Lidl is going to open where Key Foods used to be. That will be exciting. I've never been to one, but I know it's like Aldi.
And a mini Whole Foods is opening on Grand and Humboldt where Liberty Department Store used to be. As long as it has flowers, olive oil, and butter, I'll be happy. That's all I go to the regular one for. They don't even have sherry vinegar there anymore.
Housing! From New York Yimby:
The proposed 75-foot-tall development will yield 93,259 square feet, with 92,098 square feet designated for residential space and 1,160 square feet for commercial space. The building will have 134 residences, most likely rentals based on the average unit scope of 687 square feet. The concrete-based structure will also have a cellar, a 35-foot-long rear yard, and 67 enclosed parking spaces on the first floor. There will also be 15 bicycle parking spaces on the first floor and 52 bicycle parking spaces in the cellar.
With only 1,160 square feet for commercial space, that isn't going to be a Key Food again.
Yesterday I went to the new Trader Joe's. I went on an empty stomach, so I was surprised I barely bought anything. Partly because I'm going to Pittsburgh soon so I didn't want to stock up, but I also just didn't think anything was a good deal anymore. Whole Foods has better frozen vegetables for the most part. I ended up getting frozen Brussels sprouts, a bag of walnuts, hot honey sauce (it has vinegar in it too, and was under $3), and dried thyme.
Then I went to Key Food. Most aisles were blocked off. There were some cans of soup. There were still a bunch of frozen turkeys. Everything was 50% off, but there was nothing left I wanted. I guess I am done forever.
I did go to Key Food last weekend for some 50% off things, but I got ripped off. Some of the pastas were $2, and I'd ordinarily spend $1, so that was fine but not a bargain. I saw a can of coconut milk for $2, and figured $1 is fine. But when I wasn't looking, it rang up as $6! So I got a $3 can of coconut milk which is outrageous.
Last night I went and it was packed and way more cleared out than I expected. I got 2 jars of peanut butter and 3 bags of dried cannellini beans (all the rest).
Today I needed to break a $20 to do laundry, so I went back. I didn't end up breaking the $20 there, but I did get gorgonzola, 2 cans of tomato juice, a jar of hot horseradish, a tube of anchovy paste (which I've never bought before), a bag of Starbucks coffee beans (which I've never bought before, but people have given me both a French press and a coffee grinder within about the last 6 weeks, so I am going to try something new). I also got sun-dried tomatoes, which I'm not sure if I even like much or if they were a good price. I ended spending $25 after they took the 30% off. Oh, I got dark soy sauce too. I've wanted dark soy sauce for a while, though I don't know why.
Maybe tomorrow they will have different sales (since it's Friday) or they'll increase from 30%. Nobody is buying their oil or pasta at all.
I saw a story on Instagram about it. The whole store is 30% off now.
I went to Pennsylvania for over a week, which disrupted my habits. I only spent about 20 minutes in a Giant Eagle during that whole trip, so there isn't much to say about it. I did come back with a lot of frozen banana peppers my brother grew and some Tabascos my mother grew.
When I got back, I noticed Bravo renovated its entrance. I haven't bought anything there yet.
I got flour and onions at Brooklyn Harvest Market. Mushrooms and sweet potatoes at Key Food. I did eat the mushrooms (with a lot of polenta and some asparagus I found on sale at Mr. Piña.)
On Monday, I got my Covid booster then walked to Western Beef where I got a 2 pound jar of giardiniera and a 5 lb bag of carrots. I refrained from buying another 6 lb can of tomatoes.
Tuesday (yesterday), I went to Food Bazaar and got a pound of frozen squid ($5), 4 cans of coconut milk ($3), a frozen spinach and frozen peppers & onions (each $2.5 for 2 lbs).
Last night I cooked some of the peppers and onions and made bulgur wheat I've had for a while. I didn't realize how long I have had it but the bag said to use by 2018. Well, I used it.
Coming up, I need to eat a lot of pasta and my various rices and some cheese. Plus those carrots.
I don't have anyone to cook for anymore so I don't know what to make.
I'm out of tea bags. I make a pitcher of iced tea every night before I go to sleep and go through 4-6 bags a day. Dollar Tree tea isn't good enough, but store brands are good enough and name brands are good enough. Since I am specifically looking for that, I might as well write about what else is on sale everywhere this week.
