effing Randalls

Happy Ad Wednesday!

Randalls is upping their ‘certain days’ game, continuing their effort to be the most complicated store to get a deal at. The card is a pain, but it’s there and I’m used to it now. The app is just plain irritating–making me use my poor old phone to get 50c off salad dressing doesn’t make me happy to be where I am!  A few months back they added limits, last week adding lower AND upper limits. Now, not only to they have Friday-only, but 3-day-only deals.  Even people like me, who live close and use them for convenience on certain products are going to wear out on this soon!

We’ve got stone fruit showing up cheap this week, with eggs, mangos and grapes making a decent showing.  In the meat department, pork and chicken are at normal lows,with nothing at a stock-the-freezer price. Asparagus is here, which means all the great spring deals are just getting started!

Note: Grapes are cheaper at Randalls. Organic apples are super cheap at Sprouts. Mangos are cheapest at Fiesta (though still cheap at HEB). Don’t buy these things elsewhere this week.

photo

            cutting through the chaos, for the Cheepsters!

HEB

red or black plums                                               97c/lb

Ataulfo mangos                                                     58c/ea

bscb                                                                         $1.99/lb

ground chuck, 80%, club pack                        $2.97/lb

HCF beef for fajitas                                             $2.97/lb

 

Fiesta

strawberries, 1lb                                                      $1.67/ea

Roma tomatoes                                                         67c/lb

Ataulfo mangos, large                                              50c/ea

boneless chicken tenders                                        $1.67/lb (Fiesta limit)

pork country ribs, blade steak                                $1.29/lb (Fiesta limit)

Old Orchard apple juice, 64oz                                 99c/ea (limit 2)                   

Fiesta chunk cheese, 16oz                                       $2.99/lb

El Molino corn tortillas, 4lb pkg                            $2/ea

 

Randalls

medium Hass avocados                                              50c

red or green seedless grapes                                   $1.49/lb

boneless pork loin                                                      $1.79/lb

chicken of the Sea chunk light tuna, 5oz             49c/ea (limit 9)

Skinner pasta, 8-12oz                                                49c/ea (limit 9)

blue Bell ide cream, 1/2 gal                                       $4.88/ea (must buy 2 or more)

Signature Care supplements, selected                  B1G1

10 stem daffodils                                                           $1.99/ea

Fri/Sat/Sun

Lucerne eggs, dozen                                               $1.50/ea (limit 4)

Fri ONLY

Lucerne cheese, 32oz. shredded or block           $5 (remember, cheese freezes!)

Thomas English muffins                                          $1.25/ea

Thibodeaux crawfish tail meat, 12oz frozen        $5/ea

Sprouts

asparagus                                                                                 98c/lb

zucchini                                                                                    50c/lb

yellow nectarines                                                                   98c/lb

organic Pinata apples, 3lb bag                                           $2.50/ea

quick, rolled or steel cut oats                                              50c/lb

 

Happy shopping Cheepsters!  Let me know if you find other deals out there!

Weekly Flyer Links

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Happy Ad Wednesday!

Hopefully you’ve finished off the last of the roast beast and are ready to shop!

Lobster tails are everywhere, with HEB/CM coming in cheapest. Get your bisque on, Cheepsters! ( I feel like that’s not a saying that will catch on. Doesn’t mean you shouldn’t see if you can work it into your everyday conversations).  There are also good deals  on boneless chicken, black eyed peas, and citrus.

This week’s got Randalls continuing the Fab!5 sale, where you need to buy five of certain items to get $1 off each. There are many to mix and match, the ad shows them in surprising combinations–cornbread mix and bottled water? If you want five, they’re 59c/ea!  There are also some odd choices. Do you need five French Baguettes? Even the photo they’re using to advertise couldn’t deal with five, but if you want them, they’re at Randalls.  Possibly on sale, but the ad indicates ‘Everyday Price’, as well as ‘Buy 5 save $1’ so it’s a mystery.

Screen shot 2015-12-30 at 12.56.48 PMScreen shot 2015-12-30 at 1.02.28 PM

On to the sales! Remember to let Cheepie know if you find a great deal–you can find me on Facebook and Twitter in the sidebar.  

Fiesta

green cabbage                                      25c/lb

Key Limes, 2lb bag                             97c/ea

large avocados                                      99c/ea

bscb, family pack                             $1.49/lb (Fiesta limit)

pork shoulder                                       97c/lb (Fiesta limit)

Fiesta tomato sauce, 8oz                   20c/ea

Fiesta vegetable oil, 48oz                $1.99/ea

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You stay you, Fiesta. Never change.

