This is one of the best branches of Asda in our area. It's a really big shop which has only recently been completely revamped (early in 2008) - in fact now it's a completely new, purpose-built store, located on the same site as the old store.
It's set on Portrack Lane, opposite Big W. It has a massive car park, the layout of which has also been completely revamped - although in my opinion they have really goofed with the car park! It doesn't seem that the car park layout has been been particularly well thought out, and I find it quite awkward to negotiate my way out of the car park every time I go there.
As for the sparkly new store well, they've used pretty much the same store layout as many other large supermarkets I've shopped in recently (such as Tesco at Coulby Newham and the large Tesco at Stockton). Perhaps there's only one architect for these supermarkets to call on!!!
The store is set out over two floors, with clothing, electrical goods and things like CDs, DVDs and games all upstairs. They also have a cafe upstairs. I've never actually been in the cafe but my Mum and Dad visited it just last week and they were less than impressed!
On the ground floor, they have food, groceries, laundry items etc., along with toys, magazines, toiletries and the like. This store has a dedicated pharmacy, and also individual counters for things like pizzas and deli and that kind of thing. The pizza is my favourite counter - you can get them to make up a pizza to your exact requirements, so we get half and half because I love pineapple on my pizzas but the kids will only eat margherita! I think you get a choice of up to four toppings included in the price, so it's really good value and a lovely treat at the end of the week!
Asda is brilliant for value for money - you really can't fault them on that. Also the staff here are great, always friendly and seem really keen to help. Also they have a fantastic returns policy. This may seem a trivial and irrelevant point, but it's actually really important to me that I can buy something and have no worries if I change my mind. read more