BUTERA on National St. is Nasty Nasty Nasty. The smell is something else, and the store, so FILTHY. Produce is not edible. Wilted lettuce, expired milk, expired creamer. I'm done with the place. GO to FRANK's Market in South Elgin. Great prices, friendly staff, fresh food!!! read more

My cashier was amazing! her name was Priscila and even though I came in really late when the store was going to close she was able to keep a smile on her face and show her amazing custome service! truly she was very very kind and helpful, we need more of her in this world! read more

Be very diligent with the meat department. Second time I'm cooking and realize that the meat is bad. Just bought ground Italian sausage. Not grounded up, tried to look past it and chopped up while cooking. Then the sour smells came. Last year it was a ham for Christmas dinner. That wasn't caught until dinner was ready to be served. I'm now done buying meat there. What a waste of money and time. Meat management and employees need more training. read more

They are nice here but the place could use a lot of work. They do have fresh bread though, the deli dept. has Boar's Head items. I can't find Boar's Head anywhere else nearby. So I come here alot. The deli dept. kids are so sweet and patient. The annoying part is trying to buy alcohol LOL cause you gotta wait until they come unlock it. But I get it, the area is not so good and I bet the good stuff gets stolen alot. Anyways this Butera is way better than the one across town. read more

Whenever I go here I load up my cart with fresh veggies, fruit, tortillas, cheese, butter, salsa & beans. I am always amazed how cheap it all is. Seriously, I rarely have a shopping trip that is over $20. They had Baltic Bakery bread until sadly Baltic Bakery closed for good. They do have a small selection of interesting Italian, Polish and Asian food. The other poster is totally right about spying on other customer's carts. I do it all the time. I am always checking out what brand of tortillas other customers have or what kind of cheese they are buying. It's an adventure at Butera. The staff don't speak much English, which makes it hard when you can't find something. When asked what the difference between two types of bread was, the woman at the bakery responded "they all fresh." Once they carded me for a bottle of Perrier. They look at me strange when I use my reusable shopping bags. But, I love the place and will continue to shop there. read more

I like this place. It is what it is. No-frills. No sushi or wine bar. But, it will have your necessary staples and food products. Mariano's, whole foods, etc. are down the street if you choose rather to purchase from a greater variety of more select, higher-priced food products. I'm glad we have this choice available in this neighborhood. read more

I am reposting my review because for whatever reason, some reviewers thought that it lacked firsthand experience. For God's sake, my review even showed that I checked in! I'm not that loser that simply drives by and checks in at every store that I drive past. Here is my original post. "I don't think that I have shopped at a Butera since I was a child over 3 decades ago. We have passed this particular location for years but never felt the urge to shop there. From appearances sake, it does look very outdated. The prices were very low here and I really didn't have any complaints. They do have great selections for ethnic foods" Apparently no one read my entire review and thought that I was basing my review on my experience there as a child 30 years ago! I provided the history of my past experience simply as background and also why I had not stopped to shop here previously. I don't know about you but I would not have remembered or known what ethnic foods are nor cared what things cost when I was a child. The above review that was removed is based on my experience now, 30 years later when I ran into the store to buy some items that I needed because it was convenient at the time. I had no complaints regarding my shopping experience and I was pleasantly surprised to find that they have some hard to find items in their ethnic food aisles. I was very happy that their prices were very low. read more

Prices are good and they have a large selection of products from Italy but I gave them one star because the store is disgusting. It looks run down and filthy especially the deli counter and meat areas. The store smells like rotten cheese and looks very unsanitary. Most of the employees are teenagers who don't give a crap about anything. Why would they if they're probably only making $7 hour. Most of the deli counter employees are very young, obnoxious and look dirty. They have personal conversations and curse while they take your order. Nice! The last time I was there the cashier completely ignored me after she rung me up. She turned around and started counting her drawer and left me to bag my own groceries. There were other employees walking past me and no one offered to help. WTF? Don't waste your time at this store. There are plenty of other stores in Norridge and Jefferson park that are cleaner and friendlier. read more

