You know how you rave to your friends about something again and again and they largely ignore you and then try it for themselves one day and it’s like they’ve discovered it themselves?
That’s so annoying.
For instance, you might say, “Hey! The burgers over at Burger Dee-lite are delightful! You need to try one!” and your friends will act as if you said zero words and are not talking. And then you’ll repeat yourself over the course of 68 weeks because everyone should have a Burger Dee-lite they’re so delicious but no one listens to you and you just want to jump up and down on their faces and shove a Burger Dee-lite into their pie holes. Then, someone will try a Burger Dee-lite randomly because the restaurant was right there by Avery’s dance studio and she’ll mention at a Lia Sophia party, “Oh my God! Have you guys tried Burger Dee-lite? It’s the best!” and everyone will lose their minds over the prospect of this delicious burger despite the fact you’ve been insisting they have one for the last nine years.
That’s exactly what happened with Grocery Outlet and I’m still giving people a hard time about it.
Because I’ve loved Grocery Outlet for years, and when one opened in my neighborhood last year, there was not enough talking about it that could come out of my mouth.
“Hey!” I’d say. “The wine selection is fabulous!” or “Oh, this little filet mignon? I bought it at Grocery Outlet!” or “You mean THIS gluten-free, organic, all-natural granola I’m eating that costs 10 gold bullion elsewhere? I got it for three smiles at Grocery Outlet!”
But still, no one listened. I don’t know if this says more about me, or about my friends who seemingly have no ears.
Either way, slowly and one by one, my pals would try Grocery Outlet because it was “right there by the Michaels” and one by one, they’d all come back with, “Oh my GOD! Grocery Outlet has the best wine selection!” and “Enjoy this filet mignon I got at Grocery Outlet” and “This granola usually costs four newborn babies and a diamond, but I got it for three smiles at Grocery Outlet!”
I’m telling you all now: heed my words. If there is a Grocery Outlet near you, get there now and do not tell me how great it is afterward because I will throw a six-pack of Burger Dee-lites in your face.
Maybe This Will Help: How Grocery Outlet Works
Grocery Outlet sources its products directly from the manufacturers, cutting out middle man prices a lot like Trader Joe’s does. But while Trader’s primarily sells its own branded products, Grocery Outlet sells brand names such as General Mills, Dole, and Kraft. There’s also a million organic brands available that normally sell for twice as much elsewhere.
The manufacturers that sell to Grocery Outlet often do so due to products overruns and cosmetic packaging changes that typical grocery stores don’t accept. For example, when GlaxoSmithKline changed Sensodyne toothpaste packaging from a squeeze cylinder to a tube, the manufacturer was left with thousands of cylinder-packaged products it sold to Grocery Outlet at a hefty discount passed onto the consumer. The product still had years to go before its expiration date and was the same product packaged in the tube.
Grocery Outlet Products
Grocery Outlet sells health and beauty care products, toys, paper products, wine and beer, frozen foods, organic items and produce. On a recent trip, I picked up a $25 bottle of wine for $6.99 (many Grocery Outlets have their own wine buyers fully dedicated to sourcing excellent wines), several packages of Amy’s Organic entrees for as low as $2.99 each, and 100% maple syrup for a little over $5.
What to Know
Grocery Outlet’s inventory changes often so if you saw your favorite organic burrito there two weeks ago, you might not be able to find it again when you have a sudden craving and hope to find it again (and I’m STILL heartbroken about it). The products change so frequently due to the opportunistic shopping model explained above. Even so, on each trip, you should be able to find grocery staples and typical stock-up products. When you find what you love, buy a lot because you can never be sure when it will be back.
It’s a great idea to sign up for Grocery Outlet’s email notifications because additional deals and special savings events are communicated that way, in addition to through Facebook and Twitter.
Finally, Grocery Outlet does not accept manufacturer coupons mainly because its prices are already so low.
Locations
My Grocery Outlet location that I told my ignoring friends about is in Poway, but there are other locations in San Marcos, Escondido, and Oceanside.
The Giveaway
Have a $25 Grocery Outlet gift card! With that you can surely buy wine, filet mignon, and granola and have enough left over for some many other things! Try it and see!
Just please leave a comment with what you’ve tried to tell your friends repeatedly only to have them pretend you never talked and then they try it and act like they discovered it themselves. Or just leave a comment telling me how smart I am. Or just leave a comment.
I’ll pick one at random for the gift card on Friday, June 20.
Who knew about Grocery Outlet? Not me! But now I do.
