6 Things New Arrivals in Tennessee Notice the First Time They Shop at Publix

Think a grocery store can’t surprise a Food City shopper?

Publix proves otherwise.

These are the things Tennesseans notice the first time they shop at Publix, many of whom are new residents moving from a state without the Florida-born grocery store.

1. Free Bagging, Free Carry-Out

Publix baggers walk groceries out to your car without being asked, and without expecting a tip.

Food City and Kroger baggers help at the register.

But walking a cart all the way to the trunk isn’t the default there.

Publix has run under the slogan “Where Shopping Is a Pleasure” since 1954, and the largest employee-owned company in the country still trains new hires around it.

Seven decades, same slogan.

2. Publix Runs on Pub Subs

Publix’s deli built its reputation on one sandwich: The Chicken Tender Sub, hand-breaded twice before it hits the fryer.

Regulars just call it a Pub Sub.

Publix bakes its sub rolls fresh throughout the day, the company says, so the bread under that chicken never sat in a delivery truck.

Fresh, not shipped.

3. Cheese Case Is Deep

Publix’s deli case stocks more than 200 artisan cheeses from the United States and abroad, alongside an international olive and antipasto bar, the company says.

A shopper used to one cooler of pre-sliced cheese back home stops and looks twice.

It keeps going.

4. Cashiers Outnumber Self-Checkout

Publix keeps noticeably fewer self-checkout kiosks than a chain like Kroger, so a quick trip for a few items still usually means a cashier line.

That’s been changing at newer locations, but many Tennessee Publix stores still run mostly staffed lanes.

That surprises Kroger regulars most.

5. GreenWise Fills Every Aisle

Publix’s own organic line, GreenWise, shows up in the meat case, the bakery, and the freezer aisle, not just on one specialty shelf.

Publix trusted the brand enough to build stores around it: Standalone GreenWise Market locations, starting with one in Palm Beach Gardens in 2007, ran on their own for years before every one of them folded back into a regular Publix by 2023.

That’s a level of investment many grocery store brands, including Kroger’s Simple Truth, never got.

Eight stores, gone by 2023.

6. Bakery Never Stops Baking

Publix’s bakery turns out bread and rolls throughout the day, and backs every cake with a refund guarantee that holds well past the first slice.

The cake menu backs that up with more choice than the big-box competition offers, mixing flavors like carrot, red velvet, and mascarpone cream in combinations Costco and Walmart don’t carry.

Costco offers two cake flavors. Publix offers seven.

Publix Also Runs a Seafood and Pharmacy Counter

Publix stocks more than the deli and bakery that get the spotlight on a first visit.

Its seafood counter carries whole fish and fillets that are never frozen, plus sushi chefs who hand-roll selections fresh each day, the company says.

Never frozen.

Publix also runs a pharmacy drive-thru window at many Tennessee locations, so a shopper can pick up a prescription without stepping inside the store at all.

A prescription can be picked up without ever walking through the front doors.

Publix Adds a Café and Floral Counter

Publix’s floral department stocks fresh bouquets year-round, something a shopper used to a rack by the front door doesn’t expect from a grocery store.

Publix also staffs a café inside many of its newer Tennessee stores, so a shopper can sit down for lunch instead of carrying it out to the car.

Lunch stays inside.

Newest Stores Keep Adding Extras

Publix’s newest Tennessee stores are opening with extras the older locations never had.

The Farragut location that opened in March 2026 added free Wi-Fi and an upstairs mezzanine where shoppers can grab lunch or dinner before they leave.

Publix’s first Knoxville-area store didn’t open until 2012, a full decade after the chain crossed into Tennessee, so its newest wave of stores is arriving far faster than that.