Nastier than ever! I had to stop in here to get something I needed for a recipe only because it was somewhat of an emergency. I hate this place but it's so close to my house I decided to give it another chance. I seriously can't believe this store passes health inspections. I wouldn't eat their meat or deli items if you paid me. The employees are awful... no eye contact, not a word uttered out of their mouths, just standing there like dead robots moving items over the scanner at the checkout. I don't need you to be my best friend but you could at least acknowledge my existence. My final mistake....As I was passing by the bakery, they had some pastries in a cold case and I picked up 2 apple slices for a treat. They had to have been a month old and went right in the garbage after one bite. WTF is wrong with this place? It reminds me of when Elliott's was going out of business and the entire store declined. But this place is NOT going out of business, it just seems like nobody cares. read more

I have to say that I agree with everything on here. After tonight I won't be going there anymore. I've lived in the town since 1994 and have never ever ever experienced the horrible customer service that I had today. Manager was on a trip about asking for IDs for liquor today. The gentleman in front of me only got asked for a verbal date of birth and then I'm asked for an ID along with my spouse who was with me. The cashier was OLD and I simply asked why after all this week I've been buying liquor do I get asked not only for mine but my husbands and the manager comes over and get's nasty with me. I finally told the guy, I was entitle to my opinion to let me pay and walk aways. He quickly shut up and had to make an additional comment that I wasn't anyone important. lol Last time I looked, any customer who spends as much money as I do in a grocery stores is IMPORTANT! When did store managers start thinking they make a store survive on it's own. This is not the only time I've seen this. Manager discretion policies are just another way to let store managers be racist. I will forever continue be loyal to Jewels and whole Foods in my area. I'd rather pay an extra 20 bucks than to deal with such poor attitudes. read more

Let me go ahead and give this supermarket a whopping "1 star." I won't even be nice about it, I'm just going to tell you this supermarket just down right sucks. I saw moldy tomatoes and expired sour cream. I'm definitely shopping here again. *thumbs down read more

Been here a few times it's closest to my house and I love that they have all the spanish products I need. The times I've gone the store was a bit messy due to inventory so I guess that can cause some chaos. But It hasn't stopped me from coming back. Prices are fairly resonable but I will update this review as time goes on when I make more frequent visits! read more

Well this butera is nothing like the one in norridge..you have to look at the dates on everything especially the sale shit..there cheap on some prices but high on the good stuff..the deli you have a bunch of slow moving morons working it.. You tell them thin its thin one side the other thick..the sale meats like the ham an beef are frozen..aah you don't freeze lunch meat idiots..not to sure about the expire dates on it too..now they got this boars head brand they want the price of gold for it.. If you want a good deal stick with the bread an milk an eggs..the rest spend alittle more an go to jewel down the road apiece..you will be happy you did.!! read more

I don't really understand all the poor reviews. The produce section has a wider variety than jewel. And cheaper prices too. I've never had a problem with old produce here. The deli counter is ok. Standard, I'd say. Although the staff working it aren't as informed as I would like - I asked for a non processed American cheese and they didn't know what I was talking about. Otherwise the meats and cheeses are fine. Meat department is ok. I wish they still sold the .7 lb packages of ground beef, though. You can only get over 1 lb packages now. The meat counter always has skirt steak(better than I've found in other stores around here) and the guy working it is friendly enough. When I first moved to this neighborhood from Albany Park, I was a bit let down at the lack of ethnic foods in the supermarkets. Here I've found pretty much everything I was looking for. Albeit small, they even have an Irish section! I've found frozen veggies cheaper than I would at aldi here. The sales are great here. Sure it's outdated, but that means my food prices stay down. It's clean enough, the staff for the most part has been helpful, and the more seasoned staff at checkout are always nice to me. read more

Not nuts about this place. From what I saw and experienced today I can not rate it less than 3 stars. Quite a few usual items I wanted they do not carry. So I have to go to another store. I like getting all my things at 1 place. I strolled past the produce. Only thing I can comment on are the bananas. I wanted some for tomorrow. They were all green. Wanted Crest toothpaste that was on sale. Shelves empty. After my 3 star experience today and seeing the 1 star reviews and less than clean comments... I think I am done there. As for blah deli workers... Jacob was working. I watched as he took care of other customers. He was pleasant, helpful, and seemed to enjoy what he was doing. read more

I didn't find anything on sale. I like to make sure that I'm getting the most for my money this store you're paying regular price on most items. read more

