Time to update my review what with all the new products here at Ralphs in Hillcrest. I'm a BIG seltzer drinker. Ralph's probably has the best value that I've found for flavors that I enjoy. Each 12 pack is commonly on sale three for $12. Now summer, and they have my favorite Blue Raspberry variety back on the shelves. Reminiscent of my favorite slushie, the blue raspberry, neon colored drinks that can be found at fast food and gas stations, this one comes with a lot of flavor and no sugar whatsoever. Polar Seltzer is probably my second favorite, and each eight pack can commonly be found on sale three for $12. Let's talk about the deli case! Lots of good food here, but my favorite is their chile relleno. Whether by the piece, or a package set, these babies are a meal among themselves. Delicious, pair them with a salad from the deli case, and now, the option to choose from a variety of fresh made salads right to your left in a refrigerated case. The berry spinach is one of my favorites, and at $6 a great value. Don't forget the fresh roast chickens, turkey breast, ribs and tenders also available hot or cold in this Ralph's store. Sushi too! Bakery muffin 4-packs are favorites in the office. Buy one for yourself;they freeze very well for a couple of weeks. Don't forget the lovely cakes for a party or slices for yourself. Fresh bread, including those from the Cheesecake Factory, La Brea, along with their in-house varieties. Speaking of their in-house varieties, go up the bread aisle and try some of their wholesome Smple Truth breads. Pasta! Try the varieties of gourmet mac and cheese (including a melt -in-your-mouth Gouda variety)I don't think you will be disappointed. Ralphs Private Selection pastas are pretty darn tasty as well, if you want to go that route, pick up some fancy cheese. Their decaf Peruvian ground coffee is terrific. Today I'm going to be trying some Kroger sourdough with sea salt crackers. Sounds delicious and will pair well with my smoked Gouda. Pharmacy services available. Friendly attentive staff. Plenty of parking in a private lot and no fees to park. Great selection of fresh flowers. A florist is on site during regular business hours, I'm not certain if someone is there after 5:00 p.m. Large meat and produce selections with fresh items available for your shopping list. read more

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I gave this Ralphs two chances, months apart, because I assumed my first experience was just an off day. Unfortunately, my second visit was even worse. The deli is incredibly confusing. There were several employees behind the counter, but no one acknowledged me. They either looked right through me or walked past without saying a word. When I finally asked the employee slicing cheese how I could order some chicken, he abruptly replied, "I'm busy." I was the only customer standing there. Eventually another employee came over, asked what I needed, and bagged the chicken, but she also seemed frustrated and unhappy to help. The entire store has such a strange vibe. The employees all seem like they don't want to be there, and it creates a really uncomfortable experience. I'm not expecting over-the-top friendliness, but a simple smile or "We'll be right with you" would have made all the difference. I've given this store two chances, and sadly, I won't be giving it a third read more

I wanted to give Sevdie and German in Bakery a shoutout! They both went above and beyond helping me with this last minute bachelorette party custom cake. The cake was delicious and they made it exactly like my inspo picture. As I was traveling from out of town, I wasn't able to stop by in person, so Sevdie helped me place the order over the phone. She even let me text her my inspiration picture! This was by far the best customer service I've experienced in a long time and am so grateful. (The top is a little smooshed in the photo - but that was my own fault, so look past that) read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - Custom Cake - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

I've gone to this location for years and it's one of the best the store is clean the staff are polite and it's always nostalgic to walk in there I recommend shopping here! read more

Ralph's downtown: There's no shopping cart 80% of the time. I'm 90 years old - I need one. Other markets I go to have shopping carts. Maybe if the store got a new genereal manager he could fix this. Also, why do they allow dogs in the store? read more

GEEZUZ!!! 09/19/25 @11AM. The barista in the Starbucks inside Ralph's gets "The slowest Starbucks Barista" award. Def would not be able to handle being at the larger Starbucks stores with this snail pace. Everybody here is slow. - Sandwhich maker at the deli - Starbucks barista Let's see who else. read more

See that price? The one that makes you think that's the price for members? It is, if you buy 6 of that item or some other nonsense you only find out at the register. That was the last time I shop in Ralph's(put Vins in there too), just knock it down and put another Trader Joe's already. High prices average or low quality, no thanks. read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - Ralphs - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

There's a manager by the name of Val a women here that will give you attitude an make you feel like you don't exist. She has a piercing in her lip and curly hair. I came to this Ralphs an had a issue and she made me feel less than human making fun of me and when I asked her for her name she walked away and told me don't worry about my name and walked away very unprofessional. She is supposed to be a manager and help people with issue have I will follow up with cooperate on her angry energy she has towards customers. read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - The Ralphs location Val the rude manager works at - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