 

Randalls

bscb                                                             $1.77/lb

blackberries                                               97c/lb

eggs                                                              $1.67/doz (must buy 3)

 

Sprouts

avocados (no size noted)                                                    48c/ea 

dry black eyed peas, bulk                                                   99c/lb

Navel oranges                                                                       48c/lb

Braeburn or Pink Lady apples                                           88c/lb

boneless skinless chicken thighs                                   $1.59/lb

organic Red or Golden Delicious apples                       98c/lb

 

HEB

large avocados                                                                      98c/ea

small grapefruit                                                                    8/$1

HCF split chicken breasts                                               $1.27/lb

 

lobster tails, 4oz                                                                   $5.97/ea

HEB sausage                                                                          $2.97/lb

 

 

Central Market

lobster tails, 4oz                                        $5.97/ea

 

Weekly Flyer Links

$5 Friday at Randalls

Wondering what to do for dinner? The $5 Friday cheese pizza in the deli case at Randalls will get 4 kids through a movie.  It’s not the best pizza in town, but it’s a good deal.Screen shot 2015-05-22 at 6.00.25 PM

Add popcorn, possibly a board game, and that’s quality family time on the cheep!

Great Customer Service at…Randalls?!?!

I know. This is a confusing time for all of us. We can get through this.

If you’ve followed for a while, you know that because Randalls is the most convenient to me, and I know it like I know where to find my favorite books at the library, I’m in there from time to time for things like bread, milk, and toilet paper.  I never do a huge shop there, but I certainly do head in to hit the loss leaders and the clearance rack.

Today I went in for a deal that I’d listed in the sale post this week, specifically the 20oz Lucerne brand sliced cheese that was on sale for $2.50. That’s a really good price, so when I got to the dairy case and saw this:

IMG_2677

That’s not the same at all! I stood there for a minute, wondering if I’d misremembered.

Then I started to freak out, because I’d kicked off the ad post joking about chumps who don’t do math, and had I somehow calculated the price per pound wrong? This was $3, the same as the 2lb bricks on sale, not different! Frickity!

IMG_2676Up to the front of the store to get the weekly ad, and sure enough, I’m not crazy, and there in the center of the fourth page is my deal. Which is a crazy good deal, and the way it’s hidden there I figured I was being awesome telling everyone about it.

Two packages go in the cart and I head up with that and the bread and milk to sort this out so I can report back to the Cheepsters.

I put them at the front of the belt, and when the cashier picked it up I showed him the ad.Screen shot 2015-05-14 at 10.09.04 PM The ad does say ‘selected varieties’ and the photo shows one that this store had on hand.  I’d chosen cheddar, since kids don’t like food that has two colors (no? just my kids? moving on then…).  The cashier looked at the ad, at the cheese, and told me to hang on while he went to look.  He got back, called a manager, and rang the rest of my order up while the manager repeated this process.

The manager and cashier agreed that the ad certainly said that I should get the packages for $5, and that’s what they charged me. 

No claiming I needed the other kind, no telling me it was a misprint and meant the 8oz size (which was what I’d expected). Just, “We’ll just be charging you the $5, Ma’am.”

There might be a meeting happening tonight about putting signs up correcting the ad, but I’m glad with the way this was handled.  It writes up slowly, but the whole thing was done before I’d even gotten the bags in my cart and everyone was nice.

Randalls has its problems, but today they were a good store to be shopping.

Happy Ad Wednesday!

Turns out Sprouts, and HEB and CM just went ahead and made an ad that went from last Wednesday to Thanksgiving! So, this week is the same for them. But not Randalls or Fiesta, they’ve got their own nonsense going on.

I’m noting Fiesta below, but as usual, Randalls is loitering around the front of the store, muttering as you go by, saying things like, “Think you got a turkey yet? That’s not a turkey,” and ” You don’t think you’re getting past this weekend with a few more boxes of crackers, do you?”

Every other store has an ad that started last Wednesday and goes until Thursday. Randalls has that. Of course they have that, they’re not going to not follow along! But they  supplemented it by also having an ad that’s just for the 23rd to the 27th.  So two days ago there was surprise ad, and I didn’t know. It’s nearly entirely the same, but next year, I’ll be ready for this weird calendar situation, in the meantime, I’ll list what I’ve got and anything new I noticed.

CM: get those apples! HEB: get sweet potatoes and green beans.

Sprouts:

Granny Smith apples                               48c/lb (DD)

yellow onions                                            48c/lb (C15)

celery, cucumbers, green bell peppers    48c/lb  (DD)

organic celery                                          98c/ea (DD)

Imagine organic broth, 32oz box             $1.50/ea

french vanilla almond granola                   $1.99/lb

BSCB                                                         $1.88/lb

pineapples                                                $1.98/ea (C15)

Fiesta:

What the hell, Fiesta??? I don’t even know what this means. Maybe it’s traditional for them? Maybe there’s a fiesta at Fiesta, and they don’t have time for fussy things like listing ads on a weekly basis?  I do think the kicky font they chose is indicative of a less than fully dedicated weekly ad staff, and I worry they raided the jewelry counter, ordered a bunch of corn cups at the truck outside and made for the hills.

I may read too much into fonts, for someone using the font that was the default that went with this blog template.

Randalls:

russet potatoes                                                      $5/15 lbs (DD)

Blue Bell half gallons, selected varieties            $3.99/ea

Central Market:

organic gala or fuji apples                                            99c/lb  (DD)

HEB:

boston butt pork roast, bone-in                             $1.47/lb (whole in bag, limit 2)

Smithfield Premium shank portion ham                 $1.57/lb

sweet potatoes                                                         20c/lb  (C15)

green beans                                                              67c/lb.

