When I've been there, there are only 2 checkers and the lines are 5 or 6 deep. So you spend as much or more time in line than you do shopping. There's no 10-items-or-less line or not one that's been open when I've been there. Also, if you bring your own bags, they don't load them. Last time I was there, they charged the regular price for an item versus the sale price on the tag in the isle. A fluke maybe, but annoying. read more

I give this store a negative 5. Absolutely the worst place to shop!! Cashier walked away leaving me to pack my own groceries and didn't even offer me my receipt!! I have no idea if I was charged correctly. read more

This store is always busy located right off the 5 fwy and Encinitas Blvd. Let's face it Smart n final's main draw is price and is my go to when I don't want to make the trip further inland to WinCo especially for dairy and frozen foods. The prices on food items are typically better compared to regular grocery stores. Selection is low to average on items but if they happen to carry something you like you will likely find a larger pack/ container at a good price break down. Produce is just okay, its comparable or slightly better than Walmart. They have cheap cat litter but you get what you pay for and also carry the top 2 cheapest brands of cat and dog food. The cleaning aisle and food service aisles are extensive if I was having a big party and didn't have Costco this is where I would shop for party supplies. 4 stars for what it is but not 5 as I can only imagine they must not pay or treat employees well it's rare anyone at the checkout is in a friendly mood. I was there last night and one of the female cashiers was publicly coming down on a new hire for a rooky mistake right in front of a line of patrons and I felt bad for him, he happened to bag my groceries extremely well with care and efficiency and maintained his poise and smile even after his public shaming. read more

I live right around the corner so it's very convenient for the basics; water, cereal, juice, milk. For anything produce or fish, I gotta admit, I head up the street to Sprouts. One time I bought a bunch of bananas and I guess those came with a bunch of fruit flies. Hate those suckers! Now I'm paranoid to buy anything fresh. Oh, and the whole bean coffee was blah - and I make strong coffee. I love how the checkout lanes are named after local streets :) read more

Really good prices on bulk items and I really like that they are open from 6am till 10pm. It is easy to go at a time when it is not busy which is nice. I did have an issue with bugs hatching in a bag of pecans that I bought but they exchanged them for me and I have not seen any new critters which is great. read more

Costco and Von's hooked up after a few drinks at the bar and Smart and Final was born! This place has the feel of a local grocery store and has prices similar to that of a wholesales store. It has more quality produce than Costco with a greater variety and the prices are better than Von's. I think is is a great place to get the essential items for a good deal, without having to be a member or join a club. I will definitely would recommend anyone to go check out what they have, you may be surprised to find that the things you love are right around the corner for a great deal. read more

Fairly easy to find everything in here. Prices are great too. I love how some items in here come in bigger packaging than normal grocery stores but not quite as big as Costco (although Costco does have free samples which I feel all stores should have). I come here often because its a close walking distance which is good when you have people over and need more beverages but are in no condition to drive. read more

Not too bad a place if you forgot something at the regular grocery store. They have good prices on bulk teas, juices, canned goods, and produce, but there's a reason for that. The produce is not usually the best you can find in town, but will suffice if you have to. Lots of freezer stuff, if your into that kind of food, and good prices on most everything. The real deal is the beers, OK selection with great pricing on 12 and 24 packs. read more

Great prices..lots of really good deals here. Like a small Costco ...just for groceries. Fresh flowers are very inexpensive. Great vegetable and fruit selection. Staff is very helpful and nice. I come her from Del Mar...worth the trip..never crowded either! read more

This store go's unnoticed by many. " me included". Great selection of meats, fruits vegetables. I like the fact that you can get name brands at a discount price & the option of house brand too ( even cheaper).FAST in & out register's. Like Costco without the wait. read more

I stop here often. It has to be one of the cleanest and well-lit stores I have ever been in. Their produce is outstanding--great prices and some of the best-tasting, freshest stuff around. Customer service is outstanding--very friendly and helpful. There's a checker named Bryane that is as sweet as a pussycat (though I probably wouldn't try to mess with him either--lol.) Glad this store is here! read more

