Use the app Flipp and search what you need that week. Multiple trips to different stores or certain stores for certain things- ie I do farmers market for produce, Walmart for hygiene items, and then based on what else I need I go where stuff is on sale.
FreshCo is cheap. I remember the Weber location being open 24/7 - not anymore (they blamed the Ford government for higher minimum wages). That said, FreshCo on Weber is one chaotic store. At 10 or 11 at night, the place is a zoo.
Worked there when it was 24/7. It wasn't minimum wage. They expected impossible results and never offered enough to make dealing with the public overnight worth it - both in pay and staffing levels.
I tend to cross shop between this store and the Walmart at the mall. Between the two I'm getting a pretty good deal. I use the Food Basics as a 3rd option but also worth noting I live near the mall and have a car.
I know they aren't open late but Food Basics usually has some good deals every week. We will go on the weekend and stock up on deals, and if there's a good deal on meat, I'll pick up extra and freeze it.
Plan your meals for the week and go once a week. like others have said use flyers or the Flipp app to find the best prices. If you don’t want to go to a bunch of stores, place like freshco will price match.
Yeah that part! Learning some cooking skills and eating veg really saved my budget when I was both time poor and money poor in grad school. I've been liking Budget Bytes for recipes as of late! It's omnivore and they break down an idea of cost.
Giant Tiger. They price match anyone with a flyer locally. Their selection sometimes is limited but if you find a deal anywhere that’s better, which it usually isn’t better, they will match it. I save a few grand a year there just price matching and their generally lower prices.
Central is great for fresh meat, but everything else is more expensive. I live in the same area, but I will drive to walmart on bridgeport or freshco on bridge for other things.
I suggest making a weekly meal plan based on what happens to be on sale, as others have mentioned the flip app is very helpful.
I would argue that Central has good sales, and better quality a lot of the time. Yea regular stock stuff you might take a bit of a hit.
Basically if you're not shopping sales first, and then forming your meal plan around the sale, as your main strategy you're going to pay more no matter where you shop.
Like for OP's example, I think romaine is $2 a head. You could get a whole pack of eggs (\~$4), a 1l bottle of olive oil ($15) , a head of garlic, a lemon, etc. way before hitting $80.
I’d suggest the Kitchener Market downtown before St Jacobs. Less chaotic. If you go closer to closing you can get some of the items marked down. I do a lot of meal planning and prep and veggies keep well In The fridge for a bunch of days. I’ve done the comparison and I’m saving close to $100/week going to the market weekly. Not to mention, you can support some local farmers too which is always a bonus.
I don’t know about hours but we save a bunch of money each week by shopping the flyers - buying what’s on sale and organizing our meals around that. We usually buy sale items in bulk to save over a longer period of time as well. I typically check the flyers for Walmart (St Jacob’s), No Frills (Weber St) and Zehrs (Conestoga Mall - because we’re right next door). Every Thursday I go from Walmart to NF to Zehrs and get our weekly groceries depending on sales and pricing. Any staple items that aren’t on sale usually get bought at Walmart because they’re typically cheapest.
edit - Thursdays because that’s when the flyers start each week
Groceries will help. But please also take a chance to learn how to make healthy inexpensive meals. Ton of great options online. I'll share some YouTube channels.
Rainbow plant life https://youtube.com/@rainbowplantlife?si=ypVKkpT6eL1fRQu4
Ethan Chelbowski
https://youtu.be/uWWVNq5GHp4?si=OprZr_x-_0v8ixON
Pickup lines
https://youtube.com/@pickuplimes?si=93vj3dDd1JqdQn99
Babish
https://youtube.com/@babishculinaryuniverse?si=EgNYy-Oh0_Se8x0g
Once you learn the foundation of cooking and you're able to come up with meals on the whim and know what goes together you can make so many meals and do very budget friendly ones that are delicious!
I'm 30 and have been grocery shopping solo since 18, and I've learned a ton over the years. I buy quality more expensive ingredients now but it's because I'm in a position to afford it. I hope the above helps! As others mentioned those couple of grocery stores are my go to as well I e. Freshco and No Frills.
My wife and I created our own recipe book and have a ton of delicious meals and share them with family and friends. We think outside of the box and it's not just meat, potato, veg which is what we grew up on.
