Asda, Barnes Hill, Birmingham - 30th January 2014

After finishing work and getting prepared for lifegroup, it's time for another supermarket visit. This time, it's a visit to Asda in Barnes Hill with Ian Johnson providing company.
So, what is it like? The criteria is as follows.

1. Clean - yes, in general.
2. Friendly staff - yes they are okay although we didn't interact with them.
3. Aisle width - wide enough to fit three trolleys.
4. Everything I was looking for was in stock - No, there was a lack of fruit and veg in stock. Carrots were lacking and Granny Smith apples and cheap hot chocolate mix (which Ian wanted to buy) wasn't available. It does however have clotted cream at £1.98 which is not the cheapest available. Nevertheless, if you want to buy something for Churchcentral Forward, clotted cream is available! However, there is only very limited stock for these.
5. Extras: pharmacy/opticians/specialist food/petrol station - You can get your eyes tested at the opticians though I would probably go for a specialist opticians instead. There is a fishmonger, butcher, deli, and stock looks good. There is specialist food but not as much as Morrisons. There is a petrol station available though you can only pay by card. It's the cheapest out of the ones I've visited so far (at 126.7p per litre) but as I had enough fuel, I didn't need to fill up. A cafe is also available and Ian's friend, Rebekah, works there which meant we had a good chat. Clothes and quite a few electrical goods are available for all the family too.
6. Fresh produce with long sell-by dates - Yes. And also not many reduced items. And if it's reduced, it's in a horrible state.
7. Opening Hours - 7am to 10pm Mon to Sat 10am to 4pm Sun. Impressive.
8. Speed of till-processing - we didn't go through the staffed tills though it looks like it goes at a reasonable pace.
9. Self-service tills available - yes, loads available. However, the self-service tills are temperamental.
10. Parking facilities - yes, two floors of parking - one floor sheltered and one floor not sheltered. We went for the sheltered one and you can go through a travelator. No parking restrictions which was nice.
11. Value for money - part of the big four supermarkets, they do have quite a lot of special offers. Although quite a lot of items are cheap (especially milk), not everything is cheap. You can get a reasonable price for the majority of items. Just don't buy reduced items - it's in a horrible state. And if it is, it's only 30% off - could be better!
12. Organic produce - available if you want them.
13. Cash machine or cash back -Yes, and cash back is offered.
14. Pedestrian access - yes and step-free.

 Overall, Ian and I were not impressed with the supermarket. Stock (especially fresh food) was lacking at 6pm in the evening! This supermarket really does require improvement - and it's open for less than a year. It will take a lot of convincing for me to go back there again.

Rating: 4 out of 10

Photo: Courtesy of Anthony Harte from birminghamupdates.com