Bravo: Canned clams are $1.99. I like when they are $1.69 though. Heinz bbq sauce is $2 but they don't carry the kind I want (Carolina). A blue cheese wheel is $6/lb, but I needed that last week and I still have gorgonzola after overpaying for it. No tea.
Brooklyn Harvest Market: What is wide meat?
This is the last full week of sales before the 4th. Next Friday, there will be some new ones but I will only have Friday and Saturday to use them. So this is an important one. My Chase Freedom card is going to give me 5% back on groceries starting July 1, so I am not doing my shopping until then except for daikon pickle, which should fester for a week. So actually, anything good I find here I have to buy all on Thursday.
So let's see what's out there.
Bravo: Peaches are 99¢. Corn is 40¢ per ear. Premio sausage is $3/lb. I wouldn't make that for the 4th, but I am making pizza tonight and it might be good. An 8 oz can of tomato sauce is 45¢. Fage Greek yogurt is $3 for 17 oz.
Brooklyn Harvest Market: Peaches are 99¢. Beefsteak tomatoes are $1.49. I hope I can find a better price. The sausages are $2.99 here too. Cafe Bustelo is 2/$5. Fage 17 oz is $3 here too, but Chobani 32 oz is $5. Hmm. Fage is better though. A can of tomato juice is $2.
C-Town: Peaches, corn, and sausage are all the same price here too.
Food Bazaar: A pound of mozzarella is 3/$10. (See, my dinner tonight). Limes are 9/$2. Scallions are 40¢.
Green Corner: Peaches are 89¢! Limes are 12/$2.
Key Food: Hot dog buns are $1.25. I might get some to practice. Chobani is $5 here too. Jerk sauce is $3.5
Ozzie's: There's nothing unique here
Last week I put pictures in my post and they didn't show up. That's annoying.
Bravo: I don't know why I'm even looking. I went on Wednesday and bought 5 tins of anchovies but the store was so crowded I didn't look at anything else. They have Colavita pasta for $1, but I bought 5 pounds of that at Key Food on Wednesday. (It was a big shopping day for me.) Fage greek yogurt is $6. I didn't get my greek yogurt last week because Key Food was out.
Brooklyn Harvest Market: Beefsteak tomatoes are $1/lb. Hot dog buns are $1.25. Pepsi is 4/$5.
C-Town: Tomatoes on the vine are $0.99, but I would rather get Beefsteak across the street. Bill just texted me "Land o Lakes butter is on sale at C-Town. It's the best baking butter." So you can buy that if you want. I don't usually cover that topic here. Diet tonic water is 3/$2. C-Town usually has the best price on diet tonic water.
Food Bazaar: Mussels aren't on sale (I looked yesterday) but I will look at the rest now. A 3 liter can of Filippo Berio olive oil is only $12 which is a good price for a bad oil. Mozzarella is $3.34 which isn't bad. Cabot Greek yogurt is $4 for 32 oz. I should go there just for that and then see what mussels cost not on sale. I might go there right after this blog post! If mussels are a bad price I can get squids. Even though I'll get there too late to use my NYC ID and get 5% off.
Green Corner: Mussels are on sale for $3.49 for 2 lbs. That's too much. I would pay $3. Filippo Berio is $17 here and they spell it wrong in the ad. They also say calms are $8/dozen but show mussels. A 14 oz tofu is $1.79. I might get that.
Key Food: Peaches are $1/lb and beefsteak tomatoes are $1/lb so I will go here instead of BHM and then make a salad of those two things. Mushrooms are 3/$5. Coke products are 4/$5. Fage is $6, but I already decided on Cabot.
Ozzie's: They didn't update but they usually have similar sales to Key Food. Maybe I'll go get a paper circular. Or just buy the stuff there. No, their announcements are too annoying and I can't stand them anymore. I'll go to Key Food. It's too lonely to go to Food Bazaar and have mussels or squid without a plan for people to come eat them with me.
I did a good job of eating lots of the ends of containers from my refrigerator, so I'm ready to shop!
Bravo: $0.79/lb for "slicing tomatoes" but Bravo's tomatoes are always pink so this doesn't count. I would stock up on these $1.69 anchovies, but I did that last time. So I should use some anchovies from my cupboard.
Brooklyn Harvest Market: A 2-lb bag of onions is $1.
C-Town: They also have tomatoes for $0.79/lb and I trust them. Mushrooms are $1.5 for 8 oz. The anchovies are $1.79 here.
