Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
Thanks in advance.

Cheers,
Chuck Kopsho
Oceanside, California

Bulkman! The Creped Crusader.


--
Blinky
Killing all posts from Google Groups
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org
Need a new news feed? http://blinkynet.net/comp/newfeed.html

> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.

Not me!

Chuck Kopsho wrote:
> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Cheers,
> Chuck Kopsho
> Oceanside, California
>

I buy meat at Sam's Club because it's the last bastion for choice grade
meats at an affordable price where I live.

I also buy paper plates, paper napkins, cheese, wines, olives and the
big jars of Tone's spices. I also bought my yoga pants and gym tops
there, but 2 in a package isn't really "bulk" Same thing with DH's
underwear.

--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

"Chuck Kopsho" > wrote in message
...
> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Cheers,
> Chuck Kopsho
> Oceanside, California
>

We have BJ's here in New England. We buy there usually once a month. If
you keep an eye on prices you can save a bundle on some items. Good meats,
and an example is butter at $1.88/pound, but you must buy 4 lbs. Some
things, like peanut butter and mayo, we don't use fast enough so we still
buy those items at the supermarket.

In article >,
(Chuck Kopsho) wrote:

> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Cheers,
> Chuck Kopsho
> Oceanside, California


Why?
Funny, but I don't think of Sam's Club as buying "in bulk." I think of
it as having to buy "a large quantity at one time." Bulk, to me, means
something along the line of not having to buy a specified quantity;
buying a teaspoon of ground cardamom from my co-op is, to me, "buying in
bulk."
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.mac.com/barbschaller, and here's the link to my appearance
on "A Prairie Home Companion," <http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/
programs/2008/08/30/>

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:

> We have BJ's here in New England.

Twenty bucks, same as downtown?


--
Blinky
Killing all posts from Google Groups
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org
Need a new news feed? http://blinkynet.net/comp/newfeed.html

On Tue, 2 Sep 2008 18:00:25 -0700, (Chuck Kopsho)
wrote:

> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
> Thanks in advance.

I shop at Costco, but I don't call it buying in bulk.


--
I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond.

Mae West

"Blinky the Shark" > wrote in message
news
> Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
>
>> We have BJ's here in New England.
>
> Twenty bucks, same as downtown?
>
>
> --
> Blinky
> Killing all posts from Google Groups
> The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org
> Need a new news feed? http://blinkynet.net/comp/newfeed.html
>

Thirty. Inflation. So to speak.

Paco wrote:

>
> "Blinky the Shark" > wrote in message
> news
>> Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
>>
>>> We have BJ's here in New England.
>>
>> Twenty bucks, same as downtown?
>>
>>
>> --
>> Blinky
>> Killing all posts from Google Groups
>> The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org
>> Need a new news feed? http://blinkynet.net/comp/newfeed.html
>>
>
> Thirty. Inflation. So to speak.

Yeah, everything's rising.


--
Blinky
Killing all posts from Google Groups
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org
Need a new news feed? http://blinkynet.net/comp/newfeed.html

"Chuck Kopsho" wrote

> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.

Do you mean bulk as in lots of a think at one time or bulk as in a place
like above?

I do both, item dependant.

Chuck Kopsho wrote:
> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
> Thanks in advance.

I do, but only a few times a year. We don't have a car, so going there
is always a planned event, and we either borrow or rent a car, so it's
not a minor thing.

Serene

--
"I am an agnostic only to the extent that I am agnostic about fairies at
the bottom of the garden." -- Richard Dawkins

Janet Baraclough said...

> The message >
> from (Chuck Kopsho) contains these words:
>
>> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
>> Thanks in advance.
>
> I don't use those chains but whenever a favourite or high quality
> brand is on special offer I do buy bulk supplies of non-perishable goods
> such as wine, cans (tomatoes , dogfood) jars of marmalade, and
> household stuff like laundry powder , toilet paper soap and wildbird
> food.
> When all my children were at home we used to bulk buy rice pasta and
> flour but don't do that any more because we don't get through it fast
> enough.
>
> Janet.


I stop in to get an annual (or more) supply various sundries.

On my first trip there, I just HAD to own a personal GALLON plastic jar of
Hellman's mayo. By the end of the year I wasn't even halfway through it and
tossed it out in frustration. :P

I was almost suckered in years later by a 2 lb. (??) can of yellowfin tuna.
I put it back.

