It’s a drama as old as time—or at least as old as the Queen’s Speech being interrupted by a toddler throwing a tantrum. You stare at your fridge, which contains a single, sad Brussels sprout and half a jar of pickled onions. The local corner shop is an option, but you’re craving the calm, beige perfection of a Waitrose own-brand biscuit. You don’t want a scuffed can of beans. You want essentials—like those little pots of crème fraîche you only buy twice a year.
Here’s the thing: the answer is almost always no. Waitrose, like a dignified relative who has had enough of charades, usually takes Boxing Day off. Most of their big stores are closed. It’s like they’ve signed a secret pact with the rest of the High Street to let us all wallow in our own mess for one more day. And honestly? It’s a bit of a power move.
When You Google in a Panic
Picture the scene: it’s 10 AM on Boxing Day. You’re still in your “Christmas jumper with a stain on the sleeve.” You’ve already eaten three Quality Street wrappers because you mistook them for the chocolate inside. You grab your phone and type furiously: “Waitrose Boxing Day opening times.” Your heart pounds. It’s the same feeling you get when you hear the ping of the toast popping up, only to find it’s burnt. You scroll through a dozen outdated blog posts and a forum where someone called ‘EggnogEric’ says he once found a Waitrose open in a motorway service station. Unreliable. Utterly unreliable.
But here’s the survival trick: a few small Waitrose petrol station shops—the ones attached to garages—might be open. These aren’t the full John Lewis-adjacent temples of gastronomy. They’re more like the waiting room of Waitrose. They’ll have milk, bread, and maybe a sad-looking pack of pain au chocolat. It’s the equivalent of a stale croissant after a Michelin-star meal, but it’ll stop you from crying into your empty mug.
Boxing day opening hours: What time does Tesco, Morrisons and Asda open
