BMX Bandit said:

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Quote:

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So many good memories at Randalls

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weird

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Ok so I am weird for having good memories of buying cakes, greeting cards, and flowers for family members and friends for special occasions at Randalls, but the dude below me who said he went to Randalls in Sugar Land to be entertained by South Asian "smoke shows" is all good?

Whoop Delecto said:

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Randall's update.

Plus Galveston location may be closing? Link is to archived article to bypass paywall in Galveston paper.

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The Galveston store is one of 28 stores in Texas which would be divested to C&S (a major grocery wholesaler) if the Kroger-Albertsons merger goes through. One of the Memorial-area Randalls is on this list as well; the remainder are DFW stores under the Tom Thumb, Albertsons, and Market Street banners. However, the deal is likely to fall apart due to both the FTC and lawsuits in Oregon and Colorado, among other challenges. The lynchpin is many of the west coast markets, where Kroger and Albertsons owned-stores are the dominant #1 and #2 in market share.

Jock 07 said:

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Gerland's or gtfo

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when i was a kid in Katy, we had a Gerland's on S. Mason where the 99cent store is now. The "nice" Krogers was where 99 Ranch Market is now. When HEB opened their 1st store over on Fry, it was like holy crap. Nicest grocery store we have ever seen.

Gerland's
Handy Andy
Louis & Coker
Rice Foods
Weingarten's (where I worked in high school)

all gone

Biz Ag said:

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Gerland's
Handy Andy
Louis & Coker
Rice Foods
Weingarten's (where I worked in high school)

all gone

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Minimax and Baker's Lucky 7 too.

Furlock Bones said:

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Jock 07 said:

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Gerland's or gtfo

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when i was a kid in Katy, we had a Gerland's on S. Mason where the 99cent store is now. The "nice" Krogers was where 99 Ranch Market is now. When HEB opened their 1st store over on Fry, it was like holy crap. Nicest grocery store we have ever seen.

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I got Earl Campbell's autograph on a photo of him and his sausage collection at the grand opening for the HEB Pantry on S. Mason that is now a Crunch Fitness. We lived in Creekstone at the time and the streets were littered with HEB shopping carts from people who would take them home with them.

Can we please hear more about the Onstead heir's coke and stripper stories???

MAS444 said:

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Can we please hear more about the Onstead heir's coke and stripper stories???

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Where's catch when we need him?

BMX Bandit said:

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TheWoodlandsTxAg said:

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BMX Bandit said:

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Quote:

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So many good memories at Randalls

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weird

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Ok so I am weird for having good memories of buying cakes, greeting cards, and flowers for family members and friends for special occasions at Randalls, but the dude below me who said he went to Randalls in Sugar Land to be entertained by South Asian "smoke shows" is all good?

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Bingo

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Good to know. I guess some of my old good memories are due to the fact that when Randalls was around in the old days it felt like a more neighborhood personal shopping experience while HEB feels like Mad Max Fury Road. No matter what time I go it is completely full and you cannot move your grocery cart without bumping into another shopper. The parking is horrible. Not a single open spot sometimes. Costco is the same if not worse. Costco and HEB would be the greatest thing ever if it wasn't like a Battle Royale experience. Whole Foods has much less rush, but even with the Prime sales the prices are still kind of high. You might not run into such a Mad Max shopping experience at Whole Foods, but you are going to pay for it. While I do restrict my red meat intake, Whole Foods grass fed and grass finished beef from the meat counter is excellent.

Quote:

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HEB feels like Mad Max Fury Road. No matter what time I go it is completely full and you cannot move your grocery cart without bumping into another shopper. The parking is horrible.

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Yeah, I don't do the new HEB-opolis experience anymore. I only order delivery if I want stuff from HEB, and go to other stores for stuff I want to pick out or need on the way.

EclipseAg said:

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I guess some of my old good memories are due to the fact that when Randalls was around in the old days it felt like a more neighborhood personal shopping experience while HEB feels like Mad Max Fury Road.

