Are you a supermarket snob?
- Thread starter shifty_uk
- Start date
Lidl for me, mainly because it's on my way home from work. I save a lot compared to Sainsburys but there are some things I have to put up with, like random piles of stock blocking the isles and things not being rotated by date. Also the "banana section" is quite hilarious - it's usually a pile of random empty boxes with the odd banana or two hidden underneath. You need to avoid their own-brand cheerios too - the box and the contents seem to be made from the same type of cardboard.
That could have made a good YouTube video
Same here, I do that wherever I park including at work.
We also shop at the closest which just happens to be Sainsburys, however we do prefer it on the basis that we like there stuff and we collect and spend Nectar points on a regular basis. We could probably save a bit of money by changing shops for say Asda or Lidl which are also close by but at the moment happy with sticking.
However if we are passing by another shop and need stuff we will happily use them whatever the shop may be.
However if we are passing by another shop and need stuff we will happily use them whatever the shop may be.
Caporegime
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If you aren't looking for fresh veg, but want to avoid ready made meals, I have to ask: as a vegetarian, what do you expect to be able to buy?
obviously a lot of fresh veg is bought in every shop but apart from that they don't have any frozen quorn products and their aisles just seem to be full of ready meals. i don't think they have any frozen vegetarian stuff apart from vegetables themselves.
we buy ingredients some examples - gram flour, macaroni, pasta, rice, hummus, guacamole, lentils, kidney beans, sweetcorn (tinned), cheese, yogurt, etc. plenty of stuff for vegetarians to eat. however M & S has hummus but topped with fancy crap on top charge 3 times as much for 3 times less product. not paying £4 for a small tub of hummus when a large tub is £1 in ASDA just because it has some paprika sprayed on top of it and a M & S label.
I'd rather get plain hummus for £1 then add whatever topping I want on it myself. Like I said it's already made up for you and charged a crazy premium for doing so.
Same goes for greek yogurt with honey. M & S - around £4, ASDA £1. It's yogurt and honey not exactly caviar how can they justify these prices? I bought it and it tastes rubbish too they had added lemon or something to it. ASDA's own tastes much better and 25% of the price.
Soldato
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- 19 Jan 2006
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Amazon Pantry got its first use from me recently, apart from that I shop at Waitrose due to a lack of other choice!
Caporegime
M&S do plain hummus for about £1 :/ though prob more like £1.50
Are you shopping in one of their "Simply Food" shops (which are their equivalent to Tesco Metro or Sainsbury's Local) or something? They have huge food halls in most of their department stores, which rival (in size) any other supermarket.
Are you shopping in one of their "Simply Food" shops (which are their equivalent to Tesco Metro or Sainsbury's Local) or something? They have huge food halls in most of their department stores, which rival (in size) any other supermarket.
Caporegime
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How can they force you to buy mouldy food? If you can see on the shelf that is mouldy, don't buy that item. Do you put it in your trolley, then complain it's mouldy?
I don't shop there. I've been in ALDI once in the past 2 years and it was to quickly grab milk, bread and some rolls. I had to wait 20 mins to be served as only 1 checkout open. I should have just driven to asda and used self service.
You obviously didn't watch the dispatches investigation.
basically a staff member told the manager their fruit like blueberries had mould on it and he said to him your being too picky unless someone complains just leave it someone will buy it.
basically they don't like to throw anything away and quality control and stock rotation is non existent.
you should watch the show it was an eye opener.
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Soldato
Same which most of the time means Aldi which is a bonus, though it does depend on what we need and which way we're coming back home. We do our shop on a weeknight on the way home from work. Can't stand saturday or sunday food shop.
Caporegime
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M&S do plain hummus for about £1 :/ though prob more like £1.50
Are you shopping in one of their "Simply Food" shops (which are their equivalent to Tesco Metro or Sainsbury's Local) or something? They have huge food halls in most of their department stores, which rival (in size) any other supermarket.
it's been a while since I've been tbh. I just found choice lacking. it is a very small store. more like a large corner store. ASDA is about 100 times the size of it. the one in silverburn also isn't that big too.
i just don't think it's worth the money either. i've bought plenty of stuff from their "HOME" range. I have M & S duvets, couches (very expensive), shirts, ties, etc. But I just think their food range is very expensive for what it is and I found choices lacking and they catered for the ready meal market a lot.
never tried waitrose or ocado the only one we have near us is a good 25 minute drive away (one way).
