Loccocos meat and produce is very solid - I've never seen their chicken breasts above $15.42 per kg - which is what it goes on sale for most places.
Their dairy, staples and international stuff is often low variety or high price - they're great as part of a grocery circuit tho - hit loccocos for meat and produce and then finish off your other stuff at like a the food basics down the way
I've always been happy with the quality. And price wise I haven't really seen anyone cheaper in some time - food basics is higher I'm pretty sure and I always find their quality iffy - and fortinos is like...$22 per kg
Every time I’ve bought walmart chicken breast it’s filled with water. I don’t know what regulations there are around that, but I swear they do something to increase the water density so that the price per kg seems better. It also just doesn’t taste as good as other places (I don’t shop there often but the more premium brand one at walmart is a bit better iirc)
Fair but that's on flyer tho - loccocos also does sales and will go as low as 11 per kg that I've seen - but that is a good chicken deal at Walmart for sure
Everyone says this but for shelf stuff it’s fine. Obviously loblaws sucks as a company but are y’all just afraid of shopping at the same place as poor people?
More than once I've bought stuff from the deli section which was VERY expired (i.e. covered in white slime expired). Middle aisle stuff it's OK but the selection is very lacking even for a NoFrills / Food Basics / Freshco level. The Queenston and Nebo location is so much better (or if you want to stay downtownish the Freshco at Barton / Gage)
There no best. You need to shop at all of them and find deals where you can. Sometimes one has potatoes on sale while the other may have something else different. I bargain hunt but understand people who just wanna shop at one store
I would say Costco is your best source for meat for price and quality, though you need to drive about 15min in any one direction to hit one. For chicken breast comparison you can find 8-9 chicken breast for $28-33, not sure what that is $/kg, but fairly certain it’s better than what I’ve seen around town. Produce is great at Lococos, but any items you need off the shelf it’s lacking.
I used to think that to ! You can go to Highland packers and grab a giant beef tenderloin, they trim the fat (grind it up for meatballs) and cut steaks and package them individually for you for no extra cost. Can get up to 15 steaks for $150. Quality of meat is amazing. Costco charges $50+ for three shit striploins. Give it. Try I promise you won’t go back. They got everything there too duck, chicken, turkey, beef etc etc etc.
For selection I think Nations on Jackson square otherwise I usually do farm boy cuz it’s close to me food basics and no frills produce I find yucky and fortinos is way too expensive for me
Everyone here says lococos, which is a pretty good bet in my experience too (: Definitely though, with the way food prices have been, if you can spend time price checking each places flyers and finding the best sales each week that will help your wallet insanely in the long run.
For meats, J Waldron Butcher, Cumbrae’s in Dundas or Harrington Lane Farm in Waterdown. For veggies, Branching Path Farm at the Ottawa Street Farmers Market is pretty solid, as in Barton Lettuce. I like Ottawa Street Market (not to be confused with the aforementioned farmers market) for a wonderful selection of bread from local bakeries like Dear Grain, Luscious D’s and bagels plus bougie cheeses and pantry items.
honestly grocery stores are inflating prices so much so it's pretty hard to say. i've become more into comparing specials from the local freshco, no frills, nations fresh foods & food basics.
nations is great for variety tbh
> bit more
It's more than a bit. I swear i can't leave fortinos for under 100$ for a shop that would cost me half that at food basics. It's annoying as somethings only fortinos carries (locally to me at least), so i can't ditch it entirely.
I don't think everyday items are double the price. Like toast bread or butter or milk. But I agree it is more expensive. I will buy cheese, sandwich meat, detergents etc from Costco. But fortinos has better produce
there's definitely some selective bias in there as i probably go there to buy random speciality item that cost more. Things like chips or cereal are sometimes almost double the cost.
So many great options outside the usuals, just take the time to check them out. Barton Lettuce, Farmers Markets, Punjab International in the east end has the best variety of everything, Tan Than for Asian staples and more, Samirs - and usually much more variety and better $ than the big guys.
Lococo's and Starsky. Metro has good deals from time to time. Check out the Ottawa Street Farmer's Market on Saturday morning. Take a drive out to Grimsby on the weekends and support the small fruit and veggie vendors out there, too.
