Grocery Stores (Tampa: prices, club, Walmart)

[Krulik]

Originally Posted by algia

I am sure there are, however, when your time is limited and your gas consumption is also limited.....traveling and scouting around becomes a luxury most cannot afford!

Here's an example, off Dale Mabry and Van Dyke, WHY in the world do we need a HUGE and I mean HUGE golf supply store and the most EXPENSIVE pet store I HAVE EVER SEEN!? why the assumption that people who live in the area spend their time golfing and feeding fancy pets!???? maybe 2% do that, but that entire plaza could have been comprised from mom and pop GOOD bakeries, meat shops etc...instead....all we have is Publix and few miles down the road (each way) another Publix and another small shopping plaza with a cell phone store, mattress store which probably has the foot traffic of an active volcano because people do buy mattresses every single day!!!!!!!!!!!!........ and a juice shop that probably saw its last customer 2 months ago!! THAT TO ME is a complete waste of space!

On Dale Mabry there are 3 Walmarts, 3 Targets and countless Publix stores, 1 Albertson and a few Sweet Bay's..........this is the main drag technically for a LOT of average Joes so.......if some of these plazas along the way were comprised of mom and pop shops and not MORE franchises....then people would be able to park then walk from one to another and get all sorts of goodies........but the way it is now, you are forced to travel 20 miles+ out of your way to find a meat shop....then more miles for a good bakery and so on........nothing is where the actually PEOPLE are/live! Unless you live behind Jason's Deli, you're forced to face major Dale Mabry traffic to get in there and then wait some more to get out........it is not a matter of being lazy.....it is a matter of how much money can someone afford to pay for gas to drive around!!!

I am sorry, but I am not sure that I get your reasoning here. In your previous post you praised Europe for being able to have nice grocery stores around where you lived and complained that now you cannot drive all the way to Tampa to go to such stores. 58robbo and gypsychic kindly pointed to butchers and groceries in your town but you are still complaining that you cannot travel and scout around to go to these more local stores. If it is essential for you to be able to walk to your butcher or grocery store, I think Florida (and 99 % of the US) might not be the right place for you.

[algia]

Look, I am not going to consider myself "lazy" for not running around the Bay area looking for mom and pop shops! not everyone in Tampa is retired and has lots of money to spend on gas and time traveling around scouting for shops!

The 99% of the US you are talking about is perfectly capable of providing US consumers with mom and pop shops conveniently located! it is not my fault that the builders or I should say "planners" of these communities can't think straight and build with amenities close to people's homes! forcing Americans to be so dependent on foreign OIL for all the cars that MUST drive because builders can't "think" or plan accordingly to save people from having to do that! if half the cities here were like NY, we would actually be saving tons on gas and oddly enough be a lot greener! AND have mom and pop shops with yummy food! not the mass produced and flour infested sweets etc that is being fed to these poor people who don't know any better!

I am sure you are familiar with this phrase: "If there's a will, there's a way"!

[craigm1841]

Originally Posted by algia

not everyone in Tampa is retired and has lots of money to spend on gas and time traveling around scouting for shops!

Originally Posted by algia

I am sure you are familiar with this phrase: "If there's a will, there's a way"!

[Krulik]

Originally Posted by algia

Look, I am not going to consider myself "lazy" for not running around the Bay area looking for mom and pop shops! not everyone in Tampa is retired and has lots of money to spend on gas and time traveling around scouting for shops!

The 99% of the US you are talking about is perfectly capable of providing US consumers with mom and pop shops conveniently located! it is not my fault that the builders or I should say "planners" of these communities can't think straight and build with amenities close to people's homes! forcing Americans to be so dependent on foreign OIL for all the cars that MUST drive because builders can't "think" or plan accordingly to save people from having to do that! if half the cities here were like NY, we would actually be saving tons on gas and oddly enough be a lot greener! AND have mom and pop shops with yummy food! not the mass produced and flour infested sweets etc that is being fed to these poor people who don't know any better!

I am sure you are familiar with this phrase: "If there's a will, there's a way"!

This thread was about groceries stores in the Tampa area. You were unhappy about not having small shops in your town (Lutz), 2 members kindly indicated shops in Lutz thinking it would fix your problem, apparently it did not.

As for oil consumption and driving car unnecessarily, I think that you are barking at the wrong tree. I am not retired, I commute everyday to work using public transportation and haven't own a car in 17 years. But of course, I do not live in a suburban setting by choice. If I did, I would not blame developers for not providing small shops because I know in the first place they would not be there.

[Keeper]

Folks.. the original topic is your favorite grocery store. If you want to discuss the pros and cons about corporate vs mom and pop stores then start a new thread in the appropriate forum.

[SerjR]

Please could you tell me the difference between Publix and Sweetbay? I just moved to Tampa, but can't understand the difference between that 2 malls. What about their prices for most common food?

[ferret111]

Publix is a Lakeland-based chain that is the largest and most powerful grocery store chain in Florida by far. Sweetbay is the remnants of the old Tampa-based Kash n' Karry stores, but with Belgian owners, the same guys that run Food Lion. Publix can be a little more expensive, but the stores are always well-kept and well-stocked and many people find their products to be some of the best.

[stpeteguy]

Originally Posted by SerjR

Please could you tell me the difference between Publix and Sweetbay? I just moved to Tampa, but can't understand the difference between that 2 malls. What about their prices for most common food?

I think most would agree that Sweetbay is just a notch below Publix, when you factor in selection, cleanliness, and friendliness. Publix also has some very good weekly sales most of the time. However, their meat is rarely cheaper than Sweetbay.

This weekend I stocked up on boneless, skinless chicken breast at Sweetbay. It was $1.79/lb. Hamburger was $1.99

It is exceedingly rare to find meat that cheap at Publix.

Bottom line, is that you need to shop at both to get the absolute most for your money.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by stpeteguy

I think most would agree that Sweetbay is just a notch below Publix, when you factor in selection, cleanliness, and friendliness. Publix also has some very good weekly sales most of the time. However, their meat is rarely cheaper than Sweetbay.

This weekend I stocked up on boneless, skinless chicken breast at Sweetbay. It was $1.79/lb. Hamburger was $1.99

It is exceedingly rare to find meat that cheap at Publix.

Bottom line, is that you need to shop at both to get the absolute most for your money.

Actually, sometimes Publix offers some screaming deals on their good quality meats.

For me personally, Sweetbay does not carry any of the brands or types of things I buy, whereas Publix has them all. I have found Sweetbay to be more expensive on almost everything that I would buy there. It's not a bad store, lots of people like it, and some stores are better than others. For instance the Sweetbay in midtown Sarasota is an excellent store, with more choices and fresher, more attractive. The one nearer to me in Bradenton is clean, but sorely lacking in desirable items. Their bakery is terrible, Publix bakery is awesome.

I shop at a variety of places including SuperTarget and regular target and famer's markets for produce, milk and eggs, but Publix is my main, all-around, go-to store.

[FloridaKash]

Orrrr.... shop Super Walmart.