Food Shopping

[Georgiesmum]

Do you still buy your food shopping at one main shop, or do you go to multiple shops for your weekly food?

[ducksie]

I shop around, I have a large supermarket close by but rather go into town, get my main shop in another supermarket chain and pop into the little greengrocer, fishmonger, butcher to get the finer cuts. I love the chat and banter from each shop and I often find they might stock something different an odd time that gives a nice change to my weekly meals

[albaqwerty]

butchers for the meat, fishmonger for the fish (obviously! lol) poundshop for odds n bits but one big shop in supermarket.
Not keen on supermarket meat or fish

[Cloverjo]

I do about three shops a week. I cook for varying numbers of numbers of people and don't always know in advance what the numbers will be. I usually do two or three days' shopping at a time, and go to local shops in between if I need anything more.

[waterboatman]

I do most of my shopping at the farms or small local shops. A wee bit in Lidl.

[ducksie]

Neither am I Albs, I thing the 'butchers' in our stores are no more than staff behind the counter shown what is what and never seen a carcass in reality, I don't like the smell and I hate the fish out on this fancy stand laying on ice and stinking, the fish monger I go to gets his stock from the boats coming into nearby Kilmore Quay daily, that is just lovely, a gorgeous fishing village locally

[Cloverjo]

I agree, ducksie. I never buy my fish from a supermarket, always from the good fish shop in the high street.

[albaqwerty]

Must admit, only go to butchers if the young albas haven't brought any meat home - they work in slaughter-house/abattoir

Agree with you Ducksie, about the so-called butchers in supermarkets.

[waterboatman]

I get my meat from the butchers shop a two minute walk from home. I've been buying my meat there for 20 years. All his meat is from within Gloucestershire and he can give you the history of it all. Pies and quiches etc. made in the shop. All at good prices.

[ummmm]

We don't have a fish mongers, sadly.

I do one big shop but I limit the salad/veg I buy as it often gets wasted so I buy that from the grocers.

[ducksie]

I used to have family member working in the abattoir, was great the cuts of meat came home, maybe it spoiled us a bit, you just can't beat the people like the growers, fishermen and butchers for the bit of banter, that in itself makes for great chat over the meal. Our little town has a great selection of independent traders, we are encouraged to shop local, doesn't take me much encouragement, I love passing the pop up coffee shops, smelling the freshly ground coffee as I fill my bags with lots of lovely surprise purchases, I find if I shop in the main supermarket I just follow everyone else with the trolleys and buy same old mundane stuff, recently discovered a shop that sells cheaper cleaning products and large bags of wild bird seed and fat balls

[Old_Geezer]

I may use different supermarkets each time, but I don't deliberately go on multiple shopping trips looking for bargains and lowest prices. Life's too short to tolerate shopping more than necessary.

[ummmm]

Agree, OG, hate shopping. That's why I do most of it with Tesco online. Plus I don't have a car.

[Old_Geezer]

Seems some folk are fortunate to have small shops still existing reasonably near them.

[ducksie]

That's a pity about the fish monger for you ummmm, they get to know what you like and try to get it in for you, some-days he even gets in a nice bit of pollack for me, it's not so popular here but i tell him how I love it,if there's some on the boats, he brings it in for me, the butchers know the cuts of meat I like and somedays I even get a hot cooked dinner there, like my veg from greengrocer, I don't need too much veg, like ummmm and buying these bulk cheap items in large stores is a waste for me, great for families I don't doubt

[ducksie]

I have to get the bus, I love it for the banter and a day off galavanting, I was housebound so long I'm loving the freedom to shop when I can

[albaqwerty]

Am really lucky with butcher/fishmonger/supermarket, the banter is always polite (well, tailor-made for each customer!)
The bigger chains of supermarkets don't have staff trained in the notion of engaging customers imo.

Like ummm, I hate shopping.

[Islay]

I do 1 huge shop getting all the pet supplies, tinned and frozen in and then just buy fresh milk and bread and salads as an when we need them.

[waterboatman]

OG I'm very fortunate with the local shops and farms. Can't beat it.

[ummmm]

The butchers is walking distance but I don't really rate it. Our corner shops often stock veg from the farm shop.

I have no complaints about the quality of Tesco meat/fish.

[ducksie]

I'd love a Tesco near me, I don't like the supermarket near me even though they're rated the No1 in the Rep., SuperVau, I can't see what's super about it or where the value is, the staff are ok but I go to Dunnes for my freezer and tinned food, cupboard fillers