[N. Theknow]

In our town

Publix = Great produce, seafood(on sale), meat( on sale), deli, bakery.

Winn-Dixie = Can't beat their meat. Gasoline credit for spending amounts and special items.

Save-A-Lot = Adequate in most items, outstanding in none. Not financially necessary for me to shop there...yet.

Aldi = Some meats, some produce OK. Not as fresh as Publix or Winn-Dixie.

Local Bodega = Excellent produce! 1/2 to 1/3 the price of Publix. (Still cannot imagine what kind of dish uses cactus, which they offer)

[Dr. Sivana]

Publix = Great produce, seafood(on sale), meat( on sale), deli, bakery.

Winn-Dixie = Can't beat their meat. Gasoline credit for spending amounts and special items.

Save-A-Lot = Adequate in most items, outstanding in none. Not financially necessary for me to shop there...yet.

Aldi = Some meats, some produce OK. Not as fresh as Publix or Winn-Dixie.

Local Bodega = Excellent produce! 1/2 to 1/3 the price of Publix. (Still cannot imagine what kind of dish uses cactus, which they offer)

We live in Columbus Georgia, with those stores plus Walmart Neighborhood Markets, Fresh Market and Piggly Wiggly. Much as I like Georgia, the Rockford, IL Woodman's is MUCH better than Publix/Winn-Dixie in terms of price & selection and Rockford's Logli/Schnuck's better for meat selection except for the Columbus Fresh Market, which is Whole Foods expensive, except for their weekly fresh ground chuck special, best deal outside of a dedicated butcher shop.

[9YearLurker]

Ha! I’ve always wondered that too!

This looks like a decent answer:

http://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/2009/06/how-to-cook-cactus-paddles-nopales-como.html

[jalisco555]

Still cannot imagine what kind of dish uses cactus, which they offer

I just came back from a week in Mexico. I ate lots of dishes with cactus.

[Mamzelle]

It's interesting how I shop, because every grocery has items I like which I cannot get anywhere else. Ingles has gas discounts with 3x points on certain days, plus those pop-can sliced green olives which are nowhere else! One little can perfect for my egg salad.

Publix has those water rolls, great for small burgers, my KellyGold butter, fancy produce that I love, and Progresso lentil/andouille soup which is surpringly good for a canned soup. Yet I don't shop there often because the final bill so high. I have shopped Aldi but it is a lot of trouble and not much fun. Walmart I hate because it is tiring and the clientele makes me uneasy---Sam's is better if I'm going to tire myself out.

[Svartalfiar]

Around Dallas we don't really have any of these (We get Aldi's ads but I can't tell you where any are). Kroger is good for most stuff, esp sales if you check the ads. Decent quality on fresh produce/meats Tom Thumb is cheaper but I only get canned/bulk baking stuff there. Usually prefer Central Market/HEB for fresh produce/meats. More expensive, but much better quality.

(Still cannot imagine what kind of dish uses cactus, which they offer)

Have you never heard of any kind of prickly pear food? Dessert/drink? Or if you've seen "nopales" or "nopalitos" as a side/appetizer, probably at a Mexican or TexMex place, those are the cactus pads. Then some places are starting to sell cactus syrup as another agave/honey substitute. I've never tried that though.