Ash UK/US

For wine I usually only drink Pinot Grigio when I drink wine, today I tried Kirkland (costco own brand) as a cheapo, Christmas meal, quick grab, last min, anything will do ... I was not expecting it to be up to much as a cheap Chardonnay but for such a cheap price I was pleasantly surprised!

Danoz

Wine was one area I was very surprised at. I didn't know much about US wines other than a few Pinot noirs I have had from Oregon and Napa. But what you can get for $20 and under a bottle is really good. Already discovered some very good Washington and Oregon Rieslings around the $12 mark. Failed on the Chardonnay, too new world and oakey for me, but the shop keeper has informed me he has old world influenced styles as well. Had an interesting Pinot noir that has the grapes from three different regions in it for $18.

I love my old world wines from my time in the UK and Europe, but don't see the point in chasing them when you are in one the great new world wined producing regions of the world. There are plenty of wines that will be similar in style to the old world, as well as new world types that are interesting that you won't get else where as they are not bound to the controlle rules etc....

When I got the the UK ten years ago, I made a point not to drink Aust wines and leRn about the local regions and countries. I am glad I did, I have discovered a love of wines I would never have had the opportunity to try otherwise. Now in the US I will do the same as much as possible (of course I will most likely bring back wines from on holidays through Europe though, as there are some real beauties that I have discovered that also hold sentimental significance).

Right, I need to buy some shorts, something I Haven't owned many of for a long time. Let's see what post Christmas sales are like here.

scrubbedexpat091

Could be worse......Come to Canada if you want to see sticker shock on food stuffs, well pretty much everything here we pay a premium on compared to the US.

For example using prices for Albertsons in Bellingham, WA vs what I paid in Canada this past weekend, in BC.

12 eggs, 1.69 vs 2.79 in BC.

6oz yogurt 39 cents each, paid 89 cents each in BC.

Not sure what cheese runs these days across the border, but 500 gram block is 8-12 dollars depending on brand.

Booze is 2-3 times as much here on most products.

Danoz

Ouch!

robin1234

This is a praiseworthy approach, and I'm glad you've found some interesting US wines. I've tried to get to like "New World" wines for twenty or thirty years, and I've about given up. Most of the reds are much too fruity for my taste, whites often too sweet or bland ... when in a restaurant, I'm usually content to drink a glass of whatever's on offer, but at home I prefer to drink a cheap French red table wine. It is at least twice as expensive here as it would be in England, though. Living in New York State, I've got to like NYS wines .. the ones at the dry end of the spectrum, anyway!

Ruth16

I've lived in the North -and down South in the US, big difference in grocery shopping, Publix& Krogers awful produce ect compared to Stop& Shop & Shoprite in the North , the South needs a Stew Leonard's too.

dfrbrowne

Hi Danoz,
interesting to here this, we move to Tampa in January, so please let me know of any tips you come across, I have heard publix is the one big supermarket chain.

Sally Redux

It seems to me that food prices have gone up a lot in the eight years we've been here.

Last time I was back, M&S food seemed quite reasonably-priced, so it's all relative.

yukichon

Seems like madness especially when the US produces so much of its own fruits and vegetables. We will be in Colorado where meat is dirt cheap but very good

paul32x

There are 2 or 3 Aldi in Tampa:

https://www.aldi.us/en/services/store-locator/

We've started using them instead of wally-world, not a bad selection -- a bit hit and miss sometimes -- but quality is very good and prices are even better.

Flabound oneday

we are about 90 minutes south of the Op and I agree, not only are groceries pricey but the fruit and veg has a life measured almost in hours not days.

I use a lot of bananas a) for brekkie and b) in a smoothie at lunchtime , I never buy more than 3 days supply as by then they are starting to turn. I now chop and freeze some for the drinks.
salad stuff is the same, in general the quality isn't great.

we shop at walmart for the staple stuff, then Publix for fish,veggies etc
we also do a once a month run to Sarasota to Trader Joes for certain things. weve also used whole foods for odd treats

if they were nearer I'm darn sure our food bill would be higher and we already spend more $ for £ than in the UK per month

wine isn't cheap but I have to confess not disliking the Trader Joes stuff, its not vintage but with the amount we drink I can live with it...no way could we be buying 5-6 bottles a week at $9-10 a bottle...

hungryhorace

The only problem with this type bread is that it tastes like cow shit. I have to buy my bread from a local bakery that doesn't cater for the average American tastes (ie, buckets full of sodium!).

Tegwyn

Dare I ask how you know what cow shit tastes like?

Cardienscarf

You might like to do a bit of research into where it comes from and what goes into it. You might not mind but I did and would only eat meat when I knew its source. Buffalo is good though and that, I believe, always roams free.

Danoz

Hi,

We are slowly trying to do the rounds of the various supermarket chains and the different malls. supermarkets so far, I have written about above, although this weekend we are going to try a Walmart.

We have also done International Plaza, more higher end shops. Westfields Citrus park (up Westchase way), typical Westfields with a good assortment of various shops, not as high end or boutique as International Plaza. Have also done Westshore plaza below Tampa airport, smaller assortment of stores, but similar to Westfield in type.

A few major differences to be aware of compared to UK. supermarkets are supermarkets, not hypermarkets in the UK. As a result, they only sell groceries, liqueur, cleaning products etc... Not clothes and white goods etc...

the department stores are mainly for clothes, makeup, jewelry etc... Most do not have furniture, white goods etc... The malls also do not appear to have electrical, furniture, computing stores in them. You need to go to specialty stored for that. Have not been to any yet, but appear to be a lot beside the main arterial roads.

A couple of things to take into account. When you first arrive, if you are not being put up in corporate housing, then there are not a lot of furnished places on the market to rent, so you will need to buy everything. We are in a bit of a pickle, as our corporate housing runs out in mid Jan, but our shipping does not come till March, so are going to be forced to buy a lot of things again that we already own. But that it still cheaper than the extra many hundreds a month it is to rent something furnished.

We are in Hyde Park at the moment, so that is a bit more expensive.

Good luck with the move.