I love this place! Very good prices and service! The snacks I got were great! My wife sent me in there with a list and I was able to find everything easily. It's just a little cold in there but maybe it was just me.

Clean and well-stocked. Lots of options for a quick bite before shopping. Busy but ample parking lot.

I love Ralphs compared to any of our other grocery stores in San Diego. The selection is huge compared to Vons and Smart & Final. I can't compare them to Gelsons because I can't afford to pay $20 for one potato. Their sales are great and they're never out of stock that I've found. Produce selection is exceptional and always fresh. The store is spotless, and it has wide aisles. The meat selection, both fresh and deli refrigerated are excellent. Huge liquor department with some great sales there also. I would say their frozen food selection is at least three times that of Vons, and 20 times larger than S&M. I have always found friendly help in the aisles from someone that directed or took me to an item I couldn't find. What I don't like are the lines and lack of checkers. Sometimes they're backed up, sometimes not, but the usual is a wait. I refuse to use self-checkout unless they're going to pay me or give me a discount. That is also doing away with jobs. That's why I've deducted one star. Other than that, I think Ralphs is the best grocery store in San Diego. And the lighting gives it a certain ambiance. Nice store.

Since all of America's supermarket chains are roughly the same, with prices varying +- 20% for any given week/product, I've never found it useful to have a favorite. Online ordering (a modern innovation) and curbside pickup (a COVID-19 blessing) have made buying from several places in a day practical. I update my household inventory, mark up my shopping list, open a half-dozen browser windows, shop my list at each of the big boys, then drive by and pick up my winnings. I regularly shop at Walmart Neighborhood Market; Sam's Club; Von's; Amazon; Vine Ripe; Aldi; and Vien Dong #4; but I'm a longtime fan of the Kroger/Ralph's/King Soopers/Food 4 Less family of grocery stores. As a general matter, the chain's warehouses stock excellent produce, the stores' meatcutters know their products, and I can count on Ralphs, especially, to carry the middle-to-high-end products that I prefer to use in my schmancier cooking. From obscure BelGioioso cheeses and De Cecco pasta shapes, to premium fruit and vegetables, to the annual Hatch Chile roasting in the store's parking lot, I usually find what I want at the Friars-Mission Center Ralphs, or the College Area store on Montezuma Rd.