Andy

On Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:08:22 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:

> In article >,
> (Chuck Kopsho) wrote:
>
>> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
>> Thanks in advance.
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Chuck Kopsho
>> Oceanside, California
>
>
> Why?
> Funny, but I don't think of Sam's Club as buying "in bulk." I think of
> it as having to buy "a large quantity at one time." Bulk, to me, means
> something along the line of not having to buy a specified quantity;
> buying a teaspoon of ground cardamom from my co-op is, to me, "buying in
> bulk."

i wish that there were places nearer to me that sold items that way,
particularly spices. i've stopped getting excited when i see good prices
for meat in the store flyers, because they almost always say in smaller
print 'three pounds or more.'

your pal,
blake

"Chuck Kopsho" > wrote in message
...
> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Cheers,
> Chuck Kopsho
> Oceanside, California

Why do you call those stores BULK?

Larger quantities - yes
Bulk No.

Dimitri

Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> In article >,
> (Chuck Kopsho) wrote:
>
>> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
>> Thanks in advance.
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Chuck Kopsho
>> Oceanside, California
>
>
> Why?
> Funny, but I don't think of Sam's Club as buying "in bulk." I think
> of it as having to buy "a large quantity at one time." Bulk, to me,
> means something along the line of not having to buy a specified
> quantity; buying a teaspoon of ground cardamom from my co-op is, to
> me, "buying in bulk."

When I was a member of Sams Club (back in its 1980's infancy, when only
employees of certain employers were offered memberships for about $20 a
year) I'd go there to buy a case of paper towels and a case of toilet paper
at one shot. Beer by the case, from time to time; my middle bro roommate
liked to host parties.

Food? Not really. They offered mostly industrial-sized cans of things I
certainly didn't want or need. Who needed a gallon (for example) of "nacho
cheese sauce" or baked beans? LOL I did buy large bags of boneless,
skinless chicken breasts a few times. I got so sick of boneless skinless
chicken breasts I gave that up soon afterwards. YMMV I haven't been a
member of any so-called wholesale club in a very long time.

Jill

"blake murphy" > ha scritto nel messaggio
...
> On Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:08:22 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>
>> In article >,
>> (Chuck Kopsho) wrote:
>>
>>> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.

>>Bulk, to me, means
>> something along the line of not having to buy a specified quantity;
>> buying a teaspoon of ground cardamom from my co-op is, to me, "buying in
>> bulk."
>
> i wish that there were places nearer to me that sold items that way,
> particularly spices.
> your pal,
> blake

The Bethesda Coop used to sell quite a lot of unusual and desirable things
from bins. It made it possible for me to try new things without wasting
food and money.

blake murphy wrote:

> i wish that there were places nearer to me that sold items that way,
> particularly spices. i've stopped getting excited when i see good prices
> for meat in the store flyers, because they almost always say in smaller
> print 'three pounds or more.'


I thought that the OP was talking about buying food in bulk rather than
buying small quantities from bulk bins. Personally, I don't go to
places like Costco or Price Club and buy lots of foods because there is
just two of us here and even when my son was living at home it was not
worth my while. However, I often go to the local Bulk Barn outlets for
spices and other staples. In fact, I am heading out to one this
afternoon. It is much, much cheaper to buy herbs and spices.

To give you an example of the savings, a few months ago I needed ground
ginger. It was $3.99 for a jar of it in the grocery store. I already had
the jar, and I bought more than enough ground ginger to refill the jar
for 14 cents. Some of the local grocery stores have herbs and spices in
bins but not much variety and they are often out of the most usual, like
pepper corns and sea salt. Macanns Stel cut oats run around $6 for a 14
oz. can around here. Soem stores carry Presidents Choice steel cut oats
for $2.39 for 1 pound. I get them at Bulk Barn for 75 cents per pound.
Bulk Barn has a great variety and always have everything in stock.

There is another bulk foods store in a city near here whose prices are
higher than bulk barn, but there is something fishy in that place.
Things always end up costing way more than I expect, perhaps heavy thumbs.












Dried fruits are another thing that they have great savings on.

blake murphy wrote:

> i wish that there were places nearer to me that sold items that way,
> particularly spices. i've stopped getting excited when i see good prices
> for meat in the store flyers, because they almost always say in smaller
> print 'three pounds or more.'



One of the local HEB stores here in way-the-heck-south-Texas has a bulk
foods section where one can get spices in small amounts. They have teeny
plastic zip bags and you load them with how much you want then weigh
them and print a label.

