The Contenders (feel free to add to this list):

Wal-Mart: Everyday low prices on grocery items
Aldi: Mostly off brand products, very low prices
Food Lion: Decent everyday prices, excellent weekly sales which often best the two stores above.

I would mention the warehouse places, but I don't think their food/grocery prices are all that great compared to the stores mentioned above, especially when those stores are having sales.

Who's the cheapest in general? Where do you shop? Or do you buy certain things at certain stores?

12/27/2007 4:24:47 PM

Food Lion ftw

12/27/2007 4:26:22 PM

Aldi by a long shot, but unfortunately there are none where I currently live (I shop at Harris Teeter over the other convenient store with comparable prices and poorer quality and customer service). The downsides of Aldi are 1) mostly generic, if you care about that, and 2) not a comprehensive selection, so you will probably have to shop at a supermarket as well.

12/27/2007 4:28:54 PM

Food Lion ftw. I also like Aldi, but I'd never buy any meat from there.

12/27/2007 7:32:46 PM

for steaks and fish i only buy from whole foods or the fresh market... i've had too many bad experiences everywhere else

12/27/2007 8:06:34 PM

Trader Joes has some really good stuff, I usually go there for specialty items and the 2 dollar milk

12/27/2007 8:08:29 PM

whole foods may be good quality, but it is expensive

i shop at food lion or trader joes for cheap stuff.

12/27/2007 8:29:46 PM

Kroger...

Walmart is not cheap

12/27/2007 8:47:27 PM

Food Lion isn't cheap unless you're buying stuff on sale.

I shop at the Walmart Super Center and it has decent prices.

12/27/2007 8:54:06 PM

They are building an Aldi behind Walgreens at Harrison/Maynard

12/27/2007 9:15:22 PM

once you buy good meat from whole foods / trader joes / FRESH meat behind glass at harris teeter

its hard to go back, everything else looks OLD

i would say trader joes is the best bang for th buck

12/27/2007 9:53:43 PM

Stick with the Pig!

12/27/2007 10:05:12 PM

so most people agree on aldi being the clear winner of low prices?

12/28/2007 10:00:00 AM

Sams Club...but you have to but it in a big amount to save

12/28/2007 3:45:31 PM

general grocery shopping: harris teeter

general grocery shopping #2: whole foods

meats/produce/deli items: fresh market

meats/produce/deli items when i'm nearer to cary: trader joe's

the only places i will go

12/28/2007 3:47:57 PM

Food Lion is ok if you aren't buying fresh produce. Back when I used to shop there I noticed that the majority of their produce was always a few days away from the 'best if sold buy' date, and sure enough it would rot shortly after bringing it home. That was 5 or so years ago, I don't know if times have changed since then.

12/28/2007 3:54:19 PM

Food lion if you arent looking for quality meat products, i bought a steak a few weeks ago from the lion and it tasted like a burnt hamburger

12/28/2007 4:12:48 PM

^^^ that post would do well in a thread titled: "Most Expensive Grocery Stores" (excluding TJs, they have decent prices)

12/28/2007 4:26:01 PM

Sam's.

12/28/2007 4:34:39 PM

Quote :

"Walmart is not cheap "

this is especially true for beer and wine

12/28/2007 5:26:31 PM

Quote :

"Food Lion ftw"

food lion for some things walmart for others.

12/28/2007 5:42:22 PM

12/28/2007 5:49:10 PM

I think it depends on what yo'ure looking for.

If you're wanting absolute bare minimum I just need food to eat - Aldi will be cheapest.
If you're wanting brand name or not completely standard items that are perishable - I've found that Hariss Teeter is the best bang for the buck where I live - because all of the things I buy from there do not go bad very quickly, the produce is usually much fresher than food lion or krogers around here, so while I pay a little more on each item initially, it's better in the end.
Non perishable goodies like crackers or packaged/canned stuff - Walmart is cheapest but I usually just get what's on sale at the Teeter or the Kroger.

Whole foods is so expensive I can't imagine how anyone could buy all their groceries there. I'll go there for some specialty things that I cant find elsewhere maybe twice a year. And i've switched to a toothpaste only they carry. But beyond that it's rich-hippy land- and I'm not a rich hippy who feels like paying 3x the price for their stuff.

Trader joes is probably the cheapest chicken and produce and other meat that I've seen that's of seemingly good quality- but I ilve SO far from it it's not in my list. I wish there was one nearer to me cuz I'd be in there all the time.

[Edited on December 28, 2007 at 10:04 PM. Reason : .]

12/28/2007 10:04:06 PM

FOOD DAWG

12/29/2007 12:03:47 AM

Amazing Savings in Asheville is fantastic

in Raleigh I'd have to go with some combo of Food Lion, Harris Teeter and Whole Foods
plus the farmer's market

I think Aldi is a good idea, although I have never shopped at one

I buy a lot of my pantry items from Big Lots

12/29/2007 12:23:29 AM

kroger is more expensive than walmart on my side of town.

sadly, walmart lacks some items we like. we either go without, or make a separate trip to another store.

12/29/2007 1:05:09 AM

commissary

12/29/2007 1:07:25 AM

Sometimes I wish I was military just so I could shop at the commissary. They've got some great deals, used to go with my grandparents when I was younger.