Completely agree. HEB is rough these days, with the giant carts and the clueless folks clogging the aisles, standing there for five minutes comparing types of milk.

It's like Yeltsin at the grocery store every time.

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I wish they would tell their little curbside shopping minions with the giant carts that they need to keep their carts out of the middle of the aisle, and when in doubt yield to actual customers trying to get down the aisles. I can't count the number of times I have seen some kid leave one of those carts right in the middle of a main aisle blocking traffic in both directions while they look at their little scanner oblivious to the chaos they are causing.

And the HEB is ROUGH right now in Bastrop. They are in the middle of expanding the store and have all kinds of stuff closed off or relocated to different areas temporarily, and moved the curbside parking spots to the middle of the main rows right in front of the store. So traffic there sucks too.

Diggity said:

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MAS444 said:

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Can we please hear more about the Onstead heir's coke and stripper stories???

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no kidding. Dad didn't allow beer and wine to be sold in his stores. Guess coke was OK.

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LOL

It all came out in the divorce proceedings. Not sure Dad was approving of the coke and such, but alas, that's where it went for a while.

It ain't like he's the only guy to hit 40, have a lot of cash, and decide he'd like to sample some younger versions of the female gender. Knew a guy that was similar, great guy, and his marriage ended when the stripper called the house and yelled at the wife for taking up too much of his time. That was awkward.... especially for a family so active in the church.

**** happens, you know what is undefeated

TexAg92 is correct about the Gentlemen's agreement. Randall's broke the deal, started selling beer and wine when they purchased Tom Thumb, sold to Safeway and lost there hometown advantage.

sts7049 said:

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my first job was at Gerland's in cypress. later on i worked at Albertsons (on Fallbrook i think?) and it was amazing how much nicer a store it was

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My first job was also Gerlands by Sugar Creek in Sugar Land. That was a great job for a young lad, especially when the blond cougar in the blue Mercedes convertible would give you a $3 tip by placing the money in your front pants pocket

Let's go to Gerland's, Gerland's Food Fair, You'll love the change!

agdoc84 said:

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TexAg92 is correct about the Gentlemen's agreement. Randall's broke the deal, started selling beer and wine when they purchased Tom Thumb, sold to Safeway and lost there hometown advantage.

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The first HEB Pantry was opened in 1992, which is the year Randall's bought Tom Thumb.

I guess it could have been a very quick reaction to the acquisition, but seems more likely that Houston was already in the works.

looks like you can buy a logo patch

https://www.etsy.com/listing/572428559/gerlands-food-fair-grocery-store

Any love out there for Klein's?

sts7049 said:

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looks like you can buy a logo patch

https://www.etsy.com/listing/572428559/gerlands-food-fair-grocery-store

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**** I may need that

The most braindead grocery decision in the Houston market was Albertsons in the early 00's opening these grandiose flagship stores in some of the lesser areas of Houston. I spent a summer doing resets in the yogurt and frozen food sections of all these and it wasn't long before many closes.

Randall's on S Mason alum here, great job for a HS kid in sports or other activities. We had a great GM there for a while (Mr. Bond...not the Texags poster lol) who was super accommodating to all the football players, band, cheerleader and drill team kids.

But how we got no mention of Brookshire Brothers yet? Remember the Katy one from my young youth.

what year were you there? I feel like that was the manager when I did my stint in Dry Foods

sts7049 said:

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looks like you can buy a logo patch

https://www.etsy.com/listing/572428559/gerlands-food-fair-grocery-store

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9 out 10 neckbeards at Petrol Station would have loved this patch.

Where can I get an Auchan Hypermart hat?

Looks like they still exist in other parts of the world.

Biz Ag said:

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Gerland's
Handy Andy
Louis & Coker
Rice Foods
Weingarten's (where I worked in high school)

all gone

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What about Piggly Wiggly?

"pay the least, get the most...only Auchon!"

96-97

Nice. That would have been been my era as well.

I didn't last super long.