It makes it so much more economical when you need a little bit of an
esoteric spice that you don't ordinarily use.
--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

In article >,
Janet Wilder > wrote:

> blake murphy wrote:
>
> > i wish that there were places nearer to me that sold items that way,
> > particularly spices. i've stopped getting excited when i see good prices
> > for meat in the store flyers, because they almost always say in smaller
> > print 'three pounds or more.'
>
>
>
> One of the local HEB stores here in way-the-heck-south-Texas has a bulk
> foods section where one can get spices in small amounts. They have teeny
> plastic zip bags and you load them with how much you want then weigh
> them and print a label.

I wander over to the bulk (nut etc.) section and get bigger bags. <g>
For $5.00, I can get enough dill weed to re-fill my original $5.00 jar 5
or 6 times getting the bulk herbs. :-)

The savings is considerable.

>
> It makes it so much more economical when you need a little bit of an
> esoteric spice that you don't ordinarily use.

Or a large amount of an otherwise expensive herb you'd like to use more
frequently.

I love dill weed on veggies and seafood.
--
Peace! Om

"If you don't read the newspaper you are uninformed; if you do read the newspaper you are misinformed." --Mark Twain

blake murphy wrote:

> On Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:08:22 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>
> > In article >,
> > (Chuck Kopsho) wrote:
> >
> >> Who here buys in bulk? IE, Costco, Sam's Club, and Smart & Final.
> >> Thanks in advance.
> >>
> >> Cheers,
> >> Chuck Kopsho
> >> Oceanside, California
> >
> >
> > Why?
> > Funny, but I don't think of Sam's Club as buying "in bulk." I think of
> > it as having to buy "a large quantity at one time." Bulk, to me, means
> > something along the line of not having to buy a specified quantity;
> > buying a teaspoon of ground cardamom from my co-op is, to me, "buying in
> > bulk."
>
> i wish that there were places nearer to me that sold items that way,
> particularly spices. i've stopped getting excited when i see good prices
> for meat in the store flyers, because they almost always say in smaller
> print 'three pounds or more.'


You're just a nattering kabob of negativism, blake...


--
Best
Greg

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
> When I was a member of Sams Club (back in its 1980's infancy, when only
> employees of certain employers were offered memberships for about $20 a
> year) I'd go there to buy a case of paper towels and a case of toilet
> paper at one shot. Beer by the case, from time to time; my middle bro
> roommate liked to host parties.
>
> Food? Not really. They offered mostly industrial-sized cans of things I
> certainly didn't want or need. Who needed a gallon (for example) of
> "nacho cheese sauce" or baked beans? LOL I did buy large bags of
> boneless, skinless chicken breasts a few times. I got so sick of boneless
> skinless chicken breasts I gave that up soon afterwards. YMMV I
> haven't been a member of any so-called wholesale club in a very long time.
>
> Jill

I avoided going for much the same reason. I heard so much about it from
friends I had to give a club store a try and found it a good way to save.
They have, however, changed their marketing philosophy a bit. As you say,
they had huge containers of some products. Now, instead of a 5 gallon pail
of tomato sauce, there will be three quart jars wrapped together.

To take advantage of the meat prices, you need a freezer to break up the big
packs.

Janet Wilder wrote:

> One of the local HEB stores here in way-the-heck-south-Texas has a bulk
> foods section where one can get spices in small amounts. They have teeny
> plastic zip bags and you load them with how much you want then weigh
> them and print a label.
>
> It makes it so much more economical when you need a little bit of an
> esoteric spice that you don't ordinarily use.

This is one reason I miss living in Texas, HEB.

Becca

Janet Wilder wrote:

>
> It makes it so much more economical when you need a little bit of an
> esoteric spice that you don't ordinarily use.

Not just those, but all the staples too. I went to the Bulk Barn
yesterday and got a bottle of Madagascar vanilla ($8.99.... ouch) a
pound of dried apricots, 2 lbs of dates, enough black pepper corns to
keep me going for at least a year, enough ground cinnamon to fill a
large jar, enough Marjoram to fill a spice jar, all for just over $22.
If I had bought the pepper, cinnamon and marjoram in small bottles at
the grocery stores they would have added up to more than $15.


FWIW.... one time I was at the local grocery store bought enough
marjoram to fill my original spice jar. It was so light that it would
not register on the checkout scale so the cashier did not charge me. It
would have bee $4-5 to buy a bottle of the stuff.

