Andronico’s Community Markets

Cute little market. Came today because the Capello’s website said they sold their products there. I had their paleo pasta once and fell in love. So, we made the 45 minute trek, and there it was in the frozen section. They had the cookie dough too. Can’t wait to try it.
The market was clean had a nice little selection and the staff were friendly.

First time in the store as I’m a recent transplant, and it’s great! The nicest women at the checkout! Cheyenne in the meat department was easily the most helpful person I’ve experienced in any grocery store in Marin County. He is professional, kind and knowledgeable; A ROCKSTAR. Need more people like you on this earth Cheyenne! I will be back for sure. Best meat/​seafood dept in Marin.

Legit salad bar. It’s hard to find parking in San Anselmo around lunch time on a weekday and with a time crunch I was in and out of Andronico’s at top speed because they have a what is otherwise known as a parking lot. yes, unheard of in these parts, but it does exist, with ample parking I might add.
Their prices are on par with Whole Foods, Good Earth and Mollie Stones. What is missing is the vast selection of ingredients, although what they do have is high quality and fresh. I liked the tuna salad, quinoa and grilled veg, and all their greens were crispy fresh.
The best part is that I did not have to fight through a line or dodge people’s shopping cart marathons. definitely a bonus! Fast, healthy food in a flash.

Not my normal store for groceries, but the more I poke around, the more I find. Amazing selection of things, brands you’ve never heard of, along with lots of stuff you know. Definitely seems like a foodie did the curating. Pricey, but what isn’t these days? Diverse staff, and again, incredibly diverse range of products.

Theres this feeling lately that businesses in Marin are experimenting to see how outrageously high they can push their prices before customers say «enough». This is Andronico’s MO, and, well… «enough».
This is a perfectly adequate supermarket, with fair selection, decent, but not great quality goods, and the same sort of dead rat/​cat race smell you get in most urban supermarkets. It kind of could have used an update about 15 years ago. But anyway… its the way they charge that hurts most. Down the road is Good Earth, the nicest, but probably the most expensive store on earth. Today, they beat Andronico’s price for a can of coconut water by 30%!! And Andronico’s advertised theirs was on sale — buy 2, get for $ 5. That’s great. Other stores charger $ 1.89 each. All the old grocery store tricks persist here — wine is outrageously expensive, same bottle might be $ 3 less at Whole Foods (not exactly the paragon of cheap) than the label at Andronico’s. But then you get to the counter, and it turns out the wine you are buying is anohter $ 3 more! The advertized price is only if you buy 12 or more. Who buys cases of wine at a grocery store??? fresh bread? $ 5.99 a loaf. Limes? .69 ea. Tortilla Chips? $ 5. So… I’ve had enough.

This is a one star rating for my experience this evening. This is my market. I shop here at least 4 times a week. I was just at a girlfriends and telling them that I love this store and why I shop here — it’s just easier. I like a family owned business. I would rather spend a few more dollars and not have to stand in line forever and get great service. I was writing a check because I misplaced my wallet — so I had a valid check but an expired license — so it was iffy if they would take it but if my usual checkers and manager had been on duty I know they would have taken a $ 27.00 check — we always joke and talk about food and 2 nights ago we talked about Fireball — a flavored drink and were cracking up. This night a manager came out of the back — A blonde woman — she never looked at me or made eye contact and she didn’t accept the check — that isn’t even the bad part but when I told her I was a loyal almost daily customer she scoffed and rolled her eyes. She could have declined the check — maybe looked at the address and picture on the license but no she was a total meanie. So I looked at my bank statement when I got home and I have spent over $ 6,000 — just since May! And that doesn’t include cash transactions.
So Bye Bye blonde Manager — I hope someone is rude to you one of these days and you reflect on maybe being a cooler human.

I just went to this store’s deli counter and waited way to long to order a sandwich considering there were 2 employees behind the counter and no other customers being served.
Then after being ignored for 5 minutes by the deli staff, a woman walks up and orders a sandwich.
I was perplexed and I said, «excuse me but I was here first!»
The mannish grey haired woman clerk just ignored my statement and asked the woman how’d she’d like her sandwich.
The woman customer then said to me, «oh, I was here earlier»
I said, «I don’t care, I’ve been standing here and you just butted in front of me!»
The clerk did nothing to address my issue and the other clerk made tisk tisk noises at me.
Andronico’s just lost a customer who’s been shopping there for years.

If you want cheap, go to Safeway. If you want service, come here. There are some awesome fishmongers and butchers who will cut anything to order with a smile on their faces! Their wine buyer can actually make suggestions if you need it. Their produce guys will find you what you need. Lots of organic produce, great selection of cheese – I’m a fan.

Sure, it’s expensive. You know what you’re up against whenever you come here…
…but I’ll be damned if there isn’t a better/​cheaper option in the 3 mile radius of San Anselmo (and don’t you dare suggest Good Earth — they pander to a far, uh, «crunchier» demographic) for fine wines, meat/​seafood, and cheese. I’m also fond of the inclusion of various, hard to find ethnic products and European candies.
If I’m having people over after work and want to impress them? It’s easy enough to grab some bleu d’auvergne cheese, a ½ pint of olives, crackers/​petit toasts, and a bottle of Loosen riesling. Take it home, put the olives and cheese on a plate and drizzle cheese with honey, serve on crackers to enjoy with wine.
Your guests will think you’re refined as hell.