Food Bazaar: I peeked yesterday but they didn't have mussels, so I am not going to look again because I'm not going to go there.
Green Corner: Tomatoes on the vine for $0.69/lb! Extra large eggs for $1.25 Oh, further down the ad the tomatoes get cheaper.
Key Food: They still say a 3 lb bag of Vidalia onions is $2. I got a bag last week and they tried to charge me $5 so I corrected them. Colavita pasta is $1 so I will stock up I suppose. Both Cabot and Chobani Greek yogurts are $5 for 32 oz. I'll try Cabot because Chobani isn't as good as Fage and I don't know about Cabot.
Ozzie's: They didn't update their circular but it's probably similar to Key Food's
UPDATE! I went go Green Corner and the tomatoes were labeled at both prices even in the store, but they rang up as $0.59/lb.
I still have to eat some leftover tacos, and a big zucchini, but after that I need to get more food, so let's see what's on sale.
Bravo: some frozen vegetables are 3/$5 for 14 oz bags.
Brooklyn Harvest Market: McCain frozen french fries are 2/$3. That's a good price. Eggs are $1.66. Fage greek yogurt is $3 for 17 oz. Fage is better but more expensive than Chobani in general. Ravioli are $1.25
C-Town: Ground turkey is $2.5/lb.
Food Bazaar: moules aren't on sale and that's the only thing i want
Green Corner: vine tomatoes are $0.78/lb. Celery is $0.69
Key Food: Diet coke and its relatives are 4/$5. Mushrooms are $1.5 for 8 oz.
Ozzie's: Corn tortillas are $1.25. Eggs are $1. McCain fries are $3 here. What a scam.
Well it looks like Brooklyn Harvest Market wins and Ozzie comes in second place.
I used to not even notice potato chips.
I've always used the price of limes as the way to judge a grocery store's overall expensiveness. But that's been breaking down at Key Food lately. What do you do if limes are 50 cents each, but avocados are 55?
I think Christmas sales are already showing up. And Christmas Eve sales. Lots of fish.
Ozzie's: Jumbo eggs are 3/$5. I might have too many eggs now, especially considering how many eggs my roommates have. However, I have been baking a lot of cookies. Polly-O mozzarella and ricotta (32 oz) is $2.50. Yellow and red onions are $1/bag. They're never the same price. That's it I guess. They have a short circular. Last week, I saw Natty Ice on sale in the Key Food circular, but the store doesn't carry that. I went to Ozzie's, which does carry it and has the same sales, more or less, as Key Food. It wasn't in the circular and it wasn't labeled on sale in the store, but I bought it anyway and it was on sale! That's not ideal, but I liked it.
Green Corner: Chicken legs are $0.49/lb. Polly-o is on sale here, but for $3 (mozzarella) and $4 (ricotta). Mussels are $4 for 2 lbs. No comment:
I don't know if I will celebrate Thanksgiving. I'm definitely not having a bunch of people over, but I would like to eat turkey and mashed potatoes and stuffing and gravy. Whether I do that will depend partly on what I find on sale and partly on how much room I have in my refrigerator. It's currently very full.
I think most stores don't put the price of turkey in their ads. They put the price "if you spend $100" or whatever. I'm not going to spend $100. I just want to know how much the turkey is!
Anyway, here we go.
Key Food: The turkey is $0.39/lb if I spend $50. I'm sure that will be the cheapest, but I definitely can't fit $50 of groceries in my apartment. Last year I went with Eric and he bought a lot of groceries and I tacked on a turkey. Sweet potatoes are $0.59/lb. A pound of mushrooms is $2.50 and a bag of cranberries is 3/$5 (they had been $2 all month). A bag of stuffing is $2.5. Butternut squash is $0.79/lb. There is something called "steamable sweet potatoes" for $1.67/lb but I don't understand that because all sweet potatoes are steamable if you put them over steam.
C-Town: I don't see anything I'd go here for. But maybe I'm not in the mood for this. I'll try one more store.
Brooklyn Harvest Market: 14 oz of "stuffing mushrooms" are only $2.50. Mozzarella and ricotta remain on sale. I haven't made lasagna yet, but maybe I will today. I think a turkey is $1.49/lb.
Groceries have gone too far.
So many stores to review these days. I specifically need to buy coffee, so I need to look through every circular, so I might as well take notes. I need eggs too. In the past week, I bought 100 pizza rolls and 2 lbs of frozen french fries, so I need to avoid more frozen food.
