We shop at the ALDI stores, along with Costco and our local Family Fare, working the specials where we can. The Twin Cities Star Tribune newspaper recently rated our top 12 grocery chains and ALDI was by far the best for the things they carry. ALDI comes from Germany and I remember shopping there way back in 1988/89 when I was in Marburg. There are three ALDI stores in Valencia, so you might want to check them out when you are there.
Yes! We got to go to ALDI when we visited my parents in Niagara Falls. We have them in Southern California, but nowhere really close to us. I have seen them in Spain. I definitely want to check them out. Thank you!
Everybody seems to love ALDI. Even more than Trader Joe's.
I took a trip to Southport, North Carolina for a job offer and scouting trip. The local markets and restaurant prices are on par with California. I took pictures for price comparisons and thought "I feel like Rocco!"
Lunches of 2 flounder or tile fish tacos (no fixins) $29. Dinner of shrimp (6) linguini with a side salad and 2 slices of bread $27.
The local grocery store was Lowe's, which prices were equal to Whole Foods/Safeway out here. The BBQ sauce was $7.99, loaf of bread was $6-$7, and things like coffee creamer were $5.99 or 2/$10. No farmer's market to be found. There was a Trader Joes about an hour away from where I was staying, but I did not go there.
And don't get me started on the housing prices that were also on par with California. Needless to say, I will not be moving there.
This is the thing. Or part of the thing. On housing and some aspects of overall cost of living.
The drops in the ultra expensive markets are nowhere near what would be necessary to make them even remotely affordable. And the once affordable or closer to affordable places are on the upswing. Wait too long and Buffalo, Detroit and Cleveland will be like Raleigh.
You are completely correct.. the drops in the markets are nowhere near making anything affordable. That is exactly what I experienced in NC, the rents were the same as CA, and the housing purchase pricing was right behind it. I was told to go look in the "cheaper" areas. Basically putting me in the same situation I am in now.. a lower income area and all the elements that come with it.
Another noticeable thing, I heard more New York/Boston/Chicago accents than I did North Carolina accents. The locals say the prices for everything have risen due to the sheer amount of New Englanders that moved south. Sound familiar? "They are buying up all the houses and the native people cannot afford to live here anymore."
After reading this article I decided to sign up for "M Perks" for coupons and rewards. We spend a fortune on food. We have a main store chain, a specialty grocery, and Aldi's. Of course there is a Walmart and Sam's Club close by, I rarely shop in either. The nearest Trader Joe's grocery is 48 miles away. Whole Foods recently (my favorite EVER) came to the area (53 miles away) and it's awful; they reinvented the wheel. It's stocked differently and they changed the layout, more sundries than food.
Local produce is more expensive to buy than shipped in, even the farmer's market is expensive. I don't get it. Avocados are a staple in my diet, almost impossible to buy a good one in the main grocer, that's a Walmart visit. Fresh corn from the side of the road is around $2 an ear, in the store it's $1.59 an ear.
On junk food. My favorite chips are $6 for an air-filled bag, Smart Pop popcorn is 4.99 (I can eat a bag in one sitting).
Anyway, a small snapshot from my neck of the woods.
First, as a native Oregonian, I'm happy to see someone else likes Tillamook! I honestly can't remember a time when there wasn't a block of something from there in my house.
Here in WI, we're probably spending $150/week. My kids seem to eat nonstop, but (thankfully) they eat relatively cheap things like eggs & potatoes. My youngest plays football, and you know those fundraiser cards every team sells? One of the ones he got was a BOGO for a pound of ground beef from a local shop. You can go once a week, so he's down there all the time. That's a big help too.
Other than that, we do most of our shopping at an employee-owned local place called Woodman's (similar set up to Cub Foods)-- not long on atmosphere, but it saves us a ton. And I can bike there, which is nice. There's also an Aldi near the gym we go to, so we pick some things up there as well.
We can talk about what's not going well in America, but Tillamook's aggressive expansion beyond Oregon is one of the things that is welcome and seems to be going well.
Such great products.
Co-op grocery stores are great. I don't think we have one nearby. I'm looking forward to having the neighborhood market open six days a week!
I live in CO and there are 3 adults in my family. However, we have food allergies. I’m allergic to chicken and wheat/gluten and my son is allergic to gluten and dairy. This increases our costs substantially. When inflation was at its peak we paid $300+ per week for groceries. Now it’s more like $225. It’s still expensive but the costs have come down. Gluten free products are very expensive.
It's pretty incredible how expensive gluten free products are.
You have actually seen prices come down? That certainly doesn't feel like the case here. On anything, especially groceries. I do wonder if you could at least bargain a little on rent.
I’ve definitely seen prices drop here in the last 6 months or so. Went from astronomical to just sky high! The gluten free items are more expensive now though. We limit how much official GF stuff we buy because it’s just prohibitive. You’ll pry my GF crackers out of my hands though. I love those things!
