Giant

Their self check in counters are very helpful. Their customer service is very good. Bakery selection is great. Salad counters are always clean and kept neat and tidy.

I went to use the restroom while shopping and was gone max 2 minutes and notice my basket with 11 items was no longer there. I had to go get everything and noticed that my original basket was at the customer service desk. How does this store expect you go to use their restroom when they take your stuff when you do?

I don’t like this store.
Lots of basic things are always sold out (why are tomatoes always sold out? So weird!).
Employees are not helpful at all — sometimes they seem annoyed.
The area by the Deli always smells funny and I never feel like buying anything there.
The bakery area is poorly stocked and most of the time things are sold out.
One time I forgot to bring my re-​usable bags and told the guy to simply put the items in my cart instead of a plastic bag, after checking them out.
He said «Are you sure?» and I replied «yes, it’s better for the environment and saves you (Giant) money!»… he looked at me, shrugged his shoulders and said «I don’t care, it’s not my money.»
I walked out and never came back. Eeeky, store.

I have had really good experiences at this store. I am new to the Herndon area and this store makes me feel at home. Although, it may not be comparable to Whole Foods, or my local Sprouts Farmers Market, it is a nice store that is close to my house and has a good selection of food and the bakery is pretty sweet. I usually buy «over baked goods» from the bakery because not only do I receive a $ 2-​$ 3 discount on desserts but I like all my food well done. (personally I like the crispness of over baked goods)
Although, the representatives from the store may not be all knowledgeable they do their best to help you. And that is what truly matters in a store’s service.
I always go to rhe self checkout stations because they are faster. Overall I love this store.

I’ve had very good experiences so far, the membership card and gas rewards is very convenient for us, especially since there is a shell across the street. I only shop sales, and enjoy their produce and meat deals. Prices are affordable compared to other stores, they do have a very small selection of citrus (but I’m from FL so I’m used to a whole lot more choice), their herbs are iffy, usually stop by Fresh World for those. However they have specialty items and we very rarely can’t find what we’re looking for. We’ve had mixed results when asking for help, everyone is helpful, but not always knowledgeable, but that’s ok, at least they’re all nice. They also double coupons up to $ 1, coupon cutter’s dream!
Oh FYI I hate self-​service often because my trips are large, but if you are buying alcohol skip self-​service, it’s more work for them, just go through a lane, people are usually nice enough to let you go ahead if you don’t have many items.

I love this store! It was a bit run down until the renovations a few years back (it used to be a bit depressing). The staff are just fantastic — genuinely nice and helpful. It feels like a small town store where people actually care about you as a customer (the exact opposite of the Herndon Safeway). They also have a great organic and specialty food section and my kids are allergic to a number of foods so that is great. I have two complaints about this store: 1) the meat section is slim pickings and overpriced — change that and you can put Safeway out of business! 2) the deli counter is priced to keep customers away — $ 12 a pound for roast beef? why not just buy filet mignon and throw it on the grill?

This is definitely the best grocery store on Elden Street in Herndon (Okay, okay… the only real comparison is Safeway so it’s not really a contest!).
Anyway, they always seem to have plenty of employees around to make the check-​out experience a short and pleasant one. The self-​check lanes are convenient and their location next to the customer service counter means you can usually expect quick help if something goes awry with your scanning or you need an age check for alcohol.
Despite the age of the store, it’s in pretty good shape and has had some major renovations in recent years, including the addition of an organic section in the corner near the produce. Of course, that section is pricey. The rest of the store is competitive with other similar stores in the area, in my opinion. Just use your bonus card to save a few bucks here and there.
The folks in the deli, bakery, and meat sections are usually quite helpful and friendly, although sometimes the deli department can get very busy during peak times (like during lunch or right after work, hence the «peak»).
All in all I’ve never had a bad experience here. I can get in and out quickly if only buying a few items and there are usually plenty of helpful employees around.

To be honest, i would not normally come here. I detoured here yesterday because the traffic up rt-​28 to Wegmans was abysmal. That aside i was already disappointed at the time but decided to make the best of it.
The selection available at Giant is not bad although there were some things i was unable to find. My biggest issue is the price of their produce. Some of it is competitively priced, however everything in the frozen food section seems to be $ 1 – 2 above prices i can find at other major stores.
Also as a cost cutting measure they seem to only have self checkout, the problem with this is, that the machines are overly sensitive on the conveyor belt and have a tendency to freeze up. I guess they think you are stealing from the store, regardless this requires you to wait for someone to come by, check the problem and then swipe their card. We had this happen at least 3 times in one checkout.
i guess if you have limited options Giant isn’t a bad place to shop, however, even with a Giant card you will still be over paying for standard food items that you can find elsewhere.

What! Whoa! Okay simmer down Cynthia…
Seriously, I’m trying to get control of myself right now.
I’m sorry Amita, but I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with your assessment of the Herndon Giant.
The GREAT thing about the Herndon Giant is it being an established icon (okay, overreaching a bit, I know) in Herndon. As you kindly noted this store has withstood a solid 30+ years in this town, while the likes of «Peoples» (now CVS), Food Lion (now Bloom), AAMCO (now some randy random gas station), huge field on the corner of Parcher and Elden (now a Kohls), and many, many more stores, restaurants and other establishments are simply no more.
Sure, Giant can’t compare to a Wegmans, or a Balduccis, or even Harris Teeter in size and offerings. But I do know that I can buy Saladena crumbled goat cheese at Giant for $ 3.99 while at any of the aforementioned it would be double that price. For that reason aone is why Giant RULES!
Okay, so the décor isnt impressive and the store hasnt done a major enhancement to their interior décor in years (if ever), but honestly is that why you go to a grocery store? To be impressed with bells and whistles?
No, you go to buy good food at reasonable prices.
And that is what you’ll get at the Herndon Giant.
One final note… there are plenty of white, dark and light brown, yellow, red, random (x) colored people employed at Herndon Giant who speak english very, very well. And it probably was the first language they spoke, and who cares if it was the second, so, please spare us with the «most don’t speak english well «hogwash.