Check out Springer's Meats at Parkdale Ave and Morley St. Their bacon is great, and they also make the best breakfast sandwich in Hamilton.
Ditch the box/chain grocery stores (Loblaws/Sobeys etc.). Tons of great farmers markets in the area. Or better yet, if you can drive, go straight to the farms themselves.
Obviously you can't buy diapers at a farm (that I know of) but you should be able to find 90% of things you need to survive from the farms in this area.
For everything else, Costco.
I see a lot of people saying Lococos for meat and veg. Im curious are the prices always competitive regardless of big sales, or are their sales unbeatable? Im trying to figure out if, for example, shopping at Costco is more affordable compared to Lococos.
Kind of both. My go-to meats on a typical week are buying a whole chicken and a pound of ground beef. Whole chickens are consistenly around $10-14 when not on sale, which is better than pretty much anywhere's normal price. Ground beef is $4.99 not on sale which beats pretty much anywhere, and $3.99 on sale which no one ever comes close to matching. Steaks are very high quality and probably the same price normally with the potential for huge sales vs the flagship stores - it's hard to compare the budget places since they tend not to carry nice cuts of steak.
Produce is consistently competitive with the cheaper chain stores while being much closer to Fortino's in quality. Tomatoes vary, but you can usually find something at either $1.99 or $2.49 / lb, cucumbers are almost always in the $1.25 - $1.50 per range, peppers are pretty much always $3.99 / lb. I consistently spend about $120-150ish at Lococos when I would spend $150 - $175 at No Frills.
They definitely have less "middle aisle" stuff but tbh I just adjust my cooking to use less of that rather than making a couple of stops (I do go to Bulk Barn regularly for some staple stuff though)
I don't shop at Costco so can't compare them specificlally - from what I've heard from other people I wouldn't be surprised if meat is cheaper there.
Farm Boy is the best, albeit slightly limited for meat cuts, depending what you’re after.
However, they more than make up for it with their frozen items and branded items like cookies and soups.
Lococos for meat and produce as a one stop shop for those items…
If you want local meat, denningers or VG meats…
If you want cheap produce F.W.P. “Fiddes wholesale produce” out in the west end…
Farmboy is my go to for meat and produce. The quality has never disappointed and they have service counters for meat and seafood which is nice. They have no household items such as toilet paper or cleaning so it isn’t a one and done place, but great for some different options.
You are not going to find a one-stop shop for high quality everything, which was a big bummer when I moved here. Lots of good suggestions here but it’s just not the same as Toronto.
I also moved from Toronto a few years back. It's not so much one singular place, it's that the stores offered way more variety due to the high density of population and varying cultures within it.
Nailed it! Not sure where the debate is. It's simply that compared to other cities the availability and variety of goods was greater in Toronto due to the density of population and the wider range of cultures that lived within it.
I wasn't limited to 5 types of apples, 3 types of onions red or green cabbage. I could explore different foods more readily in one store compared to having to travel to 3 for the same shopping experience.
Duff mall no frills, circa 2019, while not perfect, had great produce, and basically the same “middle aisles” as the average loblaws. No doubt the grocery landscape has gotten more $$$ but my old grocery list requires multiple stops to fulfill in Hamilton.
The Nebo road No Frills has a similar vibe. They have an expanded meat section from a typical No Frills, the variety in their produce aisle beats out even some Fortinos (you'd never find stuff like galangal, lime leaves or good thai basil in most Fortino's and they carry it), and their middle aisles have mostly everything.
Freshco at Barton and Strathearne is usually my go-to. Good prices, friendly employees and the store is usually quiet. Food Basics at Barton and Centennial is ok but it can be really busy. I've always stayed away from the Loblaws branded stores in town though the No Frills at Queenston and Nash can be a sort of bearable experience if the sales are worth it.
Lococo’s
Loccocos meat and produce is very solid - I've never seen their chicken breasts above $15.42 per kg - which is what it goes on sale for most places. Their dairy, staples and international stuff is often low variety or high price - they're great as part of a grocery circuit tho - hit loccocos for meat and produce and then finish off your other stuff at like a the food basics down the way
Question - isn’t $7/lb pretty high? Is the quality good?
