Dinner and grocery stop

[ChrisAlli]

Looking for somewhere decent to grab dinner and then make a quick grocery stop close to Fort Wilderness

Any suggestions???

 

[stacktester]

Go out the front gate and take a left. Go to the first light and turn right. Go all the way to the end of that road and turn left towards Downtown Disney. After passing by DD you will see 535. Take a left and about 1 mile on the right is a Winn Dixie. Fair prices and good selection. There is a Goodings right at 535 across from DD but unless you want to spend a fortune go to W/D.

 

[Greenlawnsue]

I agree. We always stock up at Winn Dixie. Good prices and selection.

 

[ChrisAlli]

Any good places to grab dinner near by? I guess there are some places in Crossroads, I don't think I've ever gone left other than the Orlando Ale House

 

[hatchmo]

Publix makes delicious, fresh sub sandwiches. When we get groceries there, we usually get subs for the next meal. Groceries and lunch/dinner at the same time, at a reasonable price. At Downtown Disney, Earl of Sandwich makes a sandwich (many selections) for under $6, I think, and it is big enough to be a meal for us. Must be about the cheapest place to eat at Disney.

 

[nbodyhome]

Publix is much nicer than WD, IMHO. They make terrific sandwiches, have chicken tenders and the BEST bakery. The one near the Shrine of Mary is a very large Publix. There are other restaurants in that area, I believe an Outback as well as McD's. Across the street is the Orlando Premium Mall, with other restaurants AND a Character Premiere - Disney owns the store, which has discount merchandise from the parks.

Publix is my favorite store (and if something rings up wrong, they give it to you for free - I just ended up with a pound of ground Maverick Ranch Buffalo for free tonight).

 

[ChrisAlli]

Where is Publix in relation to FW. I know how to get out to 535 (is that right) where Crossroads is...

 

[tim5055]

Where is Publix in relation to FW. I know how to get out to 535 (is that right) where Crossroads is...

The closest Publix I have found is Publix Regency Village Shopping Center.

Driving Directions:

* Exit the Disney complex on Hotel Plaza Blvd (Lake Buena Vista) to 535, turning right on 535.
* Drive under I-4, turning left at the first light after you cross under I-4. This should be Vineland Ave.
* Continue on Vineland Ave, pass the outlet stores on the right (nice center) and follow the signs to Publix.

Current Store Hours:


* Sun 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM
* Mon 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM
* Tues 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM
* Wed 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM
* Thurs 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM
* Fri 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM
* Sat 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM

Their deli subs are to die for.......

 

[stacktester]

Once again Tim gives great advice and has the facts right. Anybody who wants to be a prepared camper you gotta read this guys website. If it ain't there you don't need it.

I agree about the subs. I have a Publix by my house where I shop and I get the Philly Cheese sometimes. If you get a whole you can split it if you want.

Even though Winn Dixie is based here in Jax I still prefer Publix because the stores are usually a lot nicer and have a much better product like deli stuff for instance. IMO Goodings is a total ripoff. I went in and got a few things and my bill was $35. I said whoa whoa whoa. I put the items back in my cart and put them back on the shelf and left. The cashier was totally pi$$ed. One other cashier looked at me and said a lot of people do what you do. I mean $6for a box of cereal and bread was $4. Basically you just double what you normally pay at your hometown supermarket and that's Goodings.

 

[tim5055]

Even though Winn Dixie is based here in Jax I still prefer Publix because the stores are usually a lot nicer and have a much better product like deli stuff for instance.

Well, Publix is also based in Florida - Lakeland and they have a large presence in Jacksonville; a distribution center as well as one of their manufacturing plants.

When a Winn Dixie store is new it is just as nice as a Publix store, but Publix keep sup the maintenance. I think this is due to the fact that Winn Dixie is a public company (i.e. owned by public stockholders) while Publix is a totally employee owned company (i.e. the only stockholders are employees, or former employees. Once you quit the company you can keep your stock, but you can not buy any more). The people you see working in the stores are the owners of the stores - it is not uncommon for someone to start to work for Publix bagging groceries and to retire with more than a million dollars in stock.



