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Favorite regional grocery store chains

M

missyrcrews

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The kids and I are in Missouri for the week at Timber Creek Resort. Last night, we stayed in Dublin, OH just outside of Columbus. Audrey was restless, and wanted to explore a little, so she found that there was a Trader Joe's nearby. We had our first visit there. (There's one about 40 miles or so from home...but I don't drive that far just to grocery shop, so we hadn't been.) I see why so many of you like it! I was pleasantly surprised by the prices, and the kicker: SO MANY gluten free things. I thought she would cry when she found gluten free peanut butter filled pretzels. The night before, we were in Wilkes-Barre, PA, so we stopped in Wegman's. (We stay in places with at least a stove-top, so we do a little shopping as we go for food....think I'm spoiled by my timeshares much?) This time she found gluten-free strawberry shortcake. And it was GOOD! That store had aisles and aisles of things she could eat. We discovered it a few years ago, and we always stock up on gluten free snacks. There's something about being able to have cheese and crackers, or pretzels dipped in honey or peanut butter...she stocks up and then makes those things LAST!

So...what are your favorite regional grocery store chains? I think it's fun to try places other than Target/Walmart/and so on when we travel. :) Who needs Disney...just give us a grocery store, and we can while away an hour or two!
 
Market Basket Grocery Stores for Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts. They can't be beat for price, selection, and quality.





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TheTimeTraveler said:
Market Basket Grocery Stores for Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts. They can't be beat for price, selection, and quality.





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Click to expand...
There's one going in next to the Target that I work at in Maine. Looking forward to having another choice!
 
Here in Laconia, NH we have a Shaws, Hannafords and a Vista. The closest Market Basket is in Tilton ( 25 minutes) , or a brand new one in Plymouth (40 minutes) , but I won’t drive that far for weekly shopping, though many people do. The Market Basket in Plymouth is HUGE- almost too huge for me to deal with - too much going on! lol! I do use BJ’s in Tilton a few times per year.

I go to Hannafords in Gilford ( there’s a smaller one in Meredith also, but always packed with tourists and a small parking lot) as I’m used to Hannafords from timesharing in Vermont for so many years and also where we used to live in NY there was one right in my small town that I used. It was the ONLY supermarket there.

Also was familiar with Shaws from Vermont but I still prefer Hannafords. Never been to the Vista market but they supposedly have good prices. I just don’t go downtown where it’s located. Gilford is a close 10 minutes away and easy drive.
 
We have Shoprite and Stop and Shop - two minute drive (walking distance). Pathmark went bankrupt a few years ago. We mainly shop at Shoprite.

We have to be in the area to shop at the below stores unless it's Costco. Costco is a once/every two months trip. (Below - depending on day/time/traffic - time is minimum. They are more or less in the same area/a few minutes from each other).

Costco - 20 minute drive
Trader Joe's - 20 minutes
Lidl - 20 minutes
Target - 20 minutes

Aldi should be opening - 20 minutes - different direction than the above stores mentioned

No Walmart here
 
Lowe’s Foods in NC. Family-owned and focused on customer experience and local suppliers. They sent all of their management team through the Disney program and it shows!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
When we are in Florida during the winter, I love to shop at Publix. I much prefer it to the local Winn Dixie, Walmart or Aldi’s. The prices at Publix are a bit more expensive, but the store is lovely and the customer service can’t be beat

Dori
 
Dori said:
When we are in Florida during the winter, I love to shop at Publix. I much prefer it to the local Winn Dixie, Walmart or Aldi’s. The prices at Publix are a bit more expensive, but the store is lovely and the customer service can’t be beat

Dori
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That's how I feel about the Wegman's in Wilkes Barre. It is so nicely kept, everyone seems happy (they actually don't have any openings in this age of "everyone is hiring!") and they have so many g/f choices for Audrey. It is something that we look forward to when we stay overnight there.
 
We have Wegmans where I live too. When the father was still alive, they had way better offerings in terms of prepared foods, a Kosher deli, and great regular deli. That all went out the window with Covid. I still love how many things they have that are really hard to find. No reason to charge $24/lb. for USDA choice steak though. I shop at Harris Teeter a lot. Really good stores, clean, great sale prices. Now part of Kroger (not local here, but I shop at them when I'm out of town).
 
If you get back to Ohio you have to visit Jungle Jims, we go there every time I visit my sister's in Ohio. The place is wild, like no other store you have ever been!

junglejims.com

Jungle Jim's International Market – Discover a World of Food and More!

There’s always something happening at Jungle Jim’s International Market! With more than 200,000 square feet of shopping space in each of our stores, there are over 180,000 products from which to choose. New items arrive daily, we have weekly events at both locations, and festivals throughout the...
junglejims.com junglejims.com

When we visit my wife's family in Texas it's HEB, she buys things to bring home so we carry an extra suitcase and freeze things. Same thing when we visit Hawaii.


I live three blocks from Trader Joes but rarely shop there, that's about exotic as it gets around here.
 
We have Smith's here. I think they have 17 stores centered around Salt Lake City. They're a Kroger outfit, so no surprises there. Winco is employee owned out of Boise, ID. but a little too 'self-serve' for my taste. Excellent produce though.