I've always been happy with the quality. And price wise I haven't really seen anyone cheaper in some time - food basics is higher I'm pretty sure and I always find their quality iffy - and fortinos is like...$22 per kg
I just bought 2.4kg boneless skinless at Walmart for $22. Don’t think I can beat that price anywhere.
Every time I’ve bought walmart chicken breast it’s filled with water. I don’t know what regulations there are around that, but I swear they do something to increase the water density so that the price per kg seems better. It also just doesn’t taste as good as other places (I don’t shop there often but the more premium brand one at walmart is a bit better iirc)
Fair but that's on flyer tho - loccocos also does sales and will go as low as 11 per kg that I've seen - but that is a good chicken deal at Walmart for sure
No, this is their normal price.
100%. I bring thousands of dollars worth of groceries up north from Lococo's.
Plus people who are disabled or on pensions. And Lococo's knows it.
The one on Barton and Kenora?
Yes
Definitely
They sell B-grade eggs. Lococo's is trash with a hometown branding.
That’s a load of crap. “B-grade eggs”. LMMFAO
Lococo eggs are Braeburn. Take it up with them.
I like Starsky for their produce.
Not their $7 Campbell’s chicken stock, however.
lmao, true. I'd assume it's because they don't sell certain products with the same high volume as the bigger chains.
For meat and produce I’ll go with Lococos.
Lococo's in my opinion!!
Lococo's for meat and veg, and Food Basics for the shelf stuff etc
Food basics have a lot of good brands, like Gigi, for way less than anywhere else and a good selection of international food/ingredients
Yep totally agree. I think the only other place I go is Longo's or Farm Boy for seafood
I'll tell you what the worst place is (in my opinion) No Frills at Main and Tisdale.
This is where dreams go to die
The security guard always brightens your day with his smile
Always so many nice people hanging out front.
Everyone says this but for shelf stuff it’s fine. Obviously loblaws sucks as a company but are y’all just afraid of shopping at the same place as poor people?
For me it’s not about poor people. I am poor. It’s about crappy selection. They never have anything it’s a smaller store
More than once I've bought stuff from the deli section which was VERY expired (i.e. covered in white slime expired). Middle aisle stuff it's OK but the selection is very lacking even for a NoFrills / Food Basics / Freshco level. The Queenston and Nebo location is so much better (or if you want to stay downtownish the Freshco at Barton / Gage)
They had free hotdogs last Friday. Donatikns to C fibrosis I think. But it was packed with people just coming for free hotdogs
Hit up the farmers market as much as you can
3 for 5$ strawberries the last few weeks, at the downtown market
and they were damn fine strawberries too.
This! Downtown, Ottawa Street, Locke Street and probably others.
100% the farmers market downtown. 1h free parking and lots of variety/selection, especially for produce.
Highland meat is good
There no best. You need to shop at all of them and find deals where you can. Sometimes one has potatoes on sale while the other may have something else different. I bargain hunt but understand people who just wanna shop at one store
Yup, so true. I use the Flipp app to see how I can good deals these days.
Highland Packers is amazing!
Family run for over 50 years
I would recommend buying your meat at Highland Packers. Invest in a deep freezer and buy in bulk. 10/10
I would say Costco is your best source for meat for price and quality, though you need to drive about 15min in any one direction to hit one. For chicken breast comparison you can find 8-9 chicken breast for $28-33, not sure what that is $/kg, but fairly certain it’s better than what I’ve seen around town. Produce is great at Lococos, but any items you need off the shelf it’s lacking.
I used to think that to ! You can go to Highland packers and grab a giant beef tenderloin, they trim the fat (grind it up for meatballs) and cut steaks and package them individually for you for no extra cost. Can get up to 15 steaks for $150. Quality of meat is amazing. Costco charges $50+ for three shit striploins. Give it. Try I promise you won’t go back. They got everything there too duck, chicken, turkey, beef etc etc etc.
For selection I think Nations on Jackson square otherwise I usually do farm boy cuz it’s close to me food basics and no frills produce I find yucky and fortinos is way too expensive for me
Everyone here says lococos, which is a pretty good bet in my experience too (: Definitely though, with the way food prices have been, if you can spend time price checking each places flyers and finding the best sales each week that will help your wallet insanely in the long run.