General Information

* Founded by the late George W. Jenkins in 1930 in Winter Haven, Fla.
* Largest employee-owned supermarket chain in the United States
* One of the 10 largest-volume supermarket chains in the United States
* 2006 retail sales of $21.7 billion
* Current employee count of more than 143,000

About Publix - General Information:

Store Locations
901 supermarkets in:

* Florida - 651
* Georgia - 167
* South Carolina - 38
* Alabama - 28
* Tennessee - 17

Distribution Centers

* Boynton Beach, Fla.
* Miami, Fla.
* Deerfield Beach, Fla.
* Orlando, Fla.
* Jacksonville, Fla.
* Sarasota, Fla.
* Lakeland, Fla.
* Lawrenceville, Ga.

Manufacturing Facilities

* Atlanta, GA - Bakery Plant
* Deerfield Beach, FL - Dairy Plant, Fresh Foods
* Jacksonville, FL - Fresh Foods
* Lakeland, FL - Bakery Plant, Dairy Plant, Deli Kitchen, Fresh Foods, and Printing Services
* Lawrenceville, GA - Dairy Plant

Publix Supermarkets

Two items that are interesting:

Feb. 28, 2007 – For the 13th consecutive year, Publix Super Markets is the highest-ranking supermarket for customer satisfaction according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Publix scored 83 points, up from 81 the previous two years.

One of the top companies in FORTUNE's list of "100 Best Companies to Work For" (1998 - 2007) (they ranked #57 out of 100 in 2007)

 

[nbodyhome]

I really love Publix, I think they just had their first billion-dollar profit year too.

 

[tim5055]

I really love Publix, I think they just had their first billion-dollar profit year too.

Yup, and while many companies use this money to opay the top dogs lots of money, Publix plows the money back into the company. i think the CEO only gets about $400,000 a year (plus stock options) as opposed to other companies. Here are a couple oif news quotes about Winn Dixie CEO pay:

"Jacksonville Business Journal - December 15, 2004
Former Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. CEO Frank Lazaran is walking away from the company with nearly $7 million in cash, more than 270,000 shares of stock and options to purchase more than twice that number."

"Winn-Dixie asks bankruptcy court for extra pay for CEO
Jacksonville Business Journal - January 19, 2006
by Joe Rauch

Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. has requested an additional $2 million retention incentive for CEO Peter Lynch, according to court documents filed Wednesday with the U.S. Middle District of Florida bankruptcy court."

So basically a company in bankruptcy pays their CEO millions, while the Publix CEO takes a lot less.

Plus, of the 1.1 billion Publix made in 2006, more than half of it is going to building new stores (from the march 1, 2007 Annual report):

"In 2007, the Company plans to open approximately 37 supermarkets.
Although real estate development is unpredictable, the Company's 2007 new store growth represents a reasonable estimate of anticipated future growth. Capital expenditures for 2007 are expected to be approximately $600 million, primarilyconsisting of new supermarkets, remodeling certain existing supermarkets, new or enhanced information technology hardware and applications, emergency backup generators and expansion of warehouses."

 

[stacktester]

Tim,

I'm not taking up for Peter Lynch but he has done a great job turning W/D around. He took a company that should have closed shop and turned out the lights to making money again and paying debts back. I believe they were in chapter 11 so they had to pay back money and didn't stiff anyone. IMHO though there is only a few nice stores. In that I mean their nicest store is about like an average Publix. I guess it just depends on what you want.

The reason I was pulling for W/D to make it was because the Davis family who live here in Jax started that co. with 1 store and worked very hard back in the old old days. Not that any of them own it now but you still gotta pull for them because of the hard work and sacrifices they made.

 

[nbodyhome]

That is still a lot of money for a CEO, though Winn Dixie has definitely made a turnaround. I don't shop either WD or Albertsons, I was soooo glad when we moved into an apartment that is walking distance from Publix.

I thought the WD commercials were weird - essentially saying "we know we were terrible, but now we are getting better"! I guess it's honesty - but I know when I go to Publix that I'm going to get fresh food, good service (most of the time), great bakery/deli - why would switch even if WD could match them? Sort of like Netflix - I've been with them since the beginning, and they had to force Blockbuster out of the dark ages. I'm pretty loyal to Publix as far as grocery stores (and Netflix!)

 

[hatchmo]

Thanks for all the info about Publix. Employee-owned stores? Now I know why we get such great service. And at the deli, when they slice your meat, you get a sample. Get three or four kinds, and you've got your free lunch! Wish we had Publix in Yankee country.