When do you think grocery shopping will have a sense of normalcy again?

[skyblue17]

Still no TP near us in the quantity and brands I prefer. We have 6 rolls in reserve so I'm not sweating it for the moment. The man has learned a valuable lesson: when I tell him to buy TP and it's readily available... don't bring home paper towels instead unless he's cutting it down and using it on his tushie .

My neighborhood Duane Reade had a fresh stock yesterday, so perhaps keep an eye out on those if you live near one (is it possible not to?)

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Actually most of this list are stable goods:
Rice
Potatoes: store in cool dry area
Onions: " " " " "
Garlic: " " " " "
Pasta
Dry and canned beans

Pasta sauce (jarred): store in fridge after opening
All listed meats store in fridge or freezer.
Bread can be stored at rm temp or fridge/freezer. I opted for freezer since we don't eat much of it.

You guys/gals must have a lot better luck getting onions, garlic, potatoes and bread to last than me.

 

[fla4fun]

I went to Sams Friday to get stuff for my three kids since they will unexpectedly be home a while. I was shocked at the number of people buying freezers...deep freezers and stand up freezers!

I have a stand up freezer, but since my “special stock” is also my hurricane supplies, a lot of it is non perishable to begin with. The only perishable things I bought were four one-pound packs of ground beef to use in chili or pasta. I normally buy one or two packs a week, and so I just picked up an extra one the past few weeks. My freezer isn’t full at all. It’s not really practical to keep it full and risk it all during hurricane season. I fill up 2-liter bottles with water and keep in there so I can transfer them to the refrigerator if there is a lengthy power outage.

Shopping at my local Publix has been a little busier than normal, but not as bad as some people here have mentioned. I don’t shop at any of the big warehouse stores, and I haven’t been near a Target or Walmart. Other than waiting for cleaning and tp to be restocked, there isn’t a whole lot of difference between now and normal.

 

[mnrose]

Still no TP near us in the quantity and brands I prefer. We have 6 rolls in reserve so I'm not sweating it for the moment. The man has learned a valuable lesson: when I tell him to buy TP and it's readily available... don't bring home paper towels instead unless he's cutting it down and using it on his tushie .

I know you are joking about this, but similar "jokes" on our local facebook page drew a quick response from the public works director to PLEASE not flush anything in the toilet except TP and stuff that you produce (wink). City sewers and sewage treatment plants were NOT designed to deal with that and it could end up costing your city a lot of money.

 

[lynxstch]

I went to Aldi yesterday, got there right after they opened. It was pretty nuts in there. People were hoarding canned goods, and of course TP was all gone, along w/paper towels disappearing quickly. I got everything that was on my own shopping list though.

I got to our Aldi's a little after opening at 9. They had plenty of toilet paper, paper towels, kleenex etc. There was a LIMIT 2 sign on each one, and people were sticking to it. Other things like eggs, gallons of milk, etc were also limit 2. I got everything on my list, and a bit more, lol. Walmart also had plenty of everything except things like soup, rice, pasta, etc in the morning. By last nite, the shelves were bare, according to pics friends posted on FB.

 

[fla4fun]

You guys/gals must have a lot better luck getting onions, garlic, potatoes and bread to last than me.

I put bread in the freezer. I split the loaf in half and double freezer bag it. When ready to use some, put the bag in the fridge the night before to let it thaw. It takes me forever to use a loaf, but I haven’t had to throw any out since I started doing this.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

I put bread in the freezer. I split the loaf in half and double freezer bag it. When ready to use some, put the bag in the fridge the night before to let it thaw. It takes me forever to use a loaf, but I haven’t had to throw any out since I started doing this.

Totally get the use of a freezer, but 3 people have said that they are able to store this stuff for long periods of time without freezing. I get that it is possible, but I have not had any luck with it.

 

[lynxstch]

I put bread in the freezer. I split the loaf in half and double freezer bag it. When ready to use some, put the bag in the fridge the night before to let it thaw. It takes me forever to use a loaf, but I haven’t had to throw any out since I started doing this.

Same here. Just the 2 of us, and we don't eat a lot of it, so freezing it is the way to go. I put 4 slices at a time in ziplocs, then back in the bag the bread came in. If we know we are going to have sandwiches, or he needs one for lunch, I just take out 1 baggie and let it thaw overnite.

 

[fla4fun]

Totally get the use of a freezer, but 3 people have said that they are able to store this stuff for long periods of time without freezing. I get that it is possible, but I have not had any luck with it.

No, here in Florida it will mold real quick if it’s not refrigerated, and dry out if it’s in the fridge too long. So freezing has worked out really well for me. I never buy bread for hurricane rations. I get crackers to eat with peanut butter because the crackers are more shelf stable.

 

[MamaLema]

You guys/gals must have a lot better luck getting onions, garlic, potatoes and bread to last than me.

No luck hereI have a big family and not a lot of storage so my grocery cart looks like I’m hoarding but it’s just a regular shopping trip. We used a whole carton of eggs this morning just for breakfast.

