Shopping at the Supermarket

[sleepy]

And how do you do it? Do you shop at a large supermarket or a small store on the corner or down the street from where you live? Do you shop at fish markets, organic/heath food stores, produce stands or a fresh from the field roadside stand in the Summer, or do you drop in frequently at a 7-11, a gas station market, or go to a friendly liquor store? Do you walk to the store, ride the bus, ride a bike or scooter, or do you drive 5, 10, or 20 miles/kilometers or more to get there? In the snow? In the Winter? In the dead of sweltering Summer? During tornado/hurricane season? Do the employees at the store know you by name or do you protect your privacy?

As for myself, I ride the bus to a large Ralph's or a Food 4 Less for general items and shop at Smart and Final, a mid-sized warehouse store that features institutional/ large economy sizes of boxes of cereal and such. The help is personable, yet not intrusive, and then I ride the bus a couple of miles home while carrying sometimes up to 40 pounds of groceries on a bus with standing-room-only...big fun! For toilet paper or something to drink or snack on I walk a block up the street to a corner liquor store/mini-market. The regular canned food items are often stale and past the freshness date stamped on the can, sometimes by as much as one year "07-15-2008" but the sodas and snacks sell out quickly so they can be trusted to be edible, however, beware of the gray-green cold cuts!

 

[shogun01]

I live out in the country and the major town is about 7 miles away, so using a car is essential. I go to three stores for my food shopping, which are Sam's Club (for bulk items), Aldi (for select foods) and Wegmans (for the rest). All of which are big stores here in the US. A few of the employees know me, since I live out in the country.

In the snow? In the Winter? In the dead of sweltering Summer? During tornado/hurricane season?

Yes to all of the above, except for the tornado/hurricane season. We are too far away from the ocean for a hurricane and it's pretty hilly here for tornadoes.

 

[mrschultz]

I haven't been in a supermarket since Trader Joe's opened up in town several years ago, do 99% of my shopping there. Better quality, better tasting stuff at about the same price or even cheaper.

The few things the Trader Joe's doesn't sell and I used to get at the supermarket I get at Target.

 

[sleepy]

Thirty years ago Trader Joe's used to be decorated in a Hawaian Ports of Call theme throughout the store with thatched trimmings of palm frawns over the deli section and fishing nets.

They've gotten away from that in the last couple of decades. Now they look like a sterile heath food store, but the quality is generally excellent. Something else they used to do was mail out a quarterly almanac flyer full of wry wit and stylish cartoons drawn in cross-hatch steelprint design, often promoting lobster and inexpensive wines. The look of these cartoons was very much like the title sequence for the t.v. show "Cheers". Maybe you remember it?

 

[mrschultz]

Thirty years ago Trader Joe's used to be decorated in a Hawaian Ports of Call theme throughout the store with thatched trimmings of palm frawns over the deli section and fishing nets.

They've gotten away from that in the last couple of decades. Now they look like a sterile heath food store, but the quality is generally excellent. Something else they used to do was mail out a quarterly almanac flyer full of wry wit and stylish cartoons drawn in cross-hatch steelprint design, often promoting lobster and inexpensive wines. The look of these cartoons was very much like the title sequence for the t.v. show "Cheers". Maybe you remember it?

Well, the one here is not sterile, lots of hand made art around the store. They moved into the national guard armory that had been empty for a few years after the guard moved out, the PA veterans museum is in the basement, TJ's is on the main floor, there's a little balcony at one end that often has a few people playing live music. Not a big building so it's kind of cramped, probably why it doesn't feel "sterile". Still get the flier here, but I live only a few blocks away so it could be only people in town get the flier, they always have piles of them at the store.

 

[lupo51ca]

I take the bus to the Superstore here. It's a large warehouse store about a 10 minute bus ride away that has everything from groceries, fresh meat and fish bakery etc to clothes and electronics and booze all under 1 roof. The staff does not know me as it is much to busy and large for them to remember anyone and besides that I always go through the self checkouts to save time. I'm known on the bus however as I have a local bus route that runs within half a block of my house and we've had the same driver for many years, and he will go slightly off route to drop us at the corners near are houses or at the door when possible, so we don't have to walk. Also it's always the same passengers, so we've all gotten to know each other from riding together and we all know where each other live now.

