I'm looking for opinions from all.
On Costco. Well not on Costco per se. I don't want you to tell me if you like the company themselves, but rather on the big warehouse type shopping. Nick and I are finding that we constantly run out of stuff we can't get in bulk here that we used to get in bulk in Alberta and Saskatchewan. So we're going to go check out Costco, (this is also the reason for our deep freeze hunt).
I want to know what you find the best deals on at warehouse stores? I don't want to go buy a box of 49 of something if buying 7 boxes of 7 at my grocery store would be cheaper, you know?
I want to know what you bought at the warehouse five years ago and still haven't used up. I am thinking I'll get caught in that trap of buying 100 litres of mayonaise.
I want to know if you are a regular shopper or just when you see good deals in a flyer. By the way where do you get a Costco flyer?
And finally I am wondering, from all you bargain hunters, does it really take a bite out of your grocery bill? Or do you just spend the money in two places instead of one? Or do you spend more cuz the temptation of the great deals sucks you in.
I'm not going until the first week of December so feel free to take your time to comment, I know many of you are BUSY, and I'll check back for comments before I go!
11 comments:
I like Costco but honestly, when I go I don't actually buy anything in bulk. They just have cheaper prices on a lot of things all around. They have great prices on sandwhich meats, sausage, etc. And crab! I buy a lot of crab everytime I go to satisfy our bi-weekly crab cake cravings. One can of crab in the store generally costs $3-$4.00. At Costco I buy 4 cans for $8.99. Another great thing about Costco is how they have products that no one else carries (that I've seen) like Stacie's Simply Naked Pita Chips.
The deals are definitely tempting so I usually go with either cash or a strict list. :)
Good luck!
Yeha, I hear Jen on that. We always bow our budget just because... it's got some great stuff, but often they don't have all that we want. I go there for: Craisins, chocolate chips, Stacies Naked Chips(yes, Jen) and... sometimes other stuff... but not so much lately.
I would love a Cotsco membership but am pretty sure I would blow the bank if we got one. Everytime I go I end up spending several hundred dollars! I'm a sucker for their clothes and books and cd's and gift items.
We usually come out of there having spent far more than expected but what we bought lasts longer. The thing I find is that I can't buy the largest container of things that go bad - like mayonnaise (but really - make your own, its easy and cheap - more on that later) but I think their beef is cheaper and cases of creamed corn and beans and tomatoes go a long way - except when Deanna is on a creamed corn rage! I find that some of the items are the same prices as at Superstore but I haven't found any to be higher.
Its true you can't get everything you want at Costco but you can get by on what you can find there if you can't make it to Superstore.
We purchased a printer there because it was 1/2 the price of anywhere else.
Oh, the flyers. The only ones I have ever seen are the ones that come in the mail to members.
We have a terrible time remembering to renew our membership and go to shop there and now they will just add the membership cost to your grocery bill, which can add to the total cost shock!
Check there for a freezer before you make your decision too.
Good luck!
Oh mayo - I'll start a recipe blog with that one, okay. Now tell me how.
THAT was EASY!!!!
My recipe blog is called GREAT Food from Kim. Here is the address:
greatfoodfromkim.blogspot.com
I'll get more on there soon!
I only go there for the samples; all the snacks are delicious:)
Thanks for all the comments so far! I'll probably go about once a month just to check things out and see. I'm finding I'm baking like I own a bakery and am hoping to find good deals on those supplies and meat here in Ontario is ridiculously high priced. I'll be sure to let you know how it goes, I might even try some Nake Pita Chips.
And yay on the recipe blog mom! (You should check it out everyone, always great recipes from this one!!)
We have a Costco membership & use it often. I buy my baking supplies there. And we are bargain hunters :)
The Wholesale Club/Extra Foods/Stupidstore are good stores too :)
i would have to say that I like costco I buy things like chicken there it is cheaper like just last week I bought some chicken wings to make the homemade ones and it was only 13.oo for the package, and I bought 3 chickens in a bag for 16.00 and then I went and got their pizza it is huge it fed 6 of us with left overs for 9.00 and then like jen said there are things there you can't get anywhere else, we bought charlie a christmas dress there last week for 15.00 it is really cute..and diapers if I could get chris and carmen off the band wagon that unless it says pampers even though I myself like papmers costco kirkland diapers are really cheep and I find they are just as good!! as well as their wipes are something rediculase like a box of 700 for 12.00 and they are all individually packed.....so yes the bulk warehouse store is wonderful!!!!
superstore out there is great too but a lot more expensive then here for just everyday canned stuff I believe it is the cheapest or at least it has been everytime to do grocery shopping when I am there to make meals for my family at no frills!! they aren't always that great for meats and stuff but canned and boxed goods they are fairly cheap and their vegtables and fruits...but it is also a bulk store!!
Good luck!!!
I've found some stuff good (price and quantity) such as any non-perishables that we use regularly (toothfloss, TP, snacky type stuff, toys, books, movies for G, etc.), but I can never buy fresh fruit or veggies (or a whole lot of freezer stuff for that matter...we don't have a deep freeze) otherwise we end up wasting, or we just get so sick of trying to eat through a whole box or bag of something like pears for example, cause they all ripen at the same time.
You'll find your faves...and your not so faves. Now here's the SUPER cheap side of me speaking...go around lunch time and save yourself money on a meal by just eating all the samples!! Hey, free food is free food, what can I say?
we love stores like costco. we probably buy at least a third to half of our monthly grocery budget at costco and the rest at superstore. at costco we find things cheaper, like mo's razor blades, clothing detergent, chicken breasts, lemons, snap peas, milk, apple juice, just to name a few. but costco has also the best beef that we can find for a decent price. (especially the occassional steak). oh ya, and did i mention cheese? mo eats a lot of it. usually costs 10.99 for a lot of cheddar. just be careful. i can be very easily persuaded into the clothing or dvd/cd section. that's when the bills add up!
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