 

[RedAngie]

Yes!!! Home Depot was a hidden gem for tp!

DH chanced upon toilet paper at Home Depot yesterday while he was there for something else. He bought a pack of 12 even though we didn't need it.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I know you are joking about this, but similar "jokes" on our local facebook page drew a quick response from the public works director to PLEASE not flush anything in the toilet except TP and stuff that you produce (wink). City sewers and sewage treatment plants were NOT designed to deal with that and it could end up costing your city a lot of money.

Don't worry; I most certainly am joking and a stopped up toilet or sink is my responsibility even if bldg staff does the work; I don't play with money.

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I hope it gets back to normal soon. I want some bananas and will need some ground beef for the pasta putanesca (basically pasta, ground beef and jarred spaghetti sauce) I'm going to make this week.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I hope it gets back to normal soon. I want some bananas and will need some ground beef for the pasta putanesca (basically pasta, ground beef and jarred spaghetti sauce) I'm going to make this week.

I make puttanesca sauce w/ anchovies, capers, and olives and whole tomatoes but always happy to hear of another version .

 

[disneyeveryyear]

DD and I were heading out to Sam's today to grab some frozen salmon and Aleve. We stopped for an oil change along the way and our Governor closed all restaurants and bars (eat-in) for two weeks. I was amazed at the Sam's. The only meat available was a little bit of lamb, full beef tenderloins ($100+), full ribeyes ($190). No chicken, no pork, no ground beef, roasts or cut steaks. There was still plenty of seafood, fresh or frozen. Of course, no toilet paper, paper towels, bleach wipes, hand sanitizer, milk,etc. They were running low with only extra-crunchy Jif left in the peanut butter section. The only bread was Wonder Bread (a lot of that), some hamburger and hot dog buns. Our Aldi's was also nearly out of meat, bread and bottled water. Milk, tp, paper towels, cleaners and eggs were completely gone.

 

[Diznygrl]

I haven't been to the store since last weekend, but I went today and all the usual suspects are gone (bottled water, TP, cleaning products, etc.). A lot of other stuff on the shelves was kind of scraggly, but not completely gone. The one thing that surprised me was the complete lack of fresh tomatoes, of all things. Wasn't really expecting that.

I went to Super Walmart later and it was pretty much decimated, LOL. Not a single box or bag of cereal, no eggs, no meat. Bread was pretty much gone.

But THEN! I went to the pharmacy area and just happened to be looking at all the little travel sized toiletries, and way down on the bottom shelf what do I see....3oz bottles of hand sanitizer! I wonder if they had JUST been put out or if they were in such a small area that nobody knew that they were there. And no, I didn't hoard them all, I only bought a few, LOL. Even though I didn't see any sign anywhere saying there was a limit.

 

[LSUmiss]

Other than being out of most paper towels, baby wipes, & toilet paper, my Walmart seemed pretty normal today. They had toilet paper & paper towels just not a lot & it was only 1 brand. But no one was fighting each other for it or anything. I did see one lady buying an obscene amount, but she didn’t take it all & no one else was even in the aisle. Bread & frozen food were a little bare, but I’ve seen worse before & after hurricanes. They had plenty of produce & meat & other fresh food & it wasn’t too crowded.

 

[fsjking]

Finally hit a grocery store today. Hit the newest Kroger in the area and it was pretty thin. The whole aisle of paper products was empty. Plenty of bottled water. Meat aisle was thin. Frozen foods were hit and miss. There was a smaller Kroger that I pass on the way home from there that I had to stop at to get something at the Pharmacy, and it was pretty well stocked. Thin on some stuff, but didn't really notice that they were out of anything.

 

[tcufrog]

I think people are anticipating having to self-distance for two weeks so are stocking up so they don't have to go to the grocery store. We went for our weekly shopping today and it was pretty weird. No TP, of course, but the produce section was pretty empty and there was NO pasta on the shelves at all... or spaghetti sauce, or bread, with big empty stretches in the dairy section too- oh, and no eggs. I think people are stocking up for a 2 week social-isolation.

We were told to prepare for that since we some of the people living in my household are at risk of complications from the Coronavirus. We bought two weeks worth of food last weekend and we bought regular groceries for the week. It was still more groceries than normal since we want to avoid eating out and our kids are home for two weeks.

I got the last package of bacon and I was so pumped!

it may also be a good time to try some new veggies. I had a choice between okra or pearl onions in the freezer section. Decisions, decisions

Pearl onions are delicious in beef stew.

Skippy Natural (creamy) is our favorite!

I prefer Kirklands from Costco.

I went to 4 different stores today (Tom Thumb, Whole Foods, and two Super Targets) and couldn't get the following on my list: Any form of buns, bagels, bread, ground beef, chicken, Roma tomatoes, white onions, fresh or frozen carrots, fresh or frozen breakfast sausage, or frozen peas. I went to two different Super Targets and the selection varied greatly.

 

[MamaLema]

The only meat at the grocery store was lamb and $25/pound beef steaks