We shop at the ALDI stores, along with Costco and our local Family Fare, working the specials where we can. The Twin Cities Star Tribune newspaper recently rated our top 12 grocery chains and ALDI was by far the best for the things they carry. ALDI comes from Germany and I remember shopping there way back in 1988/89 when I was in Marburg. There are three ALDI stores in Valencia, so you might want to check them out when you are there.
Yes! We got to go to ALDI when we visited my parents in Niagara Falls. We have them in Southern California, but nowhere really close to us. I have seen them in Spain. I definitely want to check them out. Thank you!
Everybody seems to love ALDI. Even more than Trader Joe's.
I took a trip to Southport, North Carolina for a job offer and scouting trip. The local markets and restaurant prices are on par with California. I took pictures for price comparisons and thought "I feel like Rocco!"
Lunches of 2 flounder or tile fish tacos (no fixins) $29. Dinner of shrimp (6) linguini with a side salad and 2 slices of bread $27.
The local grocery store was Lowe's, which prices were equal to Whole Foods/Safeway out here. The BBQ sauce was $7.99, loaf of bread was $6-$7, and things like coffee creamer were $5.99 or 2/$10. No farmer's market to be found. There was a Trader Joes about an hour away from where I was staying, but I did not go there.
And don't get me started on the housing prices that were also on par with California. Needless to say, I will not be moving there.
This is the thing. Or part of the thing. On housing and some aspects of overall cost of living.
The drops in the ultra expensive markets are nowhere near what would be necessary to make them even remotely affordable. And the once affordable or closer to affordable places are on the upswing. Wait too long and Buffalo, Detroit and Cleveland will be like Raleigh.
You are completely correct.. the drops in the markets are nowhere near making anything affordable. That is exactly what I experienced in NC, the rents were the same as CA, and the housing purchase pricing was right behind it. I was told to go look in the "cheaper" areas. Basically putting me in the same situation I am in now.. a lower income area and all the elements that come with it.
Another noticeable thing, I heard more New York/Boston/Chicago accents than I did North Carolina accents. The locals say the prices for everything have risen due to the sheer amount of New Englanders that moved south. Sound familiar? "They are buying up all the houses and the native people cannot afford to live here anymore."
After reading this article I decided to sign up for "M Perks" for coupons and rewards. We spend a fortune on food. We have a main store chain, a specialty grocery, and Aldi's. Of course there is a Walmart and Sam's Club close by, I rarely shop in either. The nearest Trader Joe's grocery is 48 miles away. Whole Foods recently (my favorite EVER) came to the area (53 miles away) and it's awful; they reinvented the wheel. It's stocked differently and they changed the layout, more sundries than food.
Local produce is more expensive to buy than shipped in, even the farmer's market is expensive. I don't get it. Avocados are a staple in my diet, almost impossible to buy a good one in the main grocer, that's a Walmart visit. Fresh corn from the side of the road is around $2 an ear, in the store it's $1.59 an ear.
On junk food. My favorite chips are $6 for an air-filled bag, Smart Pop popcorn is 4.99 (I can eat a bag in one sitting).
Anyway, a small snapshot from my neck of the woods.
First, as a native Oregonian, I'm happy to see someone else likes Tillamook! I honestly can't remember a time when there wasn't a block of something from there in my house.
Here in WI, we're probably spending $150/week. My kids seem to eat nonstop, but (thankfully) they eat relatively cheap things like eggs & potatoes. My youngest plays football, and you know those fundraiser cards every team sells? One of the ones he got was a BOGO for a pound of ground beef from a local shop. You can go once a week, so he's down there all the time. That's a big help too.
Other than that, we do most of our shopping at an employee-owned local place called Woodman's (similar set up to Cub Foods)-- not long on atmosphere, but it saves us a ton. And I can bike there, which is nice. There's also an Aldi near the gym we go to, so we pick some things up there as well.
We can talk about what's not going well in America, but Tillamook's aggressive expansion beyond Oregon is one of the things that is welcome and seems to be going well.
Such great products.
Co-op grocery stores are great. I don't think we have one nearby. I'm looking forward to having the neighborhood market open six days a week!
Shop at HEB, Costco, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, in about that order for $$
I live in CO and there are 3 adults in my family. However, we have food allergies. I’m allergic to chicken and wheat/gluten and my son is allergic to gluten and dairy. This increases our costs substantially. When inflation was at its peak we paid $300+ per week for groceries. Now it’s more like $225. It’s still expensive but the costs have come down. Gluten free products are very expensive.
It's pretty incredible how expensive gluten free products are.
You have actually seen prices come down? That certainly doesn't feel like the case here. On anything, especially groceries. I do wonder if you could at least bargain a little on rent.
I’ve definitely seen prices drop here in the last 6 months or so. Went from astronomical to just sky high! The gluten free items are more expensive now though. We limit how much official GF stuff we buy because it’s just prohibitive. You’ll pry my GF crackers out of my hands though. I love those things!