In article >,
blake murphy > wrote:

> where are you at again, om? do you find the dill available more-or-less
> year-round?
>
> your pal,
> blake


Dillweed is always available at my co-op. Dill seed, too. :-)
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.mac.com/barbschaller, and here's the link to my appearance
on "A Prairie Home Companion," <http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/
programs/2008/08/30/>

Dave Smith wrote:
> Janet Wilder wrote:
>
>>
>> It makes it so much more economical when you need a little bit of an
>> esoteric spice that you don't ordinarily use.
>
> Not just those, but all the staples too. I went to the Bulk Barn
> yesterday and got a bottle of Madagascar vanilla ($8.99.... ouch) a
> pound of dried apricots, 2 lbs of dates, enough black pepper corns to
> keep me going for at least a year, enough ground cinnamon to fill a
> large jar, enough Marjoram to fill a spice jar, all for just over $22.
> If I had bought the pepper, cinnamon and marjoram in small bottles at
> the grocery stores they would have added up to more than $15.
>
Vanilla is one thing I buy in Mexico. Mexican vanilla is a whole nuther
thing. I like to put a few drops of it in a sauce pan with some water
and a stick of cannela (Mexican cinnamon) and let it boil. Makes the
house smell wonderful.

> FWIW.... one time I was at the local grocery store bought enough
> marjoram to fill my original spice jar. It was so light that it would
> not register on the checkout scale so the cashier did not charge me. It
> would have bee $4-5 to buy a bottle of the stuff.


--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

"blake murphy" > ha scritto nel messaggio

> the d.c. area is a fairly sophisticated in terms of food, but there don't
> seem to be many of these sorts of places. maybe it's just dining out.
>
> your pal,
> blake

Bear with me, because I don't remember street names much, and they might not
be there any more, but 8 years ago there was a part of SS where Georgia, EW,
Philadelphia Ave, etc. made a patch that had a lot of ethnic groceries. I
recall a Thai one with other Asian foods, at least two Indian ones.
Although they were in sacks, they did have herbs and spices and legumes etc.
very cheap. They were obviously packed from bales or barrels.

On Fri, 5 Sep 2008 10:51:12 +0200, Giusi wrote:

> "blake murphy" > ha scritto nel messaggio
>
>> the d.c. area is a fairly sophisticated in terms of food, but there don't
>> seem to be many of these sorts of places. maybe it's just dining out.
>>
>> your pal,
>> blake
>
> Bear with me, because I don't remember street names much, and they might not
> be there any more, but 8 years ago there was a part of SS where Georgia, EW,
> Philadelphia Ave, etc. made a patch that had a lot of ethnic groceries. I
> recall a Thai one with other Asian foods, at least two Indian ones.
> Although they were in sacks, they did have herbs and spices and legumes etc.
> very cheap. They were obviously packed from bales or barrels.

well, that's close to where i live, but i don't know if they're still
there. there's an ethiopian place, i think, on east-west, but i haven't
been in it. there's a thai grocery and restaurant on thayer ave, but i
can't get my wheelchair in there, which kinda ****es me off. the patch
near philadelphia ave. i'm not familiar with, maybe i'll mosey over while
it's still warm.

silver spring has been changing rapidly in the eight or so years i've been
here. unfortunately, the trend in restaurants has been more chain places
and fewer mom-and-pops (though ruby tuesday's bit the dust a few months
ago). my favorite beer joint/rock 'n' roll place, the half moon bbq, is
now an upscale (menu in italian) restaurant. too bad.

your pal,
blake

On Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:17:29 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:

> In article >,
> blake murphy > wrote:
>
>> where are you at again, om? do you find the dill available more-or-less
>> year-round?
>>
>> your pal,
>> blake
>
>
> Dillweed is always available at my co-op. Dill seed, too. :-)

does the price go up in winter? (i've been making dill-infused vodka,
which i'll talk about in another post.)

your pal,
blake

Janet Wilder wrote:

> Vanilla is one thing I buy in Mexico. Mexican vanilla is a whole nuther
> thing. I like to put a few drops of it in a sauce pan with some water
> and a stick of cannela (Mexican cinnamon) and let it boil. Makes the
> house smell wonderful.

I have tried several different types of vanilla extract from Mexico but
was not impressed. My wife objects to me using it because she really
dislikes it. I was once given a quarter liter bottle of vanilla from
Grenada which was incredible, and a local chef with in-laws in the
Dominican Republic had brought me back a few bottles of Dominican
vanilla which has a similar great taste though it was clear.

I should have bought vanilla beans at the Bulk Barn while I was there,
$3.99 for a vial with 3 pods, expensive compared to a few years ago, but
the best deal you're going to get anywhere around here.

