Hakam's Your Independent Grocer

Pricing can be on the high side, as expected, but there's always something new we want to try.

The shelves were pretty barren when I went so the selection was pretty limited, and the prices are quite a bit higher than the competition. Not my go-to but works in a pinch.

14.october 2: 25pm

Casher asked me if I needed a bag, so I said I needed it. But the cashier gave me two bag. If you need a bag for other stores, cashiers will put it in. I'm asking because I'm flustered. “should i have to to put it in? “Yes.the customer behind me, cashier put her stuff in the bag…
Is this racism?
behind me she is white i am Asian?

기분나빠서 다신안가요! 무슨 말대신 행동으로 인종차별 하나요? 봉투필요하다고 했는데 나한테 뜯어서 주고. 나보고 담으라는 식…내 뒷손님은 백인인데 담아서 주고…장난치나ㅡㅡ 말하니까 못이해한다라는…

내가 무슨 100불어치 200불어치 가득 구매한것도 아니고 ㅡㅡ

Was not impressed with the limited selection and most of the prices were not very competitive at all. PC Optimum points is a plus though. Overall, not my first, or second choice for groceries.

It's a good store but maybe getting too big for its own good. Produce can be sketchy at times but staff is nice and I recommend it.
Edit:
Now with self checkout they don't have more than one cashier open and if 4 people have full carts of groceries that doesn't work. Will have to go elsewhere

Was followed around by the management as if I was a walking crime in progress as soon as I entered store. Very uncomfortable vibe. Good deals on markdowns, although shopping sales is essential, as this is just Real Canadian Superstore rebranded as a local community grocer.

Close to house very convenient. Most if the casiers are very friendly, except for one who seems miserable and not sure why she is working there glasses with tattoos on her arm. Seems she is racist.

I've shopped here a few times now.seemingly well stocked with mainstream items, nothing fancy.clean with organized shelves.a great neighbourhood market serving the growing community in the area.

They Advertise meat at great prices then limit quantities in store. I did not drive 30 minutes to be told I can buy only two packages!

If you limit quantities, PUT IT IN THE FLYER!

This store is close to my home. While that is convenient, I shop here knowing full well that I will likely have to pop to Save On or elsewhere later that week as the Independent often doesn't have the basics. I went this weekend and they were out of Cucumbers. A few weeks ago there were no grapes. I was told by a staff member to just go to the produce store across the parking lot. Once there was no milk. It is always hit or miss with these guys, there is no consistency and it has been this way for years, well before supply chain issues.
Make sure you check the sell buy dates, they have a tendency of keeping expired product on the shelf.

It's a good store but maybe getting too big for its own good. Produce can be sketchy at times but staff is nice and I recommend it

They need more staff and more tills open. No one to ask about what I was looking for, then spent ages in line.

Very conveniently located and I LOVE the selection of plant based products! Docked a star because you can expect to pay quite a bit more for the same products you can find at superstore (for example, $11.99 for a bag of avocados that are $9.99 at superstore, $7.99 for container of tomatoes vs $5.99, etc.)

Everything here is always a day or two within going bad*. I just go there because it is convenient.

Love the store, steaks are another thing, always under average, costco a way better steaks consistently, just had 2 Newyork strips, way to tough to eat, gave both of them to the dog

This little store has pretty much everything I need on a day-to-day basis, and is perfect for a "oops I forgot (thing) " run being so centrally located in Willoughby. I only wish they price-matched with the Save-on in Walnut Grove, and maybe Superstore. If they did, it would likely be my full-time grocery store. Regardless, I'm grateful that they're in the neighborhood and support them regularly.

Good one and accessible for all Willoughby residents. Good collection of groceries available at reasonable prices.

If u need pc points go 2 Superstore this place has none. But if u only need a few items it's coveinant. Plastic casing on my sliced deli meats mould on my cheese today expiry Feb. 22.2022. Then u show pictures & they still want the garage product back that was cooked on our pizzas with plastic casing or thrown in trash. Like I have time to go back & forth from home to them 2× each way when they should just stand behind there products & customers. Charcuterie was the plan Dec. 21 2021.