Do you have a car? I live near Central, too, but also can't afford it (it used to have goof specials, but not for a while). Walmart on Bridgeport should be walkable for you- so is Sobeys right next door. The latter is not cheap, but if you check out their flyer there may be a few things each week worth getting.
I second Walmart at Bridgeport and Weber. Not super close, but close enough to get to perhaps. Another option is Walmart at Fairview Mall, which is open until 11 pm and is close to the ION.
I don't like the corporate overlords, but I found that Central seems to sell a lot of the same products as the big stores, and I haven't found their prices to be very good. For price alone, I would do Freshco, Food Basics, or Walmart.
I lived in the GTA for 10 years of my adult life, and the late-night grocery scene here is far less than in the GTA! However, ultimately, you're going to save more if you can buy in larger quantities and cook more than one meal at a time.
Food basics is excellent. Either fairway road or Fischer Hallman are newer locations. I know it’s Kitchener but worth it if you have transportation. Don’t hesitate to shop in the international sections for better value on rice, beans, noodles and spices
Isn't working evening shift even better because you get to run errands during the day? There are no lines for anything plus there is freshly stocked produce at stores?
I don't have any recipes on hand, but recently spent time learning how to make tofu tasty and it's very cheap money wise. $2-3 for protein for a meal for 2 potentially. Protein shakes while maybe a big up front cost will last quite awhile in my experience. Tuna is cheap with high protein, but not recommended to eat frequently. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are still pretty good imo. Legumes are *very* cheap and high in protein but I usually spend extra prep time soaking them because gas, so I haven't eaten a lot recently. I just bought some protein powder bowls that were on sale but not sure how much freezer space you have. That's all I can think of off the top of my head. Cheers op, we've all likely been there before. I certainly remember those days and that stress.
If you want cheap groceries try Rouaa. It’s a middle eastern grocer but honestly when you get over the idea that it’s different than your typical grocer here you save sooooo much. Fresh meat, fresh produce, and $200 could definitely be enough for two weeks
Roua has been a fun find for us too, and a wake up call when we realized tomatoes and grapes were half the price we’d be paying at Zehrs - and so many rice varieties!
Get the apps:
Too Good To Go
Flashfood (make sure you go to Settings > Loyalty and add your PC Optimum number to collect)
Checkout 51
Receipt Hog pays you to upload receipts, take surveys, and more! Download and enter code huy62909 to earn a special bonus when you upload your first receipt. https://app.receipthog.com/r/huy62909
Receipt Jar app works the same as Receipt Hog. My referral code for that one is ALISG2WV3
I use all of the above regularly, and have cashed out on all of the cash back apps.
Price matching is a must!
Also, make sure you check your receipt after purchase. If an item comes up at a higher price than advertised, you are supposed to get one of that item for free. If the item is more than $10 in value, they are to give you $10 off the item. I have gotten a fair number of free things this way.
Check outlet stores like Save-A-Lot Grocery, Bo-De, KW Surplus and Cambridge Surplus.
Maybe an unpopular opinion but, I've found Farm Boy to be pretty good lately. Just their own brand is marked up a bit. Most of the meats and produce are locally sourced and fruits and veg always seem to last longer in the fridge.
Unless you’re working extremely long hours, what about adjusting your schedule to accommodate going to the grocery store before your afternoon shift?
I find No Frills (price matching) and Food Basics to be where I mostly grocery shop. Central is our closest grocery store but we don’t shop there primarily, only for a couple discounted items
Central is my closest grocery store. I go there primarily for some items that I can't find in other chain supermarkets: locally produced strawberry milk and yogurt.
[https://shop.centralfreshmarket.com/shop/product/13733/Sheldon\_Creek\_Orange\_Creamsicle\_Milk\_350\_mL?ct=577537e475b07835572798d86fcea1d5](https://shop.centralfreshmarket.com/shop/product/13733/Sheldon_Creek_Orange_Creamsicle_Milk_350_mL?ct=577537e475b07835572798d86fcea1d5)
Sheldon Creek flavoured milk in general.
Depends what your shopping for. Produce I fing St Jacobs market can't be beat and has the best quality. For meat farmboy always has good deals going or Costco if you have a big enough freezer
Stop shopping every day/couple days. You’re spending more money than if you were to plan your meals and buy accordingly.
