I don’t shop at Costco anymore.
I like Carbone Marinara and Tomato Basil sauces a little more than Rao’s Marinara and Tomato Basil.
I stopped shopping at Fiesta Farms years ago. The line ups to pay are ridiculous!!
1 Like
I go when it isn’t busy. I hate lines.
Some more food processing / kitchen appliance -related deals at my local Peavey Mart. The one in west London (Hyde Park location) closes March 29th. The one in Lambeth closes in 7 days.
I picked up a kit for fermenting, a small food dehydrator, a small coffee mill, and an electric kettle today.
I visited the new No Frills on College Street West of Ossington today. It opened yesterday.
It’s really nice.
It’s a small store but it has a pretty big selection.
The produce is top notch and displayed nicely. There are quite a few in store specials this week on produce. I stocked up on cotton candy grapes ( big grape selection, at least 6 types, all in great condition) , Moroccan mandarins, a bag of organic lemons, a 2 lb container of nectarines, some Romaine (2 hearts for $2.99) , carrots, and cilantro.
They had some of their perfectly imperfect line of strawberries at $1.99 a container.
In terms of brands, it carries some nice brands like Mutti cherry tomatoes. More upscale than my LondonOnt No Frills.
In terms of international foods, there are quite a few Brazilian and Portuguese groceries, reflecting the neighborhood demographics. Farofa, Sumol drinks, canned corned beef.
Some Mexican ingredients like masa, some sodas like Jarritos.
There are almost no Italian products other than the Mutti tomatoes and Rio Mare tuna salad. The tuna selection is just Canadian national brands. I was hoping they would have Rio Mare or Calippo plain tuna in oil.
The store has some South Asian staples like ghee and frozen okra.
The frozen selection is pretty good.
2 Likes
I shop at the Pickering Metro on Whites Rd. That is an impressive store with friendly, knowledgeable staff. A real jewel in their empire.
1 Like
Some Metros are really, really nice.
The Metro in Byron in London is very nice, much nicer than the Metro at Oxford and Platts Lane in London .
I used to like the Metro at Bayview and Eglinton, and the Metro at Bathurst and Lawrence. I haven’t been to either one since I moved south of Wilson 10 years ago.
The Metros at Yonge and Lawrence, Bayview and York Mills, Spadina and Bloor, and College and Shaw have never been as nice, in my experience. The pantry items are fine.
The bakery, butcher, produce and fish counter are lacking.
I really like a store that has a good bakery. Most of the small town Foodlands run under the Sobeys umbrella have good bakeries in my experience
Unger’s, a small rustic market, that looks like it should be a down to earth farm market , that also has a bakery in London,ON has been gouging people for years. They have a captive market for anyone who lives nearby that doesn’t have a car. I stopped by to get some grapes and milk while I was waiting to pick up a take-out omelette from the Turkish Café next door.
2 litres of milk costs between $4.99 and $5.79 at No Frills, Food Basic, another indie market called Remark, Loblaws, Metro, Sobeys and Shoppers Drug Mart.
Unger’s was charging $7 99 for 2 litres of milk today. $4.49 for 1 litre. Highway robbery. 
A pound of blueberries at Unger’s
A pint of blueberries anywhere else in London is usually less than 4 bucks. I don’t really buy them out of season so I don’t keep that close of an eye on the prices for importer
I paid $4.99 last weekend for a lb of greenhouse strawberries grown in St Thomas ON.
What I guess I’m saying is, buyer beware! Price check , price check, price check!
3 Likes
I went to an accountant last Saturday morning to have my taxes done and they are south west of where I live. So I hopped on the bus and had my taxes done and since I had a bit of spare time after my appointment, I went to Farmers Pick, an indie grocery store across the street from my accountant’s office. I popped in since it has been getting good reviews and I must admit the size of the store is perfect. It’s the size of grocery store that they used to be before supersized stores became popular. But I was floored how much the groceries cost. Not quite as expensive as Unger’s but I can find groceries quite a bit cheaper at the stores on my usual circuit in downtown Ottawa. My favourite Italian grocer has their in-store olive oil on sale this week for $12.99 reduced from the $19.99 they have been charging lately. It’s imported from Italy and just as good in quality as the expensive brands so I feel the price is reasonable. Still expensive but I’d rather spend $19.99 on their olive oil which I know will be good as opposed to the $20+ olive oil in the grocery stores down the street that don’t taste as good. And the fact that it is on sale is an added incentive to get a bottle.
1 Like
I really don’t like superstores, either. The size is one of the reasons I like Farmboy (yes, I know they’re a part of Sobeys). I like the size of Foodland, as well, but their goods are usually overpriced with less quality and selection. I guess that’s because they’re located in areas with a captive audience and fewer choices overall.
1 Like
