less expensive food store

[interleukin]

Hi all,
a recent trip to Vaasa reminded me that all Finland is not as expensive as central Helsinki. I am not really complaining so much, my salary is enough to buy food, but I would really like to try to cut down on food costs (without compromising quality and diversity). A quick comparison of the K- and S-markets in central Helsinki leads to the conclusion that they are about the same price as Alepa!!, only Alepa has a much more restricted selection of foods.
As I do not have access to a car, the bigger supermarkets have been a bit out of the way, but eg. Prisma just north of E-Haaga is very disappointing.

I wonder if you, especially the people with big families and access to cars, have an opinion of where in the greater Helsinki-Espoo-Vantaa area to go to buy the cheapest food? I could take the train or bus to Jumbo or Sello or something like that if the difference in prices is considerable. And no, by cheap food I do not mean chocolate from Tarjoustalo

Thanks,
interleukin

[Rosamunda]

I think the only way to do "cheap" is to shop around and buy different things in different places. I don't think there is "cheap" one-stop shopping in HEV area. So get some stuff in Lidl (milk is cheaper and they often have decent fruit and veg and they sell the same cheeses as the supermarkets (eg Oltermanni etc). Take a bus to Sello for other stuff. We also have a Minimani in Olari (in the same building as the Peshawar Pakistani restaurant) and they seem to be the cheapest in this area (food and non-food items) and they are always busy. Several different buses stop outside and it's walking distance from Iso Omena.

IMO, eating for less is more about changing what you eat, rather than where you buy it. Cutting out processed foods (shop cakes and biscuits, prepared meals and sauces, soups etc) can reduce a food bill substantially. And then buying seasonal foods (ie NOT cucumbers in February).

[Pete]

I went to Jättijako in Tammisto last weekend and i was shocked by alot of prices there. It is a rather large supermarket and on surface appearances you'd be forgiven for thinking that the prices would be competitive.
But this just isn't so. There were items for sale that were more expensive than in my local Valintatalo! And by considerable margins too.
I really couldn't believe what i was seeing and i sure won't be going back there in a hurry.

[Rosamunda]

Yes that's what I mean about no cheap one-stop shopping. I went in to Minimani this evening and there were a few things cheaper than S-Market/Prisma (and their fruit and veg selection is really impressive, meat and fish not bad either) but then there were things that were silly. I found a nice Petit Brie Coeur de Lion, nice and ripe at 6,90 (that's 12,90 per kg) but the bog-standard Oltermanni was over 7€ which is maybe 15% more than Lidl/Prisma.

And my brain is overloaded anyway, I can't keep the prices of 50 items from half a dozen different stores in my head...this is getting crazy

[raamv]

http://www.kauppakori.fi/