I have visited this Butera several times and always dread having to deal with the rude and unprofessional staff working there. Whether its stock employees walking up and down aisles with nothing to do, or staff employees dust sweeping check out aisles while I'm standing there trying to buy groceries, this store always manages to give me a feeling of disappointment when I leave it's doors, which is why I'll never go back there. Seeing as how most of them are kids not old enough to even scan a beer, you'd think there would be a supervisor or manager around to keep an eye on things, but I've never seen one. The store is smelly, depressing, and drab. The only deals I ever found here were on produce and dairy that was nearing its expiration date. In summation, if you enjoy a shopping experience reminiscent of the soviet bloc era, wandering the aisles with fellow lost souls looking to kill 30 minutes of your life to find a sale on sour cream and wonder where did it all go wrong, this is the place for you. read more

I have been shopping at Butera recently because it is right on my way home from work, but I have to agree with everyone here's comments. Where do I begin? Their produce is priced ok, but as others have said, it's either rotten or on the verge of rotten. The deli service at the Norridge store is HORRENDOUSLY SLOW. Harwood Heights is a little better but not much. I think I've waited upwards of 15min for my order to be filled when there were only 2 people in front of me. The last time I was at the Norridge store they had a new checker there that obviously did not speak much english and she rung my onion up at the wrong price, upon seeing it I corrected her but she had no idea what I was talking about, the communication was so bad I had to turn around, address the entire busy checkout area and say 'can I get some help here we're having a communication problem' and then someone finally came over and rang it up correctly. How embarassing for that girl, maybe she shouldn't have been made a checker. Recently their prices have been going way up too, it's freaking apple season and they had no apples under $1.40 a pound. Uh, hello, I can go to Jewel and pay that price and get flawless apples, not bruised worm eaten ones. As a side note when I lived out towards the west burbs I used to go to the St. Charles Butera which was nothing like the ones in Norridge and Harwood Heights, their produce section was always satisfactory. I just read the comments on Produce World at Cumberland and Lawrence and they're ALL positive, I am definitely going to shop there from now on. read more

A drug test for employees would be helpful. One time I was trapped in the store by carts and they wouldn't move them so I could get my cart out!Some of the checkers are so rude! I guess I would be rude too if I had to work there. read more

I went here today after visiting my family after a recent family tragity and thout to myself "I am going to make my family some dinner tonight" to lighten the blow of everything that happened. I walked over to the store (which is across the street,) to buy some groceries to make some BLUEMOON MAC AND CHEESE. I brought my nephew with me who was going to help me carry the items across the street to my parents house. I grew up going to this store and went there very often for over 20 years and my family has gone for much much longer then I have, I could not believe the service I received. I went to the counter to purchase my items and I had to pull out my ID for the BLUEMOON BEER. That is totally fine, but then they refused to sell it to me because I had a minor with me (My Nephew) Outraged I got the womans name who did the check for 21....BLANCA. I went across the street and informed my family of the situation. My mother wanted to go along (A recently retired police officer who is now Handicap) who was not supposed to be moving around to begin with, but she felt the need to head over there. Once we arrived I pointed out the woman who refused to serve me and she stated it was store policy (I understand locations have policies, but keep reading to find out what else happened) I then asked to speak to the manager. Joe came out and informed us that it was a new law that was passed that didnt allow people to sever alcohol if a minor that was with them (Little does he know that my mother recently retired from the police force as well as my father being a police officer.) In my head the idea of it turning from a store policy to a state law. was a little out there. I asked Joe "If my mother was there with my nephew would he refuse her the purchase or If I came in with someone who was 12 would he then refuse me the purchase?) he stated "NO, because she is of age."..... Unless the law recently changed over night I am pretty sure that it has been legal for me to purchase liquor for 5 years now. My mother asked Joe "How is my son supposed to carry all the groceries down the street without assistance" Joe's response was "Have your nephew wait across the street and then he can help you carry it" So now this "NEW LAW" that just passed is alright to give liquor to children as long as you can take it across the street! This whole establishment has went down hill a lot since I have grown up. My family who has been coming to this store for over 25 years will no longer be part of your customer base, (I come from a huge family that currently have 7 people in one home, not including the family memebers who visit on a regular occasion.) will no longer be spending out hundreds of dollars a week purchasing items. One last comment I would like to include in this little tid-bit about todays experience that brings a major clause to the occurances that happened today. My nephew an my little brother (who is 21 years of age) went across the street to purchase a case of beer a couple weeks ago when when i went to my parents house to assist in rebuilding a deck. My brother got his ID checked, and my nephew did not..... The major difference between me and my little brother is the way I look. The way i look due to exterior modifications (tattoos and piercings) should not hold judgment on the way I am treated. I have been treated differently before, due to the way I look, but never while purchasing something for my family to make a meal for them, especially after a recent tragedy, and especially at a location in which i grew up, and still recognize employees that work there. Discrimination is wrong, my personal validation for that belief is because of my younger brother who purchased product just a few weeks prior. If that was the case they should really retrain their staff, including JOE and BLANCA on state law and company policies, because if it wasnt due to my personal appearance then they are really lacking those two policies that should be figured out and implemented! read more