[Edited on December 29, 2007 at 7:11 AM. Reason : cheap booze]

12/29/2007 7:10:35 AM

foodlion if you dont want to coupon it up and need barebones eating for a week on a budget

12/29/2007 7:20:59 AM

Aldi's.

12/29/2007 7:25:45 AM

stock up on canned veggies at Big Lots.

12/29/2007 9:21:59 AM

Quote :

"But beyond that it's rich-hippy land"

d00d wtf are you talking about?

12/29/2007 9:31:34 AM

I buy groceries at Fresh Market almost daily (probably 5-6 days a week). The prices are better than Harris Teeter and the quality is MUCH better. I live about two blocks from it and my gym is in the same shopping center so its convenient. Can't wait until the new one opens up across the street (old Harris Teeter being renovated).

Harris Teeter is too expensive unless something is on Bonus Buy or whatever, Food Lion is ghetto, and I just hate Kroger for some unknown reason.

12/29/2007 1:30:44 PM

1.5lbs bag of pretzel sticks at biglots for 1.50...good deal they taste good...cureal from biglots is good too

12/29/2007 1:32:43 PM

I get stuff mostly from Food Lion since it is within walking distance. I go to Trader Joe's once every two weeks and sometimes get a sub from Harris Teeter.

12/29/2007 5:41:25 PM

wtf is Aldi, I never heard of this place

12/29/2007 8:53:43 PM

Aldi is great. They sell off brand items that wouldn't be able to compete in a larger chain market.

Their brand of frosted mini wheat are amazing and everything else I've ever had from there has been delicious. I save probably $30 to $40 everytime I go.

12/29/2007 9:33:16 PM

Farmer's market or Harris Teeter for me

But I tend to only buy fresh milk/fruit/vegs/dairy. I do buy other stuff, but not weekly.

12/29/2007 9:39:42 PM

if you take advantage of harry peeter's daily coupon doubling, i think its the Harris Teeter ftw

12/29/2007 9:40:13 PM

Not to mention, they run some awesome deals. Like buy one get one free frozen chicken breasts.

I stock up on those.

12/29/2007 9:41:26 PM

where is the nearest Aldi?

12/29/2007 9:50:21 PM

the only Aldi I know of is in Fuquay...

You have to pay 25 cents for a cart, but you get it back when you return it.

12/29/2007 10:38:33 PM

^^ theres one on new hope/401 and one on wake forest rd at the millbrook intersection (or spring forest, cant remember which)

12/29/2007 10:44:23 PM

I eat alot of meat

so i find a combo of Meat at harris teeter (best meat sales) and other groceries at foodlion was the cheapest.

12/29/2007 11:07:37 PM

The Aldi on 401 is just north of the split across from the SECU.

The Aldi on Wake Forest Rd is at the intersection with New Hope Church Rd (across from the Wendy's in the old BooksAMillion store).

Aldi is a German chain that sells nothing but generic in-house brands. They own Trader Joe's. Its sort of like the IKEA of grocery stores.

12/30/2007 1:26:36 AM

Quote :

"wtf is Aldi, I never heard of this place"

*sigh*

12/30/2007 1:33:14 PM

I can't believe no one mentioned Super Target. If you live near one of those, its definitely worth giving a try. I've found them to have Harry-Teetar quality produce with Food Dog prices. They have everything you need other than meat.

1/2/2008 9:49:45 AM

I could never shop at Food Lion...that place grosses me out


Lowe's, Harris Teeter, and maybe Trader Joe's (usually for milk, eggs, and olive oil...and other stuff if it's on sale) are the only places I'll shop around here

[Edited on January 2, 2008 at 9:57 AM. Reason : ]

1/2/2008 9:56:40 AM

To add to the info about Sam's ... it's really cheap for meat. You can get a giant full pork loin for ~$15, and chicken breasts are less than $2 per pound I think, which is the cheapest I've been able to find them on sale, and I haven't even seen them at that price lately anywhere. Sausage and ground beef and the like are also cheaper than most grocery store sale prices.

It's also a good place to buy stuff like pasta that you can keep for a long time since it doesn't easily go bad, but if you don't eat a lot of it I'd just go to the store since it's not drastically cheaper.

Produce prices are cheap, though selection isn't all that great, but I only buy a few things like lettuce (which is a lot cheaper than the store) there since half the time I buy produce it goes bad before I can finish it all. Frozen veggies like broccoli and corn are good, though.

It's also good for spices and coffee, so long as you can use enough of the bulk package before they go bad. Most spices are the same price for a giant container as they are for the regular size package at the grocery store. I got 2.5 pounds of good coffee there yesterday for $11. Olive oil is also a good deal there. I think I got almost gallon of it for $15 or something like that.

I haven't gotten milk or eggs there in a while, but the last time I did the prices were better than other places, and butter is also really cheap.

Other things like canned goods and cheese and stuff are better than grocery store regular prices, but you can get them cheaper when they go on sale at the store.

1/2/2008 10:14:57 AM

gotta love the 2.50 sub of the day at HT

1/2/2008 2:12:24 PM