Was there earlier and the manager Ray needs some training . He was on a checkout and closed it when there was still customers on the other two . I watched as he then returned stuff to shelves . After when I told him this was unacceptable he lied and said he had someone waiting in the office . 11 am . Normally it's the opposite , the manager pitches in to speed up the process . Unacceptable . read more

One of my favorite smart and finals to shop at , excellent meat , full bulk foods and great prices . Open layout helps provide a nice easy going shopping experience . read more

Great selection, prices. Love the bulk stuff too. Shop there all the time and have never had a problem with customer service.

Well I visited this store #427 tonight and I was cashiered by Lizzy. This employee seems to be a little disgruntled about her job. We had shopped and carefully picked are delicate items. When she was pushing everything to the bagging area I couldn't believe that she was throwing our products into the bagging area smashing everything. I was kind of frustrated. I was contemplating leaving everything there and walking out. I didn't...because I didn't want to make a big scene. This was the second bad experience I've had with this employee... the grocery store seems to be OK however employees are not happy...seems as though she had to do the whole job herself and she took it out on my eggs! I'm usually one not to complain but this was uncalled for and have never seen this in my whole life. Looks as though I will be using stater brothers in the future. read more

It is very small. They are always out of the things I'm there to get! I guess the only plus is that it's near where I live and I can get in and out of there pretty quick. read more

I'm slowly beginning to like this store. I have always preferred Costco for bulk supplies and Sprouts for fresh produce. The prices here are great when it comes to bulk items. I'm a little iffy when it comes to produce because I've always been a Sprouts person. Check-out isn't too bad but some cashiers are just bleh. There's never anyone bagging the items and the cashier never even attempts to help with the bagging. Does his happen at all Smart and Finals? read more

I have been shopping at Smart & Final for over 10 years in different locations, love the large quantity and prices. I used to go to the San Marcos store the employees were amazing and some of them even new me buy name, everyone super friendly. Today I stoped by their Encinitas store and bought flowers planted in a pot, it lucked wonderful! There were only o person in line so I pu the flower pot in the counter belt, the cashier didn't seamed friendly at all. When it was my turn the cashier young lady just pushed the bottom for the belt to move and didn't stop it until my beautiful flowers were crushed to herself and the cash register/ computer, when I realized it was going to squish my flowers i tried to lift the pot so it wouldn't fall or break the branches but it was to late, she got it and scanned she Brooke 2 branches so I picked the broken branches and told her 2 branches were broken she didn't she didn't offer to exchange it or not even said she was sorry! All she said very dryly was: do you want me to throw it in the trash? Then got the branches from my hands and threw it away. Next person in line was a very sweet older lady that looked at me with a sorry face and told it was a shame that 2 branches broke, I haven't even toke my flowers out of the counter yet and she started to throw the next lady's stuff against my flowers read more

Great one stop shop for my camping trips. Easy in, easy out and everyone has always been helpful.

I'm a resident who lives in Encinitas and is a frequent customer of S&F Extra Encinitas. Having the store located just off a freeway offramp makes it easy access and easy to locate for those in a hurry or from out of town. In the past few years S&F Extra has become my favorite place to shop. In my opinion, it out ranks Costco with its various choices of Economy bulk and regular size products for both companies and personal purchases. I also greatly appreciate the wide selection of bulk products they have in dispensers and containers as an economic and environmentally conscious purchasing alternative within the store. The store also offers very reasonable specials on pricing which is another incentive for shopping there. A couple of the employees who are becoming familiar faces at Smart and Final Enc. are Bill and Monique. Both are hard working individual who have stuck it out at Smart and Final longer than many who have come and gone. They are always friendly to the customers and become familiar with the regulars where they are personable, which makes going there feel once again like a small town store where people know individuals by name and make them feel welcome. I also appreciate the general manager of the store, whose name I believe is Manny, but I can't find any reference to him on the S&F website. An area I see which could use improvement is how employees are trained on the job. It is minimal training and individuals are then put out on the floor, with limited experience which often slows up the potential for advancement. I have known several individuals who have worked there in the past..one being my son and I've also noticed comments of concern in your employee reviews who have all stressed similar comments. More frequent training on store logistics as well as for individuals would be highly beneficial in addition to more personal acknowledgment towards regular employees/managers for positive actions taken in achieving success This I feel would be more of an incentive for individuals to remain long term. Overall I applaud Smart and Final Encinitas in making this location a store where people can rely upon for all their purchasing needs. Thank you! read more

