My first supermarket experience in France: I was temporarily housed not far from this market, and sick of trying to find a halfway decent dinner in Clichy, I opted to go to Casino and pick up some apples and bottled water. Maybe some potato chips. Oh, what a feast I would have!
They were easy enough to locate, and I got in the long line with my far-from-balanced dinner, awaiting my turn at the register.
I got there and heard in rapid-fire French, On doit blahblahblahblahblahqueblahblahblahlesblahblah pommes. (My French wasn't so good at the time) After a half minute, it registered in my slow-thinking brain that I had to go back to the produce section, weigh my produce, and figure out the contraption to print my ticket, which I would then bring back to the cashier.
The cashier, bless her heart, told me she would wait while I did this. And so I went back to the produce aisle, weighed my produce and printed out my ticket.
Coming back, I realized that the queue behind me reached halfway back through the market, and that the cashier was still waiting for me. I apologized to everyone lined up behind me, paid the bill, and profusely thanked the cashier - the cashier who so graciously waited for my idiot foreigner ass while I went and weighed my apples.
What wonderful cashiers Casino has! Such kind, patient people. So customer service-oriented!
Now, many months and many trips to supermarkets later, I realized that while I went to go weigh my inadequate dinner, she probably took the opportunity to pick grime out from under her nails, gossip with her fellow cashiers, or - the favorite French cashier activity - stare blankly into space until I returned.
There are many tiers of supermarkets in France in terms of quality and cleanliness, with cushy places like Monoprix at the top, and discounters like Leader Price squarely at the bottom. Casino has a firm hold on the middle rung.
But the service is consistently the same - practically non-existent. read more