I can hardly tell the differenceJust kind of embarrassing when people come overI think I'm gonna keep an empty Lucky Charms box and dump the HT brand in there Kind of like I do with my Goose Bottle and SkyyGotta keep up appearances
1/22/2009 9:46:51 AM
you eat cereal and you worry about appearance?
1/22/2009 9:47:58 AM
Heavens to Betsey I do !
1/22/2009 9:48:45 AM
Often times the cereal is actually made by the name brand manufacturer. It's literally the exact same thing.
1/22/2009 9:52:13 AM
trader joes store brand cereal is yummy
1/22/2009 9:53:28 AM
sir, you need to learn about svedka
1/22/2009 9:54:32 AM
message_topic.aspx?topic=547427
1/22/2009 9:55:05 AM
Svedka's baby stuff homesSkyy is better than Svedka
1/22/2009 9:56:00 AM
agree to disagreesince we're going for cheap with decent tastei've been on a kick recently where i dont buy anything with labelswell except for bread and eggsit's produce, fruit, butchered, seafood or deli for meas few packaged goods as possible
1/22/2009 9:59:35 AM
1/22/2009 10:02:50 AM
hahahaha...op is genius!
1/22/2009 10:02:53 AM
I haven't eaten cereal in at least 6 months.
1/22/2009 10:03:59 AM
Well produce deli fruit and butcher foods are usually more expensive than packaged foodlike deli turkey costs more than the packaged turkey slices that are slimy as hell and nastyI try to shop similarly...I use to shop like once every week and a half or so and stock up on prepackaged stuffNow I like to stop at the HT or Fresh Market on the way home and grab just what I'm gonna eat that nightIts fresher and better for you, albeit a little more expensive
1/22/2009 10:05:58 AM
you should go to Quizno's and get some subs. They have the BOGO coupon this month.
1/22/2009 10:06:49 AM
Well I'd get two at mostYou cant really stock up on subs1, you'd get sick of them and 2, they'd get nasty quick unless you held off the lettuce and condiments and put those on yourself right before you ate them
1/22/2009 10:08:22 AM
precisely.You can however, make a good, healthy meals with nothing but fresh ingredients (and deli meats are border line... since you know.. they're still packaged) for under $11/day.I, too, have been trying to cut back on what seems to be extraneous expenditures, but one thing i will not sacrifice is the quality of the food i prepare.
1/22/2009 10:09:09 AM
i'm glad i don't hang out with people who would judge me based upon my cereal
1/22/2009 10:09:56 AM
you'd be surprised.most people do, even subconsciously
1/22/2009 10:11:33 AM
1/22/2009 10:11:41 AM
Someone should make a list of foods where brand does and doesn't make a difference.I'll start with foods where they do make a difference:Pop-tarts
1/22/2009 10:13:05 AM
I cut back a little on stuff since I'm trying to get a house and a new car within the next year or so1. Less spur of the moment weekend plane trips...driving trips are fine but last minute flights are $$$$$$$2. Less super expensive restruants (Now its Outback instead of Morton's)3. Less 6 and 7 dollar beers and more 2 and 3 dollar beers ( I really don't have that sophisticated of a pallate anyway)4. Netflix instead of randomly spending 11 dollars to go see a movie I really don't care about (Paul Blart was definitely worth it, tho)5. Getting some shoes off the internet instead of Macy's/Belks/Nordstrom'sIts a start, at least
1/22/2009 10:14:10 AM
1/22/2009 10:14:17 AM
I look forward to the time when I can splurge $11/day on food.
1/22/2009 10:22:23 AM
yeah well that's living as lean as i can at this point
1/22/2009 10:23:45 AM
I guess the good thing about my work is that I get free lunch everyday, so spending $11/day on food shouldn't be a problem. I usually spend around $7 anyway.
