Favorite Supermarket (Alexandria, Woodbridge, Fairfax: appointed, sale, buy)

[spencgr]

Originally Posted by Carlingtonian

I hear great things about Wegman's, and there's now one near my work. But at the end of the day, I just want to get home. So I usually just stop at the drab little time warp of a Safeway near me.

Just as an FYI, I HATE grocery shopping. I actually would avoid going at all costs. But I don't mind going to Wegmans....

[MedvedActual]

Originally Posted by Flamingo13

I've still not been in a Wegman's - I'm not totally clear on the location of the closest one, but I don't want to deal w/tons of shoppers, lines, parking hassles, etc. (they do send coupons here) - I also want nearby stores.

There is one off Telegraph Rd., past a Coast Guard station (coming from OT) and just opposite back side of Belvoir. That location was a bit hectic just before Xmas (as I am sure many stores were) but I went again on Sunday and it was fine; no long lines, etc.

[MedvedActual]

Originally Posted by Carolina Knight

I would not consider Balducci's, Whole Foods Markets, Trade Joe's, Costco, and BJ's to be supermarkets. They are food retailers in specific segments:

• Discount: Aldi, Lidl
• Supermarket: Food Lion, Harris Teeter, Giant, Kroger, Martin's, Safeway, Shopper's, Walmart Neighborhood Market, Wegman's
• Hypermarket: Kroger Marketplace, Walmart Supercenter
• Organic: Earth Fare, Whole Foods Markets
• Specialty/gourmet: Balducci's, The Fresh Market, Trader Joe's
• Wholesale club: BJ's, Costco, Sam's Club

Yeah, I hear you. I used 'supermarkets' as an all-encompassing term; meant chain food stores vs. one of locations.

[djplourd]

I'm retired military so we use the commissary at Fort Belvoir most of the time.
When we just need a few things or something last minute we generally go to Shopper's (mostly) or Food Lion, but only because they're the closest.
We get a lot of bulk items at Costco but we tend to spend too much because we always find too many other things to buy
We went shopping for the first time at Wegmans (Kingstowne) this weekend. It was a bit intimidating because of the size and our unfamiliarity with the store, but plenty of friendly, helpful employees to point us in the right direction. The fruit and vegetables definitely seemed fresher than what we've been getting lately at the commissary or even at Costco. We're going to try it again the next few times and see how it goes.
I do like their app which lets you put in a grocery list, remembers your previous purchases, supposedly shows you which aisle items are on (if it works it will be the single biggest benefit ), recipes, etc.

[cheriex333]

I like the international supermarkets like HMart, Lotte, GrandMart, etc. for produce and seafood. Tends to be fresher, cheaper, and wider selection.

[Carolina Knight]

I have not been to a Harris Teeter in over 14 years. It exited the market I resided in through the divestment of stores. Now a subsidiary of Kroger, Harris Teeter has announced it is coming back to the market and two stores that will open in 2017. I have seen images of its new stores. They are very nice. Ingle's, a supermarket based in North Carolina, has new stores that are similar to Harris Teeter.

Harris Teeter is constructing a distribution center in Caroline County.

[Carlingtonian]

Originally Posted by spencgr

Just as an FYI, I HATE grocery shopping. I actually would avoid going at all costs. But I don't mind going to Wegmans....

OK, now I gotta go see what the fuss is!

If I opened a dog-food store and named it "Wagmans," would I get sued?

[LynchburgLover]

Detest Wegmans -- too big.

Carolina Knight -- love Ingles but doubt they'll ever come into NoVa market. Too small a chain.

[blindside]

Originally Posted by cheriex333

I like the international supermarkets like HMart, Lotte, GrandMart, etc. for produce and seafood. Tends to be fresher, cheaper, and wider selection.

Lotte and Global Food are the way to go for extremely fresh produce at great prices. I normally get cilantro and parsley for $0.50 a bunch when Giant/Safeway/Wegmans seems to want to charge me $1.50.

As for supermarkets, the only thing that matters to me is the quality of the produce and seafood (the 'perimeter' of the store rather than what's in the aisles). Anything in the aisles is mostly processed junk. I look around the Wegmans (child care, tv screens, display cases), prepared food and all I think about is how much overhead this adds to the food.

Anyone know where I can go to a butcher that cuts your meat to order and wraps it in paper ?

[Carlingtonian]

Originally Posted by blindside

Anyone know where I can go to a butcher that cuts your meat to order and wraps it in paper ?

Let's Meat On The Avenue - Home

If Alexandria's too far, they might know of a butcher like them near you.