You’re smart. But really.
crossing fingers – I love Grocery Outlet! I have told people that GO is the best for saving money but nobody listens *sad face*
My love for shopping on the Zulily app has finally caught on with my mommy friends. Sure is great to get a deal
I tell all my friends about Target cartwheel (an app) that will save you big bucks. No one will listen, then they give in and love it.
I would love to win. Never been to Grocery Outlet but heard a lot about it from friends in Oceanside. I might have to check that place out and see what the hubbub is all about.
I love that each Grocery Outlet is individually family owned and operated. I tell everyone to grab an annual mom’s guide for BOGOs to the New Children’s Museum, Birch Aquarium, Soup Plantation, My Kids Clubhouse, Funbelievable and more. :)
Oh so true. I’ve only been there twice but lil Cornish hens! Wine! Tea tree oil! I’m a convert!
I tell everyone about grocery outlet and am always come back and thank me…people just get in a habit of where they shop…I like to mix it up a bit
Grocery Outlet is the creme de le creme and bomb among bomb discount grocery stores. Set aside the incredible bargains you get there, the stores are clean, well organized and the customer service beats the better known more expensive stores all to heck. You will find items at Grocery Outlet you won’t find at your local market. Because they buy huge quantities of items from such a wide array of sources, you could be buying products that are not even local to your region, but that’s the fun of it all. It’s like a Treasure Hunt when you go grocery shopping. Some recent amazing finds are end cuts of natural uncured bacon for half or a third of its normal cost; jumbo sized cheese shreds or crumbles again at a fraction of normal price; healthier versions of energy drinks for 50 cents instead of three or four times that amount. And you can always find a great bottle of wine for $3.99 (occasionally as low as $1.99). The bargains don’t end with food items, either. You can find organic shampoos, cleansers, vitamins, and cosmetics for pennies on the dollar. What a marvelous addition to any neighborhood. Grocery Outlet has truly forged out a great tradition of community embracing stores that are clean, well managed and offer everyone incredibly good bargains and product finds that leaves more money in the wallet while providing more food for the table. A big hearty Thank You, Grocery Outlet!!
You’re certainly brilliant! And, also, I want to buy wine. :)
We first found Grocery Outlet in the Lake Tahoe area .We shopped there while we were camping and stocked up on a few items .We were commenting to one another that we would like a store like that down in San Diego, and then we were happy they opened one Downtown and now another in East County.If you have time to go up and down the aisles,You can find some great deals.
I know what you mean about raving to deaf ears. There’s this burger joint nearby called Pit Stop which is only 100x better than In N Out, but they’re quicker and cheaper! I’m always raving about Pit Stop but no one listens untilllll… they try it and act like they found a hidden gem in town. -___-
I am so lucky to have a GO nearby. I’ve been able to nab a liter of Naked juice for less than $2. KILLER!
i always talk about online websites that have coupon and deal match-ups. finally they discovered it after months of me telling them.
I can’t wait to try Grocery Outlet, sounds awesome!
I’ve tried telling family members about Grocery Outlet and they look at me like I’ve grown another head. (My Dad’s response: “I don’t like the parking lot at that shopping center”. *sigh*) I think my favorite find: a healthy happy peach tree for under $10. This is it’s third year and even after losing some limbs & fruit in last month’s windstorms I had enough for 2 pies and about 8 pints of jam. :)
We are Lucky to have two Grocery Outlets within about 7 miles from our home.We like to go to both because they are a little different from one another. We walk through all the rows of food and find some really great deals on some gourmet items like artichoke hearts ,imported pesto , greek olives…We have enjoyed finding these treasures.Each time we go in we find great deals.They have a nice selection of teas,and cookies and breads.We are happy Grocery Outlet has made its way to San Diego County.
My family does this to me all the time. Too many examples to event count. I have yet to visit a Grocery Outlet Store and I have heard so many great things about it. I can’t wait to check it out…hopefully with this gift card.
First I’ve heard of it, but sounds like somewhere I need to go!
My husband and I started shopping at GO about a year or so ago and fell in LOVE with it. We eat about 80% organic so they have been a HUGE money saver! Then we had to move *ugh*. I was NOT looking forward to have to shop at Whole Foods again so finding a new home that was close to a GO was put in the top 5 of neighborhood “must haves”. You should’ve seen our Realtor’s face when we told him we were passing on a house because it was too far from a GO *ha ha ha* We did find the perfect home though -FIVE minutes from the Grocery Outlet store (with a 2nd location just another 10 minutes further!) SCORE!!
I love the cheap wine there. ha ha ha