 

[sleepy]

What about the meat? Are the sausage and deli cuts in-house or from a national supplier?
My Grandfather in Pennsylvania used to buy sausage from a local market that made it fresh.
I think it was kielbasa, but it was definitely a loop of deli sausage with fresh garlic in a casing. It was much better than the national brands that we're left to choose from these days.

My folks also used to buy Chipped Ham, a sweet paper-thin-sliced deli ham seasoned with clove and mild onion, always from a meat market. It hasn't been available in Los Angeles for a couple of decades now.

 

[lupo51ca]

What about the meat? Are the sausage and deli cuts in-house or from a national supplier?
My Grandfather in Pennsylvania used to buy sausage from a local market that made it fresh.
I think it was kielbasa, but it was definitely a loop of deli sausage with fresh garlic in a casing. It was much better than the national brands that we're left to choose from these days.

My folks also used to buy Chipped Ham, a sweet paper-thin-sliced deli ham seasoned with clove and mild onion, always from a meat market. It hasn't been available in Los Angeles for a couple of decades now.

I haven't seen a meat market anywhere around here since I was a kid. Everything is pretty much national brands here. In fact I don't even know of any stand alone Deli's anymore that aren't part of a major supermarket.

 

[sleepy]

Yeah, but when was the last time you or I stepped up to the deli counter at the supermarket and got that smell of fresh garlic and herbs and pepperoni like it used to be at the corner meat market?

 

[faralos]

I frequent Redners, Trader Joes, Giant and Wegmans. We also have a fresh produce (actually there are now two stores) store called 'Produce Junction' that sells dirt cheap, mushrooms, peppers, onions, garlic cloves, stuff like that at less than wholesale prices! all of it is grown locally (here in Pennsylvania there are many local farmers) and organically, too. I don't try to eat healthy but certain items I just love, like mushrooms, broccoli, cukes, etc, all grown local and they get quite big too!

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

nice thread. :)

i wish there was a trader joseph's nearer to me. closest one looks like it's in ardmore, which is at least one trolley and one bus ride away. (i got rid of my car and went green around 15 years ago)

local supermarkets are rather unremarkable- an "acme" and a pretty sorry "fresh grocer". however, there is an excellent asian chain grocery called "h-mart" next to the 69th street terminal. lots of low-price, excellent fruit & veggies there, many of them asian counterparts to what we're used to, like, celery, pears, cabbage, eggplant, chives, cukes.

the asian pears are particularly awesome because unlike the traditional ones, they're always ripe. plus they're very juicy and crisp, as well as being round like apples:

that reminds me, i need to find some place that has tru-lime and nutritional yeast...

 

[mrschultz]

nice thread. :)

i wish there was a trader joseph's nearer to me. closest one looks like it's in ardmore, which is at least one trolley and one bus ride away. (i got rid of my car and went green around 15 years ago)

The TJ's in Media is right on the trolley line (Route 101), but that's a long ride from 69th street (not long in miles, but long in time). The SEPTA R3 train station is a bit of a long walk from the center of town, not bad if you are just walking but a pain if you have to carry anything.

All the rain must have delayed the fresh produce in Jersey, on my way to visit my horse I drive by several road side stands that sell the stuff picked fresh in the fields nearby and there's just nothing so far this year. Even people that have gardens are just starting to get some of the early stuff like cucumbers. Last 2 years the fresh corn has been later than usual.

