How “heavily Muslim” does a neighborhood have to be before its grocery stores stop stocking alcohol and pork? I would think it would have to be nearly 100%, unless the decision is made on the basis of community pressure rather than consumer demand. I’ve never been concerned before about Muslims moving into my neighborhood, but if it is ever going to result in not being able to pick up a bottle of wine for dinner or one of my staple meats, maybe I should be.

This is one case where location comes in second. Someone said the gas cost too much for them to save anything by shopping in a larger town. The key is to do a *monthly* run. I hit CostCo for bulk items, an Albertson’s for grocery staples, and Sunflower Market for meats, produce, and dairy. I also fill the gas tank, as gas is usually up to a dime cheaper a gallon in the city. The end result is one exhausting day a month that handles most of the month’s shopping, with better selection and a somewhat lower total grocery bill, even with an eighty-mile round trip.

beth, msg. 42, mentioned Sunflower Market. Trent, if they ever expand that far, you’ll have to check them out. In addition to the great produce selection and people who understand and appreciate !food! they have great meats. And they make their own delicious sausages. And you can grind your own peanut butter, which I love. (A tip, for those who grind nut butters at home or in stores: if you chill as soon as you’ve ground it, the oil doesn’t separate out.)

Even if it does cost slightly more some months, it’s worth it to have it DONE and over. Of course, good lists are key when doing this type of major supply run.

We grow most of our own produce, keep our pantry and freezers stocked, and make almost everything from scratch. I order organic bulk items like oats, beans, wheat and raisins online. This allows us to keep trips to the grocery store to a minimum.

I recently decided to get a Sam’s membership, on the basis that if I buy one gallon of milk a week I’ll save enough to cover the membership (we actually go through about three gallons every two weeks). I also save money on other things I buy less frequently (cheese, olive oil, baking spray, dish detergent, gas, etc.), so it works out to be a good deal.

We also have a Sprouts and a Sun Harvest reasonably close to home. Sun Harvest has great produce prices, and also sells a lot of bulk goods (I buy oatmeal and popcorn there, usually on sale, at a significant savings). Sprouts opened more recently and has great sales prices but is otherwise more expensive. After a year of comparing sales flyers and shopping experiences, I’m giving up Sprouts and going to Sun Harvest even though Sprouts is closer. Sprouts is crowded and stresses me out, their non-sale items are pricey, and I’m often unimpressed with the quality of their produce. Sun Harvest is friendlier and more laid back, and their overall prices are much better while their sales prices are very competitive with Sprouts and blow the other competition out of the water. Over the course of a year we’ve developed good relationships with employees at Sun Harvest, but only have one or two at Sprouts who seem to recognize us. There are almost always some tasty handouts for us in the bulk goods section courtesy of a friendly employee, and although it’s a minor thing, it does make my 2-year-old happy and that makes me happy — especially since it’s usually something like healthy like dried fruit or a whole grain newton cookie.

So for me, it’s a combination of price, quality, and community. I make between 2 and 3 total shopping trips a week, which is a bit much, but with small kids I can’t combine them. On the other hand, my kids enjoy getting out of the house and this also gives me good opportunities to train them in appropriate behavior in public settings. It’s cheaper than any number of entertainment options, especially since the extra trips I make are actually saving us enough money to be worth the trip.

That said, I’ve noticed one on the other side of my town has happy smiling employees & I’ve never heard a person that works there say anything negative (even off the clock).
I just don’t find much useful stuff @ our local WM so I don’t go. & the parking/human traffic makes a short run in there impossible.

And there’s one store I have to shop at because my husband will ONLY use their store-brand toilet paper- it’s worth the extra trip just to keep his hiney happy! ;)

I’m super lucky, though- I’m currently surrounded by farmer’s markets, bakeries, butcher shops, and local groceries, all within walking or biking distance. Shopping was much tougher when I lived elsewhere.

We’ve sworn off Wal-Mart forever–not because they don’t have what we need or that their quality or prices are not good, but because it is IRRITATING to shop there. There’s never enough checkout lines open, and I swear most of the people shopping there just got unchained from the basement for their once a week trip to Wal-Mart. It’s crazy. Shopping there just makes me mad, so I stay away.

I can get what I need at Dollar General or my grocery store for cheaper, and not as much irritation either.

Only when it’s a last-minute thing (“aw crud; we’re out of butter”) do I typically run to the nearby Von’s (a Safeway chain), Albertson’s, Smith’s (= Kroger), or Fresh & Easy. It is nice to know that I have the option for shopping within a mile in any direction from my house though.

My decision for Sunflower and TJs stems from a couple things, namely that they’re the happiest grocery stores ever. Everyone who shops there and works there is happy to be there. As opposed to Wal-Mart, where it’s a struggle to maintain sanity just walking in the door. Plus they are skewed heavily toward produce, recognizeable ingredients, regional and/or fair trade products, and environmental protections. And while I’ve had food that wasn’t to my liking at TJs, I’ve *never* run in to something that wasn’t excellent quality.

Woodman’s is huge, and they have a big selection and variety of everything. They sell a lot of things from local/Wisconsin companies. For example, in their bakery, they sell the brand names of bread, but they also sell artisan breads from a local baker. Woodman’s is also cheaper than the other stores, plus I don’t need to run all over town to other stores to find things one store doesn’t carry.

I will go to the other stores in my town if I need to pick something up after work or I run out of something. I will go to the other stores when they have deals and sales. I don’t buy produce or meat at Wal-Mart, though, because I’ve had bad experiences with it in the past.

Totally off topic from the rest of my post – cheap food is not necessarily good food – just my 2 cents as one who is growing and marketing food direct to the consumer.

His previous experiences involve being hired, working 40 hours the first week (big event for the business), and working 6 after that until he was let go. He’s had employers who basically refused to give him days off other than one scheduled day a week, and employers who would schedule him to work openings (7am) go home for the majority of the day, and then close (12pm) only to open the next day and get a total of four hours that day. He’s had employers even refuse to pay him for up to a month, and other employers cutting his checks short and using funky math to justify it.

Walmart also recycles just about everything (far more than the city does in my southern state), stock as much local produce as they can.

Him working there definitely changed my opinion on Walmart.