Does anyone buy "salvage" groceries?

[StartingEarly]

There is a store somewhat close that sells food that the other stores can't. Generally canned goods with torn labels, etc. I'm planning on going there on Friday when it's open. Has anyone else shopped at a store like that and was it worth it?

[seattlecyclone]

I don't go to a store like that, but the Safeway near my house has a shelf in the back where they put this sort of stuff (dented cans, partly-crushed boxes, out-of-season goods, other stuff they took off the shelves for whatever reason). It's all 50% off the original price. I always check it out when I'm in there.

[hollyluja]

yes!  Here in the PNW we have Grocery Outlet, which often sells scratch n dent food that wouldn't sell elsewhere.  I get great deals on canned artichoke hearts (one of the other jars broke so they were all sticky), wine with upside-down labels, dented cracker boxes etc.  Just make sure to check the expiration dates, as sometimes that is the reason the item is in the store.

[Catbert]

Yes, I go to a local store that gets a lot of  Costco castoffs as well as from other sources.  I also sometimes go to Grocery Outlet.

Two things to be aware of: 

Check use-by-dates on fresh things (not really important on shelf stable items).  Make sure you can use/freeze it in time.   

Prices are not always a bargain, especially on one off items.  Ensure that it's really a bargain before buying.

 

[hollyluja]

One more tip - don't go in a with a list.  They may not have it and it may not be a deal if they do.  Just see what is a good price and build your future meals around that. 

[Jack]

Here in Atlanta, I'd never run across a salvage grocery and thus never gave much consideration to shopping at one. This thread prompted me to search, where I learned that metro Atlanta apparently has two. One is 30 miles out into the exurbs east of the city and the other is 50 miles out into the exurbs south of the city. Neither is served by any kind of transit. Disappointing.

[syednaeemul]

Here in Melbourne, Australia, there is a chain of supermarkets called NQR which generally sell food at or beyond their Best By dates. They are ok to use if you plan on consuming the item soon.

[etselec]

We have a local store here that buys overstock or almost-expired shelf-stable items from Whole Foods and similar stores. Their stock varies, as does which items are actually a good deal and which are just average, but there are often some gems in there (lookin' at you, 2 for $1 Annie's mac and cheese...).

[RootofGood]

We visited one in Polkville, North Carolina while visiting grandma on our big road trip west.  Picked up all kinds of stuff at 33-80% off.  Tortilla shells approaching sell by ($1 for what would be about $5 at a regular grocery; still chowing down on them 2.5 weeks into the trip!).  25 small boxes of granola bars for $0.29 per box (several months past sell by but we tasted them and decided to get many more - no off taste at all and they've been handy on our trip).  Some random salad dressing and salsa that was almost at sell by date.  15 cent big bars of soap (Walgreen's "compare to" Irish spring - not as good as name brand but we get clean and don't stink).  Too much candy. 

My conclusion was that some things were really good deals, but some things weren't deals at all (compared to Aldi regular prices).  The items that were good deals generally weren't very healthy items.  This place in Polkville had no fresh fruits or vegs, cheeses, yogurt, milk, etc so not much in the way of healthy living if you shop there a lot.

[GreenSheep]

Resurrecting this thread from 2016... and there's also this one, from 2014:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/welcome-to-the-forum/have-you-shopped-at-a-salvage-grocery-store/

Is anyone else a fan of discount/salvage grocery stores? I "discovered" our local salvage grocery a few months ago and have been loving it! I've told a few friends about it, but they don't share my enthusiasm... like lots of money-saving things, I guess. People would rather just do what they're used to and continue wasting money. I also stumbled upon one in a larger city not too far away, so I stop by there when I'm in the area. I'm sure our grocery bill would have gone down except for the fact that we've been stocking up on good things when we find them (case of wine that's normally $15/bottle for $4/bottle, flat of raspberries for $17, which works out to about $1.42 per 6oz container, etc.). Thank goodness we have a garage freezer! I can do about 80% of my grocery shopping at our local salvage grocery, so I pop in twice a week and then get everything else at the regular grocery store. I think over time, once we've reached our "stocking up" limit, our monthly bill will drop.

Maybe things have changed since 2016, or maybe it's these two stores, but I've found that they're well-organized, clean, and 95% of the time about 25-50% off the "normal" price. Occasionally there's something weird like pineapples for $2.99 each, which is not a discount, but otherwise the deals are fantastic. They tend to get a lot of things from Whole Foods, Target, etc. Some store brands, some name brands. "Best by" and "sell by" dates don't bother much much since they're arbitrary, and I can use my own eyes, hands, and nose to figure out whether produce is still good. I won't go back YEARS on dates (and it's usually less than a year anyway), but a few months past the date for shelf-stable things doesn't bother me. Some things have dates well into the future (2025, even), and some are "old." Just have to check everything and go with what makes you comfortable.

