Grocery Shop 'Til You Drop
Save $$$ at Super 88, not Shaw's

You can buy a container of salt for 59 cents at any of the four supermarkets in Allston-Brighton, but if you want more, look closely. The TAB compared prices of 14 common items on the average grocery list at three local supermarkets this week, and found Super 88 on Brighton Avenue offers shoppers the most bang for your buck.
It is followed by Shaw's and then Whole Foods Market on Washington Street, where it is tough to find generic brands, but the alternatives are healthy and natural.

The Shaw's Supermarkets on Commonwealth Avenue and Everett Street are great for burning a hole in your pocket unless you live on Coke and corn flakes, the only good deals among compared items.

You can buy a regular pack of Kellogg's Raisin Bran for $3.49 or a bottle of soda for 79 cents at Shaw's, much less than the price of the same at the other two. But most of Shaw's deals are limited to its own store brands, for which you need to swipe your rewards card.

However, even these cannot top regular Super 88 in other areas.
Folks shopping at Shaw's cited the convenience of living nearby.

"It's right down the street from my apartment," said Allston resident Hilary Delross.
The Everett Street Shaw's also boasts the longest hours, and is open until midnight everyday.

Mind-boggling deals
A block down the street, the Asian market Super 88 offers mind-boggling deals – from two dozen eggs for $1 to butter at almost half the price of the other two stores.

The fruits and vegetables section has great variety with Asian specialties such as bok choy and lychees. So do aisles of sauces, snacks and teas. Seafood are jumping in tanks, and the meat is cut fresh.

Andrea Vanuien of Brookline said she loves the variety. "The vegetable, fruit, port and condiments are very good here," she said.

If you are too hungry to cook, the food court there offers good, cheap options from sushi and dim sum to popular boba teas.

If you are looking to buy wontons or tofu or something tasty you ate at Chinatown, this is the market to get it raw and at a good price.

One drawback - items and aisles are labeled mainly in Chinese.

Even for groceries, it pays to be a smart shopper

Healthy choice
Asian medicines, teas and condiments are also available at Whole Foods on Washington Street, where the healthy shoppers go. Most said they also like to shop at Trader Joe's in Brookline.

Khema Loving from Roxbury comes to Whole Foods for tasty food, healthier options and better prices.
"I can't have wheat, but Stop & Shop or Shaw's don't have gluten-free options," she said. "If I'm gonna kill myself, I'll take them, but let me also enjoy my food."

Whole Foods has a gigantic fruits and vegetable section with loose grains, flour, coffee and nuts sold by weight. Flour can be bought for as little as 59 cents a pound.

They also have an amazing array of foreign breads and cheese. The deli section is almost always packed, with a salad bar, soups and sandwiches of the day. The meat and fish market is fresh everyday with options from lamb steaks to marinated kabobs.

If you are looking for Coke or Sprite, you won't find any at this health-and-environment-conscience company, but you could buy sparkling water for 99 cents, natural Italian sodas for $1.99 and four bottles of fresh limeade or lemonade for $5.

"I like the selection and it's convenient," said Brighton resident Patrick Marinaro.

Trying to compete
It would seem that the competition has not gone unnoticed.

The Shaw's markets now have specialty bread, cheese and coffee sections with Krispy Kreme doughnuts, and Osco drug pharmacy, a Wild Harvest natural foods section, a kosher section and a small International foods section.

Alex and Serena Goonzalez of Brookline said they usually shop at Stop & Shop (on Harvard Avenue), but they come here when they have the time.

"It's a little bit bigger, so we come here when we have the time, " Alex said.

Serena said she likes the fruit section.

The store does have a large fruits and vegetables section with apples cheaper than Whole Foods, but not a whole lot else where bargains or healthy choices are concerned.