Out of 52 national grocery store chains, the one making it to the top of the list is about 45 minutes away from Utica and scattered all over western New York. Wegmans topped Consumer Reports Supermarket Ratings, along with Trader Joe's and Florida-based Publix.

According to PRNewsWire.com, where the Consumer Reports press release is published,

"Fortunately, most consumers have several shopping choices, and some supermarkets gave customers much of what they want. National grocers Costco and Trader Joe's, along with Fareway Stores (Midwest) and Wegmans, offer quality meat and produce, a clean shopping environment, and very good or exceptional prices."

Over 24,000 readers contributed to the Consumer Reports Supermarkets Ratings.

Falling short in the survey was Walmart. According to the press release:

"No chains tried their customers' patience more than Walmart Supercenter, Pathmark (Northeast), and Pick 'n Save (Wisconsin), where roughly three-fourths of shoppers had one or more problems. Shoppers who frequented Walmart, the nation's largest grocer and the chain with the most shoppers in our survey, were most likely to be miffed about the lack of open checkouts, out-of-stock regular items, indifferent employees, spotty pricing, and confusing store layout."

Personally, I love Wegmans--I can see why it tops the list. I do take the 45 minute trek out to Syracuse to do my grocery shopping. Many people ask me, "Well, why do you go so far?" The answer is easy--selection. I live a vegan lifestyle. And, that means I eat a lot of fruits, vegetables and tofu. When it comes to restricted diets, Wegmans has it all, and a whole lot of selection. Also, their packaging is great. If it is a Wegmans brand product, on the front or side of the product it will have a 'V' for vegan, 'GF' for gluten-free, 'LF' for low fat and so on. That makes life simpler.

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