce and meats are a hit or miss. For the bulk of your shopping there is no equal for value.