What I like buying is the blue box Mac n Cheese from Kraft. You'll
never be sorry you bought it in bulk.

Cheers,
Chuck Kopsho
Oceanside, California

"Chuck Kopsho" > wrote in message
...
> What I like buying is the blue box Mac n Cheese from Kraft. You'll
> never be sorry you bought it in bulk.
>
I like homemade mac and cheese better.

I buy spices in bulk from Fresh Market.

In article >,
blake murphy > wrote:

> On Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:17:29 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>
> > In article >,
> > blake murphy > wrote:
> >
> >> where are you at again, om? do you find the dill available more-or-less
> >> year-round?
> >>
> >> your pal,
> >> blake
> >
> >
> > Dillweed is always available at my co-op. Dill seed, too. :-)
>
> does the price go up in winter? (i've been making dill-infused vodka,
> which i'll talk about in another post.)
>
> your pal,
> blake

Not that I've ever noticed. We're talking about dried dillweed -- dark
green little weedy shardy things. Even if it did go up, unless you need
a pound (one helluva lot of dillweed) it wouldn't make no never mind.

--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.mac.com/barbschaller, and here's the link to my appearance
on "A Prairie Home Companion," <http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/
programs/2008/08/30/>

On Sat, 06 Sep 2008 19:22:15 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:

> In article >,
> blake murphy > wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:17:29 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>>
>>> In article >,
>>> blake murphy > wrote:
>>>
>>>> where are you at again, om? do you find the dill available more-or-less
>>>> year-round?
>>>>
>>>> your pal,
>>>> blake
>>>
>>>
>>> Dillweed is always available at my co-op. Dill seed, too. :-)
>>
>> does the price go up in winter? (i've been making dill-infused vodka,
>> which i'll talk about in another post.)
>>
>> your pal,
>> blake
>
> Not that I've ever noticed. We're talking about dried dillweed -- dark
> green little weedy shardy things. Even if it did go up, unless you need
> a pound (one helluva lot of dillweed) it wouldn't make no never mind.

o.k., but i'm talking about fresh dill, not dried. i see it in bunches,
like parsley, say. what people stick in a jar of pickles, or use in making
gravlax.

your pal,
blake

In article >,
blake murphy > wrote:

> On Sat, 06 Sep 2008 19:22:15 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>
> > Not that I've ever noticed. We're talking about dried dillweed -- dark
> > green little weedy shardy things. Even if it did go up, unless you need
> > a pound (one helluva lot of dillweed) it wouldn't make no never mind.
>
> o.k., but i'm talking about fresh dill, not dried. i see it in bunches,
> like parsley, say. what people stick in a jar of pickles, or use in making
> gravlax.
>
> your pal,
> blake

Got it. I've never seen it out of season. I DO know people who buy or
grow it fresh in the summer, pick it when it's ready for use, wash it,
shake it dry and roll it in freezer (coated on one side) paper and stick
it in a freezer bag and freeze. When needed, unroll, take what you
need, and put the rest back. Yust like fresh.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.mac.com/barbschaller, and here's the link to my appearance
on "A Prairie Home Companion," <http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/
programs/2008/08/30/>

On Sun, 07 Sep 2008 14:02:10 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:

> In article >,
> blake murphy > wrote:
>
>> On Sat, 06 Sep 2008 19:22:15 -0500, Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>>
>>> Not that I've ever noticed. We're talking about dried dillweed -- dark
>>> green little weedy shardy things. Even if it did go up, unless you need
>>> a pound (one helluva lot of dillweed) it wouldn't make no never mind.
>>
>> o.k., but i'm talking about fresh dill, not dried. i see it in bunches,
>> like parsley, say. what people stick in a jar of pickles, or use in making
>> gravlax.
>>
>> your pal,
>> blake
>
> Got it. I've never seen it out of season. I DO know people who buy or
> grow it fresh in the summer, pick it when it's ready for use, wash it,
> shake it dry and roll it in freezer (coated on one side) paper and stick
> it in a freezer bag and freeze. When needed, unroll, take what you
> need, and put the rest back. Yust like fresh.

o.k. i have put just a little bit in the freezer a while back, haven't
used it yet. i did notice that stray fronds dried up seemingly perfectly
without taking any action on my part. that would seem much cheaper than
the dried in jars.

google results seem mixed on what constitutes the 'season,' some saying it
can be found in produce departments year-round.

your pal,
blake