Shopping at Costco.

I have a Costco card but I never go - those few items I could use from there
it is not worth the trouble.

As for the chicken breasts: cover them in hot mustard and bake them over a bed of cut up celery, add a bit of chicken broth too. It's so simple but delicious.

Another recipe: mix some honey with lemon juice, put it a few seconds in the microwave to make it more liquid, toss the chicken breasts in it, give it on a cookie sheet, add tomatoes, garlic, olives, and other vegetables, pour some olive oil over it and bake until tender.

Another thing I thought of for a quick and easy dinner...you can use the chicken breast or to make it even more easy - chicken tenders/strips (same as the breasts but cut thinner). Cook the tenders and then top on a Ceasar salad.

I like simple dinners for week nights.

So I made my Costco sortie today. I thought it was a hell of a bargain. I probably have a years supply of paper plates, paper towels, garbage bags, and zip lock bags plus enough soup base, almonds, toilet paper, laundry soap, dishwasher soap, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and hamburger to get me through several months.

Their steaks looked really good but they weren't packaged right for me, plus, they were about the same price as the decent ones at the grocery store. I skipped the chicken breasts. They were tempting but I don't know if I need that much pasta!

Best of all -- they had frozen, wild caught Copper River salmon for $10 per pound! That's about half of what it costs in season (those few glorious weeks). I bought six pounds. Their fresh coho salmon looked good so I bought some of that for dinner tonight.

Sadly, they no longer had those luscious skinny green beans.

I got all of this, plus a few other things for $350. Keeping in mind that $75.00 of that was just for salmon I think the trip was really worth it.

The way to do meats is to buy the bulk freezer bags and then package and freeze everything the day you shop or the next day. For instance buy a chunk of meat and cube some of it and strip some. This way you have just the right amount for your family in each pack. Between the right sized portions and the extremely high quality I love it.

We buy most of our meat at Costco and are happy with the quality and the price. We use a lot of beef. We buy whole strip loins and cut them into steaks, whole beef tenderloins that we trim and cut into steaks. I can't remember what we last paid per pound/kilo for those, but I know it is considerably cheaper than the pre-cut, pre-packaged steaks at Costco. For example, the last whole sirloin tip, which we use to make our own ground beef cost $5.79 per kilo or $2.63 per pound. That's much less expensive than the extra lean ground at the supermarkets here, and it's of much better quality.

Mind you, we have two large freezers in the basement, so we're able to buy in larger quantities.

Produce, in general, I find prices are similar at the supermarket most of the time, and I'm not forced to purchase the same quantity. I don't always want to purchase eight apple pears, for example. Romaine lettuce and baby spinach are two exceptions. Much better prices and we use a lot of both, so the large packs are worth it.

All of the things you mentioned, Boomerang, definitely better prices at Costco.

I don't buy "fresh" fish there anymore. We've had problems with it being "off" a few times. No problems with the frozen fish, though. Lots of variety, too, on the shelves.

Books, hardcover and paperback, if you can find what you're looking for, are much cheaper than in the book stores.

Yes forgot about the books. Went to the bookstore for a book my daughter wanted - it was only in hard cover at the time and I couldn't believe a YA book would cost so much. My daughter mentioned to me that daddy had picked up a book she wanted at BJ (similar to Costco).

Got in the car (I live about a mile from Costco) - went to Costco and the book was significantly less. One con is you do not get the same selection but the most popular newer books will be there.

Generally warehouse store discounts:

BJs and others..cheapest gasoline prices in region. $ 3.25/gal insteady $3.45.

Toilet paper...and other paper goods are slightly better than at a reg supermarket sale.

Slow cooker is a must purchase ..allowing you to make stews, and soups and freeze them.

Rice in 5 lb (no boiler bag rice)

Cheese in block (not shredded)

10 lb Potato (shelf life last 1 month so I spilt a bag with 2 other friends or family members)

Milk and meat...quality stuff significantly less money but know your best meat cuts and buy accordingly.

The key thing is to not overbuy bulk items as invariably spoilage will result.

I used to have a Costco card but rarely used it so let it lapse... I have gone with friends, however, particularly at Christmas... great gift prices and ideas.

The meat at the Costcos near me is fantastic. Maybe not as cheap as you'd like, but much better tasting than some of the Safeways etc. I don't buy in bulk as I have no freezer and no cupboard space, so I rarely go - just if a friend with a card is going, and not always then. Vitamins are great prices, though. I shop for paper goods and staples at StupidStore, and for produce elsewhere. Sometimes Safeway has really good deals on meats and seafoods. I go where the whim takes me and buy what's on sale. But there are only two of us (and two animals), so I don't shop too often. I don't want a keg of mustard or a six pack of ketchup - I always think of Costco as being more for large picnics or company functions.

Safeway is horrible for meat, and has been for a long time.