To shop at Butera is to live by Butera rules: Rule No. 1...check your receipt. Just because the price is listed on the shelf is not to say that the item will ring up at that price and most of the time the check out person will act as though you've asked for a kidney if you challenge them. Case in point: I purchased a 12-pack of beer that was on sale for 7.99. The young man at the register called over a somewhat pained looking blonde woman to ring it up as he was underage. She did her deed and the original price of 10.99 popped up and as she prepared to bolt I stopped her and said the beer was marked 7.99 sale price. She replied 'well, it rang up 10.99' so I again said 'and it says 7.99 on the shelf.' She went very pouty and shot back 'just give me a minute!' She charged back to the beer section (which is in plain sight of the register) returned quickly and realized she had forgotten to check the price (??!!) so charged back to the beer. She then returned and began to blather that it 'wasn't her fault.' With great huffing, sighing and muttering about 'sale prices...don't understand...' But this was Sunday, and the sale price had been up since Wednesday... And thank you for wasting a nice chunk of my time with uncalled for attitude. read more

I have shopped here for years because it is so close by - and the lunch meat prices are so low - but my mind has been changed finally and forever. My last visit was truly my last visit. The store is so dirty! There were swarms of fruit flies in the produce section. I picked up 3 or 4 plum tomatoes and they were dripping with rottenness. Potatoes mushy and stinking of rot. Onions, same thing. Then larger flies by the deli section hmmm..... The place was never what I considered sparkling clean - but for cheap prices I would look the other way a little, but when my sandal got stuck to the floor in some sticky dirty residue right in the checkout line, that was the last straw. read more

I must never shop here again. Today, at the deli counter I found 3 packages of pita bread chewed open and eaten by,....I can only imagine by what!! When I gave them to the deli employee she grabbed them out of my hand & sneered at me. I went home and immediately called the Harwood Heights Village Hall told them what I found & hopefully they will look into it. They have an inspector who is there 1 day a week. I hope he will fine them & follow up on this problem. In addition to this disgusting revelation, I have found frequent & numerous errors on my register receipt being overcharged on so many items. I have to review my receipt each & every time I shop there. Frequently there are items that are out of code. They also have a section in the meat case where they offer "Manager Specials" which is code for meat that is ready to be discarded due to a host of problems. I will have to find another store to shop at and find value in not only good prices but the overall cleanliness of the store. You don''t know what you don't know! Butera needs to get it together and people need to hold them accountable for their hygiene practices. read more

I only stopped to grab a few things just because it was on the way. I got some turkey and ham from the deli and when I asked for cheese one of the punks told me they are done with cheese for the day. Really?? You close in two hours. He went on to tell me to come back tomorrow. I'm here now u punk. I would never come back. All the people in line wanted cheese so they are sure losing business because someone wants to leave early. I'd complain to a manager but I didn't see one the whole time I was there. The whole place is dated...Watever... but like mentioned in other reviews there's spoiled food and it just plain sucks. Let's hope I dnt get food poisoning from what I bought. Which was not much. I wont be returning. Ugh. read more

Wow. Guess there is some leftover bitter feelings after Helliotts closed. And no I didn't misspell Elliott's the first time. The store was nice but working for them was like Hell. Ok so about my review on Butera. I moved close to Butera so I shop there and so far my experiences here is the absolute total opposite of what everyone has said. Great store, great produce. No bad produce and the flies I see but what supermarket doesn't have it's share of flies? I've had no discrepancys on my purchases. The staff is friendly. Nothing outdated. You guys should go back. I got a cart ful of groceries for 110 dollars which would of cost close to 200 bucks at Jewel or Dominicks. And yes there are great sales. I really feel you guys are still steamed that Elliott's closed. C'mon. You think a little store like that would compete with the chain stores in these rough times? read more

