King's Supermarkets

[menton1]

A rare visit to the King's in Cresskill a couple of weeks ago was quite a surprise. The store has upgraded all of the departments and has seemingly increased their business as well. They now have a service cheese department, a much improved deli department, and the bakery dept includes Balthazar Bread, Bindi pastries, an olive bar, and many interesting and unusual produce items, bordering on the exotic.

A repeat visit on Sunday was met with an almost-full parking lot. I haven't seen that at this King's for years. Seems biz is dramatically up, looks like a new management team took over, and they have some good business philosophy.

Check out the deli, the apple smoked on-the-bone hand carved ham is wonderful, as are some new cold cuts imported from Italy. Cheese section is nice and selective with tastings, the Balthazar Bread is wonderful and priced a bit lower than the factory store in Englewood; also they had in the produce section some Rambutan lichees (look like sea urchins) and Jujubes, or Chinese dates.

I believe that they have upgraded the Hillsdale King's in the same manner, I don't know about the Ridgewood King's because that is a much smaller store than Cresskill or Hillsdale.

But King's management, keep up the good work, and I think it's worth a visit to check out if you haven't been in a while!

[zhelder]

A rare visit to the King's in Cresskill a couple of weeks ago was quite a surprise.  The store has upgraded all of the departments and has seemingly increased their business as well.  They now have a service cheese department, a much improved deli department, and the bakery dept includes Balthazar Bread, Bindi pastries, an olive bar, and many interesting and unusual produce items, bordering on the exotic. 

A repeat visit on Sunday was met with an almost-full parking lot.  I haven't seen that at this King's for years.  Seems biz is dramatically up, looks like a new management team took over, and they have some good business philosophy. 

Check out the deli, the apple smoked on-the-bone hand carved ham is wonderful, as are some new cold cuts imported from Italy.  Cheese section is nice and selective with tastings, the Balthazar Bread is wonderful and priced a bit lower than the factory store in Englewood; also they had in the produce section some Rambutan lichees (look like sea urchins) and Jujubes, or Chinese dates. 

I believe that they have upgraded the Hillsdale King's in the same manner, I don't know about the Ridgewood King's because that is a much smaller store than Cresskill or Hillsdale. 

But King's management, keep up the good work, and I think it's worth a visit to check out if you haven't been in a while!

←

Although I haven't been to Kings since the upgrades, I noticed that something was afoot a couple of weeks ago with a signifcantly resigned flyer. I'm more of a Shop-Rite/Pathmark man myself given my frugal nature, but I do like to go to Kings every one in a while for some high fallutin' treats or the (very) occasional sale item.

There is a Kings in Midland Park less than two miles away from the Ridgewood location, and it's quite a bit bigger and nicer inside than the Ridgewood store, with much better parking. I don't know how the two stores can stay in business together so close to each other, but I guess there's enough business for both. I much prefer the Midland Park store myself, however.

With that being said, I'm under the impression that all of the stores have been upgraded. Prices on everyday groceries seem to have been lowered a bit, but they are also placing an even stronger emphasis on high-end and exotic foods as well. The flyer advertised some truly interesting things, such as exotic fruits (some of which I've never heard of), fine cheeses, and a Kosher deli. I think I saw them advertise Kobe beef a few weeks ago too. I really need to get over there and check it out. Kings isn;t a supermarket that I would shop at regularly, but if they have some good stuff I'll definitely treat myself once in a while!

[gia]

I was told that the new owner has decided to upgrade a certain number (don't recall) and to offer longer sale periods at much lower prices. I did find a number of items at significantly lower prices which was a nice surprise. The reason given for this is the opening of new Whole Foods and TJ's locations.

[markk]

I'll have to check the two Hoboken locations and report back. As of recently, they've been totally without merit of any kind - nothing more than what the other supermarket chains have, at somewhat higher prices. And since we have a Shop Rite here that carries really high-end items, it has been putting the two Kings stores to shame.

[njduchess]

I have been shopping occassionally at the Verona location in the past several months - after no visits for a long time prior to that. The store has opened up with more selections in more spacious aisles. The produce selection seems to be better than it has been and the cheese selection rivals Whole Foods. The prepared food selection has been expanded, too. The best thing is that they have dropped the prices on many items. Their new "flame" logo marks the price reductions.

Marie

[Curlz]

I run in to the Upper Montclair store if I'm at my brother's and need something specific; they definitely did something there (new shelving for certain, as I saw that being installed), but it certainly doesn't look drastically different--probably b/c the place is so small. Then again, the Montclair WF redid their cash registers/stands--a MAJOR improvement.

I think it all boils down to competition! Even the fecky A&P on Valley Road in Montclair just got a facelift.

[menton1]

Forgot to mention that in adition to Balthazar breads, they also have a selection of Eli's Breads and some Pain d'Avignon. Bagels are way above supermarket quality, they say they are from "Millburn Bagels" , whoever that is.