Here's a website that shows you where to find a salvage grocery store in your area, if there is one.
https://www.buysalvagefood.com/salvage-grocer-map.html

[Gerard]

My brother drops by a Groce-Out in Bellingham if he's there, and he gets some great deals (as do I when I accompany him). But the same stores here in Toronto have much less to offer.

I think part of it is that American food producers introduce a lot of new products that don't catch on, more so than in sedate Canada. So there's always 25-cent offers on Ding Dong Twinkie Mash-Ups, licorice hot dogs, or IHOP-syrup flavoured coffee, or whatever.

[yachi]

We love our local salvage grocery store.  I'll second the above 2016 post and say you really need to go without a list.  We regularly get granola snacks, cereals, lunchmeat, and frozen pork tenderloins at ours.  What they have varies week by week.  Two examples of odd things we found were ketchup in 1-gallon containers, and ketchup with label in Hebrew.
In May we bought huge bags (clear bag with just a printed black on white label) of pretzels, and realized later they had jack-o-lanterns and bats.  They tasted so fresh we theorized it was a sample batch from a local snack plant trying out their production for next Halloween.
My extended family shops at an Amish-run one that just recently converted from running propane lights.
I chuckled at the recent blog post about locations you can buy cheap housing when MMM said Cosco is nationwide.  It is, but at 1.5+ hours by car, it's hardly mustachian.  Lucky for us, we have our trusty salvage grocers.

[Wolfpack Mustachian]

I really like the idea of salvage grocery stores, but unfortunately all the closest one to me tends to have are things like high frozen premade lasagnas and the like. We try to avoid processed food in those quantities. If they had other things mentioned here like coffee, fruits, even smaller processed stuff like protein bars, etc. it would be better.

[Zikoris]

We have one that's kind of like that but unofficially, and have often gotten crazy-good deals on stuff, but of course you never know what they're going to have. It doesn't matter to me since I'm a creative cook and don't use recipes. One thing that's very consistent is the "someone fucked up" tofu section, because the family that owns the grocery store also has a big tofu factory down the street. As far as I can tell, when someone accidentally cuts the tofu crooked or overcooks the tofu puffs or mangles the packaging etc, it just ends up at their grocery store heavily discounted.

[Gerard]

the "someone fucked up" tofu section

When people comment (negatively or positively) on my elaborate grocery-hacking schemes, I tell them that I internet-know someone who has a lead on irregularly-shaped tofu, and they acknowledge that I am not the master.

[JupiterGreen]

the "someone fucked up" tofu section

When people comment (negatively or positively) on my elaborate grocery-hacking schemes, I tell them that I internet-know someone who has a lead on irregularly-shaped tofu, and they acknowledge that I am not the master.

Ha, I love this. We would be so excited to have a discount tofu source near us, lucky you!

I hadn't heard of salvage groceries before so thanks for revitalizing this thread. There doesn't seem to be one near me, has anyone had luck with the online ones like Martie?

[10dollarsatatime]

I do, when I'm in the area of the salvage stores.  The closer one mostly ends up with Costco returns, close-dated items, and crushed/damaged packaging.  I always get my tuna there, because they mark the good stuff at $1/can when the bulk package breaks apart.  Got to watch those dates though.  I did end up with some no longer chewable protein bars once.

[Dicey]

I use a combination of strategies, because there are no such stores in my region. And yes, I did check the map. I'm on vacation, so I'll check back on this discussion later. Glad it's been revived.

PS. Katy over at The Non Consumer Advocate blog (she's on IG and FB, too) writes on this topic frequently.

[flyingaway]

U buy those stuffs at Kroger stores when I see something that I want. They usually labelled to go expired the next day, so I put them in the refrigerator. The dates are not very important if you buy something like breads, etc.

[sonofsven]

I did for years and I kived the bargains, but I don't anymore. I don't buy much can food or processed food, I buy ingredients either at Costco or bulk at my co-op.
I liked it because it was like a treasure hunt ; you'd never know exactly what they would have, although with experience you learn that they get the same stuff fairly regularly.
But I fully embraced cooking almost everything from scratch and so that's what I do now.
For example, if I found a case of Clif bars at a fabulous low price I would have snatched them up, but now I just make my own granola instead.