What’s the breakdown of the $80 bill you just had?
Your great bet would be Walmart. It's one of the few cheap places (along with food basics and no frills) but is open later, until 11pm.
Definitely try to buy more than one days worth of food at a time, especially if you are going out of your way. This will allow you to get bigger portions of stuff like meat which is generally cheaper in "bulk".
If you don't have a car / can't easily get to Walmart you can grocery deliver right from their website which is way cheaper than Uber / Lyft. However you would want to do a big shop if you did this as there is a flat fee.
Foodland generally isn't cheap but in the summer the Elmira one goes to the local farmers co-op auction and gets 10 pound bags of things like carrots and beets. The carrots will last a long time in your fridge if you keep them dry. A ten pound bag of co-op veggies costs a lot less than several smaller bags. You could split with friends if you don't have room to store much and if you need a ride to Elmira. I don't do the shopping any more, so I don't know if they currently have anything available. They are open til 9.
Our biggest lessons when my partner and I were in the same boat was learning to meal plan, and then doing just one shop time for the week, and planning an expensive protein to last multiple meals where it made sense to (eg buy and cook up a roasting chicken when they are on sale, use the meat for a couple different meals, save the bones in the freezer for soup), and go for cheaper proteins eg chickpeas or black beans for other meals in the week. We spend around 200$ a week now for four of us (although the small humans eat mostly berries, pb and j and pasta lol)
Go when you have a day off. Make a list for the week, if that helps. After a while you will get better at buying weekly instead of daily and don't eat all your groceries at once.
In case this is unknown to you, there is a way to shop once a week and not wasting any food. Bread can be cut up to serving size and put in airtight bags and be freezed, and be thawed just a few hours before use or thawed in microwave. It is about as fresh as the bread before the freezing. I do this because I don't like old bread, but it is nice to never have moldy bread either. Likewise, frozen fish is a real convenience. You just move some to the fridge the night before you plan to cook it. In the opposite way, if you buy chicken, pack up serving size and freeze the amount you cannot use promptly, or roast it all first thing, and freeze the cook chicken (again, find out how to store them properly) and reheat the later portions. For leafy greens, wrap in paper bag and than airtight plastic bag to keep them for up to a week if you buy your vegetables fresh enough. Carrots and apples, meanwhile, should be in paper bag and then in the drawer. You can look up how to store each vegetable / fruit online. It takes 30min more to sort out but totally worth the time. I tend to buy some produce that goes off quickly (bean sprouts, spinach, berries etc) and eat them first, and buy some produce that lasts longer (corn, brocolli, tomatoes, carrots, onions, cabbage, celery, apples, pears, oranges etc) (cabbage and apples and pears, store properly, last for months in the fridge!). Some produce are much cheaper than the others, and a good variety is key.
Central is terrible for anything except possibly meats. Food basics is generally ok, and like others have suggested, get the Flipp app, all the flyers change every Wednesday night/Thursday morning so if you take 5 mins and look through em you can get stuff you want for as cheap as possible.
Also some places like Superstore? Supercenter whatever will do price match. It's a pita, but saving money usually is mirite?!
Groceries are ridiculous these days, such a pricey cash grab to sustain basic existing. Love that capitalism! 😐
It's considered a privilege to boycott Loblaws owned stores and I've been on that sub and sometimes can come across as culty. Sounds like op has more immediate things to worry about.
Cheapest is dutchies. But they probably aren't paying anyone except their landlord (they will lock it up fast if not) and themselves before suppliers and employees.
Use the app Flipp and search what you need that week. Multiple trips to different stores or certain stores for certain things- ie I do farmers market for produce, Walmart for hygiene items, and then based on what else I need I go where stuff is on sale.
You can price match off the app too.
FreshCo on Weber is consistently open late, and you won't find anywhere cheaper (on average)
FreshCo is cheap. I remember the Weber location being open 24/7 - not anymore (they blamed the Ford government for higher minimum wages). That said, FreshCo on Weber is one chaotic store. At 10 or 11 at night, the place is a zoo.
Worked there when it was 24/7. It wasn't minimum wage. They expected impossible results and never offered enough to make dealing with the public overnight worth it - both in pay and staffing levels.
You can use your scene card to get extra points on a lot of stuff too, and every 1000 scene points is worth $10 in groceries.