Man of Honour
It sounds like you've visited the M&S equivalent of a Tesco Metro or Sainsbury's Local so it's not surprising you found the choice lacking and geared more towards the convenience market.
Soldato
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Tesco - Full of dozy Sun readers, half asleep and either stopping dead in the middle of the aisle to gawp at 5p off baked beans, or bashing into your trolley and not realising that you're actually a solid object that they can't just pass through.
Produce seems to go off very quickly, even if it's still in date.
Checkout staff regularly got shouted at for carelessly flinging my shopping into the people before me who are still packing theirs.
Asda - The lowest of the low, a wretched hive of scum and villainy.
Produce is often off before it hits the shelves... as are some staff.
Worse than Tesco, people actually bash you/your trolley out the way *on purpose*... usually in the desperate committee-of-vultures rush to descend upon the Discount section and seize the semi-rotting doughnuts before any of their foul brethren. Some have tried to start fights over the fact that I happened to be passing and lost them a bargain.
I am actually banned from going there as I refuse to back down from such fights!!
Morrisons - Standard fare supermarket, really. Nothing special, nothing bad. Very run-of-the-mill. Shoppers and staff just want to do their thing and get home.
Sainsburys - Slightly posher version of Morrisons, but likes to pretend it's up there with M&S.
Lidl/Aldi - Funky, weird, fashionable, basic, with some interesting finds if you're a dedicated follower of their newsletter. Shoppers range from confused, to savvy and purposeful, but are mindful of your toes. Staff expect you to know how everything works, even if it's your first time there.
M&S - Thinks it's really posh and fancy and well-to-do, so prices stuff accordingly. Thinks its St Michael brand is something special, but truthfully it's just the same stuff at elevated prices. Depending on area, can be full of snooty, pretentious people who, if they actually had the cash/peerage to justify being up their own backside, would really be doing all their shopping at a farm shop. Staff pleasant, but aloof.
Farm Shops - Quite variable in terms of quality stock versus overpriced 'Free-Range Organic' frippery, with a shopper (and staff) population to match. Small local places more likely to have decent quality, while larger ones tend to stock packets of pointless hand made biscuits priced at £9 for a packet of 12.
Good for niche market gluten-free, lactose-free, additive-free, anything-free specialist variant foods, but again you may have to sell your Range Rover by the time you reach the checkout.
Waitrose - The epitome of reasonable quality done with good taste and (mostly) lacking any pretentions. Fine stuff is as fine as you can get without going to specialist shops (wine, especially). Shoppers are courteous and have good manners. Staff seem to have shares in the company so actually care about their image, and are absolutely lovely people who can manage to chat with customers at the checkout, without holding anyone else up... some weird Jedi mind thing, I expect. Most have pretty young girls on Saturday.
I use Waitrose and farm shops when I can afford it, but Morrisons is my usual local.
Produce seems to go off very quickly, even if it's still in date.
Checkout staff regularly got shouted at for carelessly flinging my shopping into the people before me who are still packing theirs.
Asda - The lowest of the low, a wretched hive of scum and villainy.
Produce is often off before it hits the shelves... as are some staff.
Worse than Tesco, people actually bash you/your trolley out the way *on purpose*... usually in the desperate committee-of-vultures rush to descend upon the Discount section and seize the semi-rotting doughnuts before any of their foul brethren. Some have tried to start fights over the fact that I happened to be passing and lost them a bargain.
I am actually banned from going there as I refuse to back down from such fights!!
Morrisons - Standard fare supermarket, really. Nothing special, nothing bad. Very run-of-the-mill. Shoppers and staff just want to do their thing and get home.
Sainsburys - Slightly posher version of Morrisons, but likes to pretend it's up there with M&S.
Lidl/Aldi - Funky, weird, fashionable, basic, with some interesting finds if you're a dedicated follower of their newsletter. Shoppers range from confused, to savvy and purposeful, but are mindful of your toes. Staff expect you to know how everything works, even if it's your first time there.
