I am giving a 2 stars because 2 stars says "Meh, I've experienced better" and that is how I feel about this Shaws. Don't get me wrong, it is perfectly fine for what it is, but there are some things left to be desired: Pros: Good hours - they are open till midnight most nights. Organic Produce - they have it and stock it if you are into it Shelves are pretty regularly stocked Customer service is pretty decent, cashiers are pretty friendly. Cons: Probably the most expensive grocery store around. It is close and convenient to me, but they have items that are 10-25% less at other places, this is particularly true in the "natural foods" section, but across the board I find it more expensive to shop here. No self check out - They used to have it, but took it away. Now always waiting in line... and that leads us to: The promise of "No more than 3 in a line at a time" - Again, they took out self check out and put up big signs promising that no more than 3 people in a line at a time, they regularly break that promise. I think the last time I was in the took the sign down, but either way, sometimes you have to wait to check out. All that said, I go there all time, and don't have any major issues with the way the store is run, it just feels expensive read more

I live down the street from this location.....i grab all my movies here mostly..yet i find some articles even with the card, (which i am never without) are cheaper at Hannaford's at the other end of town....although there are not any frills at all at hannaford's, i will go out of my way knowing some prices are lower at the start for items i wish to purchase are higer at shaws... read more

Perfectly fine standard Shaw's. I visited at 7pm on a weekday and it wasn't too busy, they still had things stocked on the shelves, there was good parking, and there were enough people at the checkout lanes to get me through quickly. It's not a fancy Shaw's but it's clean and convenient. read more

Worst experience ever. Has 3 items so when to self checkout. Tried twice but could not complete the transactions... So went to a line with a cashier (the shortest) - big mistake. Cashier had just checked out an employee on break and was also ringing up another employee on break so the 3 of them were talking an talking....she was deliberately messing up so she could start the transaction over....which she did over 4 times. People behind me where leaving to go to other registers. Asked another associate to call the manager..... the other employees that were talking to her as she was messing up dispersed. Talked to the manager so said "I just when by there and there is someone in the self-checkout..... Customer service beyond stinks... read more

Average Shaws. Get the Shaw's card to get the best deals. You can find some pretty good prices on seafood here, and the deli has a decent selection of deli meat. read more

The employees are nice, and it's great that they stock some products/brands that Stop & Shop doesn't. The produce section is not always the greatest though. It seems like every time I shop there they only have about 10 onions left and they look like they've been sitting there for far too long. read more

This is the only grocery store I've been to since I moved here. Prices are great with the club card, especially compared to Wellesley prices I'm used to. They have self-checkout which is normally quicker if you go right after work and only have a few items. Store is laid out in a logical way, which makes it easy to buzz around. They have $5 rotisserie chickens every Friday night. I particularly like that they have a large selection of ethnic foods right near the front of the store; I was in a bind one day when I promised my boyfriend I would make him homemade hummus but didn't have any tahini, and walked into Shaws where they had Joyva tahini sitting right there on a shelf with another good selection of Mediterranean foods. We cook a lot of Thai, Chinese and Asian food too, and I've never not found something that I'm looking for there. The one downside is their produce, which is always too expensive and looks like crap (think onions that have more brown spots than not...HOW LONG have they been sitting there?) but for produce, Wilson Farms up the road in Lexington is the only way to go. read more

Unusually slow express lines every time I'm there, even with only one person in line ahead of me.

Great supermarket. Staff is friendly and always have what I need on the shelf. Plenty of parking. Really good food at LA Cart. Produce is Hit or miss read more

Every time I go to the River St Shaw's in Waltham I find either expired food or empty shelves. I'd rather shop at Star Market in Belmont and pay more. read more

This supermarket and not as busy as the nearby Stop and Shop and Market Basket, which is good for a quick checkout. My interactions with the employees have been positive, they are very friendly. On the downside...It appears that they do not check the shelf life of their products. I constantly find products that are past their expiration date. The store also needs to be remodeled / updated, it just appears to be a little un-kept. read more

Twice now I've purchased meat/fish that was spoiled. Both times I went home with the intention of cooking it that same day but was horrified by the foul odor when I opened the packaging. They are good about letting you return things but I don't see why they aren't keeping an eye on this type of thing to prevent it from happening in the first place. Customer service is also lacking as both times the person at the desk seemed very annoyed by me coming in to return spoiled food. I don't plan on shopping here anymore. read more

