Where do you shop for groceries?
It’s Saturday - and I need to go to the grocery store.
Luckily, we have plenty of shopping options here in PDX - and Saturday offers some choices not easily accomplished during a weekday. I can drop by the farmer’s market, for example, swinging by Trader Joe’s on my way home. But sooner or later, we all need cheap toilet paper, don’t we? And those Tuesday circulars urge me on to be cost-conscious (yes, I sport several different flavors of membership cards.)
So, I’m not particularly brand-loyal. Sure, I love New Seasons - but it’s not always convenient, nor do they have the best prices on the flourescent snack foods my kids get to enjoy from time to time. And although we’ve heard plenty of rants about Safeway lately in the comments around these parts, well - it’s close by, it’s convenient, and if you’re an eagle-eye bargain hunter, you can do well there.
And then there’s this news from the Business Journal: Albertson’s considers selling company - which got me thinking. You don’t hear much about Albertson’s - does anyone shop there? Why? My ex-husband asserts that it’s a good place to get semi-decent fried chicken, although I’ve not taken him up on that recommendation ’cause there’s not one conveniently located near me. And what’s the difference nowadays between QFC and Fred Meyer if they’re both owned by the same corporate parent?
Wild Oats vs. Whole Foods vs. New Seasons - what’s the story there? (I know I strongly prefer New Seasons, in part because it’s locally-owned & operated - but obviously people shop at their rivals as well.) And although you can save big bucks at WinCo, it’s certainly not a pleasant shopping experience by any stretch of the imagination.
But I’ve shopped them all - and will continue to shop them all, I’m sure. Where do you usually buy your groceries - and why?
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Born & raised Fred Meyer shopper here. I can get an onion, a hammer, some underwear, a gallon of paint, a DVD, a bunch of flowers, and a prescription filled all at the same place. No running around - saves time and gas. Good prices and good quality - have never had an issue with anything I’ve purchased at Freddy’s.
We used to shop at the Freddies over on Hawthorne,when we lived in the neighborhood, and definitely liked the fact that you could buy anything from toilet paper to DVDs to pillows there. But the produce was not great so we got an Organics2You bin every week.
Now we live near a New Seasons and are loyal customers. They may be more expensive on some things, but they really have a great variety of the natural and organic foods we want to buy. We also like supporting a locally owned business. I’m glad they’re putting up more and more stores around Portland because I would love to always live within walking distance of one.
Zupans. It’s sooooo goooood. It was New Seasons before New Seasons was, except sans wok while you wait.
Zupans is sooooo expensive, though. I dare you to do a price comparison between Zupans and the other gourmet markets in town. AND, their meat counters, fish counters, and cheese counters suck compared with the rest.
If Winco took debit cards in my nabe, I’d visit them more. I don’t carry a checkbook and don’t want to go to an ATM everytime I go shopping and guess how much I’ll spend. Winco does a surprisingly decent job. Bad produce, often, but huge selections of stuff, lots of ethnic groceries, and no one has better prices. The Food 4 Less on Powell and 82nd is an awesome Winco-like experience with better produce and LOTS of Asian and Mexican produce, meats, and fish. Great prices.
I end up spending most of my time at Fred Meyer’s or Safeway. Fred Meyer’s is better for most things, but Safeway is consistently cheaper on many items and I like their Lucerne products. Also, I buy a lot of romaine and Fred Meyer’s has this godawful organic romaine in the packs. Nowadays, though, I usually drop by Trader Joe’s when I need romaine or cheese or nuts, the three things I always get there for best quality AND best price.
I think New Seasons has consistently the best quality of all the organic stores in town. Whole Foods is probably second, but has a much better cheese counter where you can get samples first. I like Pastaworks/City Market NW, but they’re so small you can only do so much there.