this place is mostley a rip off! these other reviews are probably owners or somthing. Produce is rejected henrys fruites and veggies.might look good and be cheap but dont be fooled,there is no flaver and they go bad verry quickly. cerial that are on sale are just about to expire along with almost every other food product. CHECK THOSE LABLES!!!!!!! I have returned ranced meats more then once.good place for a few products,but not food! staff are 90% braindead.plan on being overcharged! read more

This store is always slow to checkout due to no boxboys.No one retrieves carts or hand totes /baskets till there all gone.But today was last straw.Found miss marked item,again.A whole shelf miss priced.And not only would they not honor the price, but checker ignored me as if i was making it up.These clowns have no idea how to run a grocery store.No sense of customer service at all. I will never go back.And can't tell you how many times i have bought veggies & meats that have gone bad in a couple days after purchase.Some fruits i bought never ripened ,even after 3 weeks sitting on the kitchen shelf.Even told a manager once he had green meat in the mark down section.And he just blew me off.Guess that's where the employes get their customer service training from.F this store! read more

Make sure you don't get stuck in a check out line behind someone who has food stamps. Nothing against people who need food stamps but the cashiers will make you wait while they personally shop for the food stamp customer to make sure all the items are qualified. After 10 minutes I finally switched lanes. When asked they called it "customer service". Well it wasn't customer service for those waiting behind. read more

I have been going here a few times a month for since November and I have only started to have problems with this store in the last few weeks. It is not a place that will amazed you, it is a simple discount grocery store with an above average coffee section. There are a few little things that bother me, like having to pay for bags. but what prompted this review was an interaction with a cashier. I was in the standard checkout line and the cashier, Cohen, started ringing up my items. As he is working the register Cohen is making direct eye contact with me and nodding his head. After a few seconds I ask "Are you OK?", and he stops and says "Yeah, I was just messing with you." He goes on to say that he wanted to see my reaction and that he "needs to stay entertained" somehow. I didn't cause a seen or start an argument, but this is when this store lost my business. It is not my job to entertain anyone, nor will I be messed with for someones amusement. read more

Very clean and bright. Good, fresh, quality produce. Prices are great. The staff was very helpful. Parking is a little bit of a pain though. I will continue to shop here and reccomend! read more

I go here to get things I want from Costco but in smaller volume or to get variety. (It also saves 10 minutes, each way, of driving up to Carlsbad.) My wife likes lean cuisine and I buy 12 to 14 at a time, but Costco has two flavors in a 4 pack that have not changed in several years. She doesn't want to taste them any more. Smart and Final has dozens of Lean Cuisine choices and the price is the same. Ice cream at Costco is lame with only the Kirkland brand available. Smart and Final has all of the best brands, a variety of sizes and flavors and different sizes plus the novelty ice creams. What's not to like? The prices are the same roughly as Costco. I still go to Costco for some things but Smart and Final is clearly a great store when Costco, and they often do this, drives you out for something you want tand they won't sell it. PS: years ago they had a paid card but I asked about it (last year) and they had stopped the card and given everyone their "club" prices. Oh and they sell very large bags of ice and even hard to find 'dry ice". PS the lowest propane prices in town are just across the street at the Valero gas station too. read more

1st I am not an owner and have no personal ties other than I am a local . this is one of the best stores I have been in to. customer service is the best and they have started catering to the single family something I can appr. read more