All the ads being the same means the same turkey deals from last week hold. Also worth noting:

Central Market has fresh free-range turkey for $2.69/lb, non-gmo natural fresh turkey for $2.99/lb, and free range organic turkey for $3.99/lb.

Cranberries freeze well just as they are in the bag. They’re the indestructible fruit. They don’t have to just be cranberry sauce with turkey, they’re also good with pork loin, and cooked down and put on cream cheese for a simple spread, so having a few in the freezer is a handy thing.

Happy Thanksgiving, be well, and Cheep Cheep!

Stupid Randalls!

Belated Randalls update (I can’t ‘t believe I’m giving them a post of their own after having me refresh for a half-hour last night!):

Sanderson Farms whole fresh chickens                 99c/lb
Honeysuckle or Safeway whole frozen turkeys      59c/lb (w/ $50 purchase, limit one)
Fall bouquet                                                           $5 Friday
Tyson twin-pack Cornish Game Hens                    $5 Friday

Seems like a good chance to cook tiny chickens, if you’d been wanting to give that a go. You could give them to the kids to cook, like small practice turkeys.

They’ve got a lot of produce on sale, but none of it is priced well enough to list here, as is common with Randalls. I’ll be getting a turkey (stocking up on tp, dairy, and personal care items to get to the $50 for the purchase) for the freezer, but other than that there’s not much this week.

Happy Ad Wednesday!

Berries! I’ve managed to stock up on berries often enough recently that there’s a good stockpile for smoothies in the freezer. Of course, my kids are now freezing due to the polar vortex.  This week is another good chance, with berries on sale at Sprouts and HEB.  These are especially easy to store, just pop in a freezer bag and get as much air out as you can. They’ll be ready to use in a smoothie or cobbler just like a sack of frozen berries from the store.

Or your 7yo can thaw and smoosh them, and eat them with her hands. No? Just me, again? Okay.

Also this week, HEB has those pork picnics I described in last week’s ad post, a bit cheaper, with a limit of two.  If you’re thinking about that purchase, please check out my advice on this particular cut of meat here.

But don’t get mixed up and think that post is this week’s ad post, just because they look similar. No? Just me, still? Okay. I’m glad you didn’t wander CM looking for kale that one time.

Also! The 5lb sack of organic carrots is on sale again at Sprouts! Maybe this time I’ll make the carrot soup I wanted to make last time.

Randalls:

It’s their turn to be first on the rotation, but they’re just too late getting the new flyer up. A girl can only refresh so long! So I’ll note anything worth a trip tomorrow.

HEB:

raspberries or blackberries, 6 oz.                      97c/ea

organic gala or honeycrisp apples                  $1.47/lb (DD)

HEB organics celery hearts                              $1.50/ea

pork picnic roast                                                $1.27/lb  (limit 2)

vine tomatoes                                                      97c/lb

Sprouts:

blackberries, 5.6 oz.                                                         98c/ea

cranberries, 12 oz.                                                            98c/ea

green and red bell peppers, cucumbers                          50c/ea  (DD)

acorn, butternut or spaghetti squash                                50c/lb

boneless skinless chicken thighs                                    $1.99/lb

bulk long or short grain brown rice                                       69c/lb

organic carrots, 5lb sack                                                    $2.98/ea

ending today:

many apples (not honeycrisp)                                             88c/lb

organic kale                                                                         $1.48/bunch  (DD)

Fiesta:

chicken drumsticks, large sack (usually 10lbs or so)          69c/lb (Fiesta limit)

Yukon Gold potatoes, 5lb sack                                           $1.69/ea

A note on Fiesta! If you don’t usually go to one, it’s worth checking out around the holidays if you’ve got any European or Mexican holiday items you wish you could buy.  Not just the boxes of panettone, but British crackers, and all kinds of things show up there. It’s fun to check it all out.

The turkey deals have started. I didn’t really address them last week, but HEB has a good example this week.  They’ve got a free 12lb. turkey with a 4.5lb minimum purchase of an HEB brand ham deal this week. The ham is $4.99/lb, so that’s a minimum of $22.50 on the ham for a free frozen Riverside brand turkey.  I haven’t made an assessment this year yet, but in previous years, serious couponers are on this bargain the second it hits, and anything resembling a small ham disappears fast (yes, there are people vastly more serious about their deal shopping than I am! they have coupons, collect inserts and trade them, and follow folks like the HEB Bargain Hunter.)

I love turkey, and if I”m cooking one it’s going to be bigger than 12lbs.  I’m not going to sneeze at a free turkey, but I find just waiting for Randalls to put a turkey on sale for 69c/lb with a $50 purchase more straightforward than trying to find a small ham, and then find a turkey the right size to be free.  They will credit the cost of 12lbs toward a larger one, so if you’re a ham AND turkey family, you might be able to use this deal.

I’ll keep everyone posted about Turkey Deals as the next six weeks roll, because the deals vary from place to place.