Single best store for groceries

[jeffrey]

If you could only shop at a single store for food, which store do you think would give you the overall best value for your money? What was the most important factor in your decision -- was price most important? Was quality of food? Was selection? Let the debate begin

[97guns]

an asian grocery market in my area called lions, super cheap and fresh produce and a full service meat dept, jumbo eggs for $1.19, not a good place for milk, eggs, bread and butter though.

[phantom]

I'd have to go with Market District Giant Eagle. Of all the places I shop for food, they have the best selection. Their normal prices are high, but I've got taking advantage of their sales and loyalty program down. A close second choice would be the local Shop 'n Save that runs awesome two day sales, but they don't have the selection, and their loyalty program is harder to use.

I would very much miss the meat prices I get from Weiss Meats, the local butcher, but since all they sell is meat, that's not really an option. I'd also miss Whooley's, where I buy fish for sushi, but since they're 45 min. away and don't sell much other than fish, that's also not an option. Finally, I'd miss Lotus Foods, the Asian grocer where I buy rice and soy sauce in bulk, but they're next to Whooley's, so they're also too far to be practical.

[scfr]

I think answers are going to vary a lot by geography.

Fellow Texans will probably understand my pick of H-E-B. Reasons are a combination of quality, price, selection, and location.

[coffee]

I'd have to go with Market District Giant Eagle. Of all the places I shop for food, they have the best selection. Their normal prices are high, but I've got taking advantage of their sales and loyalty program down. A close second choice would be the local Shop 'n Save that runs awesome two day sales, but they don't have the selection, and their loyalty program is harder to use.

I would very much miss the meat prices I get from Weiss Meats, the local butcher, but since all they sell is meat, that's not really an option. I'd also miss Whooley's, where I buy fish for sushi, but since they're 45 min. away and don't sell much other than fish, that's also not an option. Finally, I'd miss Lotus Foods, the Asian grocer where I buy rice and soy sauce in bulk, but they're next to Whooley's, so they're also too far to be practical.

I go to the market district in Robinson PA sometimes, but way overpriced. Trader Joes has great prices for high quality.

[kork13]

I only wish we had them here in the mid-west, but probably the best all-around grocery store I've been to are the Wegmans stores that they have up in New York (alot of my mother's family lives up there). Very good combination of great quality, reasonable prices, and massive selection. I haven't been to one in nearly a decade, of course, but I only assume they're still pretty good.

[coffee]

I only wish we had them here in the mid-west, but probably the best all-around grocery store I've been to are the Wegmans stores that they have up in New York (alot of my mother's family lives up there). Very good combination of great quality, reasonable prices, and massive selection. I haven't been to one in nearly a decade, of course, but I only assume they're still pretty good.

been like 6 yrs since I have been to one, they are fantastic, especially with selection.

[snafu]

The whole point of living in a this largish city is to have choices for everything we need. We've lived in small communities with one grocerteria, meat market, medical practice etc. and felt frustrated beyond words. Here it would be a toss up between COSTCO and T&T which is a local Asian market at least an hour's drive and parking lot from H_ll.

[disneysteve]

Wegmans for sure. Best prices. Best quality. Best selection.

[moneybags]

In the midwest - Woodman's. It's employee owned, low prices, biggest selection. They don't take credit cards, but that's okay.

[MonkeyMama]

I think what is most important to us is convenience, price and quality. So I would choose Raley's.

Sure, we could maybe do all of our shopping somewhere like Wal Mart or some of the discount grocery stores, but I think we have been way too spoiled with low-cost/high-quality food (particularly produce). Also, the convenience factor sucks at a lot of the discount places that are overly crowded and many miles away.

Raley's is interesting because it is perceived to be rather high-end and expensive. They actually did a big marketing shift in the past decade focusing more on their low prices. & re-pricing things to remain more competitive. This means we have not noticed any real rise in food costs through the recession. (We certainly noticed huge price hikes at other grocery stores, so eventually ended up doing most our shopping here). So, we are spoiled and have gotten used to exceptional quality service, high quality foods, huge selections, etc. They also offer great gas discounts, and you don't have to have a card (tracking all your personal info) to get their gas coupons - they just print out on your receipt. (Their gas prices are cheaper than Costco, but it's 20 miles closer than Costco). I have never waited in a line there, even at 6pm on a weeknight.

[bjl584]

The answer to this question really depends where you live and what you are looking to shop for. Some of the replies to this question from other posters mentioned stores that I've never heard of.

I like to shop at Aldi because they are inexpensive. But, they don't have much of a selection when it comes to meats, cheeses, and fresh produce. For that, I have to go elsewhere.

[Nika]

For me - Citarella for fish and Fairway for groceries.

But to me "value" does not mean cheap. It means the best quality to price ratio.

Citarella is just plain expensive, but finding fresh fish in todays society is a task next to impossible, so it is not like I have many choices.

[JoeP]

Huge Wegmans fan here! It can become very costly if you cave into the prepared foods! Their meat is also noticeably more expensive than the butcher shop in the next town over.

Their magazine is chock full of recipes that sometimes require a few specialty ingredients; made quite a few and they were huge hits with my family.

[FrugalFish]

In Southern CA, and with the exception of Costco, don't have any of the stores listed. We shop Winco for groceries. By far the best all around prices and selection locally.