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

ah, good idea... i like media and haven't been there for awhile. besides which, the 101 stops very close to my house, so no need for me to bother with 69th street anyway. thanks- you just solved the TJ problem(!)

re: rain,
it's been a remarkably nice summer around here. very few hot and/or humid days and not too much rain either (or maybe i wasn't around for it). btw, from my days at the community garden i recall rain speeding up the crops, not delaying them... although maybe this effect is not uniform across all fruits & veggies?

fun fact i learned about corn the other day- there is a separate piece of silk for each kernal, so in order for a 'full' ear of corn to be produced, at least one pollen grain must touch the end of each piece of silk and be absorbed. but if the temperature goes a little beyond the corn's comfort zone, the silks dry up and many of the kernals won't develop, even if there's plenty of corn dust (pollen) flying around...

 

[mrschultz]

ah, good idea... i like media and haven't been there for awhile. besides which, the 101 stops very close to my house, so no need for me to bother with 69th street anyway. thanks- you just solved the TJ problem(!)

Media sure has changed since I moved there in 86, used to walk around after 5 and everything was closed, now there's shops and restaurants open late every night. All started when the "New Orleans Cafe" opened, man that was good food, never learned why the owner closed up both his restaurants several years ago. Between that place and the theater it started other shops opening late, then other restaurants and shops moved in. There's great Thai, Indian, Italian, Chinese, and American places now. And you would never know there was a financial problem if you counted the banks, there are at least 11 within a 10 minute walk from me.

re: rain,
it's been a remarkably nice summer around here. very few hot and/or humid days and not too much rain either (or maybe i wasn't around for it). btw, from my days at the community garden i recall rain speeding up the crops, not delaying them... although maybe this effect is not uniform across all fruits & veggies?

I was thinking of all the rain we had in May and early June, some of the fields where my horse is had deep mud for most of those months.

Later,
Marty

 

[sleepy]

Something I've noticed, and this is in spite of the unremarkable stores in Pennsylvania,
that even the big supermarkets manage a better quality of produce and meats than the stuff they sell in California. I think it's because they are trying to appeal to customers who live in farm country and who know what the quality is supposed to be. Coming back from Pennsylvania in 1998 my flight made a stopover in Wisconsin, another high farming State, and I bought a bagel with a pat of sweet Wisconsin dairy better, and Man! That butter was The Best I've ever had, even better than the butter from Pennsylvania that I remember.

In California the soils are sand and desert and so the fruits and vegetables and meats and dairy products are consequentially very dry and tasteless or biased in sulfur and anions, with absolutely no comparison in quality to good produce and meats/dairy products from cooler States with forest topsoils, natural rivers, humidity and higher rates of rainfall, and then out here they cut the produce while it is still green in order to extend shelf life at the expense of being of any value at all, so the starch and sugar level is underdeveloped as well while glycolic acid is prevalent. You might know glycolic acid as a principle ingredient in clear dish detergents like Joy, Ajax, Palmolive, etc. In these detergents it is used as a cutting agent against sticky carbohydrates and fats in foods exactly because it is a precursor to carbohydrate formation in plants. As a component of carbohydrate formation it behaves as a solvent when in excess. It is found in high concentration in unripe/under ripe grapes.

I hope to here from our friends in other countries in this thread. I'm interested in the cultural exchange, the local character and the personal experiences, likes and dislikes.

 

[sleepy]

I don't mean to start a discussion on this point, but was smoking permitted at the New Orleans Cafe, did they have alcohol, and was there a smoking ban prior to the closing?

I'd like to think the cafe closed for other reasons though.

 

[mrschultz]

I don't mean to start a discussion on this point, but was smoking permitted at the New Orleans Cafe, did they have alcohol, and was there a smoking ban prior to the closing?

I'd like to think the cafe closed for other reasons though.

They had a bar. I know when they first opened they had smoking and non-smoking areas. The were still filled up every night even after the smoking ban in PA, so it had nothing to do with that. It's a mystery, the guy had 2 restaurants, did a lighted ball drop every new years for the town, and all of a sudden both were closed, I searched the newspaper sites for a few months after but never found any info. Was amazing food, a very unique mix of cajun and Italian.

