FW vs. RVA: Grocery Stores

Warning: If your name isn't Megan, Mandy or Lelia, you may think this post is totally lame....

The amount of grocery stores here in FW is insane, as evidenced by the amount of grocery fliers (left) that came one recent Wednesday! Some things are universal: Because of the longer grower season here and our proximity to Mexico, the fruits and veggies are really ripe and varied. For example, we hadn't been able to find star fruit in RVA for the longest time but Central Market has them. Generally, food prices are the same or cheaper (as in the case of produce), but since the sales tax is higher our grocery bill is usually more than it was in RVA.

But each store has its own draw. For example, I've gushed countless times about Central Market (about 13 minutes from our house), but it's just so awesome I have to tell you more. For starters, they have a playground outside. It's so nice to let Nigel run around a bit before we go inside and shop. Once we're inside, the produce selection is nice but kind of overwhelming; I'm pretty sure there are at least a dozen types of apples on any given day. Thankfully, they're all labeled well: conventional vs. organic, local, etc. After you bag your fruit or veg you take it to a scale to measure it and print out a barcode label. I guess the point is that if the cashier can scan the label they don't waste time looking up the countless produce barcodes. The process took a while to get used to, and it frequently causes a traffic jam. It also forces me to bag my produce in individual plastic bags, whereas I usually just let them hang loose or use a reusable mesh bag. (Central market also doesn't offer a discount for bringing reusable grocery bags. Additionally, it's kind of seen as a healthier grocery store, but they don't abide by the same rules — no high fructose corn syrup, etc. — as say Whole Foods or Ellwood Thompson does when selecting items for their shelves, so that slows me down a bit.)

The meat selection here is really nice, but of course it's pricey. I recently asked the butcher for 4 whole chicken breasts, but because I was at the red meat section of the counter I didn't see the price before ordering. It wasn't until checkout that I realized it was $15!!! That's one expensive dinner. The canned goods here are priced in line with what you'd find at Whole Foods. One of my favorite parts of the store, though, is the bulk bin section. It's huge — easily 5 times what you'd find at Ellwood Thompson (9 minutes from our RVA house). We're big lentil eaters here, so I love that they carry so many types. They also have a dozen or so kinds of trail mix, lots of dried fruits, candies and coffee. The bakery and cheese sections here are nice, but I usually bypass them because of the cost. I have gotten some good cheeses for entertaining, though. My next favorite spot is the dip/tapas/condiment bar. Here you'll find the best spinach/artichoke dip I've ever had, pickles, hummus, pesto, etc. Lastly, before checkout we pass by the prepared foods. The selection is nice, and we occasionally get sandwiches here (my favorite is the pesto, tomato and mozzarella). We actually got chopped beef brisket for sandwiches for our Super Bowl party for 3.

In RVA, our main grocery stores were Whole Foods (22 minutes from our RVA house) and Trader Joe's (23 minutes from our RVA house). Sadly, there's no Trader Joe's here (Thanks to the Cox family for our TJ care package!), but we do go to the local Whole Foods sometimes (14 minutes from home). This location is much, much smaller than our old store in Short Pump. It's less than half the size of the one we visited in Dallas a few weeks ago... more on par with the location in Charlottesville. The middle of the store is about the same, but the produce, bakery, meat, cheese and prepared foods sections are smaller. We might start going here more often since it's closer to the YMCA Nigel and I go to during the week.

There's a Kroger nearby, but Tim says it's not super great. So for quick purchases in between big shopping trips, we go to Albertons (9 minutes from home). Albertons is kind of in line with Food Lion. I would never buy meat here, and the produce can be dicey, too. For example, I recently found baby red potatoes in a refrigerated bin in the produce section that had been sprayed with water. Gross.

Next up is Aldi (16 minutes from home), which has a connection to Trader Joe's but is NOTHING like Trader Joe's. Off the bat, two interesting things about Aldi that keep costs down: You pay a quarter to get a cart (the quarter's refunded when you return the cart), and they charge you for each paper or plastic bag you use if you don't bring your own bags. The prices here are cheap, but the selection is limited and the quality is very poor. For example, canned beans were 59 cents each, but the day I went they only have lima beans. There was very little produce, and the frozen meats looked icky. The icing on this yucky cake is that as the cashier scans your goods she throws it back into your cart. After you pay for your goods you walk over to a little counter and bag your own groceries. I will not be going back.