[GreenSheep]

It's interesting that some of you are saying your salvage grocery only has processed food. That's really unfortunate. Ours does have plenty of processed junk, but they also have things like fresh produce, frozen produce, grains, beans, lentils, nuts, seeds, spices, etc. I don't eat processed food, either, and I've found a lot of things that help me make cheaper meals from scratch at home. I do sometimes grab a processed treat for my husband! He's going to buy that stuff sometimes anyway, so I might as well get it cheaper!

[yachi]

Here's a website that lists a lot of salvage grocers: https://www.buysalvagefood.com/salvage-grocers-california.html

Regarding processed foods, ours has produce but you have to watch prices because it's often more expensive than the closer regular grocery store.  And often it's older than the local store.  They have great local cheese, but prices per pound are higher than the local grocery store, so we watch what we buy of that.
They carry dried pasta, but it's right around the same $1/lb that the local store charges.  Except one time they had a huge 10lb bag of pasta for $7.  I took a picture with my daughter holding it because it was the size of a baby.  We do buy sauce in jars, and chicken stock there because those prices are better.
We buy a lot of meat there - hamburger, hamburger patties, fish, and precooked frozen chicken.  One time we found shrimp.  The last two or three times they had bison burger.

[kina]

Here's a website that lists a lot of salvage grocers: https://www.buysalvagefood.com/salvage-grocers-california.html

I was please to see our local chain of stores on that map (BB's in SE PA). Tea and coffee are a frequent buy for us (60-70% off) as well as yogurt (99 cents/quart) and I bought dozens of Lakanto monk fruit drops bottles (52 ml each) for ~10 cents each. They currently sell on Amazon for around $9. That was a one-off but the point is, there are bargains to be had, which makes it a fun Mustachian outing). The produce can be iffy but usually well-priced.

[lhamo]

Not sure how many cities it is in, but there is an app called Too Good To Go that offers up stuff that stores and restaurants would otherwise trash/compost.  In Seattle there are several excellent bagel places that seem to have offers daily.  Typical offering is $18 worth of product (that's about 1/2 a dozen bagels) for $6. 

Quite a few other types of bakeries, too.  And some local markets.  As well as a variety of restaurants.

Only downside seems to be that there are sometimes pretty narrow pickup windows -- the jewish bakery near me only offers pickup between 2:30-3:00 daily.  NOt a problem for me if I plan ahead, though.

I'm planning to give it a try in the next couple of weeks.

[Loren Ver]

Thanks for posting the map!  I took at look and my state only has 4, one in each corner and I am in the middle.  Haha.  Doesn't mean that wont change, but i find it really funny.  Same with the Amish groceries etc. .  You would think the suppies would be by the cities but not so much...  Ah well.

Loren

[Raenia]

Not sure how many cities it is in, but there is an app called Too Good To Go that offers up stuff that stores and restaurants would otherwise trash/compost.  In Seattle there are several excellent bagel places that seem to have offers daily.  Typical offering is $18 worth of product (that's about 1/2 a dozen bagels) for $6. 

Quite a few other types of bakeries, too.  And some local markets.  As well as a variety of restaurants.

Only downside seems to be that there are sometimes pretty narrow pickup windows -- the jewish bakery near me only offers pickup between 2:30-3:00 daily.  NOt a problem for me if I plan ahead, though.

I'm planning to give it a try in the next couple of weeks.

I use TGTG as well for bagels - usually I can get a full dozen for $4.99, but I imagine prices vary widely by locality.

Around here it's mostly bakeries and by-the-slice pizza places. CAVA (Mediterranean food) also participates, but we haven't tried them yet.

[Catbert]

Not sure how many cities it is in, but there is an app called Too Good To Go that offers up stuff that stores and restaurants would otherwise trash/compost.  In Seattle there are several excellent bagel places that seem to have offers daily.  Typical offering is $18 worth of product (that's about 1/2 a dozen bagels) for $6. 

Quite a few other types of bakeries, too.  And some local markets.  As well as a variety of restaurants.

Only downside seems to be that there are sometimes pretty narrow pickup windows -- the jewish bakery near me only offers pickup between 2:30-3:00 daily.  NOt a problem for me if I plan ahead, though.

I'm planning to give it a try in the next couple of weeks.

One of the stalls at my local farmers' market is on TGTG so $30 of organic local produce for $10.  It sells out fast - usually in less than 5 minutes.  Much better for me than donuts or cheap pizza which is a typical offering where I am.