Here in Manhattan it seems the cost of groceries seems to be skyrocketing. We spend $500 per month for a working couple that eats dinner out 2 or 3 times a week. Salmon Fillet cost $10.99 per pound, sliced Turkey Breast cold cuts are $10.00 per pound, Coke, $1.79 per litre, 10 oz of Cheerios are $4.28, Yuban Columbian Coffee, $4.17 per 12 oz can. Theses are supermarket prices not gourmet stores. Here in Manhattan, space is limited so you can't buy giant economy sizes, and there is little competition within walking distance. How are the prices where you live?

Me thinks it's really time for you to get a life.........or move to a spot where groceries are cheaper!

where on earth are you shopping In Manhattan. I've lived here for more than 20 years, and never paid those prices.
Ever heard of sales??
I always buy coke or pepsi at >99 -$1.19 per 2 liter bottle and stock up

Good grief, it's time to buy a CostCo card and stock up there once a month. Those prices are outrageous. I'm a single person who eats out rarely and $500 is my food budget for say, 5 months.

No Costco in Manhattan, and most Manhattanites don't have cars. That savings alone pays for the higher grocery costs

I spend the same thing in NJ.
I buy Starbucks French Roast about $10-a pound.
And it is for 2 also.
Guess you had better find cheaper stores, like Fairway or move.

I don't have a car either. But I have friends with cars, and I have a wheelie shopping trolley I can take on the metro with me. If that's too full, I put the rest of my purchases in a backpack. It's a once-a-month hassle that saves me hundreds.

Arlingtonian, that may work for you but there's no way anyone is going to be able to shlep (that's A NY term a shopping cart on a NYC subway. Most of the time you can barely get a person in and out of a subway car let alone a cart full of giant sized food products. And the "friends with cars" routine gets real tired, real quick.
Most people look for sales or suck up and pay the higher prices. Everything else is more expensive here so why shouldn't groceries be?

Why can't you take a cab? I have done that plenty of times.There are larger groceries in most neighborhoods.
Also, most stores deliver.Try that.

"The Grocer"--what neighborhood are you in???

Well, to answer the poster's original question, for 2 pounds of Starbucks whole bean coffee i paid $6, for $5 I got 32oz of some crunchy granola-y cereal with dried cranberries, i got 3 lbs of individually wrapped frozen salmon steaks for $8 and a ridiculous amount of Charmin for $12. I got about a year's supply of Tide for $17. all from Price Club/ Costco. i bought 6 quarts of Tropicana calcium o.j. for, um, I think $5-6.
I bummed a ride off of a friend who does not have a membership card, but has a lot of trunk space and needed to stock up too. it was the perfect arrangement.

Jeez, just get more takeout food then. I buy a huge deli sandwich at lunchtime for $6.25 and save half of it for dinner. A pint of Chinese food with a pint of rice costs about $6 and is enough for two people. Takeout food also = a clean kitchen!

By the way, you're buying your cereal at the wrong place if you're paying that much. Cereal is typically $2.99 or less at drug stores like Duane Reade and Rite Aid.

TheGrocer,

I live in Virginia outside of DC and it is kind of expensive here also - but everything you listed was about the same cost. I pay less for Turkey Breast (maybe $6.50-7.50) and more for coffee.

I think any urban area is going to be higher. But you know what they say about the best places to live - you are paying for location, location, location!

JB

P.S. My sister lives on the upper east side and never complains about the cost of groceries. I think she shops in the surrounding neighborhood.

ttt

Arlingtonian, I think you are forgetting that NYers don't have the space to store a years worth of anything. I buy my paper towels 1 role at a time because I have nowhere to store an extra.
TheGrocer is shopping slightly gourmet, but those prices sound about right to me. I save a little by shopping for veggies at smaller markets and greenmarkets, but I never buy cheap meat. Soda, cookies, eggs and bread are all more expensive in NYC.
TheGrocer, have you tried shoppinf at the uptown Fairway? There are some really great delas to be found there, and you don't have to buy in bulk to get them. Not sure what neighborhood you are in, but there are some great smaller store on the UWS where you can find deals.

Lots of cereal on sale this week at Rite Aid for $1.99. pretty much always have something at that price, and they also have great prices on tuna, and a few other canned/packaged goods they carry.
Hey, Grocer, where's your updated input in all this???

TheGrocer, our prices aren't as bad as yours here in Fairfield County. I spend about $ 700/month for a family of four, and always watch the sales. For instance I only buy salmon if it's on sale ($ 4.99 a pound), but it's almost always on sale at my favorite hangout, Stop and Shop. In fact, I spend so much time and money there, I am a "top banana" and get a free soda every time I shop! Now isn't that just so special?