Huge shoutout to Ralph's bakery!!! The decorations for my cake didn't arrive on time. The bakery department reached out to me on the morning of my birthday to ask if I had anything else in mind. The staff asked me a few questions on my cake preferences and I was in awe when I saw my birthday cake. It exceeded my expectations read more

It's Ralphs. In some ways this location is nicer than other Ralphs I've been to, and other grocery stores in general. They have a ton of specialty items and the store is massive. It's a little dark though and hard to navigate. I'm never where I think I am in the store when I assume the layout is like any other location. It's just a little shuffled, but eventually you get used to it. Worst part about this location is the parking. The spaces are tiny and with so much happening in the shopping center it can be a battle. I'll usually fight for Trader Joe's which shares the same parking lot, but for Ralphs I keep my trip light and just walk when possible. read more

Looks small from outside but is not. It's a Ralph's that has some extra options for prepared/organic foods. People are friendly, and it's a standard supermarket ambiance. read more

This is my favorite Ralph's location. They often have good sales on their chicken, cheese, and a good produce section with a lot of options. It's conveniently right next to Trader Joe's, and we always go to both when we're there. The parking is terrible if you don't utilize the underneath parking garage, so use that 1000%! There's usually spots available and convenient stairs/elevator to the store (other than popular times like holidays, of course). Love ya Ralph's! read more

I go there and one cashier . I told them if they hire people get robots or make 3 more line so you don't have to wait all day . The greed all these companies have . Is just sad . They have good prices for now read more

If I have to choose between Trader Joe's or Ralphs, I'm choosing Trader Joe's all the way. But, there are times where what you need just isn't sold at TJ's making a trip to Ralphs inevitable. What I like about this location is the extra parking downstairs that's accessible by the moving walkway. The Ralphs feels a little smaller than others I'm used to going to but it has everything you need in it. read more

Is it weird to review a grocery store?? Maybe. But here goes. This is a review reflecting the quality of sushi being prepared at the deli. I've tried Vons and whole foods. They were both awful. But Ralph's. (Muah!) I only go to the one in Mission valley.. or HILLCREST OFF of University. Today by noon all the sushi rolls were gone but the chef happily made me a fresh one. Unfortunately , I did not get her name and I wish I would have . . Her skills are impeccable and needs to be recognized. Great taste, always fresh. Thank you! read more

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Please tell these inconsiderate people to not park in the curbside pickup areas or at least make the signs larger! Parking is terrible. Unfortunately, this location is closer to home... read more

We were in San Diego for a four night stay. Had a kitchenette available, so went in search of a grocery store to stock up on some essentials for our mini vacation. This Ralphs shares a tight, crowded parking lot with other businesses. It was not an easy-breezy place to shop, starting with the parking, and moving on to the interior of the store. Once inside, it didn't feel like a Fresh Fare-branded upscale store, honestly. It felt crowded, dark, and wasn't the easiest to shop. They definitely have a lot of merchandise, but some of the aisles didn't seem intuitive or to match the overheads signs. My biggest impression was that I felt claustrophobic inside the store, and just wanted to get what we needed and get out. Quality-wise, one of the bananas we bought, which looked ripe and totally yellow on the outside was half rotten on the inside. Yuck! I had forgotten to take one of my medications and got a bout of heartburn. Trying to find Tums or the like at the cash registers was a bust, and the "pharmacy department" exists only to dispense drugs, evidently - couldn't find antacids there at all. Just wasn't a very helpful store. Some of the baked goods we tried were just meh - okay, but not that good. First impressions of this location were underwhelming. read more

Don't recommend grocery pickup at this location. There's always people parked in the pickup stalls and management is apparently unable to enforce parking regulations for these spots, meaning they are always filled by people clearly not there to pickup groceries. I asked the clerk about it and she said they aren't allowed to ask people to move from these spaces. So in order to pickup your groceries you have to awkwardly sit in the parking lot row in an already congested parking lot, clogging up traffic and waving down the attendant so they know where you're at. Kind of takes some of the convenience out of using the service to begin with. read more

This should really be NO STARS!!! Walking all over the store looking for batteries and I can't find any ... so I ask the cashier and she says they are "right there" with a sassy tone pointing to the front of her cash wrap ... they are in a locked case and they are obscured with racks of items in front. So I ask another store employee to assist with opening the cabinet and she literally points to the same cashier and tells me she has the key and is supposed to help me. I go back to the cashier and now she's irritated with me b/c I'm standing in her line waiting for her assistance and she has the nerve to give me the dirty eye and tells me I don't have the key then ignores me instead of calling someone to help me. So I stand there and she starts to take customers from behind me. SERIOUSLY???!!! When I refuse to move she finally helps me and finds someone to open the cabinet. WTF is wrong with people?! If you hate your job then quit!!! I will never shop at Ralph's again! EVER!!! read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - Worst customer service I've ever received at Ralph's - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