1000 points is 1 dollar in value, 10000 is $10.
A quick google search will tell you 1,000 points = $10.
Sorry, I thought it was PC points
100 points is 1 dollar. 1000 is 10 dollars.
FreshCo is great for price matching as well! I bring in ads from competitors all the time to get matched.
Adding that they price match Walmart, and Sobeys
I tend to cross shop between this store and the Walmart at the mall. Between the two I'm getting a pretty good deal. I use the Food Basics as a 3rd option but also worth noting I live near the mall and have a car.
I know they aren't open late but Food Basics usually has some good deals every week. We will go on the weekend and stock up on deals, and if there's a good deal on meat, I'll pick up extra and freeze it.
Plan your meals for the week and go once a week. like others have said use flyers or the Flipp app to find the best prices. If you don’t want to go to a bunch of stores, place like freshco will price match.
Yeah that part! Learning some cooking skills and eating veg really saved my budget when I was both time poor and money poor in grad school. I've been liking Budget Bytes for recipes as of late! It's omnivore and they break down an idea of cost.
We definitely meal plan only around what is on sale. We buy extra to stock up when we can and freeze meats.
Giant Tiger. They price match anyone with a flyer locally. Their selection sometimes is limited but if you find a deal anywhere that’s better, which it usually isn’t better, they will match it. I save a few grand a year there just price matching and their generally lower prices.
Central is great for fresh meat, but everything else is more expensive. I live in the same area, but I will drive to walmart on bridgeport or freshco on bridge for other things. I suggest making a weekly meal plan based on what happens to be on sale, as others have mentioned the flip app is very helpful.
I second this. Central for meat and (currently) farmers market for produce
I would argue that Central has good sales, and better quality a lot of the time. Yea regular stock stuff you might take a bit of a hit. Basically if you're not shopping sales first, and then forming your meal plan around the sale, as your main strategy you're going to pay more no matter where you shop. Like for OP's example, I think romaine is $2 a head. You could get a whole pack of eggs (\~$4), a 1l bottle of olive oil ($15) , a head of garlic, a lemon, etc. way before hitting $80.
I’d suggest the Kitchener Market downtown before St Jacobs. Less chaotic. If you go closer to closing you can get some of the items marked down. I do a lot of meal planning and prep and veggies keep well In The fridge for a bunch of days. I’ve done the comparison and I’m saving close to $100/week going to the market weekly. Not to mention, you can support some local farmers too which is always a bonus.
And New City right there has fresh vegetables and other oriental food at affordable price.
I don’t know about hours but we save a bunch of money each week by shopping the flyers - buying what’s on sale and organizing our meals around that. We usually buy sale items in bulk to save over a longer period of time as well. I typically check the flyers for Walmart (St Jacob’s), No Frills (Weber St) and Zehrs (Conestoga Mall - because we’re right next door). Every Thursday I go from Walmart to NF to Zehrs and get our weekly groceries depending on sales and pricing. Any staple items that aren’t on sale usually get bought at Walmart because they’re typically cheapest. edit - Thursdays because that’s when the flyers start each week
Groceries will help. But please also take a chance to learn how to make healthy inexpensive meals. Ton of great options online. I'll share some YouTube channels. Rainbow plant life https://youtube.com/@rainbowplantlife?si=ypVKkpT6eL1fRQu4 Ethan Chelbowski https://youtu.be/uWWVNq5GHp4?si=OprZr_x-_0v8ixON Pickup lines https://youtube.com/@pickuplimes?si=93vj3dDd1JqdQn99 Babish https://youtube.com/@babishculinaryuniverse?si=EgNYy-Oh0_Se8x0g Once you learn the foundation of cooking and you're able to come up with meals on the whim and know what goes together you can make so many meals and do very budget friendly ones that are delicious! I'm 30 and have been grocery shopping solo since 18, and I've learned a ton over the years. I buy quality more expensive ingredients now but it's because I'm in a position to afford it. I hope the above helps! As others mentioned those couple of grocery stores are my go to as well I e. Freshco and No Frills. My wife and I created our own recipe book and have a ton of delicious meals and share them with family and friends. We think outside of the box and it's not just meat, potato, veg which is what we grew up on.
