Monday, February 7, 2011

Walmart - Follow-up on fresh product

I wanted to pop in here and follow-up on my last post about the Walmart Super-center in NE Edmonton. 

The fresh produce department is now open, and on Saturday, I managed to take a good long walk through there and compared some of the prices.  I'd say that the produce prices are equal, and possibly a little cheaper than Superstores, depending on what's on sale at the time.  Though the produce looks fresh and of great quality, the prices still cannot beat H & W Produce.  Apples are at least $0.20 cheaper per pound at H&W, and potatoes are about half the price.

H&W doesn't have the brand name bags of potatoes, and their apples are sometimes bruised and marked.  But again, that's what makes it a discount store, and that's why their prices just can't be beat.

Walmart had bananas for $0.57 a pound, which matches perfectly with H&W's regular price.  Lemons, limes, and pineapples were also priced similarly. 

All things considered though, I have to say that I'll be sticking with H&W for my fresh produce and only purchasing produce that is on sale at Walmart. 

Friday, February 4, 2011

Walmart - 137 ave & 40 Street, Edmonton

Okay folks.  So I've raved about Walmart's recent grocery prices, specifically their "Great Value" brand items, but now it got even better.

At the Clareview Walmart here in Edmonton, AB (137 ave & 40 Street), they've just added a fresh food department.  I was a bit skeptical about the quality of their food verses the prices, so I went in to see for myself.  When I walked in, I was slightly overwhelmed at the magnitude of the changes in the grocery department.

To me, Walmart is full of clothes, toys, kitchen gadgets, electronics, and health and beauty supplies.  When I walked in and saw bins of potatoes, piles of yellow bananas and fresh tomatoes, and a host of other fresh foods, I was amazed.  Then I started to see the prices.  $0.57 a pound for bananas?  $6 for a massive pizza that doesn't even fit on the biggest pan I own?  $12 for two healthy looking roasting chickens? $23 for 2.5 kgs of frozen chicken breasts?  $.1.50 for a 900g package of pasta- no matter what type of pasta? That impressed me.

I have yet to try the Great Value brand meat, and haven't yet tried too many of their vegetables, so I cannot comment on the quality yet.  What I can say though, is that I was very impressed with the prices on nearly every grocery item in the store.  Even the brand name products seemed to be well priced.

Since shopping for 80% of my groceries at Walmart, I have been able to save a lot of cash.  I notice only minor quality differences.  For example, the Great Value brand pasta is a little stickier than Catelli, and it takes a little longer too cook.  The Great Value cheese seems to be softer and more difficult to slice than some of the other brands.  To me though, these differences are not worth the money I save by not purchasing brand name products.  I don't mind if my noodles aren't perfect, a little sauce will cover that up nicely.  My cheese simply looks a little squished when I slice it, and that's just too bad!

For bread though, I still hit the Bread Basket for their 10 loaves for $10 sale.  All the day-old bread is $1 a loaf, provided that you purchase 10 loaves.  There is usually a good selection of what types of bread you can purchase, everything from bagels to wraps, to nutritious breads.  I freeze 9 loaves, and put one on the counter.  If you don't have the space to freeze the bread, try finding a friend who would like to split the deal with you, $5 for 5 loaves each.

Is there better places in Edmonton to shop for groceries? Let me know!  I'd love to find new places to save money, and it's a bonus to be able to share with others and help them save money too.