We went to 3 different places for different items.
FreshMarket total: 35.89ILS/$9.76
Shufersal total: 179.27ILS/$48.74
Moshe the Veggie guy total: 47.10ILS/$12.81
By the time we got home, I was exhausted and not in the mood to cook. I hadn't been home all day so we decided to use our 20% off coupon to order pizza, pasta, and cola from Pizza Hut. Upside? It was 20% cheaper than it would have been. Downside? The idiots that work at Pizza Hut screwed up our order, didn't have the pasta on special, and forgot to bring the garlic bread they promised us BECAUSE they didn't have the pasta.
Pizza Hut total: 71.94ILS/$19.56 (with tip)
Weekend total: 334.20ILS/$90.86
That brings us to a total of 59% of our budget spent by February 11, 2011. That means we've spent around 59shekels a day! Whoa.
We bought a lot of necessities this week - which means there are things we won't need to buy next week. I learned my lesson - when it comes to things like cooking oil - always buy the bigger one. I spent 10shekels last week on a small bottle of canola oil. I spent 20shekels THIS week on a large 3 liter (almost 1 gallon) jug of canola oil... which will last me about 2 months.
I'm a little bummed though. I tried to make chili this weekend and I failed - miserably. That means I literally threw away money because I forgot how to make chili.
The smartest thing I did this weekend: put my parsley and dill in the freezer. Since I only use a little at a time, I don't need that much of it - so the rest goes in the freezer. Same with the Parmesan cheese that I grated myself.
The dumbest thing I did this weekend: not stick to my list and not really plan out intelligent meals in advance.
It's almost the halfway mark for us and we've already spent 59% of our budget. With only 454.59shekels/$123.60 left for the next 17 days - we really need to buckle down and get creative.
If only things here weren't so expensive...
3 comments:
Craig and I moved our shopping nights to Thursday (as opposed to Friday).
I actually find that I spend less by shopping on Fridays than at any other time of week. It's because the supermarkets are so busy on Fridays that I do my very best to get out of there with a minimum hassle. I'll occasionally find myself with 12 items in my cart, and force myself to pick the two that I want the least and leave them in the store so I can go to the fast checkout aisle.
Pizza Hut total: 71.94ILS/$19.56 (with tip)
You tipped them after they screwed up your order?
I learned my lesson - when it comes to things like cooking oil - always buy the bigger one.
This isn't exactly true in Israel. I've noticed many times that the unit price for things will have nothing to do with anything. I once saw packages of three, four, five and six chocolate bars placed next to each other in an Israeli supermarket aisle. Guess which package was cheapest per bar… Answer: the one with four bars! Also, a couple times I've taken a less expensive olive oil and then realized that it's .75 liters instead of a whole liter. Now I carefully check the unit price for everything that gives me multiple options. The concept of buying in bulk to spend less is not highly developed here, and prices often seem to be assigned without any rhyme or reason.
I tried to make chili this weekend and I failed - miserably. That means I literally threw away money because I forgot how to make chili.
I have an amazing chili recipe (Cincinnati style) that I developed myself over years of trial and error: http://ngng.co.il/food/chili/
The cheese and butter aren't necessary if it bothers you to put them in with meat. This makes a huge amount and it's dinner (along with pasta) for me for about a week.
Same with the Parmesan cheese that I grated myself.
Last comment. A very wise friend of mine once calculated that when you buy pre-grated parmesan cheese in Israel, you're paying the guy in the supermarket something like ₪80-90/hour to grate it for you.
NG, while I totally value your opinion (and have since we were in University together), there are some things you have wrong. When we go shopping on a Friday, Craig and I relax and walk around the store for an hour. When we go on a Thursday, we don't. We're so tired that we get in and get out.
I will definitely check out that chili recipe, though. This was the first time in 9 years that I tried to make it and I failed.
We grated the cheese ourselves but, in all honesty, it's not nearly as cheap as you think. I think it depends on where you buy it from, too. Unit price may not reign here (I often wonder why 48 rolls of toilet paper is cheaper than 8 rolls) but, at shufersal, the larger 3 liter canister is MUCH cheaper when you break it down than the smaller ones.
If you can, try to plan your menu out for the month or at least 2 weeks at a time. Do a big shop e/o week and just stock up on perishables on the off weeks. The more often you go for a big shop, th emore tempted you are to buy things you don't really need. Try planning 1-2 cheap/easy meals a week so that you aren't tempted to order take out if you're busy. When you do cook, you can double up and freeze what is leftover so you have extras to take out and reheat during the week. As much as it sucks, sometimes when things are tight, we don't buy extras like toppings.
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