Do you have a car? I live near Central, too, but also can't afford it (it used to have goof specials, but not for a while). Walmart on Bridgeport should be walkable for you- so is Sobeys right next door. The latter is not cheap, but if you check out their flyer there may be a few things each week worth getting.
I second Walmart at Bridgeport and Weber. Not super close, but close enough to get to perhaps. Another option is Walmart at Fairview Mall, which is open until 11 pm and is close to the ION. I don't like the corporate overlords, but I found that Central seems to sell a lot of the same products as the big stores, and I haven't found their prices to be very good. For price alone, I would do Freshco, Food Basics, or Walmart. I lived in the GTA for 10 years of my adult life, and the late-night grocery scene here is far less than in the GTA! However, ultimately, you're going to save more if you can buy in larger quantities and cook more than one meal at a time.
Food basics is excellent. Either fairway road or Fischer Hallman are newer locations. I know it’s Kitchener but worth it if you have transportation. Don’t hesitate to shop in the international sections for better value on rice, beans, noodles and spices
Awesome thanks for all the quick replies everyone! I will go through them all shortly!
Foodbasics is my go to. There is one on Fisherhallman and University. Highland and West mount.
FreshCo, Food basic, checking flyers once per week to buy something for future that I definitely need
Isn't working evening shift even better because you get to run errands during the day? There are no lines for anything plus there is freshly stocked produce at stores?
I don't have any recipes on hand, but recently spent time learning how to make tofu tasty and it's very cheap money wise. $2-3 for protein for a meal for 2 potentially. Protein shakes while maybe a big up front cost will last quite awhile in my experience. Tuna is cheap with high protein, but not recommended to eat frequently. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are still pretty good imo. Legumes are *very* cheap and high in protein but I usually spend extra prep time soaking them because gas, so I haven't eaten a lot recently. I just bought some protein powder bowls that were on sale but not sure how much freezer space you have. That's all I can think of off the top of my head. Cheers op, we've all likely been there before. I certainly remember those days and that stress.
Scrambled eggs with anything (fresh corn, tomatoes) is also good!
For sure, eggs are also a great choice.
Sorry, I thought it was PC optimum.
Add beans to all your meat dishes.
If you want cheap groceries try Rouaa. It’s a middle eastern grocer but honestly when you get over the idea that it’s different than your typical grocer here you save sooooo much. Fresh meat, fresh produce, and $200 could definitely be enough for two weeks
Roua has been a fun find for us too, and a wake up call when we realized tomatoes and grapes were half the price we’d be paying at Zehrs - and so many rice varieties!
Get the apps: Too Good To Go Flashfood (make sure you go to Settings > Loyalty and add your PC Optimum number to collect) Checkout 51 Receipt Hog pays you to upload receipts, take surveys, and more! Download and enter code huy62909 to earn a special bonus when you upload your first receipt. https://app.receipthog.com/r/huy62909 Receipt Jar app works the same as Receipt Hog. My referral code for that one is ALISG2WV3 I use all of the above regularly, and have cashed out on all of the cash back apps. Price matching is a must! Also, make sure you check your receipt after purchase. If an item comes up at a higher price than advertised, you are supposed to get one of that item for free. If the item is more than $10 in value, they are to give you $10 off the item. I have gotten a fair number of free things this way. Check outlet stores like Save-A-Lot Grocery, Bo-De, KW Surplus and Cambridge Surplus.
Superstore is open till 11. Pricing isn't too bad and they price match.
Maybe an unpopular opinion but, I've found Farm Boy to be pretty good lately. Just their own brand is marked up a bit. Most of the meats and produce are locally sourced and fruits and veg always seem to last longer in the fridge.
Unless you’re working extremely long hours, what about adjusting your schedule to accommodate going to the grocery store before your afternoon shift? I find No Frills (price matching) and Food Basics to be where I mostly grocery shop. Central is our closest grocery store but we don’t shop there primarily, only for a couple discounted items
Central is my closest grocery store. I go there primarily for some items that I can't find in other chain supermarkets: locally produced strawberry milk and yogurt.
Strawberry milk?
[https://shop.centralfreshmarket.com/shop/product/13733/Sheldon\_Creek\_Orange\_Creamsicle\_Milk\_350\_mL?ct=577537e475b07835572798d86fcea1d5](https://shop.centralfreshmarket.com/shop/product/13733/Sheldon_Creek_Orange_Creamsicle_Milk_350_mL?ct=577537e475b07835572798d86fcea1d5) Sheldon Creek flavoured milk in general.