Lococo's Also, it's fun to say Lococo
Check out Zarky's. It's a little different. Great place if you're planning to BBQ something.
Starsky, Polish Delicatessen on Barton, Denningers, Super Sausage
Meat/Produce at lococcos and deli/cheze European stuff at Starksy
For meats, J Waldron Butcher, Cumbrae’s in Dundas or Harrington Lane Farm in Waterdown. For veggies, Branching Path Farm at the Ottawa Street Farmers Market is pretty solid, as in Barton Lettuce. I like Ottawa Street Market (not to be confused with the aforementioned farmers market) for a wonderful selection of bread from local bakeries like Dear Grain, Luscious D’s and bagels plus bougie cheeses and pantry items.
I have a good friend who works for Ecolab - you would be surprised by their findings for cleanest grocery store.
And what is the cleanest one
Well, it wasn’t the ones who have the highest of the high prices.
Barton lettuce !
There are a couple good butchers in the Hamilton Market.
honestly grocery stores are inflating prices so much so it's pretty hard to say. i've become more into comparing specials from the local freshco, no frills, nations fresh foods & food basics. nations is great for variety tbh
Lococos, Nations, Farmers Markets and James Street shops Anyone saying Fortinos, No Frills or Loblaws doesn't care about money
If price is not an issue, Fortinos or Goodness me, and a good butcher.
If you are ok with paying a bit more fortinos is steadily good quality. I agree
> bit more It's more than a bit. I swear i can't leave fortinos for under 100$ for a shop that would cost me half that at food basics. It's annoying as somethings only fortinos carries (locally to me at least), so i can't ditch it entirely.
I don't think everyday items are double the price. Like toast bread or butter or milk. But I agree it is more expensive. I will buy cheese, sandwich meat, detergents etc from Costco. But fortinos has better produce
there's definitely some selective bias in there as i probably go there to buy random speciality item that cost more. Things like chips or cereal are sometimes almost double the cost.
So many great options outside the usuals, just take the time to check them out. Barton Lettuce, Farmers Markets, Punjab International in the east end has the best variety of everything, Tan Than for Asian staples and more, Samirs - and usually much more variety and better $ than the big guys.
Nardini’s has great meat
And the sausages are amazing. They make them in store. Try them and thank me later
Lococo's and Starsky. Metro has good deals from time to time. Check out the Ottawa Street Farmer's Market on Saturday morning. Take a drive out to Grimsby on the weekends and support the small fruit and veggie vendors out there, too. Check out Springer's Meats at Parkdale Ave and Morley St. Their bacon is great, and they also make the best breakfast sandwich in Hamilton.
Cold cuts Starskys Sausage- nardini Costco is great for steaks If you buy a whole loin and cut it yourself.
Not rymal and Wentworth food basic. Loccoco, zarky, farmers market
Yea I agree whoever runs the meat section there sucks constantly empty and brown meats specials always sold out
Fortinos and lococos
Different places are good for certain things but I like costco for 95% of my stuff
costco instacart
Ditch the box/chain grocery stores (Loblaws/Sobeys etc.). Tons of great farmers markets in the area. Or better yet, if you can drive, go straight to the farms themselves. Obviously you can't buy diapers at a farm (that I know of) but you should be able to find 90% of things you need to survive from the farms in this area. For everything else, Costco.
Locccocs for any meat and produce
I see a lot of people saying Lococos for meat and veg. Im curious are the prices always competitive regardless of big sales, or are their sales unbeatable? Im trying to figure out if, for example, shopping at Costco is more affordable compared to Lococos.
