Favorite Supermarket (Chantilly, Woodbridge, Fairfax: coupons, buying, live)

[ChristineVA]

I voted Wegman's #1 due to selection, prices, and proximity.

I occasionally use Shopper's Food Warehouse: again good prices, good selection, and proximity.

Giant would be my #3.

Trader Joe's is for just cool things that other stores don't have.

[spencgr]

I voted Wegman's. Hands down. I only go to other stores in case of a last minute, "forgot something" situation.


It takes me 25 minutes to get to Wegman's, and I literally drive by two Safeways, two Giants, and a Food Lion to get there.

And to those who go to the Kingstown Wegman's; the crowds get better. I frequented the Sterling one when it opened, and then the Leesburg one. Over time, the crowds die out.

[LynchburgLover]

Food Lion for toilet paper, cleaning goods and anything prepackaged like canned tomatoes, peanut butter etc.

Fresh Market for meats and vegetables/fruits. Love their stuff. Higher price but offset by Food Lions' lower prices on all the staples stuff

Take a look at apples at the major grocers -- they are getting enormous. They must be pumped full of water and chemicals and you are paying by the pound. Look at the organics -- much smaller. I also was surprised to see prepackaged baby carrots are very high in sodium -- preservatives, I assume.

I used to love Harris Teeter but since Kroger took over, they have changed a lot.

[airjay75]

I voted for Wegmans. I have not found the Kingstowne Wegmans all that bad at all. Of course, I do try to time my visit to the store for less busy times as I do with all grocery stores. That said, the Kingstowne Wegmans is about a 15 minute drive from my house while Giant is a 2 minute drive and so I do tend to frequent Giant much more than Wegmans. I think Wegmans is far and away a better store, but it's not enough to make me leave the more convenient Giant for most of my grocery shopping.

[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

[Carolina Knight]

Originally Posted by HokieFan

I chose Food Lion because of convenience (closest store, never crowded, checkout lines move quickly), the prices are decent and they typically have everything that I'm looking for.

Food Lion has had opportunities to improve by having the necessities of food and pharmacy, fresher foods and better quality products, lower prices, and improved customer service at convenient stores. It will be interesting to see what Ahold can do when it completes the acquisition of Food Lion's parent company, Delhaize.

[tgbwc]

My wife does most of the shopping. I have my opinions, but they are pretty close to hers. I asked her anyway. She told me Safeway, then Shoppers both partly due to convenience and partly because she likes the stores. We go to Giant sometimes due to it being the most convenient to work and home, but the nearby stores are not the nicest and actually kind of dirty. Wegman's is just too much. Too big and overwhelming and not convenient enough to where we are to bother with. Whole Foods is also convenient and not bad for some specific items. I don't know where there is a Food Lion or Harris Teeter in relation to where we are in Springfield. We've never heard of Balducci's.

[Flamingo13]

Teeter is super close to me so that's where I do the majority of my shopping, I shop Giant and Safeway if there is something(s) specific on special.

[Flamingo13]

On another note: I read that the Los Tolteco's on Duke St. (the former Mango Mike's) is going to be an Aldi's.

[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.