I’ll hit up the ethnic markets when appropriate, but they’re really only a need-to-shop experience for coconut milk, offal, certain herbs, fish sauce, etc, etc. Lily Thai Market, Phu Hoa, Thanh Thao, An Dong, and Uwajimaya are probably my favorites. Though if you’re in a mood for ramen, hitting Paldo or that place up on 82nd for Shim Ramyun is a necessity.
Wait… some people get to eat at home!?
I like Whole Foods for wine and cheese selection… suprisingly enough, their prices often beat New Seasons. Notwithstanding, I ususally end up and New Seasons because the one near me is really good (except for wine), and not only do they provide cheese samples, but they can talk about it forever. I like the local chain angle too. Zupans has some great wine at good prices, but the rest of their stuff is just waaaaay too expensive.
me? i’m a new seasons fan. i will drive out of my way to go to new seasons because of the excellent selection and quality of food - i.e. meat and veggies. also, the services @ new seasons can’t be beat.
whole paycheck? well, i will shop there for a baguette or bottle of water, but it is out of my way and a bit too expensive.
wild oats - corporation that ruined a favorite store - natures. prices jumped immediately and quality suffered. all the salads in the deli taste the same.
freddies? i too was a fan. worked there as a kid. after kroger bought them though, they became too corporate and didn’t think of the local people. in my hood - north, the new store is crap even though it is brand new. still catering to a demographic from 5 years ago. organic vegetables? no! a valid meat market? no!
safeway - well, if i were a crackhead or methhead, maybe i would shop there. no other reason than to buy drugs on isle 5.
others? farmer’s markets baby! farmer’s markets. we also get fresh veggies from a CSA (community supported agriculture) for $350 for the entire summer season. that works out to be about $14 a week for fresh organic and abundant (2 bags a week) veggies.
Most of the time: Fred’s. It’s close, I can get almost anything there, and it’s habit.
When I need just one thing, quickly: Albertson’s. It’s closer.
When I want something out of the ordinary: Trader Joe’s.
When I want something I know is healthy: Wild Oats. Not close, but fills a niche. (Zupan’s and New Seasons aren’t close, either.)
When I want free samples, or large quantities of something: Costco
When I look at my budget and freak out: WinCo. One visit and I remember why I don’t go there. Good on the budget, bad on the nerves.
I forgot… the one thing I don’t like about New Seasons is the bread. Never liked it. Whole Foods has much better.
Does anyone know if the Wal-Mart proposal for Cornelius includes a grocery section? The one at Barnes Rd/26 does not, unfortunately.
pdxfooddude - i don’t know if i agree or not about the bread at new seasons. i haven’t had bad bread, but i’m not a bread geek. what i do agree with is that whole foods has great bread as they source from others also, including my favorite - Pearl Bakery.
Rah, Wal-Mart has some of the worst groceries I’ve ever seen. Winco is *much* better. Their selection isn’t very good either as compared with most supermarkets and their prices are worse than Winco’s. I have one near me here in Vancouver and never go anymore and won’t even buy groceries there even if I’m going for something else. In fact, Freddy’s often gets my business because I’m going for groceries and end up picking up some tools or a CD while I’m there. (And I’m no Wal-Mart hater. It’s not out of principle, it’s out of selfishness.)
Food Dude, I agree. New Seasons’s breads are weak. Even places like Portland French Bakery often do a better job. Hell, those Safeway “artisan” breads might be better. It’s night and day between New Seasons and a real bakery like Ken’s, Pearl, or Grand Central.
Maybe it’s a regional thing… I lived in Austin TX for a few years, and the groceries at Wal-Mart were really good and very well-priced. There weren’t good choices down there - HEB, Randall’s (owned by Safeway) and Albertson’s. Just like up here, it seems as if the Albertson’s crowd was mostly the blue-haired ladies.
By the way, on a whim this morning I stopped in the Haggen store at Tanasbourne. I’ve never been in a Haggen, but it struck me immediately as being in the QFC-Thriftway model; smallish store with higher prices for no discernable reason.