Ozzie's: coffee? but it says i need a card and i have refused to ever get a card here (even though i got one for BHM immediately). Boneless chicken breasts are $1.79/lb.
Brooklyn Harvest Market: Broccoli is 99c/lb. Both 7-up products and Coke products are 4/$5 for 2 liter bottles, but you have to buy 4 and that's a lot to commit to. A pound of mozzarella or 2 lbs of ricotta for $1.99 and $2.99 respectively. Lasagne (the noodles) is only $1.24. I think I need lasagna. I am Garfield. Hellmann's mayo is $2.99 "with digital coupon" but I don't see it. So I don't trust it. Bacon bits are $1.99, but they were not on the shelf when I looked last week. Vintage seltzer is $0.60/liter. I wonder if that includes tonic water. A box of 15 pizza rolls is on sale for $2. Last week, I got a bag of 50 for $2.50. That circular is so long. And I found the mayo digital coupon.
Food Bazaar: This circular is back up to 6 pages. I don't really want to look because I'm not going to go there this week. I can get Coke for $1. Ricotta is $4 for 2 lbs here. A dozen clams is $4. I never buy them, but maybe it would be nice. Bags of pizza rolls are $5 here. I sure got a good deal last week. Limes are 11/$2. Who can do that kind of math?!
Western Beef: I am unlikely to go here, but I do need eggs and jarred red peppers. They have the coffee I want (Cafe Bustelo 10 oz brick for $2). Too much of their circular is dedicated to meat and their prices for meat aren't that good. Limes are 10/$20 here, which is easier math but more expensive than Food Bazaar. Ricotta is $4. 100 pizza rolls are $10 here.
Bravo: nothing
C-Town: Mayo is $3 with a $25 purchase, but I can't even carry $25 of food. Ricotta is $4 and mozzarella is $3. Cream cheese is $1.50. I may go for that.
Green Corner: Limes are 20/$2 here. I can do that math and it's a good price. Chicken breasts are $1.49/lb here. Ricotta is $4 and mozzarella $3.33.
Key Food: Avocados are still $0.49 and they have been so good every time I get them. So I will get more. Mozzarella is 2 lbs for $3. Wow. Cafe Bustelo is 2/$5 if I don't want to bike all the way to Western Beef. Mayo is $3 here without needing a digital coupon. Buttermilk is $2.
I'm hungry.
I was just at Key Food. I got 5 lbs of flour for $2, 2 lbs of mozzarella for $4, and 1 pound of tofu for $1.50. It's funny to think of food in terms of dollars per pound.
In other news, Green Corner delivered a circular to my building! Rather than hit refresh all day on Fridays, I can just look at it. And it looks like ground beef is $1.99/lb again for the 6th week in a row or so.
I haven't been shopping too much because I made Oktoberfest food twice and live off leftovers.
I haven't updated in so long that Blogger looks different now. Since Oktoberfest would start this weekend, I'm going to look at all the circulars and see if I could find things I would want to make. Even though no people will come. I can eat all the food myself.
Ozzie's: I've been shopping here a lot because American Express has been giving me $5 if I spend $10 at certain small businesses and this one counts. Mostly I buy beer. That ends this weekend and I have 1 trip left. Anyway.. Pork shoulder is $0.99/lb, which is a good start.
Key Food: Two pounds of onions for $1. One pound of baby bella mushrooms for $3. Pepsi proucts are 3/$4. Sour cream is $2.
C-Town: Pork shoulder is $0.99/lb here too. Scalfani crushed tomatoes are $1.50, so I should get some. I only ever see Luigi Vitelli on sale and I did a test once and learned I like Scalfani a lot more. Colavita pasta is $1. I have so much pasta though. Maybe I should eat pasta more often since it's the only thing that makes me happy. Sour cream is also $2 here and cream cheese is $1.50. I've never seen Fage sour cream before, but it's also $2.
Bravo: Onions are $1 for 2 lbs here.
Green Corner didn't update its circular yet.
Western Beef: Pork shoulders are $0.79/lb but you have to buy 2. They also have chicken leg quarters for $0.29/lb but you have to buy 40 lbs. Life is far too lonely these days to buy 40 lbs of chicken. A six pack of English muffins is $1. That seems good, but I never buy English muffins so I don't know.
Food Bazaar: Here, English muffins are $2.50 for 6, so now I know.
