Atlantic Liquors

Atlantic Liquors on route 1 (near the Rehoboth Mall) has been the store of choice for the past 10 years or so. Until some recent changes, I thought that they had an unbeatable combination of great prices and outstanding service. In the past, when you were in Atlantic Liquors, every few minutes or so an employee would check with you to make sure that you found what you were looking for, etc.

I went into the store recently to pickup a case of beer. The case that I wanted didn't have any signs showing the price, although the price shown for another case by the same microbrewery was waaaaay out of my price range, so I wanted to check on the price before I bought. Anyway, I searched high and low and could not find any employees to help me. I finally found an employee, who was busy chatting with a friend. I waited patiently for the employee to catch up with his buddy, and when there was a break in the conversation, I asked about the price. He responded with a curt "I don't know", and went back to his conversation with his buddy. No "let me check", no "I'll find out for you", nothing. This is not the level of customer service that I had come to expect of Atlantic Liguors. Since they were not interested in my business, I headed off to the new kid in town, Outlet Liquors. Lo and behold, Outlet Liquors had the beer that I wanted, with a price clearly marked (that also happened to be in my price range).

So ... score one for Outlet Liquors. It looks like Atlantic Liquors needs to step up its game (or at least get back to where it used to be).

Roadster's Liquor Store

I know, I know ... not exactly a restaurant.

I few weeks ago C and I popped into Roadster's Liquor Store near 5 Points to pick up a few things. After I handed over my credit card, I noticed that I had been overcharged. The clerk told me that he had voided the transaction and reprocessed it with the correct total. C had made her own purchase ahead of me, and I asked her to check her receipt. Sure enough, she had been overcharged as well. A few weeks go by and I get my credit card bill. Of course, both transactions had gone through. I called the store, and they told me that it would be easiest for them if I stopped into the store with my bill so that they could process the credit. A few days later, I pop into the store, and wait patiently in line to talk to the clerk about the problem. The clerk was very pissy with me for having the nerve to not want to be billed twice for a purchase, and asks me to wait until he takes care of the last person left in the line. By the time that he finishes up with the person behind me, 3 or 4 people are lined up, and the clerk continues to take care of the new people, ignoring me. I finally interupt him and ask if he will only help me resolve the credit issue when the store has no other customers. He finally summons some help from the back, and after a bunch of waiting, I finally get my credit.

So, my recommendation? If you go to Roadster's, check your total, and pay cash! Better yet, go to Atlantic Liquor's near the Rehoboth Mall.