LondonSquirrel

Just wondering, because the opposite is definitely true!

I just bought 2 boxes of American cereal at Partridges in South Kensington and it came to £15.33

I know some big supermarkets, like Tesco's in Slough, have a US foods section and I expect they are cheaper. And lots of American candy is available in little convenience stores now. Fortunately DH doesn't hanker that much after US foods, he just fancied some Apple Jacks now! He even prefers English mustard to American mustard now because he likes it strong!

My only experience buying British food in America is one time we were staying with MIL and I wanted some brown sauce. We got some HP from Cardulas in Harvard Square and it cost several dollars as far as I recall, I remember being astonished at the price.

English88

I bought some jaffa Cakes and Barley water at a British store and it was very expensive... Got home to find the jaffa cakes were well out of date. Still ate them.

Englishmum

You should try Amazon.co.uk and look at their Grocery section (International & Specialty) and you will find American food items; it may be a cheaper option for you. Sadly it's always the international shipping costs which cause the high prices.

I've just done the reverse and ordered two large boxes of Walker's Crisps on the US Amazon site for my son in New Jersey....they're being dispatched from the UK though.

TBH - South Kensington prices are never going to be inexpensive for imported items....it's one of the wealthiest areas of London and there is a big American expat community prepared to pay the high prices....have you been to Wholefoods on Kensington High Street btw?

When I'm in the UK I often go to Costco as there are a few warehouses scattered around the country and they do obviously stock a selection of American food items in addition to the British ones. The Costco cards can be used worldwide.

Orangepants

I don't find British foods expensive here. Like Englishmum, I buy on Amazon - just received a box of cheese and onion crisps yesterday and I can buy 10 double deckers for $10. Also Publix here in the Carolinas is not expensive, Hob Nobs for $3 and Barley Water for $4. I bring a suitcase of chocolate/tea bags etc back a couple of times a year. It is OH who is the crisp and chocoholic!

I used to live in the Cayman Islands, $18 for a pound of bacon, $30 for an Easter egg!! Even so you still pay it!

LondonSquirrel

OT but I have been on holiday on Grand Cayman. Lovely place!

amideislas

My experience has been that of the few American consumer brands that are available, they tend to be more expensive in Europe and the UK, sometimes by orders of magnitude. The reverse isn't (as) true. I always find a larger selection of European consumer products in US stores than American consumer products in European stores. I strongly suspect it's related to Europe's greater protectionist ideology and higher import duties/taxation.

WEBlue

This made me laugh--I would have too!!

LondonSquirrel

I love Jaffa cakes but DH doesn't. Remember the dispute years ago over whether they were classed as biscuits or cakes?

ChocolateBabz

They can be, but I only buy them once in a while. I maybe go to The British Isles Store in Houston four or five times a year and spend $80 on crisps, biscuits, sweets etc but I figure that's the same as us eating out once so that's our treat instead. If The Dude throws a $2.00 aero in the trolley at the supermarket every other week, yes it's expensive but not noticeable in the grand scheme. I also have the ocassional blow out and buy stuff from out of state or online.

Englishmum

You should definitely try and go to an Aldi store....they've got loads of stores in Texas (inc. the greater Houston area) and other parts of the US. I know I've seen their own branded version of Jaffa Cakes (made in Germany, I think although possibly even in the UK) at my nearest Aldi in New Jersey. You will also find other European imported foods (mainly German of course) from time to time, especially with the Easter holidays coming up.

Aldi is - like throughout Europe/UK - much cheaper than many other local supermarkets, although I've mainly tended to just buy their dry/canned/jars of items in the NJ store, their fresh produce isn't that great there

The best way to find your local store is to keep zooming in on the map (of Texas) or typing in your zipcode here:

https://storelocator.aldi.us/Present...ed/en-us/Start

https://www.aldi.us/

https://www.aldi.us/en/weekly-specia...y-mini-eggs-1/ (not sure if these are UK or US ones?)

Orangepants

Yes my OH too! Often I'd buy him something from WorldMarket and more often than not, it would be stale but he'd happily scoff it (he does the same with my cooking).

Pulaski

A VAT tribunal IIRC, that ruled that biscuits are baked "dry" and get soft if left out, whereas cakes are baked soft and dry out and go hard as they age. Therefore jaffa cakes are in deed cakes. ...... I used to work for United Biscuits (McVities/ Crawfords/ KP).

Personally I find British groceries more expensive than I am willing to pay, and could just about count on one hand the number of British groceries I have bought in the US during the past 13 years. I paid almost $10 for small jar of vegemite last year, and then $20 for two large jars of Marmite three months ago. I can't even remember anything else ..... maybe a packet of Hobnobs a few years ago.

I brought some Plain Chocolate Hobnobs, Plain Chocolate Homewheat, and Primula cheese back with me from the UK last summer.

Bob

Hit or miss....some things can be.

Can of Heinz beans around where I am range from $2.50-4 a can. So I think that's pretty pricey for what it is.

Cheese can be very expensive.

Some things like sweets, some are very cheap and others aren't.

Move around the country and you'll find it different, depending on what local shops and grocery chains stock.

mwdake

Batchelors Mushy Peas at my local supermarket for $2.69, that is pretty spendy for a small can of peas. I got them for a while but have since stopped.

scrubbedexpat091

Not the US but the items I have seen in Canada are usually double or triple and sometimes more for a UK import vs Canadian or US brand.

They are a specialty item generally only found in specialty stores, although some Wal-Marts now have a small British section, however my local store does not.

True US imported brands are more pricey then the same brand for the Canadian version, so many brands in the US are not available in Canada and those that are can be different, Corn Pops in Canada are not the same as the US for example.