Which grocery stores do you prefer?

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Replies

  • CarvedTones
    CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
    Lidl is slowly starting to open up in the US - there are a few in the northern virginia area

    There is one in town now. It's about 15 miles from home, but only 3 or so from work; I have been meaning to swing by sometime to check it out. They were building one closer to me but bailed on it. The developer is suing them.

    My region has gotten extremely competitive for grocers. Kroger was here for decades and pulled out in the last year. I was surprised as the two I frequented were large modern stores, but the downside of being here so long was that most of their stores were small and outdated. The newer stores were killing them in most parts of the area. The ones I shopped were doing well; always busy. But they were faced with having to upgrade most of the rest of their stores to compete. They couldn't leave just a couple for one distribution point and closing the warehouse would put them too far away from the next nearest one. So they closed all the stores.
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,080 Member
    I usually end up st Loblaws. It’s a pleasant store to shop in and really convenient but if I’m being budget conscious I’ll go to No Frills or Freshco. There are certain items I can only get at Loblaws so another reason I shop there.
  • J_NY_Z
    J_NY_Z Posts: 2,535 Member
    I realize that not everyone has a Wegmans. Here in Rochester NY we are the home of Wegmans, the greatest grocery store ever!
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    Boba_14626 wrote: »
    I realize that not everyone has a Wegmans. Here in Rochester NY we are the home of Wegmans, the greatest grocery store ever!

    I miss Wegmans :(
  • debtay123
    debtay123 Posts: 1,327 Member
    I love publix and after that krogers- we do not have either in my town- so I usually shop food Lion and then walmarts
  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
    I get beef from local rancher and staples on amazon. We hit Sam's club and Kroger, but I live in redneckville and that's about all I get.
  • mountainmare
    mountainmare Posts: 294 Member
    We live in the boonies in Pa. Most of my shopping is at a local farmers market or little Boyers. Our Weis and Giant are really lame so I will splurge and go to Allentown to Wegmans. When we travel south we get very very excited when we see the first PUBLIX along I77 in NC. Have window shopped in the Harris Teeter in Pinehurst but the Wegmans outside Boston and any Publix are my favorites.
    Funny---we live in Pa Dutch country and I never heard of Dutch Way (and I know where Womelsdorf is)
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,493 Member
    Wegmans is the best grocery store you could ever imagine!
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,493 Member
    edited November 2018
    apullum wrote: »
    Boba_14626 wrote: »
    I realize that not everyone has a Wegmans. Here in Rochester NY we are the home of Wegmans, the greatest grocery store ever!

    I miss Wegmans :(

    Agreed, wegmans is the BEST. One of the reasons I refuse to move away. lol.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Aldi is inexpensive, isn't it -- that would be a reason to like it.
    )
    FL_Hiker wrote: »
    I’ve really tried to like Aldi... but I don’t like the fact that if you forget your bags or your change for a shopping cart they don’t have anything for you. The staff are also usually very spacey.. my 100 year old neighbor won’t shop there, when I asked her why she said “they’re all a bunch of hippies !” Lol 😆! The produce at our Aldi is also very limited and it’s usually rotten.


    Cheapest place around me for lean boneless chicken and pork. And their brands of protein & food bars. And lots of gourmet inexpensive junk/trigger/tasty foods - my goto place to pick up cheese, chocolate, other desserts, etc for snack assortments for potlucks/dances. Butter flavored spray oil also cheaper than other places. And $2 bags of frozen fruit - I love those - a good lower calorie replacement for jam in yogurt, cottage cheese (nuke, mash with splenda and a bit of gelatin, jar and fridge). The produce usually is somewhat closer to perishing than other places. I'm pretty bad with produce, so usually only buy what I'll have time to chop and freeze in the next day or 2 no matter where I'm shopping. Smaller store, so limited selection - lots of stuff I have to go to either PriceRite (mostly latin aisle) or Wegmans for because they don't have it there.

    The clerks at mine are very quick and alert (definitely not spacy at all).

    Nearby stores include: Wegmans, Tops, PriceRite, Aldi, Save-a-lot, a few small ethnic groceries & coops. I'm too lazy to drive out to the 'burbs for food - so no Trader Joe's, BJ's, Walmart, etc (or to another country for Costco).
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    I am in an area with a variety of grocery stores so I shop depending on what I am getting.

    Aldi: basic stuff and a few specialty items only they carry

    Piggly Wiggly: meat and deli. It is also the closest to my house so I go there when I need something in a pinch

    Sendiks (locally owned small chain): unusual produce, specialty cheese, and the only place to buy pasteurized eggs for some unbaked tortes.