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Media sure has changed since I moved there in 86, used to walk around after 5 and everything was closed, now there's shops and restaurants open late every night. All started when the "New Orleans Cafe" opened, man that was good food, never learned why the owner closed up both his restaurants several years ago. Between that place and the theater it started other shops opening late, then other restaurants and shops moved in. There's great Thai, Indian, Italian, Chinese, and American places now. And you would never know there was a financial problem if you counted the banks, there are at least 11 within a 10 minute walk from me.

excellent... maybe i can get buffet at the indian restaurant when i get over to TJ's. possibly my favorite food in the world, and one of the few places i don't need to bring along my ubiquitous habanero peppers to accompany the food. :]

ah, media... lucky you. i was charmed by media's small town characteristics at one time and tried to rent an apt there around 1988, but at the time the good ones (for my money) were taken and i wound up settling in northern chester instead... still a nice area and not like the dreaded downtown chester. at least, at the time.

btw, what kind of food does your horse like? me being ignorant can only think "oats", but surely the diet is more varied than that...

In California the soils are sand and desert and so the fruits and vegetables and meats and dairy products are consequentially very dry and tasteless or biased in sulfur and anions, with absolutely no comparison in quality to good produce and meats/dairy products from cooler States with forest topsoils, natural rivers, humidity and higher rates of rainfall, and then out here they cut the produce while it is still green in order to extend shelf life at the expense of being of any value at all, so the starch and sugar level is underdeveloped as well while glycolic acid is prevalent. ...

I hope to here from our friends in other countries in this thread. I'm interested in the cultural exchange, the local character and the personal experiences, likes and dislikes.

the peruvian population centers are similar to CA, re: the sand and desert. and they share the same ocean and a coast, of course. in fact, from my travels on the coast of CA, i believe CA has more moisture coming from somewhere to support a fair amount of vegetation, even if its desert vegetation. peru's coast is more like a dead zone. yet despite that, the fruit there is incredible and cannot be matched by anything from the states, at least in my exposure to such in travels across the US. specifically, the oranges, apples, guavas, mangos and bananas are bursting with a level of moisture and sweetness i've never tasted in american fruit. as for why that is so, hmm...

 

[sleepy]

I tried Googling "New Orleans Cafe" and found one in New Hope, Pa. It's hard to tell tough with what looks like knock-off cafes with names like "Nora A's New Orleans Cafe". I can't tell if it's the same proprietor.

That's like Miller's Hoagies in Ford City, Pa.. Their classic cold cut hoagie is The Best I've ever had, but there are other Miller's Hoagies around not connected to this store, and the problem with that is that the original Miller's Hoagie has a copyright on the recipe.
Here's the map if you're interested.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sou...buiwOwhenDDQ&sig2=yLulYqbWWUYgYRVkI3b0Wg&cd=1

 

[Rick2007]

I might be a bit late with my post,,,, but here it is!!!!!!!!!

Sleepy,
This is an interesting topic for me since I really enjoy food, food shopping, and cooking the ingredients I just purchased.
I am lucky to have 3 large supermarket chains within just a short drive
from my house.
They are Publix, Sweet Bay, and Winn Dixie..
Every Tuesday or Wednesday the 3 stores issue a new flyer filled
with the latest sale items.
I really like all of the competition between the stores with "Buy one Get one Free" deals etc.
All 3 offer "in house made ground sausages." which are pretty good tasting. The Deli meats are all made by outside Companies like Boars Head etc.

I also have a Walmart Food Store, Costco, Sams Club, Aldi, Super Target, a few Independant veggie stands, a small Amish Deli, and a Small Butcher style Meat Market close by. We have several Fresh fish markets because we are located right on the Gulf of Mexico.We also have a few ethnic stores. One store has Bosnian food and another has Asian Food.,,,,all within a 15 to 20 minute drive from my house.
We have a Saturday morning Farmers Market in Downtown St Pete. It is said to be the largest Saturday morning market in Florida.There are so many ways to buy good food,,,,,,,,,It makes my head spin!!!!