I have mixed feelings about Ralph's in general as I don't like the "must buy X" of something to get the best price, and I really dislike having to use an app for sale coupons. HOWEVER, the store is clean and organized, well stocked, always something good on sale and the deli items behind the counter are usually fresh--not dried out on top. They usually have good prices on cut fruit, too. And while folks seem to avoid the underground parking, it's actually very convenient and COOL (meaning, the car doesn't get hot while I"m shopping). Normally I'd rate this store a "3" because of the app/sale/coupon price issues but I made a major error shopping recently and lost my receipt and the manager, Felix, was SOOOOOOOOO helpful and understanding and that pumps my rating up to a "5", as it's rare to get that kind support in any large chain grocery store. Because of Felix I find myself shopping more at Ralph's now and grumbling less about the app issues!!! So thank you, Felix. read more

I gotta say this location is my go to and go to it probably once a week but this store is so oddly set up in my opinion. Now that I have been a few times I can remember where things are a little better now. Items are just in odd areas of the store or next to things you wouldn't expect. Everyone there is very helpful when needing to find things just some of it doesn't make sense to me. I will say if you go on a weekend or right after work hours it will be insanely crowded and you will have to wait in a decent line to check out. Sometimes they do have a lot of self check outs open on either side of the store which is helpful when you need just a couple items. The outside of the store is going through a remodel right now and it looks like it is going to be nice! read more

Pharmacy provides service as if it were serving food at a buffet and they had run out, instead of controlled subtances. The pharmacy needs a manager who manages and notices their delivery company did not pick up deliveries. Oh, well they must have not come, Ill call them and get back to you...my second call to them excuse : I gave to the assistant...no one was following up on four medications sitting waiting to be delivered, nor did they call to tell me my medication would not be delivered...next: how about we deliver it on Monday... five days total after dr called it in. I suggested they do as the last pharmacist and deliver it themselves he laughed and said that pharmacist isn't here any longer. And the she assistant said for me to drive over as I had a car yesterday but I had stated didnt feel I could drive safely...that she remembered... and felt she needed to state it, even though she told me to stay home between 2:00 and 6:00. read more

This Kroger grocery store has the feeling of a local corner shop while also having the backing of a nationwide corporation. The store has a little of everything-just what I was in the "market" for recently while in town. The parking can be tricky, since it's shared with neighboring businesses, but if you can come during non-peak hours, it's not too bad. read more

Sale prices are commonly not what they actually charge you if you look at your receipt. They overcharge me a few bucks about every other purchase. Not alot, but irritating. A previous post here on dated Sep 12, 2023 by Alexander is similar to my interactions with her. I recognized her immediately from his photograph but don't know her name. She is awful. I avoid her, even if going to another check out lane takes longer to check out. Does management have their eyes closed? I'm Plagerizing another post on here but may take this approach: " From now on, if I see her lane open, I may avoid her completely; or if I feel mischievous I may choose go to bat with her and her bad attitude, and give her a reason to treat me so poorly." read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

Come here for all your grocery needs and of course alcohol needs! This grocery store is located in the heart Hillcrest and it has always gave me what I wanted when I wanted it! This Ralphs is comparable smaller than the others Ralphs but has most of everything you need in a one stop shop and go! The prices are second to none and the fresh fruits and veggies are impeccable! Make sure to check out the clearance items at the back of the store by the restrooms to find the best sale items and deals. The meat selection is always going with sales and most of important dont forget to download the Ralphs app where occasionally they give out certain items as free if you add them to your list on the app on Fridays. They also have gas reward points at Shell gas stations in where your scan your card and save up to 10 cents a gallon off gas! Make sure you come at 9pm daily to get the best deals on all the fried chicken, ribs, macaroni and cheese and many more HOT sale items that can no longer be put out for sale. Overall the best grocery store in Hillcrest where the employees stay happy and provide service with a smile! The best deals in town with having a free Ralphs membership! The best liquor selection and beer wine selection! They are always having deals on wine when buying in bulk and I personally think they cant be beaten! Come here if you think not! read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

This is my go to spot to grocery shop. They have an awesome produce area. Everything is always so clean inside, and the staff members are super friendly. I also love that they have six self checkout stations. Although parking can be difficult to find in the front, there is parking behind the building. read more

So disappointed. Stopped in for a couple if items. Shelves were BARE in a lot of sections. Out of all the Ralph's I've shopped in between San Diego and LA the staff here is the rudest and laziest I've ever met. Slowest checkout lines and they rarely have enough manned check-out lanes open for the customers waiting to check out. A hot mess this place is. read more

Wow! Sevdie in the bakery is amazing I had a last minute cake order and she helped me make my nieces day special. Talk about customer service she went out of her way to help make her cake amazing. read more

