......

What ?????????? Trash. Has Sweetbay gone downhill?

We loved Sweetbay which is actually Hannaford out of Maine.
It far surpassed the Publix that was closer to our rental house.

Sweetbay's produce, bakery and deli products were much better than Publix. This was the one near Lake Sumter Landing. Also, a more manageable store to shop in. The produce managers were also friendly and helpful.

We're familiar with Publix from our last trip to TV plus when we lived in Florida twice many years ago. They are all the same.....Sweetbay is a gem.

P.S. I think we saw a WHOLE FOODS or similar type store near Red Lobster.

Yes, that's Fresh Market, my favorite store. I try not to go in there too often because there's so much eye candy in there and I end up buying all sorts of goodies. $$$

We don't get to Sweetbay very often, but I didn't understand the earlier poster's comment either. We used to go to Sweetbay when staying in Bradenton and really liked it.

We really like Sweetbay. So much easier to get around in than Publix. It may be smaller but for us they have everything we need as a lower price and less hassle.

Personally as an upstate NY native I'm waiting for the arrival of Wegman's, but I don't expect that to ever happen. We were lucky to find them in both PA & MD, but I think the farthest south they intend to go is VA. :sad: I've been to the Sweetbay in Belleview and find it to be nothing special, although I've been told that the one by LSL is very good. I intend to check it out once the snowbirds have flown.

The store is packed beyond belief now. I would love to see another supermarket chain be built on 466a. Competition is a good thing. A agent told me they are going to build another 5k homes south of 466a. That s a lot of people. I would think a couple of new supermarkets would do ok in this area.

Why wait?? We are here every day and the snowbirds are not causing any problems.

I, too, loved Sweetbay when we rented a CYV near LSL. Normally, I hate grocery shopping, and avoid it till I'm really desperate for food. However, I found so many interesting products in that store, that I actually enjoyed shopping there.

I'm building south of 466A, so I would have welcomed a Sweetbay nearby.

I can't stand the crowds. Everything is jammed especially in & around SP & LSL. If you want to eat at a restaurant, unless you want to eat at 230pm or 9pm, you wait forever for a table, the stores are jammed and so you pick 7am or 9pm to shop. I know once they go, things will quiet down, and then I'll explore some more.

It is obvious you do not follow news outside of the bubble. This food chain is CLOSING STORES all over the state of Florida, and NO NEW EXPANSION is planned.
Publix can afford to build because thier products are way
overpriced.

It Can't Handle The Volume NOW!
 

Be concerned NOW. I live in Mallory and several of my neighbors have take to driving to the store on 466 or even down on 441 to avoid the Colony Publix. My wife went there the other day and could not find a parking space within six aisles of the Colony Publix. She left and drove down to the store on 466. They'd better do something soon.

I Don't Want To Start An Argument, But...
 

I disagree with those fervent fans of Sweetbay who post here. It's a nice little store, but what drives me nuts is that if I go in for five items, I can almost be guaranteed that they'll be out of stock on one or two of them. My wife has noticed that they frequently sell outdated items. And then there's the incident when we bought some individual-sized box wine and found that two of the three we bought had the wine replaced with water. Even more maddening was that Sweetbay told us they don't give refunds on alcoholic beverages.

Forgive me, but the reason that Sweetbay is closing more than half their stores in Florida is that it simply isn't a very well-run grocery. That's my opinion anyway. Take it or leave it.

It's only 2.5 miles farther to 466 than Colony! Geesh, you folks make it sound like it's like driving to Miami. That's a 5 to 10 minute difference, not to mention, you can eat a candy bar on the way and not ever have to admit to it!

Back to Sweetbay....

I was in the LSL store today and asked one of the staff about future building....he said the new Sweetbay will be on 466A near the library, in a strip shopping center. I believe that will be called Pinellas Plaza. He said they have already started the parking lot.

FWIW... That's what I heard.

In six years of reading this forum Villages07 has never steered anyone wrong.

but she will never admit to working for the CIA. ;)