I love going to Hakam's as it's close and convenient and the prices are generally decent. What I find really frustrating is the fact that I am frequently picking up produce that is not priced and then having to find someone to help me, who in turn takes another few minutes to find the price. I find the whole process time consuming and redundant.

Comprehensive shopping malls: food, fresh (frozen) meat, fresh vegetables and fruits, flowers, bakeries, daily necessities, etc.

綜合性商場：食品，新鮮（冷凍）肉類，新鮮蔬菜水果，鮮花，麵包坊，日用雜品等等

Great selection of Asian grocery shopping
I never leave with just one thing, my basket is always full of delicious food to cook and try

I have found most staff here to be friendly and helpful, the management not so much. They lack selection and charge convenience store prices. They don't match prices, even with Shoppers Drug Mart across the parking lot. My biggest complaint is they often don't have what they advertise in stock - I often leave without buying anything; and pretty much don't waste my time even coming in anymore.

Arrived at 20 minutes to closing because I needed sliced honey ham. Deli person said sorry can't sell you any were closing in 20 min. Like common any other place like safeway or superstore always slice meat till closing. Usually I like this over priced place but not anymore, with service like that. Next time I'll drive to superstore.

Great salmon, have never found a bone in my salmon from here. They are fillaed, to perfection. That means a lot to me. The PC express here is awesome, friendly, helpful, not as busy as Superstore. They go out of their way to get you what you want. If they don't have it, they'll substitute with items of your choosing. The young man that brings my groceries out to car, is great. If you want good service, yes, you might pay a few cents more on some items but the service and staff are great. It's my "go to store". The only thing I would change is please make some cakes with real whipped cream. I would pay extra for that, not artificial whip cream.

Convenient location if you're in Willoughby but the fact that they don't have self check out options or an express lane really stops me from coming here too often.

The bakery manager is too rude. If the item is expiring, so customer always have a right to ask for discount. And her words were. “ I am doing it for this time, but do not ask ever again for any discounts. ”

Did not like her attitude, though employees who work there are always helpful.

Was good when it first opened. Now produce is limited, not fresh. Very busy and hardly any cashiers. Cashiers always try to fit as many products into a bag as possible. I've had a number of bags break while walking to my car which was less then 60 feet from the entrance. Avoid if you can.

Used to come here at least once a week for lunch. The boneless chicken strips are amazing, as well as the burgers, which were my staples, but the rest of the food looked very tasty too.

If you're in luck, you can get amazing deals on the discount section.

You can find a little bit of everything, yet I wouldn't consider the best choice for everyday shopping as it tends to be more expensive than other places, but that's just me.

Staff is friendly though they are usually under-staffed on the registers.

Conveniently located and I like how they are keeping the place super clean!:)
Staffs are not super knowledgeable but hey that will get better!
They are polite and friendly which I don't see that often at the market.
Place has most of the stuff you can think of and noticed that they have some nice deal if you go at night time (meal & veggies)

the only thing that I would hope to improve in the future is "bakery section". I tried some of them but wasn't impressed with the quality compared to the other department.

There is a food counter here for take out like wraps or sushi, which is great for lunch, since restaurants in this area are weak. But why do the automatic entrance doors swing out to hit me in the face? That's just dumb.

Well organized store and super friendly staff. One staff member was wiping down all the plexi glass #COVID-19

Not a fan of this place. Every time I look at the meat here I feel like throwing up. The beef is dripping with myoglobin. Often I've seen cuts of meat here with a strange yellowish/brownish tinge that is in a pool of myoglobin in the packaging. It does not look appealing.

Additionally, a lot of the produce I see here also has A LOT of moldy or otherwise damaged/unsellable fruits and vegetables.

I'll give you a point for the bakery which is pretty decent and ample parking in front of the store. I would only come here if I was in a pinch and absolutely needed to get something and was pressed for time.