Some nice cheese tastings today as well.

The new Kings is definitely worth a visit, if you have not been in a while.

[jon777]

Hmmm... I'll have to check out the Hoboken store again. Haven't been there in at least a year (maybe 2). How is Kings for fresh fish? That's one thing I don't have a decent source for in Hoboken with Apicella's (the last remaining fish monger in Hoboken) closed earlier in the year.

[gia]

I usually buy fresh fish at Whole Foods, although the fish at King's today did look pretty good. If you're looking for quail eggs or ground yak patties, they have them too!

[lapasterie]

A rare visit to the King's in Cresskill a couple of weeks ago was quite a surprise.  The store has upgraded all of the departments and has seemingly increased their business as well.  They now have a service cheese department, a much improved deli department, and the bakery dept includes Balthazar Bread, Bindi pastries, an olive bar, and many interesting and unusual produce items, bordering on the exotic. 

A repeat visit on Sunday was met with an almost-full parking lot.  I haven't seen that at this King's for years.  Seems biz is dramatically up, looks like a new management team took over, and they have some good business philosophy. 

Check out the deli, the apple smoked on-the-bone hand carved ham is wonderful, as are some new cold cuts imported from Italy.  Cheese section is nice and selective with tastings, the Balthazar Bread is wonderful and priced a bit lower than the factory store in Englewood; also they had in the produce section some Rambutan lichees (look like sea urchins) and Jujubes, or Chinese dates. 

I believe that they have upgraded the Hillsdale King's in the same manner, I don't know about the Ridgewood King's because that is a much smaller store than Cresskill or Hillsdale. 

But King's management, keep up the good work, and I think it's worth a visit to check out if you haven't been in a while!

←

I have always liked King's for their meats and fish ,but I have not noticed any upgrades in my store ...Garwood. By the way, I would never say Bindi Pastries are an upgrade!!!!!

[MikeyMike]

Deleted duplicate post.

Edited September 20, 2006 by MikeyMike (log)

[MikeyMike]

King's had some nice Prime Rib on sale at the Midland Park location this week. $4.99/lb. I bought a nice 3 bone one on Sunday and cooked it.

[Peter Conway]

I usually buy fresh fish at Whole Foods, although the fish at King's today did look pretty good. If you're looking for quail eggs or ground yak patties, they have them too!

←

Me too, but I decided to give Kings another chance. Tried the Barrumandi and it was great. The whole red snapper looked great.

Will give them another try.

Also planning to do a mixed grill of Yak, Venison, Buffalo, and Ostrich, since they have all that now. Just for fun.

[tommy]

the fish counter at King's in Ridgewood literally makes me gag when i walk by it. still. it smells of bleach or rotting fish, or both, depending on the day.

i had a chat with a checkout person the other day. she said they've seen an increase in business since their new promotion and lower prices. she didn't seem aware that they had a better selection of "gourmet" type foods, but apparently was getting feedback on the lower prices. methinks people like lower prices better than a wide variety of cheeses.

King's is my go-to place most of the time for run-of-the-mill items, as it's convenient. i guess i'll spend some extra time in there to see what's what these days. they still have that "french ham" (from canada) which is about 10 steps above thumann's, so that'll keep me going back regardless of other factors.

[Kape]

The Record recently published a Q&A with one of the new owners:

http://tinyurl.com/px3z9

[menton1]

the fish counter at King's in Ridgewood literally makes me gag when i walk by it.  still.  it smells of bleach or rotting fish, or both, depending on the day.

i had a chat with a checkout person the other day.  she said they've seen an increase in business since their new promotion and lower prices.  she didn't seem aware that they had a better selection of "gourmet" type foods, but apparently was getting feedback on the lower prices.  methinks people like lower prices better than a wide variety of cheeses.

King's is my go-to place most of the time for run-of-the-mill items, as it's convenient.  i guess i'll spend some extra time in there to see what's what these days.  they still have that "french ham" (from canada) which is about 10 steps above thumann's, so that'll keep me going back regardless of other factors.

←

They also now have a hand-carved applewood smoked ham, absolutely wonderful. At $7.99/lb, it's a real bargain. I have returned for it several times.

Re/King's Ridgewood: I chatted with an Asst Mgr at Cresskill, and he said that the Ridgewood Kings is too small and is not one of their key Bergen County stores. Cresskill and Hillsdale are the ones that they have done the most changes with in Bergen, said he, and in Essex the Short Hills Kings is supposed to be the star player.

[zhelder]

the fish counter at King's in Ridgewood literally makes me gag when i walk by it.  still.  it smells of bleach or rotting fish, or both, depending on the day.

i had a chat with a checkout person the other day.  she said they've seen an increase in business since their new promotion and lower prices.  she didn't seem aware that they had a better selection of "gourmet" type foods, but apparently was getting feedback on the lower prices.  methinks people like lower prices better than a wide variety of cheeses.