M&S - Thinks it's really posh and fancy and well-to-do, so prices stuff accordingly. Thinks its St Michael brand is something special, but truthfully it's just the same stuff at elevated prices. Depending on area, can be full of snooty, pretentious people who, if they actually had the cash/peerage to justify being up their own backside, would really be doing all their shopping at a farm shop. Staff pleasant, but aloof.
Farm Shops - Quite variable in terms of quality stock versus overpriced 'Free-Range Organic' frippery, with a shopper (and staff) population to match. Small local places more likely to have decent quality, while larger ones tend to stock packets of pointless hand made biscuits priced at £9 for a packet of 12.
Good for niche market gluten-free, lactose-free, additive-free, anything-free specialist variant foods, but again you may have to sell your Range Rover by the time you reach the checkout.
Waitrose - The epitome of reasonable quality done with good taste and (mostly) lacking any pretentions. Fine stuff is as fine as you can get without going to specialist shops (wine, especially). Shoppers are courteous and have good manners. Staff seem to have shares in the company so actually care about their image, and are absolutely lovely people who can manage to chat with customers at the checkout, without holding anyone else up... some weird Jedi mind thing, I expect. Most have pretty young girls on Saturday.
I use Waitrose and farm shops when I can afford it, but Morrisons is my usual local.
Soldato
Tesco (as it is closest)
Lidl (great for fruit and veg)
Sainsburys
Iceland
Co-op
Lidl (great for fruit and veg)
Sainsburys
Iceland
Co-op
Soldato
Generally Sainsburys as it is the nearest and has a good selection and is always nice, Tesco is also good, we have a Lidl and Aldi nearby(albeit further than Sainsburys) but have discovered that the Chicken (breasts and full chickens) from both Lidl and Aldi, are awful in comparison with the other supermarkets, not just one occasion either, and I don't mean awful as in off, just do not taste as nice at all.
Other stuff from there is fine, and Aldi has decent steak tbh but for Chicken, a no go area.
Morrisons is probably one of my favourites, but a bit further out.
Asda/Waitrose/Co-Op are further out and so don't really use them much but they've been alright when I have done, co-op stuff is generally decent but a bit pricey at times!
Oh, and Iceland for anything fish related, beats all of the others hands-down.
Half the time I always have a voucher for Sainsburys, £10 off or so (seem to get them every time I do a shop!) and so any saving difference between Lidl/Aldi & Sainsburys is pretty much null.
Other stuff from there is fine, and Aldi has decent steak tbh but for Chicken, a no go area.
Morrisons is probably one of my favourites, but a bit further out.
Asda/Waitrose/Co-Op are further out and so don't really use them much but they've been alright when I have done, co-op stuff is generally decent but a bit pricey at times!
Oh, and Iceland for anything fish related, beats all of the others hands-down.
Half the time I always have a voucher for Sainsburys, £10 off or so (seem to get them every time I do a shop!) and so any saving difference between Lidl/Aldi & Sainsburys is pretty much null.
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Associate
- Joined
- 20 Mar 2014
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- 2,361
I just go to Asda because it is the closest one.
Soldato
I have never been to a Lidl or an Asda i admit. For some reason this area is a dead spot for them. There are at least half a dozen supermarkets 5 minutes from me though.
I miss Safeway, they had the the best Rum n Raisin Choc ices and unfortunately i cannot find anything similar by any brand anymore
I miss Safeway, they had the the best Rum n Raisin Choc ices and unfortunately i cannot find anything similar by any brand anymore
I use Asda because I'll generally need something specific which Lidl doesn't stock. If I'm just getting very standard stuff then I'm all for Lidl because the price vs quality is very high in my experience. I go to Tesco/Morrisons /Aldi/Sainsbury etc if they're closest to where I am at the time though.
I've only been to Waitrose once when I was in Bath. I bought a few things from the bakery and didn't really see what the fuss was about. It tastes the same but it's more expensive.
I've only been to Waitrose once when I was in Bath. I bought a few things from the bakery and didn't really see what the fuss was about. It tastes the same but it's more expensive.
Commissario
I was enjoying your post but you lost it all there because the St. Michael brand was dropped in 2000