Still not enough cashiers. The young kid that brings out the pickup grocery orders is amazing however, really polite and very helpful. I switched to online ordering for Covid19 reasons, however you can’t possibly order meat online at this location.if you chose three types of protein, you get all three with expiry dates of the next 2-3 days forcing you to cook them all ASAP.they need to do a better job selecting your order. They are more money than superstore, but it is more convenient for me.

Absolutely unacceptable customer service from an untrained manager. Excited for the days ahead when Willoughby grows and grocery store competition arrives so that this business is forced to develop its staff and treat customers with respect. Read the other reviews, you will see a similar trend. Avoid if you can.

Quick, easy to access, clean and quiet. Always fully stocked and lots of fresh produce.

I prefer to shop here over most grocers in Langley.

Excwept for the manager, who is the rudest person i have ever encountered in my life.
This is an awesome place to shop

Close to home. Good selection. Good Prices. Good plants and soil outside. Good parking. Too bad condo owners stole the small shopping carts as they are much nicer to use.

Always clean, I found almost all that I need, good prices and very good service. It is a friendly place, I just had good experience there.

In and out, what can I say? They had it, I got it, was quick to go through the check out and off to the next stop!

Of course the items we went to get that were on sale. They had none. Very familiar scene. Happens all the time.

Edit: downgraded by a star, as they still don’t have enough cashiers to cover the after work rush.:/

I shop at Hakams only if I need to get something quick. I don’t shop here regularly, nor do I do my big shops. Most of the staff are friendly, but some of them make me feel like I’m constantly being watched. It’s quite off putting.

The produce section leaves much to be desired. Same with the meat section. The deli is quite nice, and the store itself (besides produce) has a great selection of products.

Shopping on the weekend is ok, as it’s not too busy. The main issue I have with this place is that it always seems understaffed. During the after work rush and weekend rush, I’m always seeing only 2-3 tills open with large line ups when I pop in for that one item. You can see the defeat on their faces when someone comes up to the customer service till and starts unloading their cart, and the customer moves the sign that says “open for cigarettes and lotto ONLY”. The place needs more front staff.

The other thing I found REALLY creepy, is that a few times the owner of the store made employees wear shirts with his face on them. One female employee I talked to while being rang through said it was really uncomfortable wearing their bosses face on a shirt.

To summarize, it’s ok if you just need to pop in for something, like milk or bread. But I am very happy they are opening a produce market in the same mall area. Just need a butcher and a baker in Willoughby square and there would be little need to come in.

Much better than a Super Store. Very nice deli/lunch area. The sandwiches where a bit expensive, but very nice. Lot's of lunch options.

Very conveniently located. I prefer their produce to that of superstore or Walmart. Some things are reasonably priced while others van be slightly higher than competitors. Low turn over of staff which is nice to see.

Varied selection and good meat and vegetables. The deli offers quick take out alternatives. Jerry in the meat department is very knowledgeable. Getting busier as the area gains density.

Too expensive, poor selection. Doesnt take price matches.

Case in point. I bought eggs today (because I had to.) and they were $7.00. SEVEN DOLLARS! They were the cheapest ones there. This store is terrible. We have boycotted it for a while because they sell rotten produce, and on the ONE occasion I shopped there out of necessity, they let me down again.

We go here for our quick grocery needs as it is very close to our home. We like it as it has PC products. Wish they had more international/indian groceries as real Canadian superstore.

Usually more expensive than other places. Only 1 or 2 lanes open with full lines. But it is close to home and has a decent selection.

Changing my review. For the last few months, prices have been rising and quality is lacking. We bought deli meat that was bad, today I saw a 50% off pizza with green pepperoni. I get that it’s across the street from my home but no more. The prices are way too high for expired food and no selection.

Love our local grocery store! We can find there most of the stuff we need and it's always well staffed and products are fresh. In addition all employees are always polite and helpful. Feels good to shop there.

Has all your grocery needs as well as frequently has fresh pressed juices, guacamole and other ready to eat items. Also offers some more unique staple items/pops etc.well kept clean store!