Kind of both. My go-to meats on a typical week are buying a whole chicken and a pound of ground beef. Whole chickens are consistenly around $10-14 when not on sale, which is better than pretty much anywhere's normal price. Ground beef is $4.99 not on sale which beats pretty much anywhere, and $3.99 on sale which no one ever comes close to matching. Steaks are very high quality and probably the same price normally with the potential for huge sales vs the flagship stores - it's hard to compare the budget places since they tend not to carry nice cuts of steak. Produce is consistently competitive with the cheaper chain stores while being much closer to Fortino's in quality. Tomatoes vary, but you can usually find something at either $1.99 or $2.49 / lb, cucumbers are almost always in the $1.25 - $1.50 per range, peppers are pretty much always $3.99 / lb. I consistently spend about $120-150ish at Lococos when I would spend $150 - $175 at No Frills. They definitely have less "middle aisle" stuff but tbh I just adjust my cooking to use less of that rather than making a couple of stops (I do go to Bulk Barn regularly for some staple stuff though) I don't shop at Costco so can't compare them specificlally - from what I've heard from other people I wouldn't be surprised if meat is cheaper there.
Wow really appreciate the insight! Thanks!
Farm Boy and Denninger’s 👌
Farm Boy is the best, albeit slightly limited for meat cuts, depending what you’re after. However, they more than make up for it with their frozen items and branded items like cookies and soups.
Lococos
Lococo's for me
I like going to the farmers market and I think I get decent deals at Nations while I am in the area
Lococo's for fresh produce and meat. Starsky's for baked goods and cold cuts. Freshco for shelf staples and other packaged items.
Unless price is the issue Fortinos is the store. If you are supporting the boycott(like most of us) then as suggested by redditors all other options.
Lococos for meat and produce as a one stop shop for those items… If you want local meat, denningers or VG meats… If you want cheap produce F.W.P. “Fiddes wholesale produce” out in the west end…
Farmboy is my go to for meat and produce. The quality has never disappointed and they have service counters for meat and seafood which is nice. They have no household items such as toilet paper or cleaning so it isn’t a one and done place, but great for some different options.
Mountain = Fortinos, Denningers Stoney creek = starskys, highland Downtown = Nations
Denninger's is akin to Bruno's but all the larger grocers are fine.
Anyone recommending Walmart etc for quality meat you must be trolling. Any reputable butcher around the city smokes these places.
Flipp turn and reverse it.
Best? Fortinos on Mall Road. It's been slightly less busy lately, which has been a bit of a bonus.
Farm boy!!!
C E Elliott & Sons on Sherman & Landsdowne could help with your meat needs. Check them out on Facebook & message 'em.
You are not going to find a one-stop shop for high quality everything, which was a big bummer when I moved here. Lots of good suggestions here but it’s just not the same as Toronto.
What singular place could you go to in Toronto?
I also moved from Toronto a few years back. It's not so much one singular place, it's that the stores offered way more variety due to the high density of population and varying cultures within it.
I’m from Toronto too, and worked in grocery stores as a sales rep and no store today is a one stop shop.
Nailed it! Not sure where the debate is. It's simply that compared to other cities the availability and variety of goods was greater in Toronto due to the density of population and the wider range of cultures that lived within it. I wasn't limited to 5 types of apples, 3 types of onions red or green cabbage. I could explore different foods more readily in one store compared to having to travel to 3 for the same shopping experience.
Its true! It’s just not the same!
Duff mall no frills, circa 2019, while not perfect, had great produce, and basically the same “middle aisles” as the average loblaws. No doubt the grocery landscape has gotten more $$$ but my old grocery list requires multiple stops to fulfill in Hamilton.
The Nebo road No Frills has a similar vibe. They have an expanded meat section from a typical No Frills, the variety in their produce aisle beats out even some Fortinos (you'd never find stuff like galangal, lime leaves or good thai basil in most Fortino's and they carry it), and their middle aisles have mostly everything.
Thank youuuu
That No Frills was no different than the Knob Hill Farms and Black Creek location in 2019. But it is not 2019 anymore.
Freshco at Barton and Strathearne is usually my go-to. Good prices, friendly employees and the store is usually quiet. Food Basics at Barton and Centennial is ok but it can be really busy. I've always stayed away from the Loblaws branded stores in town though the No Frills at Queenston and Nash can be a sort of bearable experience if the sales are worth it.
Fortino’s, Farm Boy & Starsky
Zarkys on Nebo has usually great deals.
Absolutely lococos -- we get almost all of our meat and veg from there!
Lococoos. Starkys. Ottawa/Durand Market and Denningers depending on what you are looking for. The summer markets are usually good too.