Tesco

This branch of Tesco Express is right in the city centre in Broadmead, and in my opinion there is one major drawback to the shop’s location — there is a lack of easy nearby parking. Because of this fact, buying a weeks worth of food is not a great option as you would have to lug your bags quite a long way to reach the car! Unless of course you catch the bus in which case just cross over the road and there’s a stop right there…
I tend to use this shop mainly either if I’m in town and want a refreshment whilst shopping, or if I’m going to the Odeon cinema to buy sweets and popcorn in advance because it is so much cheaper! The shop seems pretty well stocked most of the time, but the one thing I would say is that the checkouts are really slow and you might find yourself stood in a queue for ages which is annoying if you only want a drink!

A new Tesco Express is opening a little further afield on Cheltenham Road and is being met with a heavy hand of criticism. The Tesco Express on North Street proves just why the growth of more Tesco express stores is resulting in protests. It is a small, unnecessarily expensive store with a serious lack of stock. I went in for a newspaper, sandwich and a bottle of water and left the store £6 worse off. It is situated within a vast amount of newsagents and independent groceries so I wouldn’t recommend Tesco Express is you’re in the area. However, they stock the essentials if you are in a hurry and don’t mind spending a bit extra.

As much as I try to avoid this Tesco’s (because everything is most definitely overpriced) I always find myself popping in in case of a bargain. To be fair, there are some okish discounts if you time it right, but otherwise do expect to pay a couple of quid extra for booze and others.
I also admit I have used this Tesco’s as an escape from the rain many a times, and spent a good half hour reading the vast display of magazines (what? It saves me buying them!).
The shop is actually pretty large. Most non-​regulars won’t realise there’s another part to the shop to the left of the checkouts which have the tin cans, dog food and spices.
Worth a visit for everyday items, but avoid like the plague if you have a big shop coming up — you will be ripped off.

Sometimes you just can’t avoid it — it’s the end of the month, you’ve got very little money and you need some cheap-​ass food and drink to stop you from dying. Then there’s the fact that there’s a Tesco within spitting distance no matter where you are anywhere in the UK. Therefore, if you have to shop in one of these corporate food stores, I’d recommend going to this slightly larger one in Broadmead, rather than the other two within-​walking-​distance Tesco stores on Wine Street and Bond Street. They simply do a better range of food, including both Quorn, free-​range meat and Ben & Jerrys (the staples of any person worth a damn, of course), which the others either lack or rarely stock. The range of alcohol is fairly decent, too, from get-​me-​drunk-​as-​cheaply-​as-​possible tinnies and stubbies to nice, reassuringly-​expensive bottles of wine to take along to a family meal. One thing to note is that the staff here are pretty trigger-​happy at asking for ID (I’m 27 with a beard, which didn’t seem to phase one particularly strident lady from ruining my day), so be sure to take some photo card document if you’re anywhere under the age of, say, sixty.

A lot of the Tesco Metros are rather small, but this one is more than double the size of the average Tesco Metro. They have breakfast and lunch items for local workers as well as a reasonable range of foods to take home for dinners. It’s always been busy when I’ve gone in, and, because of this, everything that should be fresh is fresh. It’s a good place to get reasonably priced food when in Broadmead, especially if M&S is too dear for your pocketbook.