>Undoubtedly, I’ve ranted about this before, but a story in the Bee has raised my ire again.
My neighborhood or area of Sacramento is sorely lacking when it comes to grocery stores. The SaveMart just flat out sucks, as most seem to do. The Safeway is too small, which is unfortunate because I enjoy a good Safeway (or Vons for my Southern California brethren). And who really goes to Trader Joe’s for regular groceries?
A new Target will be opening in October, but it suffers from the same mentality that I have with Trader Joe’s. It’s not a place for regular grocery shopping. It’s where you get a few items you can’t find at the grocery store or you happen to be in the area and need to pick up a thing or two on your way somewhere.
Which reminds me…I never understand those folks who shop at Wal-Mart like it’s a grocery store. Then again, I can’t understand why anyone would shop at Wal-Mart period. Unless of course they are stuck in a situation where the other options are too far away to be patronized on a regular basis.
While it will be nice to have a new store in the area and as much as I want a new grocery store, the new Target won’t be a substitute for a Raley’s or Bel Air. Even though I’ve been told it’s a pipe dream, I’m still hoping one of those stores will suddenly appear.
>I had that problem in Seattle. I had one close grocery store to choose from. I shop at Wal-Mart now because there are like 7 of them within maybe 10 miles of where I live and it is "super" and has some GF stuff I can't get elsewhere and a cheese brand I like. Usually I like regular grocery stores though. And I really don't like "super" stores because I feel like they don't have enough variety since they cram 2 stores into one.
>I am a loyal Raley's and Walmart shopper. I love Walmart for their cheap staples, frozen foods and household goods. I love saving money, so if I have to shop with the "unwashed masses" as Mr. B puts it, no biggie. I love Raley's for their produce and steaks – yeah, it's a bit pricey, but since I try to buy what's on sale and not do ALL my grocery shopping there, I don't mind so much.
It sucks your Savemart is no good. The one we have here is about as nice as Raley's and the workers are so friendly. But then again, the Winco we had in WA was really nice and regular people shopped there, so I was sadly disappointed when I tried to shop at the Winco hellhole of trashy folk in South Sac.
>Joanne – I agree and think that's why I'm not excited about the new Target. The whole cramming everything into one store doesn't appeal to me. Variety and quality usually suffer for it or I perceive it that way.
M – It's funny because everyone says Raley's & Bel Air are way more expensive than everywhere else. I wonder if this is true or just how people perceive it. WinCo's have kind of scared me, but maybe it's just the neighborhoods in which they are usually located.
>I have a Raleys a block from me, a TJs 1/2 mile, a Whole Foods 1/2 mile, and a Walmart 1/4 mile.
I won't go into Walmart, I have not found that stuff is that much cheaper there, and I don't need to save 50 cents or a dollar that bad.
I won't grocery shop at Target but there have been times when I've bought stuff at Target and then wanted to pick something up for dinner rather than going to another store. So, it will be handy in that case. I'm lucky that I have so many choices nearby.