Giant Eagle

The size of this particular location is a bit alarming. Especially since they have attempted to pack everything you would find in a larger store into this smaller space. It’s newly remodeled much like other stores and it looks like the normal GE you would see anywhere else.
Honestly, I can’t really say anything else about this place since nothing else really seems to matter. It’s the basic grocery store you can find in any neighborhood surrounding the city.

I’ve been in many grocery stores in my lifetime, and usually, they’re all pretty much the same. Even in the Pittsburgh area, most are pretty standard stuff. Somehow though, this Giant Eagle manages to set a really low bar for service.
The majority of the experience is fine. They have the same foods you expect, the people at the deli counters are nice, and everything is clean. The store is not well lit, I assume this is an attempt to save money on the part of the management rather than an attempt to make the grocery store more romantic.
In my trips here, everything was fine until you get to the checkout lines. First of all, it’s pretty much always just a step below Thanksgiving here in terms of lines. They all are at least seven people deep pretty constantly. This seems to mostly be due to the fact that they never have more than one or two actual cashiers, since most of the registers have been converted into forced self-​checkout. I’m used to self-​checkout, but it’s ridiculous to do when you have a huge grocery basket. Most stores only use self-​checkout for small orders, not for everything. The other problem with the self-​checkout machines here is that they are buggy and problematic, and seem to require more button presses than other grocery stores.
The main thing that came to mind while waiting in the self-​checkout line and waiting for the frustrated people in front of me to be able to get through (and the frustrated elderly cashier responsible for all the self-​checkout machines) was the lack of people working there, especially teenagers. In most grocery stores, you see lots of teens working to make some extra money. Here, the few workers you see are usually retirees trying to make a little money, but aren’t really up to the challenge of standing on their feet all day and thinking quickly. They also have absolutely no baggers. I don’t know if the managers hate teenagers or what the problem is, but considering the amount of crime in the Leetsdale area due to teens that can’t find work, you’d think the management would hire a few and try to make things better for society and the customers.
The few people you do find working there, as I said before, all retirees, is that they have an attitude problem. I’ve been sliding credit cards since I was 18 years old. I’m fully capable. There’s no need to get an attitude problem. Even worse, the manager there looked like a mentally deficient Mr. Noodles (from Elmo’s World) standing there in what appeared to be a drunken stupor at the front of the store watching the customers get angry, his workers get angry, and long lines pile up. At most grocery stores, managers try to help out and either call in some cashiers for extra pay or they at least open up a register to try to help get the lines down. This manager, who appeared intoxicated, did absolutely nothing but stand there.
Overall, I think you’re better off driving across the bridge to the Giant Eagle on University. There you’ll find a normal, good grocery store experience. Avoid this one at all costs.