I shopped at Hannaford, Maine's largest grocery chain. It had the best prepared food selection I've ever seen at a supermarket.

Thu, 10/17/2024 - 10:50

the author outside hannaford supermarkets and the produce aisle — I went inside a Hannaford Supermarket in Scarborough, Maine, and think it should come to more states.
Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Hannaford started as a small produce cart in 1883 and is now Maine's largest grocery chain.
It has locations in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York.
Hannaford in Scarborough, Maine, impressed with its vast selection and fresh produce.

As a New Yorker, I'm always surprised when I leave the city and discover new supermarket chains, many of which are larger and far better stocked than the grocery stores I'm used to in the city.

On a recent trip to Portland, Maine, I stopped at Hannaford Supermarkets in Scarborough and was impressed by the wide selection of produce, meat, and tasty-looking prepared foods.

Founded in 1883, Hannaford Supermarkets started as a small produce cart operated by Arthur Hannaford in the coastal city of Portland.

The store experienced rapid expansion under new leadership in the mid-20th century and Hannaford is now part of Ahold Delhaize, which also owns Food Lion and Stop & Shop. It is the largest grocery store chain in Maine, with 68 locations, and also has additional stores in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York.

Although there are 52 locations in New York, none are in New York City, which meant this would be my first time ever shopping at Hannaford.

Here's what it's like to shop at Hannaford Supermarkets.

I visited a Hannaford Supermarket and Pharmacy in Scarborough, Maine.

hannaford supermarket in scarborough maine — I visited a Hannaford Supermarket in Scarborough, Maine.
Erin McDowell/Business Insider

During my drive from Connecticut to Portland, I passed locations all over the state.

I found that there was the highest concentration of stores in Maine, which made sense, considering Hannaford is the largest grocery store chain in the state.

Outside, there was a sign advertising Hannaford's grocery pickup program.

The service offers free pickup to Hannaford customers who order over $125 of groceries.

I usually order my groceries through a service like Instacart, but if I lived in the suburbs, I could see myself using a pickup service like this one.

Right when I entered the store, I was greeted by a large produce section.

A podium in front of the store advertised the store's "Farm Stand" fruits and vegetables, which are all grown by local Maine producers.

The prices appeared pretty on par with what I pay for produce in New York, though the quality looked much better.

There was also a wide selection of in-season fruits.

I visited in early August at the height of the peach and blueberry season. I was pleasantly surprised to see these two fruits highlighted next to each other in a display.

I was amazed by the colorful displays.

While the produce selection at my local grocery store in Brooklyn often looks drab and a little out-of-date, this produce selection was bursting with color and variety.

From practically every kind of apple to organic lemons and mangoes, I was impressed by the selection.

There was also a selection of charcuterie plates and vegetable trays with dips.

The large vegetable trays, which included celery sticks, tomatoes, broccoli florets, carrots, and a tub of dip, cost $15.99, while the smaller charcuterie plates, which included two different kinds of grapes and sliced cheese, cost $3.99.

I was also impressed by the store's bakery section.

The store highlighted several local products, such as English muffins and granola, and used signs and labels on the price tags.

The prices for all of these products were pretty on par with what I typically pay at my local grocery store.

The bakery also had a case fully stocked with assorted cakes.

Individually sized tarts, tiramisu, and larger cakes for parties were available. The case was well-stocked, and there were plenty of options to choose from.

There was also a large selection of cheeses.

The cheeses were placed alongside gourmet crackers, wine, and jams to make crafting a charcuterie board easy.

In another section of the store, I found other kinds of cheese, pub cheeses, and dips.

I couldn't possibly imagine a cheese this supermarket didn't sell.

From British and Irish cheddar to multiple different varieties of Brie, the cheese selection at Hannaford was possibly better than any I've seen at any other grocery store.

There were also a lot of options for prepared foods.

Labeled in the case as the chain's "time savers," there was everything from pasta dishes to chicken pot pies and curry dishes that could feed a whole family.

I was particularly drawn to a tray of chicken piccata, which looked very fresh and only cost $9.99.

There were also multiple buffet stations at the store I visited.