1/22/2009 10:25:05 AM
the big hit is the meats.recently, i've been on a grillin' and broilin' streak, and will steam veggies and cook a meat portion in different marinades or other things, and most of the time some long grain brown rice to go alongi rarely use beef however, and a good friend of mine gave me like 3 beef cookbooks for christmasi'll likely start doing that morethe other night made a tomato/basil baslamic vinagarette to go over grilled top loin and a baby spinach saladthat was the jam, and relatively cheap and easyif you have a stocked kitchen you really only needed to purchase the meat and tomatoes, maybe basil if you dont have any freshly availableslice 3 plum tomatoes, line a baking dishi pressed 6 garlic cloves, then added 3 tbsp olive oil, mixed well and brushed over the tomatoes, have the oven up to 450, roast for 10 minuteswhile roasting give the steaks a nice coating of freshly ground black pepper, rub it inget the food processor ready with enough basil for your liking, like 3 or 4 tbspn balsamic vinegar, 1 more tblspn olive oil, salt, pepper, load the roasted tomatoes in, run until smoothgrill up your steaks, a nice bloody rare, slice thinbaby spinach, fan the steak strips, dressing to tasteballer meal for like $8, and if you grill at the same time as you're preppin and making the dressing, can be completed top to bottom in like 25 minutes
1/22/2009 10:39:14 AM
emerilshoesThats seriously really coolNormally, when its just me eating, i don't get too extravagant and make anything that requires more that 30 minutes and 4-5 ingredientsWhen I have a girl or multiple guests over is when I kick it up a notchI'm hosting a super bowl thing and trying to make everything instead of the old tired chips, wings and nachos spreadShould be tough with 20 people or so but I'll have fun with it
1/22/2009 10:44:42 AM
yeah i dont go all out when it's just me either, i try to keep it under 30 mins total toobut i just like to do it thoughwhen i have friends over or cooking with a ladyfriend i'll really get into the intricate stuff tooi'm going a st. patty's day party this year i think so if you find good things that'll feed like 20-30 but wont completely eliminate you from the party let me know
1/22/2009 10:48:06 AM
My main thing I think is gonna be mini beef wellingtonsnot quite bitze size, but like 2-3 bites, about the size of a twinkiewill be tough to get the right thickness of the pasty over such a small piece of meat, but I think it will be a hit if I can pull it off[Edited on January 22, 2009 at 10:50 AM. Reason : with 3 dipping sauces...a chimmichura, a bernaise and a horseradish hollandaise]
1/22/2009 10:50:11 AM
I'm intrigued.Let me know how it goes
1/22/2009 10:52:35 AM
I can tell the difference, although sometimes its better. But food lion brand cereals are for the most part far inferior.
1/22/2009 12:42:26 PM
you're dead to me slave famous
1/22/2009 12:48:04 PM
FL brand Oats and More or something like that with strawberries in it is amazing.
1/22/2009 12:56:51 PM
Just go to the dolla store and buy some of those cereal containers that are supposed to preserve freshness and then you won't ever have to worry about boxes revealing your frugality again
1/22/2009 12:59:49 PM
1/23/2009 4:25:16 PM
if you use coupons the name brands are cheaperyou can get 2 boxes of special k yogurt and berries at harris teeter for 60 cents with coupons...i just tried it and it is good as fuck
3/13/2009 2:23:43 PM
3/13/2009 2:24:32 PM
some store brands DO taste different to me. i got trader joe o's once and they tasted like cardboard.
3/13/2009 2:30:12 PM
3/13/2009 2:31:06 PM
Kids cereal taste the same, but grow-up store brand cereal is shit.
3/13/2009 2:31:10 PM
^^^i agreestore brand miniwheats versus name brand is a big differencestuff like cheerios too...maybe its a placebo, but name brand cheerios are much better than store brand to me for some reasonstuff like raisin bran always tastes the same to me, store or name brand[Edited on March 13, 2009 at 2:34 PM. Reason : .]
3/13/2009 2:33:14 PM
3/13/2009 2:33:29 PM
I've been buying store brand food for a long time, I don't care, I'd rather have crappy food and good alcohol.
3/13/2009 2:33:40 PM
well if you like saving money you'd buy name brand shit
3/13/2009 2:35:23 PM
3/13/2009 2:40:43 PM
damn pilgrimshoes got me all ready to hit the deli myself
3/13/2009 2:41:23 PM