Where to buy essentials in Poulton

We recommend Aldi for all your main grocery shopping. It has a large car park, and is only 15 mins walk from Highcross Corner. It is in the main town centre, so you can enjoy a walk around the town at the same time.

It stocks all the usual items at excellent prices. We prefer it to Lidl because it stocks brands where Lidl has own-brand items. The only thing it lacks is fresh bread from an in-store bakery.

Directions

If you are driving to Aldi, you will need to go anticlockwise round the one-way system, following the road round to the left at the Wetherspoons, and then turning right onto Blackpool Old Road when you reach it (opposite Booth’s) and immediately filtering left to pass behind the church, then left again into Ball Street. Aldi will be on your right. If you miss it, you can go all the way round again, or simply park in the Booth’s (Teanlowe) car park and walk back over the road.

Lidl is convenient. It’s only 5 mins drive away, via numerous traffic lights, and parking is easy. The main appeal is the in-store bakery. Otherwise, Aldi has better range and quality, and is a more pleasant shopping experience.

Directions

Drive north a short distance to the crossroads with Garstang Road. Turn right. You will see Lidl ahead on the right. Turn right towards the Poulton industrial estate and you will see the car park entrance.

Booth’s supermarket is known as “the Waitrose of the North”. It says that its job is “selling the best goods available, in attractive stores, staffed with first class assistants.” None of these things is quite true.

Poulton Booth’s is certainly a clean and attractive shop, but it has a curious layout. Everything seems to take a long time to find. You seem to spend a lot of time walking around displays, and everything takes a long time to find.

This is partly because there is not a wide range of goods. In particular, there are hardly any non-food items apart from gifts (cards etc). These are nice, but pricey. The food is also pricey, and the quality is… okay, but you will find better in Aldi and Lidl.

If you are not worried about price, you will find Booth’s location immensely convenient. It is right next to the main car park in the centre of Poulton. Do not be deceived, however. Any time you save going to Booth’s rather than say Aldi will be more than lost by the astonishingly slow speed of the service. The queues at the checkouts are slow, and they have recently removed the self-checkouts, making matters worse. There is seldom a queue at the cheese and meat counters, but that is only because all the regular shoppers have long ago given up using them, because no one has that much time in their lives.

The cafe and toilets are upstairs. We once waited 20 minutes at the counter while they made four hot chocolates.

The bread is quite nice.

In summary: Booth’s is convenient, but expensive and slow. It has all the hallmarks of a company run for the benefit of its staff, not its customers. You will do better at Aldi, and if you want nice bread, Lidl is not far away by car.

Booth’s is 10-15 min walk from Highcross Corner.

Useful in an emergency. Expensive and poor quality. Use the supermarkets in preference. There is an excellent greengrocer’s in Cleveleys (see below).

Directions

Drive north a short distance to the crossroads with Garstang Road. Turn right. Keep going straight ahead at the traffic lights. Spar, and a short distance later, Tesco, will be on your left.

Directions

Follow the road out of Poulton, heading north west towards Carleton. At the crossroads (next to the pub) turn right towards Thornton-Cleveleys and Fleetwood. At the roundabout, take the second exit (straight ahead) up Amounderness Way towards Fleetwood. At the large Morrisons roundabout you will see the signs for the superstore.

If you want a good greengrocer, this is the place to go. Rogerson’s is the best butcher. The other one, Grime J and Sons, does superb pork scratchings and cooked meats.

Directions

At the Morrison’s roundabout, turn left (the exit after Morrisons) and you will shortly arrive in Cleveleys town centre.