Local neighborhood gourmet market. A little pricier than your average grocery store for some of the same things. But they offer a multitude of other, carefully crafted goodies that are worth a couple extra bucks. I love the juice section where they sell their own line of juices. My favorite is Mango Surprise. Friendly staff. Warm atmosphere. Unpretentious.

I had always shopped at the Andronico’s on Solano Ave, and this was my first time here, mainly for a pre-​ordered, pre-​cooked Diestel turkey to be picked up at 14:00 on December 24^th.
First shock: the location is a maze within a labyrinth. Our GPS could not figure it out. We just parked nearby and asked around, and it is indeed tough to find.
Second shock: the turkey was cooked, but then frozen. It may have been on the on-​line ordering site, but why have a specific pick-​up time for something frozen?
Third shock: there was a plastic hangar-​type thing inside the turkey that was not referred to at all in the instructions for re-​heating: were we supposed to leave it in, pull it out, or maybe hang from the ceiling?
The good: a fine bird, cooked nicely. Excellent quality. The turkey gravy was better than the usual bottled/​canned ones, but nothing special. Somewhat expensive, but well worth it.
The shelves are well-​stocked with exotic things, but are rather pricey. The service was quite nice, and the lady at the register was wonderful.

The customer service is pretty terrific. As are the food options. Although the store is a tad crowded and it is hard to find items. For example, i bought cheese. I tasted it with a rosemary cracker. The cheese was there but the crackers… aisles away. The person collecting carts today was super kind and nice. He put a smile on my face on a day when i really needed it. His little doggy is too cute too. Fresh fish is fantastic. Great wines. Couldn’t find hot tomales candy:(

Simply the best tuna sandwich ever! I love the spicy sweet Mendocino mustard and the peppers they put on their sandwiches. And the free sandwich punch card can add up pretty fast.

My favorite neighborhood grocery store because the people are friendly, the meat and fish counters are fresh and clean, and the people are polite and helpful.
Grocery shopping isn’t my favorite thing and I put it off as long as I can, but the folks at Andronico’s make it pleasant. The folks behind the meat and fish counters are always pleasant and helpful. Ditto the deli counter. The produce is fresh and clean. It is easy to maneuver through the store and fill my basket with a wee or so of groceries and get out quickly, which is my goal.
Cleaner than United by far. Friendly, helpful people, great fish. Fair, reasonable prices. I’m happy!

I now avoid this place like poison oak on my balls. You cant take a six pack of juice squeeze, slap a regularly 5.50 now 5.20 sign on it when I can get the same six pack for 2.99 at Trader Joes. Adiós.

The best meat counter in town! The staff is helpful and they offer all cuts of excellent local-​ish lamb (from Davis, CA). Pricey on some items but regular sales alternate across several tasty favorites. And you can get out of the store quickly, even during rush times! That’s worth a lot right there. I wish the bakery didn’t use vegetable shortening — butter is better! — but I’m probably better off not eating those delicious-​looking brownies & cakes anyway.

Wow, I feel like I have to write a review after reading all the bad reviews. I have been shopping at Andronicos for years and I have never had a bad experience. They offer an amazing variety of healthy and organic foods. Their staff has always been knowledgeable and friendly.

Do you know what I hate more than my ex-​husband?
It is going to the deli counter, getting ready to order, and seeing a fly flying around inside the hot food section. Spoils the moment of decision, however on the other hand make the decision easy and easy on the pocketbook.
Nuf said…

This rating is based on only the fish department. FRESH. FRESH. FRESH. And the prices are better than Whole Foods, Bryan’s, or Paradise Foods. If I am going to buy fish, I do not want previously frozen, I do not want color added, I do not want it to smell!
Yesterday was steamed clams hankering day. Went and bought 4 dozen :) He checked each one to make sure they were alive. As he finished he says, «Cook them in white wine, some for them, some for you». LOL. He didn’t need to tell me, but I thought it cute!
The clams were fresh and tender. They loved their bath in shallots, garlic, olive oil, a little butter, parsley and lots of white. Some rustic french bread to soak up the sauce, I’m in heaven.
Clean fish section, nice customer service, great variety of really fresh fish.

Their selection is fantastic (for what I want), fresh, and unlike my experience at others the customer service is superb. And not just «go by the books» good service like the mundane ‘can I help you with anything as I speed walk past you’ you’ll get over at Safeway.
For me, Andronico’s is a tad on the expensive side, so I only go here for their quality meat section (all fish is sushi grade) and more organic, free range meat items unavailable at other grocers. (I could do without the open tray of free shrimp cocktail though.)
Their fruit/​veggies are slim but always freshly stocked. Whole Foods still best for this area. I wouldnt purchase anything from their cleaning supplies/​personal care section because it’s always just too expensive and extremely limited. Even salad dressing is at least a dollar more than it is a mile away. Their beer and wine is actually quite large, but as another Unilocaler said, truly overpriced.
I usually am on a bit of a mission when I am at the grocery store, and not trying to make copious amount of small talk with the clerk… but Andronico’s checkers are always so sweet and friendly I can’t help it.