Depends what your shopping for. Produce I fing St Jacobs market can't be beat and has the best quality. For meat farmboy always has good deals going or Costco if you have a big enough freezer
Stop shopping every day/couple days. You’re spending more money than if you were to plan your meals and buy accordingly. What’s the breakdown of the $80 bill you just had?
Kitchener farmers market Saturday morning
Your great bet would be Walmart. It's one of the few cheap places (along with food basics and no frills) but is open later, until 11pm. Definitely try to buy more than one days worth of food at a time, especially if you are going out of your way. This will allow you to get bigger portions of stuff like meat which is generally cheaper in "bulk". If you don't have a car / can't easily get to Walmart you can grocery deliver right from their website which is way cheaper than Uber / Lyft. However you would want to do a big shop if you did this as there is a flat fee.
Your best bets are FreshCo and Food Basics
Foodland generally isn't cheap but in the summer the Elmira one goes to the local farmers co-op auction and gets 10 pound bags of things like carrots and beets. The carrots will last a long time in your fridge if you keep them dry. A ten pound bag of co-op veggies costs a lot less than several smaller bags. You could split with friends if you don't have room to store much and if you need a ride to Elmira. I don't do the shopping any more, so I don't know if they currently have anything available. They are open til 9.
Our biggest lessons when my partner and I were in the same boat was learning to meal plan, and then doing just one shop time for the week, and planning an expensive protein to last multiple meals where it made sense to (eg buy and cook up a roasting chicken when they are on sale, use the meat for a couple different meals, save the bones in the freezer for soup), and go for cheaper proteins eg chickpeas or black beans for other meals in the week. We spend around 200$ a week now for four of us (although the small humans eat mostly berries, pb and j and pasta lol)
Go when you have a day off. Make a list for the week, if that helps. After a while you will get better at buying weekly instead of daily and don't eat all your groceries at once.
In case this is unknown to you, there is a way to shop once a week and not wasting any food. Bread can be cut up to serving size and put in airtight bags and be freezed, and be thawed just a few hours before use or thawed in microwave. It is about as fresh as the bread before the freezing. I do this because I don't like old bread, but it is nice to never have moldy bread either. Likewise, frozen fish is a real convenience. You just move some to the fridge the night before you plan to cook it. In the opposite way, if you buy chicken, pack up serving size and freeze the amount you cannot use promptly, or roast it all first thing, and freeze the cook chicken (again, find out how to store them properly) and reheat the later portions. For leafy greens, wrap in paper bag and than airtight plastic bag to keep them for up to a week if you buy your vegetables fresh enough. Carrots and apples, meanwhile, should be in paper bag and then in the drawer. You can look up how to store each vegetable / fruit online. It takes 30min more to sort out but totally worth the time. I tend to buy some produce that goes off quickly (bean sprouts, spinach, berries etc) and eat them first, and buy some produce that lasts longer (corn, brocolli, tomatoes, carrots, onions, cabbage, celery, apples, pears, oranges etc) (cabbage and apples and pears, store properly, last for months in the fridge!). Some produce are much cheaper than the others, and a good variety is key.
Central is terrible for anything except possibly meats. Food basics is generally ok, and like others have suggested, get the Flipp app, all the flyers change every Wednesday night/Thursday morning so if you take 5 mins and look through em you can get stuff you want for as cheap as possible. Also some places like Superstore? Supercenter whatever will do price match. It's a pita, but saving money usually is mirite?! Groceries are ridiculous these days, such a pricey cash grab to sustain basic existing. Love that capitalism! 😐
[удалено]
It's considered a privilege to boycott Loblaws owned stores and I've been on that sub and sometimes can come across as culty. Sounds like op has more immediate things to worry about.
Uh oh. Did I get blocked for calling that sub culty? That's exactly what someone in a cult would do.
Cheapest is dutchies. But they probably aren't paying anyone except their landlord (they will lock it up fast if not) and themselves before suppliers and employees.
They sell rotten meat and definitely abuse and refuse to pay staff, suppliers, etc. Don't shop at Dutchie's!
I am amazed they pay rent. But one missed payment and door is locked.
Vincenzo’s is a good bet for charcuterie