    I also go to a local Kroger and Sentry if I happen to be going that way. Trader Joe is too far away for anything but a rare stop. We also have Whole Foods and a local natural foods store but they don't carry anything I can't get for a better price elsewhere.
  • CarvedTones
    CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
    I didn't mention a couple earlier - we do have a Wegman's but it isn't all that convenient to us; stopped in once and it didn't really stand out as much different from the other chains' newer stores. I also have a Whole Foods very near me bu like others, most of the stuff I would buy there I can get elsewhere cheaper. One of my kids went vegan for a while and we pretty much had to shop there at least some of the time. But for a lacto/ovo vegetarian, there are a lot more options.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Boba_14626 wrote: »
    I realize that not everyone has a Wegmans. Here in Rochester NY we are the home of Wegmans, the greatest grocery store ever!

    We don't have it. I've heard good things!
  • Charlene____
    Charlene____ Posts: 110 Member
    I order non-perishables, cat stuff, and bathroom and cleaning products online at Wal-Mart for free delivery. I walk to a Publix for refrigerated and frozen items. I buy certain items in Europe when I am there for work.
  • FL_Hiker
    FL_Hiker Posts: 919 Member
    We live in the boonies in Pa. Most of my shopping is at a local farmers market or little Boyers. Our Weis and Giant are really lame so I will splurge and go to Allentown to Wegmans. When we travel south we get very very excited when we see the first PUBLIX along I77 in NC. Have window shopped in the Harris Teeter in Pinehurst but the Wegmans outside Boston and any Publix are my favorites.
    Funny---we live in Pa Dutch country and I never heard of Dutch Way (and I know where Womelsdorf is)

    81k3frnshtxx.jpeg

    It’s there 😆
  • glamorousAdvocate
    glamorousAdvocate Posts: 15 Member
    Due to disability, I have to go with nearby convenience, accessibility, and cheapness - which leads me to Wal-Mart. I wish I could support local farmers markets and the like, but they're very difficult for me to get to. I usually end up buying store brand for most things.

    One day I hope the Trader Joe's opens up a store in Canada, hopefully near me. I've always wanted to go there since I hear great things about them from my friends in the States - many of whom are also disabled.

  • kellyjellybellyjelly
    kellyjellybellyjelly Posts: 9,480 Member
    edited November 2018
    It seems a lot of people wanted a question like this from the grocery store snob thread lol. So which grocery stores do you like?

    If I have all the time in the world and want to make the half hour drive, I'll absolutely go to Trader Joe's. They have the coolest stuff at a nice price and I always love looking at their seasonal offerings.

    However, Shop Rite is my next pick for all the stuff I can't get at TJ. And you can beat their $2.88 ice cream pint sale!

    The place I do the majority of my shopping is Walmart. My favorite store is The Grocery Outlet since I can find yogurt cheaper (near expiration), ice cream from brands I've never heard of & the time I found Halo Top Gingerbread for $1.99, brands I've never heard of, limited edition foods not carried in my region, & if I buy something I don't like I'm not too upset since I didn't pay much for it.

    Every once & again I'll go to Weis, Target, & Giant if they have a limited edition seasonal food item I want to try & Giant & Weis are the only stores around that have Enlightened (Weis has a larger selection).

    I go to Aldis once every few months & usually find a few things that are interesting like the cuban pizza I picked up that tasted amazing & they have great prices on produce.

    I wish PA had more Trader Joe's stores.
  • kellyjellybellyjelly
    kellyjellybellyjelly Posts: 9,480 Member
    apullum wrote: »
    Grocery Outlet! They seem to be mostly a northwestern US thing, so for those who aren’t familiar, think Big Lots but just for groceries. They get a lot of random things in stock, sometimes stuff that didn’t sell well elsewhere, but other times really good things that they sell cheap. I was buying boxes of Quest bars there for a while, and they generally have nicer chocolate for $2-3 per bar. The produce is pretty good too. I always go there first to see if they have a good deal before shopping elsewhere.

    If I can’t get what I need at Grocery Outlet, then I usually like Trader Joe’s, or Safeway.

    I was shocked when I found Quest White Chocolate Raspberry bars there for $11.99 & then they lowered the prices to $9.99. I'm for sure looking there during January to see which brands of protein bars they get since it will be the onslaught of 'healthy items' to kick start some people's New Year's resolutions/weight loss journeys.

    I finally found two food items that I have been looking for in Grocery Outlet for over a year (I would look whenever I was shopping there in case they got these products in). The first being Pumpkin Pie KitKats (only a Kroger exclusive) & Pop Secret's Popfetti Popcorn (Walgreen's exclusive last year & may be released to other stores this year).
  • kellyjellybellyjelly
    kellyjellybellyjelly Posts: 9,480 Member
    Wegmans, Aldi and Trader Joes. I'll go to WalMart if I have to, but it's just too big. LOL Like, if I want dog food and milk in the same trip, I shouldn't have to walk a mile to get from one side of the store to the other.

    I felt the same way when I walked into Wegmans the first time. I usually go there twice a year when I go thrift store shopping in the same neighborhood.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,707 Member
    edited November 2018
    Woolworths or Salamanca Fresh or the local Hill Street Grocers.