I shopped at Amazon Fresh to see why it's struggling. I found hyped discounts, odd displays, and bad coffee.

This particular store opened in August 2021 and was among the first Amazon Fresh stores in the same metro area as Amazon's HQ2, which is across the Potomac in Arlington, Virginia.

One touted cheap baguettes, while the other gave me Costco vibes with its promise of a whole roast chicken for under $5.

That means it's easy to get to and sees a lot of commuters looking for groceries on their way home.

The area is a great example of how much competition Amazon Fresh faces: Within a 10-minute drive of this store, you can find two Whole Foods stores, Wegmans, Giant, Safeway, Target, a local neighborhood market, and a planned location for German discount grocer Lidl.

This was the entrance nearest to the Metro stop, so lots of people use it.

The main entrance doesn't face a major street, though there is a sign on a nearby busy roadway directing shoppers to the store.

The signage also suggested that Amazon Flex drivers can also use these stalls.

Amazon is reportedly adding self-checkout kiosks to some Fresh stores after years of trying to get shoppers to use its Just Walk Out technology.

They were sold under the Happy Belly brand, one of several Amazon store brands that I encountered on this trip.

It wasn't clear how much these packs of Nestlé water were.

Inside the cooler were packs of chicken breasts.

Each one had a "30% off" sticker attached, making them just under $4 a pack.

I remember seeing meat in these cases last time I came to this store several months ago.

At most grocery stores, end caps are prime real estate that brands use to promote new products or special deals. At Amazon Fresh, though, they seemed like regular old shelf space.

This end cap contained a mishmash of chips, soda, and crackers. 

Maybe the sale went well and they just couldn't restock fast enough?

There were products from big names like Pampers as well as those from newer brands like The Honest Co.

From a distance, these boxes of mac n' cheese appeared to be two for $4.

The shelf tag suggested that these were just $1 each, not $2.

This ad for Aplenty chips was in the baking aisle, for some reason.

It seemed odd to me to have ads playing on a TV in a supermarket instead of, say, those brands putting up flashy displays of their products.

These Amazon-brand kettle chips, for instance, were $1.99, down from $3.49.

These packs of La Croix sparkling water were marked down to $3.09 each from $4.39.

The milk selection was similar to what you'd find in a regular supermarket.

This is an in-store version of Amazon's home assistant.

I didn't need one, but it's an often-overlooked amenity in most grocery stores.

There was a much larger selection of almond milk, including an Amazon brand.

This was one of several items from Whole Food's 365 brand that I noticed in this Amazon Fresh store.

This sign advertised two pounds of bananas for 99 cents.

There were plenty of bananas, though these ones weren't free like the bananas across the river at HQ2 in Arlington. 

With fall approaching, Amazon Fresh already had a robust selection of apples.

Spring was long gone by the time I saw this sign during my late August visit.

Fresh eggplants were marked down to 99 cents a pound from $1.99.

Most people I saw in this store were using regular carts or baskets, but two or three were using Dash carts.

Once logged in, customers can place items directly in the cart, which identifies what they are and keeps track of which products they've selected. The cart automatically charges a customer's Amazon account at the end of the trip.

This Amazon Fresh location appeared to have the older version of the Dash cart. Amazon unveiled an updated model last year with more space for purchases, Supermarket News reported at the time.

If you don't feel like shopping in a store, you can always order groceries and pick them up here.

Amazon can ship your order to a locker like this one as an alternative to delivering it to your home.

During my half-hour visit, I noticed two people stop by this kiosk carrying an Amazon box, suggesting that this is a popular service at this location.

This hot bar reminded me a bit of Whole Foods.

My plans to compare Amazon Fresh's roast chicken with one from Costco were foiled.

I was visiting the store just after 2 p.m. on a weekday, so it's possible it was wiped out from the lunch rush.

I opted for a small beverage, which cost $1.49.

This espresso machine gave me plenty of beverage choices, from espresso drinks to chai teas.

I bought a single slice just to try it out.

I opted to use one of the self-checkout stations near the side entrance.

On the right side of the card reader was a device to read your palm in case you were paying using Amazon One. There was also a small refrigerator with sodas, which you could place your groceries on top of before checking out.

It was a sunny day, so I decided to sit outside.

I wouldn't rush back for another slice, but it wasn't awful, either.

I couldn't taste any coffee, so into the trash it went after a couple sips.

A lot of grocery stores are expanding their ready-to-eat meal selections to compete with restaurants, according to the Wall Street Journal.

But between the sub-par items I tried and products like the roast chicken being unavailable, it seems like Amazon Fresh's prepared food offerings need work.

Amazon has definitely stepped up its discounts at this Fresh store since the last time I visited. But I can find similar deals at stores where I already shop, and those stores generally have a wider selection of items and do a better job of keeping things in stock.

Whole Foods is known for its quality standards, but what is Amazon Fresh known for? As one Los Angeles shopper told Bloomberg in August: "It just feels soulless." 

Maybe that will change once Amazon revamps more Fresh stores.