I don't know if I came on an off day or what. I can forgive that this store was complete chaos with foot traffic at 2pm on a Tuesday, but I cannot forgive the disorganization, messiness, and general lack of awareness. I first stopped at the deli counter and grabbed a number. Only 1 person was ahead of me but she must have had a large order. I waited and waited.. over 5 minutes.. and then Left because I hadnt even been acknowledged. A simple "I'll be right with you" would be a resassuring gesture that I might be helped sometime soon. I went to look for some specific items that I have gotten from this Ralph's before. Green curry paste? Not today .. not stocked. Red curry paste? Nope! Not stocked either. Bibb lettuce.. sorry not today! I literally struck out on half my list. I went to the bulk aisle in search of salted pumpkin seeds.. couldnt find them over the disheveled bags and what not. I tried to look at the already packaged seeds and nuts, but the whole set-up was blocked by large boxes that I couldn't move. You can see the picture I posted. I ended up going to Trader Joe's- to get all of the missing I tems. Thank god it is just next door. I am going to stick with the Ralph's in La Jolla- it's bigger and better organized. read more

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The one star is for the guy in the deli working around 1pm today I was telling him what I wanted there was a misunderstanding and he treated me like I was stupid sorry if I didn't say the right thing but bro needs to be a lil nicer he's a total douchebag read more

Typical crappy service for a mass chain store. I stopped in today and was wanting something out of the deli hot case. There were four people working behind the counter and a line of people wanting food from various deli sections. There was one guy slicing meet at a turtles pace. I asked two of the other people working behind the counter if they could help me and they all said no that only the turtle guy could help customers. Whoever the manager is of this store should be embarrassed. read more

I have frequented this Ralph's for years, primarily on the weekends. I've only had good experiences here every single time. Everyone that works there has been nice! Every time I have checked out paid at any cashier or self checkout, everyone has been nice! Is it packed on the weekends? Are they out of stuff sometimes. Yes. That's normal stuff. And sometimes parking is crazzzy and driving in or out is like getting out of a padres game but- it's still my fav cause the people are nice! It's not my local Ralph's. My local one half the people are kinda mean - but idk I usually blame poor management for unhappy employees. Anyways I go out of my way for this one so it's a 5stars all the way for me. Oh! Shoutout to the nice girl in the deli. She was alone cutting meat for everyone and all that. And she was super nice! Thank you read more

Hillcrest location just nicer and bigger in general, very limited on parking spots, a lot of things to buy, a lot that I don't usually see them sell at other places, the only thing I came in today was because I saw one of my friend got his fish fried on the spot at the seafood counter, so I Googled to make sure it was true, and eventually they do fry the fish that you buy, unfortunately for me, this Ralphs didn't do that, I asked one of the employee, he said the location didn't have a fryer to accommodate the job, I then asked if he knew another location in San Diego would do that, he said maybe downtown but he wasn't sure, that just made me lose my hopes and realize each Ralphs are not doing the same thing, so I missed out on their fried fish which I normal would go to an Asian market and get that, the situation would be unknown until you enter every single Ralphs nationwide to find out what they have in store. read more

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A great grocery store for everyday items. They have particularly good fruits and vegetables in large selections. The missing star is for the lack of carts outside and the difficulty of finding a parking spot. Otherwise a very good store. read more

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The app does not work most of the time so digital coupons can not be utilized. The staff is rude and hardly will help bag unless you buy the bags. read more

Super annoying!!!!! My 5 year old wanted a rainbow cake. He was so specific about it. It was so cute. I also spelled his name a few times. To confirm they got it right. Well when I picked up it looked like crap. They must have had someone who does not decorate cake write on it. The dinosaur decorations were also not in upright. I had them begrudgingly fix the misspelling. But that made it look worse. I even complained to the manager. And she just shrugged and said sorry. I should have done what I thought of. Which was leave the ugly cake and grab one of the pretty ones. And wrote on it myself. Oh well. Never going to buy cake from them again. read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - Aweful cake experience!!! - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

Slowest deli I've ever been to in my life. They had one person working the counter during dinner rush, and it took almost 45 minutes to get three things sliced. read more

6 customers shouldn't have to wait for shopping carts!! I love you butcher counter Produce is good But we can't fill our 's if there are Non-available read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - There are NO Shopping carts available!! - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California

I want to thank, Brandon in the Deli section area for his hospitality. He was so kind and respectful to me. Very informative about the products being sold his area. The food looked delicious. read more

ZERO self-checkouts open with one checkout lane open, took 20+ minutes to get out. I hate myself every time I patronize this sh*t hole of an establishment. If you are open until 1 am, offer checkout lanes to accommodate customers h til that time. I'm sorry that whatever private equity firm that bought this company has ruined it but imma bitch about it. I hate it here. read more

Ralphs Fresh Fare - Grocery Near Me - San Diego, California