I am a creature of habit, so I always shop at this grocery store. At least 10 times over the last 4 years I have left with an expired item. While I take PARTIAL responsibly for not checking, I find it appauling and frightening how old some items are. For example, I bought chocolate bars for S'mores and they had expired FOUR MONTHS PRIOR! I couple months later I purchased peanut butter that had expired 2 months prior. And worst of all, I bought cocktail onions that expired A YEAR PRIOR!!!!! That all happened maybe 3-4 years ago.... What sparked this yelp review is even more horrifying! My husband purchased fresh pet dog food from the refridgerator in the pet food isle. He had never used it before and he fed her some. She had TERRIBLE diarehha. When I went to feed her, I noticed it was slightly GRAY! (It is fresh so it should be a slight pink). We threw it away. For the next two weeks we only purchased canned food for her. Two weeks later on a Thursday night I went to purchase another log of fresh dog food. When I opened the refridgerator I noticed it was warm. I checked the thermometer on the side and it said 78 degrees (should be in the 40s) I immediately notified an employee of the problem. SUNDAY MORNING I returned to the store. Out of curiosity, I went to the pet food isle. HALF WAY DOWN THE ISLE I could smell a something putrid!! When I reached the refridgerator, I could see multiple bloated containers and one log that had expired a month prior!!!! I looked at the thermometer through the glass door and the temperate read 80 DEGREES!!! I asked to speak to a manager who was very nice and said he would take care if the problem right away!!! I was too horrified to continue shopping!!! My husband returned at noon to pick up the items I did not purchase and the pet food been emptied!! (I think he would have gone else where if he wasn't so worried someone would purchase the food and have their pet DIE!) Long story short.... ALWAYS CHECK THE EXPIRATION DATE, TIME/TEMPERATURE CONTROLS, and QUALITY of your products when shopping at SHAWS ON RIVER STREET!! read more

I don't know why I keep shopping here as the place is always dead! Expiration dates on items is a real problem and I bought a roaster chicken today that was not fully cooked. When I called to tell them about it I was on hold for 15 minutes and transferred to numerous departments till I was finally connected to the deli department. When I spoke with Phil about this potential dangerous situation of selling under cooked chicken, he seemed distant and not interested. Never even offered solutions to bringing it back for a credit or a 'sorry' or a 'thank you' for letting us know about this! They are always relocating items on shelves and the location of things doesn't make sense, it is all over the place! Stop and Shop, Market Basket here I come!! read more

Buyer Beware! The paper bagged apples may look nice like they are fresh from the orchard, but mine were rotted and heavily bruised. I returned mine ($8.33) without any resistance but all the clerk could say was "oh that's gross". How about "I'll let the produce manager know right away" Mainly the produce here is not very fresh. I prefer Hannaford and will stop being lazy and make the trip from now on. read more

This particular Shaw's has better prices than most other Shaw's and Star Market stores in the area. Selection isn't bad either. Unlike a lot of other Shaw's/Star stores, this one does not have a pharmacy, but that doesn't bother me. I certainly prefer this store over Hannaford's in Waltham or Stop & Shop. The prices are not as low as I'd like, but not as bad as some other stores in the area. read more

I have found customer service at Shaws to be very outdated and old fashioned. There is only one person (often without greeting or smile) who spends a good deal of time handling non-shopper questions such as employee transactions and lottery ticket sales. It is irritating to wait to ask a simple question about a product. read more

A good Shaws. While I live closer to the one in Belmont, I drive the extra distance to go here because it is a better shopping environment. (The Belmont one closed its self checkout registers because they think their clients are shoplifters.) read more

Shaws is extremely over priced compared to Hannaford and stop and shop. everythign item is atleast 1.50$ more. I was schoked to see that Digorno pizza at shaws was 9.99$ and only 5.69$ at hannaford! I regret shopping here for two years. I must have atleast lost 1000$ ! read more

This has to be the worst grocery store I've ever been to deli has one of the rudest man I have ever had wait on me (Dave) I have to say I do a lot of food shopping with a family of ten and nine grandchildren but I would not shop at this River St store again read more

This store keeps changing where items are shelved, I believe to force patrons to wander around hoping they will find something elses to buy. Very annoying and tiring. Customer Service desk was closed when I was there. The men stocking shelves were helpful and polite, however. read more

Just a quick note about Renee in the bakery of Shaws in Waltham! She's wonderful! Very professional and has done a few cakes for us now! Easy to work with and very accomodating to orders! Great! read more

I like Shaw's - they have better fish and produce than the other large chain down the street - and this Shaw's isn't as crowded as some others. The staff is womnderful - I know many of the cashiers by name - Vicki, Janet...and they are always polite, friendly.. There is plenty of parking and there are a number of other small businesses in the same strip mall so I can get a few things done at once. The only thing about Shaw's is that their prices are higher than other chains so that prevents a full 5 stars. read more

i will just say this - sometimes i go to shaws thinking i am saving money over going to whole foods only to wind up with at least one or two rotten things. the food is terrible and i think they should really be ashamed at how they operate. i will probably never shop there unless i need toilet paper or laundry detergent and wallgreens isnt open - i cant understand how they have stayed in business - well its probably because there really isnt anywhere else to shop besides them and whole foods read more