Ward's Supermarket

joshwlt

Florida

4.35/5  rDev +7.4%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Looking at previous posts this place must be getting better and better at stocking decent brew. I found a ton of craft breweries available and a decent german and belgian selection. I would list my finds but it would just take too long. They must be pretty quick to get in newly available stuff as well considering weyerbacher just got to Florida and it had both the IPA and DIPA available. The only craft I don't think I noticed there that can be found elsewhere in Gville were from terrapin, but like I said they had a large selection of american craft. A whole isle was set up just for beer and multiple people stopped and stared for minutes at the bevy of choices. And suprisingly I never noticed anyone go for the widely availabe macros and imports. I wouldn't know how stellar the employees are because I didn't require any help but the cashier seemed nice enough. Highly suggest you visit Ward's when in Gainesville.

06-17-2008 09:56:49 | More by joshwlt

Portertime

Florida

4.5/5  rDev +11.1%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I never have been to Ward's in the fifteen years I have lived in Gainesville. My wife actually told me about it. I always thought it was some small hippie organic market, boy was I wrong! Tucked in the back is a warm brew selection that will make any beer snob drool. There are organics, rare belgians, and good seasonals just hiding like buried treasure. I went ahead a got a six pack of singles for review. It was a very nice experience. And hey, there is nothing wrong with good organic food at reasonable prices.

05-13-2008 15:25:55 | More by Portertime

bkilpatr

Oregon

4.15/5  rDev +2.5%
quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Ward's is a nice grocery store that has a good selection of produce, meats, organic goods, wine, and of course beer. Awhile back my friend had mentioned that this store had a good beer selection, but I never got around to checking it out until now. At first I wandered down the refrigerated beer aisle, which contained mostly macro and other common imports. Fortunately that's not all they had to offer.

They have quite a range of both micros and harder to find imports. They had most of Bell's beers, and Rogue, some Full Sail, a bunch of German and Belgian beers, as well as many more that I can not remember. I'll definitely be visiting this store more often. It's probably the best selection I've seen in Gainesville. And they pretty decent prices too.

05-05-2008 01:26:06 | More by bkilpatr

Zeckster

North Carolina

4.35/5  rDev +7.4%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

While many in town look to Wards as an excellent seller of foodstuffs, including a nice vegan and vegetarian selection, they also have some fine beers.

They were the only place in Gainesville who carried the Brooklyner-Schneider Weisse, while it was in the area. Also one of the first (along with Gator Bev) to carry the Bells Amber and Kalamazoo Stout. They have a nice selection of Rogue, Belgians and Weisse beers. It seems that the selection does change at a good clip so keep and eye out and keep going back.

Over the holiday season there were plenty of Christmas selections and holiday sets.

01-21-2008 20:04:04 | More by Zeckster

marinermc

Florida

4.85/5  rDev +19.8%
quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I've been to Gainesville's premiere organic and whole foods market numerous times in the past -- usually to buy something very specific, like white asparagus or some oddball meat. Only recently, when looking for some inexpensive salmon not farmed in Thailand, I stumbled across a literal treasure trove of beer I never knew existed in Gainesville's scant beer retail outlets.

I left the store with a handful of late-season X-mas beers and a "need to come back for that" list longer than the shelves themselves. Ward's has a healthy array of Belgians, US craft brews, and other fine European selections -- many of which are not even on the menu at Gainesville's famous local beer bar (as superb as it is). I was pleased not only with the deep selection, but also with the sheer volume! There wasn't just a few six-packs of Anchor X-mas, there were cases upon cases! Each beer has at least a handful of buddies right behind it -- which is nice seeing as the interest in the area is growing, and, thusly, the purchasers.

Go to Ward's, buy some granola and a cheap side of local beef and revel in the reasonably priced and grand selection of great brews.

01-10-2008 20:56:28 | More by marinermc

SetarconeX

Florida

4/5  rDev -1.2%
quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Wandered into this grocery store after finding myself hungry at lunchtime in its strange, obscure corner of town, and was flat out shocked by its selection. A wall in the back of the store contains almost as many different beers as some of the smaller, more specialized shops in town. As Gator Beverage occasionally has supply problems, there are times when Wards might actually be the better choice in Gainesville for selection, and you can do some actual grocery shopping while you're at it.

Any small, local grocery store that stocks St. Bernardus is ok in my book.

02-26-2007 01:51:46 | More by SetarconeX

geetlord

Florida

3.7/5  rDev -8.6%
quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | $

Wards is a fairly small grocery store with a supprisingly good beer selection. I found that it had a reasonable number of Belgain beers and U.S. beers as well as beer from the U.K. and from Germany. The selection is similar to a smaller than at the Wine And Cheese Gallery or at Dorns. the prices were amaxing as well, as an example; the dogfish head World Wide Stout was half the price at Wards as at the other stores that I mentioned. Overall I think wards is well worth the trip even if its selection is slightly smaller than other local places.

05-10-2006 01:42:48 | More by geetlord

wesflorida

Florida

3.7/5  rDev -8.6%
quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | $$

Wards was a great discovery for me this holiday season. They had a large selection that contained many varieties that arent offered anywhere else in Gainesville. Since I have pretty much had all that Gator Beverage and Dorns has to offer its good to find something fresh and new. I am not sure what the previous reviewer was smoking but their selection is nothing like what you find at a typical grocery store(complete lack of selection unless you like rice beer), lots of styles from all over the world. I would say close to 100 different beers if not more, try to find half that at any other grocery store or even 5 there that you would even bother to drink.

01-10-2006 03:00:33 | More by wesflorida

brewingmonk

Florida

3.7/5  rDev -8.6%
quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | $

Ward's of late (Fall 2005) has been surprising me every time I go in their store. The surprises have been selection and price. Not being a beer store (it's a grocery store) I think it's easy to be surprised with any decent selection. But Ward's has beers you cannot get anywhere else in Gainesville (including Stubbie- the local beer bar). Their strengths would be in the area of Belgian beers, Great Divide, some German beers. The price is what is really shocking. Easily the cheapest in Gainesville. As far as the service, there's nothing special, but nothing surly.

12-22-2005 16:25:25 | More by brewingmonk

gabe

Florida

3/5  rDev -25.9%
quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | $$

I wouldn't really consider Wards a beer store. Its a grocery store. The beer selection is reminiscent of what would be available at your typical supermarket... though maybe a handful of "ok" finds. I wouldn't go out of my way to get beer here. If my main objective was to find good beer to drink in g-ville I would head to Gator Beverage or Dorn's first.

That being said, Wards is a pretty cool grocery store. Lots of fresh and local grown veggies, fruits, etc. Like what you would find at a farmers market. Plus a nice selection of fresh seafood and meats. Plenty of organic type foods to be found here. I would go here first and foremost to find quality ingredients for a meal and only pick up beer if I didn't feel like making a second stop.

06-08-2005 19:11:02 | More by gabe