There was a Mediterranean antipasto station with different kinds of olives to choose from.

There was also a small selection of hot foods like chicken wings.

This was a slight letdown, and I wished there had been more options for hot prepared foods like I often pick up from Whole Foods for a quick and easy dinner.

There was also a salad bar with a variety of toppings.

The ingredients all looked fresh, though some needed a top-up when I went.

In the deli section, there was a case filled with sandwiches to grab and go.

There was a large variety of sandwiches, from chicken salad sandwiches to Nashville hot chicken wraps.

I was also surprised to see a fresh lobster roll in the case.

I was pleasantly surprised to see this Maine staple available in the sandwich case. It cost $9.99, which I thought was a really good deal — especially compared to other lobster rolls I tried and ranked that weekend.

Another section had grab-and-go sliced deli meats and cheese.

This made it super easy to get what you needed from the deli without having to wait in line. However, when I went at around midday on a Tuesday, the store was pretty empty anyway.

There was also a case filled with live lobsters.

The lobsters were located right in the middle of the sales floor and were impossible to miss. I thought they were well-priced at $8.99 per pound — the price of lobster is $20.99 per pound for a small lobster from Citarella, a grocery store chain that sells lobster in New York.

I was also impressed by the selection of fresh sushi rolls.

I'm a huge fan of grabbing sushi rolls from my local grocery store for an easy and healthy dinner, but the selection at Hannaford was much better than what I'm used to.

It ranged from crunchy California rolls to sashimi sushi combos and mango-topped spicy shrimp rolls. The prices were also pretty reasonable, ranging from $5.99 for a vegan roll to $17.99 for a family pack.

There were also standard grocery-store items like packaged meats.

The price of two pounds of chicken breasts was $13.06, which is about what I typically pay in New York.

There were also large cases of meat and seafood.

I was surprised by the variety of choices, from marbled steak cuts to sausages and marinated steak tips. The seafood counter was also impressive, offering everything from fresh Atlantic salmon to seasoned cod fillets.

The meat aisle extended into a section with burger patties and ribs.

The store had everything you'd need for a late summer cookout. A pack of four burger patties from two different brands cost around $12.

There was also an aisle with hot dogs and more sandwich meat.

I couldn't believe the selection of different hot dog brands.

This Hannaford location also sold beer and wine.

There was an impressive selection of wines sorted by category, from malbec to chardonnay. At the end of the aisle was a small section of Stonewall Kitchen products, a local Maine brand.

There was also a section of "Hannaford selects" wines, recommended by the store.

There was a lot of variety in the wines chosen, both in terms of flavor profiles and price range.

The cheapest "Hannaford selects" wine was an $8.99 bottle of Artie sauvignon blanc, while the most expensive on this particular day was a $17.99 bottle of Decoy chardonnay.

At the edge of the freezer aisle was another section promoting local products.

This section was entirely dedicated to butter and herbal popcorn from Little Lad's, a company based in Corinth, Maine.

Multiple aisles were dedicated to frozen foods.

As a self-proclaimed freezer aficionado, I was impressed by the selection of frozen foods.

However, it was pretty standard for any large grocery store and didn't compete with Trader Joe's more unique frozen foods.

The plant and flower section was small but would come through in a pinch.

While I've personally seen better and more varied floral sections at other grocery stores, this Hannaford had a decent selection of bouquets and houseplants for any occasion, from a last-minute anniversary gift to a housewarming gift.

This store also had a large pharmacy section.

The store had multiple aisles of health and wellness products in addition to an actual pharmacy where customers could order and pick up prescriptions.

The store was really quiet on the afternoon that I visited and there was no shortage of checkout lanes open.

Overall, I could see why Hannaford has grown to become the largest supermarket chain in Maine and has expanded to multiple states since it was founded over 100 years ago.

The biggest things that stuck out to me at Hannaford were the store's incredible selections of fresh meat and fish, the sushi bar, and the emphasis on local produce and products.

I think there's an opportunity for Hannaford Supermarkets to expand to even more states — and I, for one, am eager for a New York City location to one day open.

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I shopped at Hannaford, Maine's largest grocery chain. It had the best prepared…