SO grocery changes thread…How do you grocery shop?

[LoveDaisy]

Do you do all your shopping at one store?
Do you shop at the same store every time you shop?
Do you shop at specialty stores?

I shop at a variety of stores depending on what is on sale or what I need. I rotate through 6 stores regularly (Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, ShopRite, stew Leonard’s, stop and shop, and a small locally owned place)

I shop at specialty stores, including stores that specialize in specific cuisines (they just opened a Japanese grocery store by me I can’t wait to go to) but also shop at a pasta shop, an Italian market and a Korean grocery store.

I shop at a butcher and fish monger. In the summer I get my produce at farm stands and farmers markets.

I also go to Costco about once a month.

Edit: I also get my dairy delivered from a local farm, old school glass bottles. They also work with a bunch of local farmers and small businesses and offer a variety of products. When I first started using them it was a little higher than the grocery store but I like supporting local farmers. With food prices increasing its now cheaper and they have eggs every week.

 

[barkley]

household of 3 adults (for reference)

walmart for almost everything-i do a large curbside pickup order once per month, go inside to select produce/some dairy/some frozen,

local employee owned store for milk (they carry brand I like), majority of meat (good quality and prices). they carry some produce I can't get at Walmart. go maybe 2x per month (unless there's a good sale).

trader joes-once every month or so for specific items (though so many have disappeared from the shelves post pandemic ).

Costco every couple of months for a small handful of items (again favorites eliminated from their invantory have minimized my purchases). used to be my go-to for meat, not so much anymore with the exception of leg of lamb and corned beef.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Do you do all your shopping at one store?
Do you shop at the same store every time you shop?
Do you shop at specialty stores?

Shop at, basically, 2 stores - Sam's Club and Von's (or Albertson's), but also throw in Stater Bros, or Ralph's if they're have a good sale.

Only specialty store - See's Candy.

 

[leebee]

I shop in-store. I enjoy grocery shopping, but sometimes it's a hassle to make the time to do it. @LoveDaisy You are luck to live somewhere that there is such variety in places to shop. When DD lived in CT, we'd go to Stew Leonard's every time I went to visit!

We have one major grocery store up here, Hannaford. There's also a Shaw's in Bangor, but that's it for grocery chains. I get my meat, seafood, and produce mostly from Hanny's, although some of the produce I get from Walmart; depends on what it is. I don't like the quality of most of Walmart's meats and much of their produce seems to spoil fairly quickly. However, they have a wider variety of staples and such than does the grocery store, as well as better prices overall, so I hit Walmart probable twice a month. I go to Sam's for tp/paper towels, half-and-half, some produce (onions, peppers, tomatoes) as well as some specific things like chicken or beef stock, bulk-sized purchases such as applesauce cups, raman noodles, individual bags of chips/snacks, etc. I also go weekly (or more often) to the IGA for milk and cheese, some meats, as well as specific sale items that we use (BOGO Thomas' english muffins or bagels, for example).

The closest Trader Joe's or Whole Foods is in Portland, which is about 120 miles away. When we are headed in that direction (visiting family or whatever) I make sure to do a "stock up" run at TJ's as there are specific items that we really like- oh, and wine! If I get to NH, I'll also go to Aldi in Portsmouth. I'm never sure what I'll find/get at Aldi, but sometimes it's really worth stopping if we are in the area.

The farmer's markets are all basically the same... same variety of vendors, just different locations. I rarely go to the farmer's markets. I'd like to, and there is some good produce, etc., but it's just so expensive. I'm feeding 4 adults and an 8 year old who eats like a teen boy!

 

[loves to dive]

We shop at mostly Kroger all the time. Sometimes it might be a different location of Kroger if we happen to be near one and need just a few things but mostly a specific Kroger. Now and again either hubby or I will run into Publix if there is something we can't find. We just had a butcher shop open about a mile down the road from us which were excited about. But, the prices were silly high (a regular choice steak was 50% more than at Kroger and they didn't look any better). It also has a small grocery section but again the prices were at least 50% higher and it was mostly the same brands with a few home made brands. Hubby is thinking about going there and grabbing a Kobe steak (which was $30 per ounce, I kid you not) just to see if it was worth it but we won't be going there again. We have a local farmer's market from about April to Oct. in two locations but there aren't that many actual vegetables there, mostly things like honey or other home made food items. The vegetables that are there are, again, at least 50% higher than at Kroger and no better quality. I do go there about twice a season just to see what they have but more often than not leave empty handed. There is a local garden center that does sell peaches in the summer I go to once a year. I live in Georgia where one would think you could buy local fresh peaches (given we are called the peach state) but nope, they are the only place that sells them and last year they weren't that good.

 

[unrequited23]

I have five stores within 10 minutes of my house. (I know I'm spoiled.) I do my main shopping at Aldi and will sometimes swing by the other stores to pick up sale items if it's worth it. Costco is every 4-6 weeks. Local orchards every fall.