Food

I've now been eating here for 5 months so I've got a better understanding on how much food costs. Food is expensive in Calgary & it's crap

I've taken to shopping at Superstore. They are owned by Loblaws & in Calgary terms actually pretty affordable. Most hard goods aren't that crazily priced, but you'll still pay more than in the east. They do have a good selection of Organics if that is your thing. Where they suck is that the places are massive. Grocery shopping used to take me 30 minutes at Central Fresh Market in Kitchener. Today, it's a 2 hour adventure, plus a 20 minute drive. If you go to the Superstore, go on a Monday or Tuesday, otherwise, it's a zoo. The parking lots are jammed and the buildings are full of people. It becomes frustrating to shop, people in the way, jammed isles, etc.

Superstore also has crap produce. I buy fruit and veggies from this place and it's moldy within a week. You can't stock up because everything will go bad. What's weird about this is that..it's summer, so things are in season. How can shit go bad in a week when it's in season? I shudder to imagine what it's going to be like in the middle of winter.

Your other choice is Safeway or Co-Op, but....you'll pay out your ass for food there. I can see it costing 600 bucks a month to eat for 2 people if you just shopped at Safeway. Where it does make sense is for fruits....the quality is much better. The other positive about Safeway is that it's likely near your house. Calgary is a VERY spread out city, so you can spend 30 minutes getting to a Superstore if there is traffic. You can likely walk to your Safeway