King's is my go-to place most of the time for run-of-the-mill items, as it's convenient.  i guess i'll spend some extra time in there to see what's what these days.  they still have that "french ham" (from canada) which is about 10 steps above thumann's, so that'll keep me going back regardless of other factors.

←

They also now have a hand-carved applewood smoked ham, absolutely wonderful. At $7.99/lb, it's a real bargain. I have returned for it several times.

Re/King's Ridgewood: I chatted with an Asst Mgr at Cresskill, and he said that the Ridgewood Kings is too small and is not one of their key Bergen County stores. Cresskill and Hillsdale are the ones that they have done the most changes with in Bergen, said he, and in Essex the Short Hills Kings is supposed to be the star player.

←

I went to the Midland Park store the other day, and I didn't notice much difference. The store looks exactly the same to me, except for some new signs and a few relocated items. I got some of the applewood smoked ham too, and I agree, it's outstanding. A good, reasonably priced high fallutin' treat. (It was $6.99 per lb. in Midland Park.)

I then asked the clerk cutting the ham about whether they had a kosher deli as advertised in the flyer, and he said no. When I asked which stores had a kosher deli, he called the manager over, who basically told me what the Cresskill manager told you. Apparently the Ridgewood and Midland Park stores didn't receive major upgrades, as they're considered too small to do major renovations to. It appears that the Cresskill store is going to be the flagship store, and received the most upgrading. I think the Record article mentioned that the new CEO lives in Cresskill, so I guess he hooked his homies up. I'll have to take a jaunt over there one day.

[gia]

Verona did a major renovation. Not all stores are included in this "program."

[Curlz]

I was in the Up Montclair store on Thursday, and b/c of this thread, really took a look around.

If I didn't know that they had made some cosmetic changes, I never would have noticed. The place wasn't packed, but it was frustrating as hell to get through those aisles with a cart. Poles literally in the middle of the aisles--worse than the Montclair WF, imo. Get me in, get me OUT--that's my mentality in there!

[Peter Conway]

I usually buy fresh fish at Whole Foods, although the fish at King's today did look pretty good. If you're looking for quail eggs or ground yak patties, they have them too!

←

Me too, but I decided to give Kings another chance. Tried the Barrumandi and it was great. The whole red snapper looked great.

Will give them another try.

Also planning to do a mixed grill of Yak, Venison, Buffalo, and Ostrich, since they have all that now. Just for fun.

←

I went to King's Verona.

[gia]

The Upper Montclair store is too small and congested. They usually don't have what I need. They would do better with a better selection of limited brands, rather than spreading themselves so thin. The store is poorly set up, and it's difficult to navigate. I wish they would shut it down and let Trader Joe's go in there. That would complete my food shopping needs, well, except for Wegmans.

[SusanGiff]

I personally think the Upper Montclair location would make an excellent Wawa market, and do a better job of serving the community's needs. Still overpriced and incomplete. I live five minutes away, so it's my destination for a carton of milk or a last-minute ingredient. But I try to avoid it otherwise.

As for the Verona store, some improvements have been made, but other changes are just bizarre. Did they do even one focus group? I certainly would have volunteered, and told them that I doubt we're the only family that buys both Kashi and Froot Loops, and so would appreciate not having to stop in two different cereal aisles every time I go shopping. Ditto dairy (I buy organic eggs but not organic milk), frozen foods (Amy's and Bird's Eye), etc. What they've done, for those of you lucky enough not to have to shop there, is put ALL the natural/organic foods in one groovy, we're-so-aware section of the store. It's completely ridiculous. I doubt that anyone who buys only natural/organic foods is going to shop there, and it leaves the rest of us mixed shoppers spending far too much time searching for stuff.

Also, they were giving out samples of cheese in their new "gourmet" cheese section, and when I asked the woman behind the counter what the cheese was (because it wasn't labeled), she said "goat." Look, I don't mind if a clerk in a store doesn't know one goat cheese from the next, but I do mind if that store is touting its gourmet chicness at gourmet prices.

Sorry to sound so cranky, but my washing machine is broken. And I don't understand why this area can't support ONE GOOD GROCERY STORE!!!! I don't even live in NYC, and I still have to make three stops to get all the ingredients for one relatively simple dinner.

Susan

[menton1]

Latest great find at Kings/Cresskill: They are promoting about 6 varieties of Carribbean fish flown overnight from Tobago. The fish are said to be caught less than 36 hours ago in the warm tropical waters.

We bought some of the Grouper, had it Saturday night, and I must say that it has to rate as the best store-bought fish I've ever prepared at home! Taste was unique and fabulous! It's a little pricey at $13.99/lb, but you do get what you pay for. I will be back there to try the other varieties. I understand that they also have this overnight Caribbean fish at the Hillsdale store.

[tommy]

does anyone know if the midland park location will be receiving the upgrade and these goodies? that's where i live and shop, and it seems to be a big enough store to merit the new stuff.