I like to try and shop each of the Big 3 stores for the best deals each week. I also like to look for products on the shelf that I have never tried. I think that Alton Brown mentioned this in 1 of his Food Network programs. I now try to buy a new item 1 or 2 times a month.

It is fun to bring home a new item and then try it in a recipe.
Google the new ingredient and you will find lots of fun and easy recipes.
I also go to 1 or 2 of the other stores I mentioned and make a purchase once every month or 2.
Maybe I should frequent them more often, especially when I am looking for a new fun ingredient to try in my next meal.

OH, and My cars color is,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, You guessed it,,,,,,,,,,,,GREEN!!!!
No,,,,, not celery green,,,,,,, more like Jalapeno.

And here is my latest attempt at trying a new item.
A sauce called,,,,,"JAMAICAN PIMENTO SEASONING"
This will taste good on BBQ Pork steaks. It is a version of 1 of my favorite
condiments........."PickaPeppa Sauce". Here is the link.
Try this Great sauce if you can. http://www.pickapeppa.com/

Rick

 

[sleepy]

Your question about the horse's diet reminds me. Along with the drier desert humidity and produce, the alfalfa out here is similarly drier. On my last trip to Pa I was absolutely intoxicated by the sweet Summer night smell of the alfalfa rolling off of the hills along the freeway, a sweetness in full bloom of allspice and clove, profuse and very heady.

 

[mrschultz]

excellent... maybe i can get buffet at the indian restaurant when i get over to TJ's. possibly my favorite food in the world, and one of the few places i don't need to bring along my ubiquitous habanero peppers to accompany the food. :]

btw, what kind of food does your horse like? me being ignorant can only think "oats", but surely the diet is more varied than that...

Shere-e-Punjab is the Indian place, on state street down at the courthouse end of town. I've only been there once and it was good, some people at work have been there a lot and always rave about it. http://www.shereepunjab.com/

Right now my horse is in a grass field, to keep his weight up during this hard time of year for him with his breathing problems. Only enough grass for a few horses, the other pens are sand and they get roll hay.

So it's grass or hay, plus a few large coffee cans of horse feed a day, he's on senior feed now:
http://horse.purinamills.com/products/Equine_Senior.asp

 

[mrschultz]

I tried Googling "New Orleans Cafe" and found one in New Hope, Pa. It's hard to tell tough with what looks like knock-off cafes with names like "Nora A's New Orleans Cafe". I can't tell if it's the same proprietor.

When the New Orleans Cafe in Media was still open the name of that place was "Nora Lee's Cafe".

The story of that place is: The guy that owned the New Orleans Cafe had a small place in Chester for many years (only got in once, really small place always full), when he moved to the bigger place in Media some of the people that worked for him decided not to go and opened their own place with similar food.

 

[sleepy]

The fresh-ground sausage isn't hard to find out here, but the quality of hard sausages/deli sausage is. Most of the national brands lose their flavor and there used to be such a thing as fresh pepperoni from an Italian meat market just bursting with fresh pepper and garlic and toasted anise seed. The anise seed is what gives pepperoni it's licorice flavor.

Sometimes with foods that have lost their flavor but are still good to eat you can recover some of the lost flavor. I like stirring a teaspoon or two of powdered sugar/confectioner's sugar into my store-bought ice cream, Dryers or Eddy's ice cream, to enhance the flavor. Dryers/Eddy's is the same brand with different names. It's Dryer's on the West coast and Eddy's on the East coast.

 

[mrschultz]

The fresh-ground sausage isn't hard to find out here, but the quality of hard sausages/deli sausage is. Most of the national brands lose their flavor and there used to be such a thing as fresh pepperoni from an Italian meat market just bursting with fresh pepper and garlic and toasted anise seed. The anise seed is what gives pepperoni it's licorice flavor.

Not a big fan of sausage, but love pepperoni. Must say I've never had really fresh pepperoni, next time I'm out near Lancaster I should try to get some, but I'll probably forget...