When visiting Chicago I always stay about a block from this place and have been 10+ times. Every time I've walked into Butera, despite my generally pleasant disposition, I've left feeling depressed and dirty. The produce looks, smells, and feels like the crisper drawer in a frat house fridge. You can literally smell the food poisoning wafting out of the deli. There are no deals, no sales, and virtually no customer service. On the plus side, if you are shopping for your pet frog, they have a very nice selection of flies to choose from. If you are looking for cigarettes, don't bother. They don't have them. Also, if you happen to be one of the 6.8 billion people in the world who live outside of Illinois, do not try to buy alcohol. They do not recognize any out of state ID's. This is by far the worst grocery store I have ever stepped foot in. read more

I just bought a package of chicken breasts at the grayslake store, the package was soaked with chicken blood and slop, all the packages were swimming in chicken slop. As I put it into a plastic bag with chicken blood running down my arm. There was a roll of towels there ,I then had sticky hands the rest of my trip. Disgusting, why can't you wrap them better? Sale items not marked on the shelves as well. Very poorly run store. I'm goin back to jewel. read more

You people are crazy. The produce is fresh the meat is fresh and the bakery is always fresh and wide variety of ethnic food whether you're Polish, Italian, or Greek they got what you need. I font know what's wrong with other customers but I'm happy with the service and products. By the way the employees are either middle aged ladies or kids so wake up this isn't snooty whole foods. read more

I've been to this Butera several times and every time I go, I hate it more. I don't do my normal grocery shopping here but when I need something quickly, I go because it's close to home. Their produce is horrible!! Lunch meat gross!! The customers as well as the employees are rude. Even if I have one item, it takes me FOREVER to check out and get out of there. Not to mention the time I got into an altercation w/ the RUDE manager!! Stay aware from Butera... I'd rather pay the expensive Jewel prices than come here. read more

I'm not sure what people are talking about. This place always looks pretty clean to me. Their prices are reasonable considering the prices at other stores. I like their produce section most of all. It is a bit crampted in there but it is organized. I take one star off for the service. The people who work there aren't that engageing. But that doesn't bother me much. read more

This place went downhill FAST! Produce is horrible. Mold in blueberries. The place always smells like rotten feet. Cashiers are awfully slow. Never more than two of three lines open. And the security guard is an obnoxious tool! I'll pay more to get fresher at Mariano's. read more

Deli is the cheapest of any I have seen.. Buy everything else somewhere else.. Vegetables are horrible, meat looks old..

I live right inside Harwood heights,people just always have something mean to say about someone or something,or always expect to get something for free,understand people these people are on their feet for 6 or 8 hours a day.so you can't always go into the store and always get a warm smile and a piece of pie,I don't think we all as individuals act the same and you no what different strokes for different folks,stop complaining about shit you don't like the store then don't go ,I don't think they will miss the 2 dollars you will stop wasting there Grow the fuck up,dumb asses.. read more

Not bad. Its close to my home and the closet grocer to 31 and National so we end up here alot when we need to pick up a few things. The area isn't the best so I would avoid going here after dark. Inside the people are friendly and it's a nice clean store with a lot to offer. read more

Wife goes here all the time. They are always selling milk past their expiration date. Buyer beware.

TERRIBLE PRODUCE! We loaded our cart with fruits and veggies, most of which looked okay in the store, but discovered mold INSIDE a lot of the fruit and had fruit flies in the house almost immediately. We won't be purchasing produce from this store ever again. read more

Great sales , large selection. Decent prices on liquor. Nice staff. Meats and fruits are fresh. Deli prices are fabulous !

I live a few blocks away and love shopping here. Prices are very reasonable and the service is good. They offer many bargains and I try to take advantage of mant of them. read more

I live within walking distance of this grocery. When we first moved to Jefferson Park I thought it was amazing we had a grocery this close! This place should be bulldozed down. It's absolutely filthy inside every day of the week. The produce has little fruit flies buzzing around every time I go in. The staff couldn't be more rude. The are no savings on any items. The meat is absolutely horrid, tough, and rancid most of the time. It's nearly impossible to maneuver a cart up and down the narrow aisles. Not to mention the selection of items in general is terrible. What a shame that instead of being able to walk over and get a nice deal on fresh food I have to get in my car and drive to the nearest Dominick's. read more

Great prices and choices--meat, dairy, whatever. Dullards behind the deli counter, however. Tidy. read more