An interesting side note. When I was a kid in Boise, the guy at the neighborhood market- arguably the first 'supermarket' there was named Joe Albertson, and he'd serve up a hand dipped ice cream cone, and yes, it was Joe Albertson's (first) Supermarket! How many remember that jingle?

Jim
 
billymach4 said:
HEB in Texas
Click to expand...
HEB also owns Central Market. I guess you could call Central Market a chain of large, slightly upscale gourmet grocery stores. It is where I go for "recreational grocery shopping" a couple times a year.

Central Market also offers a variety of cooking classes.
 
Like @SmithOp pointed out, there really aren't any chains in our region that inspire 'wow' like HEB or Wegmans.
In our area:
Upscale/Organic/Specialty: Gelsons, Barons, Trader Joes, Sprouts, Jimbo's, Whole Foods
Traditional: Albertsons and Vons (both owned by Safeway), and Ralphs (Kroger)
Budget: Aldi, Grocery Outlet, Smart & Final, Walmart
 
When we go to Hill Country Resort (HICV) in Texas, they have a Brookshire Brothers grocery store across the road that I like.
 
billymach4 said:
Shoprite in Northeast
Winco in the west
HEB in Texas
Click to expand...
We've lived in a lot of places and have several favorites in addition to these.
Lancaster, PA: Oregon Dairy and Giant (not the same as Giant Eagle)
Harris Teeter (prior to Kroger acquisition)
Hy Vee in Kansas City
Worst: Kroger, especially in the Cincinnati due to their monopoly. I hope their Albertson's acquisition isn't allowed.

OF the Natural Food chains, we like Fresh Thyme and Fresh Market much better than 'Whole Paycheck'. I'm not a big fan of paying a big premium for organic, since I worked in the agriculture industry and know you are paying a large premium for marketing hype. I like locally grown, but not organic.
 
When we lived in Ohio we liked Meijer but most often shopped at Walmart and Aldi. I did go to Frech Thyme every now and then because I liked their fresh made peanut butter.
Dori said:
When we are in Florida during the winter, I love to shop at Publix. I much prefer it to the local Winn Dixie, Walmart or Aldi’s. The prices at Publix are a bit more expensive, but the store is lovely and the customer service can’t be beat

Dori
Click to expand...
It's kind of interesting. We much prefer Winn-Dixie over Publix. Winn-Dixie always has some great 2for1 sales and I really like their deli bar with buckets of chicken wings or their fried chicken. We have a Publix right across the street and I rarely go into it. Now our Winn-Dixie has been fairly recently renovated and I know there are some out there that are in kinda rough shape. When we go to Orlando, it's either Aldi or Winn-Dixie and sometimes Publix. Publix prices just seem higher than the other two. I would probably go to Walmart here in Jacksonville, but it is just a further drive than the others.
 
In Indiana I love my Strack & Van Til. But I'm guessing no one is vacationing in Indiana.
 
Seed to Table in Naples, FL. A truly unique grocery store!
  • Valet parking
  • Live music
  • In-store dining (with table service during certain hours) from several "restaurant kiosks" -- check out the huge menu!
  • Wine bar
  • Beer bar
  • Full liquor bar
  • Juice bar
  • Kid's play area / daycare so you can drop off the kids while you shop and/or dine
  • And, it is a full grocery store with farm fresh produce (it is owned and run by a local family farm group)
If you are ever in the area, you really have to check this place out.

Kurt
 
PigsDad said:
Seed to Table in Naples, FL. A truly unique grocery store!
  • Valet parking
  • Live music
  • In-store dining (with table service during certain hours) from several "restaurant kiosks" -- check out the huge menu!
  • Wine bar
  • Beer bar
  • Full liquor bar
  • Juice bar
  • Kid's play area / daycare so you can drop off the kids while you shop and/or dine
  • And, it is a full grocery store with farm fresh produce (it is owned and run by a local family farm group)
If you are ever in the area, you really have to check this place out.

Kurt
Click to expand...
Sounds like it might be an expensive place to shop?
 
Byerly’s in Minneapolis/St. Paul was a very-once-in-a-while stop for our family.

They had a small cafe where they served delicious wild rice soup. They also sold frozen containers of it in their stores. I remember being so excited to pick some up over winter breaks to take back to college.

I believe the stores still exist, but think the restaurants are gone.
 
mentalbreak said:
Byerly’s in Minneapolis/St. Paul was a very-once-in-a-while stop for our family.

They had a small cafe where they served delicious wild rice soup. They also sold frozen containers of it in their stores. I remember being so excited to pick some up over winter breaks to take back to college.

I believe the stores still exist, but think the restaurants are gone.
Click to expand...
I was just in a Byerly's a couple weeks ago in Edina; I hadn't been in one for probably 30 years. Still a very nice and classy store, but I didn't see any cafe in that one.

Kurt
 
dioxide45 said:
Sounds like it might be an expensive place to shop?
Click to expand...
The produce is actually quite reasonably priced, and it is very good. Otherwise the rest of the grocery is a bit more expensive than a Publix, but it is no Whole Foods.

Kurt
 
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