You say potato, we say SPUD
Filed Under Going Green, Tips & Tricks | November 23, 2007
Grocery shopping with tots can be a trial, especially when they’re old enough to pilfer the candy rack at the check out, or have a tantrum when they can’t have Dora cookies rather than the wholesome ones you’ve chosen. Add to that travel time and fruitless trawling the aisles for that one elusive item and it certainly isn’t the most fun one has each week.
We decided to test online grocery shopping to see if it really was a viable alternative. Our choice was SPUD – Small Potatoes Urban Delivery – the granddaddy of online grocers. Launching in 1988, they’ve grown to offer almost as much selection as your neighborhood grocery store, everything from toilet paper to vitamins. And food, of course.
Our first shop was just like our first time in a new store – it took us some time to figure it all out. But as it was Saturday night and we were having a glass of wine while we shopped, it wasn’t all that painful. Groceries are organized by category, broken down further within each category, and you can do a search for whatever item you’re looking for, saving yourself navigation time. You can also create a list of personal favourites and standing orders, so each time you shop it gets quicker.
If only they had absolutely everything on our list then we could avoid filler trips to the grocery store. You can let them know about products you want, however, and they are increasing their inventory all the time. Their prices are on par with our regular grocer – so the savings come in time and convenience.
We love the amount of organic food and produce they sell, and we like that they offer things we can’t find at our local store, including Siegel’s Bagels and pies from Aphrodites. It’s fun to see how far your food has traveled and it makes us feel virtuous to know that one SPUD delivery van carrying 100 orders is the equivalent of 200 private car trips.
And we’re hooked on coming home to a big bin o’ food at the door and delving in to see what’s inside.
Small Potatoes Urban Delivery: www.spud.ca
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Let us know what you think or share your great finds with us so we can share them with other Vancouver mothers!
I love SPUD. The organic groceries can be expensive, but I figure I save by avoiding impulse shopping in the stores. And it is so nice to have it delivered to the door – it’s hard to carry a two-year-old AND four litres of milk home from the grocery store (we don’t have a car). I highly recommend SPUD.