My friend Grant met me this morning to take me to Maz to show me where the Ley grocery store is. We left around 8:30, it’s 11:30 now (feels so late!), and we walked around for a bit looking for an ATM, so, really, getting groceries isn’t even a half-day thing.
We took the village panga and he showed me the most direct main street to take. It’s the street I took last time, but I turned too soon. So I really was very close, pretty much skirting around the store. If we had gone straight there, it would have taken about 15 minutes to get to the store.
But we both needed an ATM. He had done research ahead of time and thought he knew where there was a ScotiaBank, but we struck out. We thought we might have better luck around the Mercado and found a bank that wouldn’t accept our debit cards. I asked someone in uniform for another option and he said, I was pretty sure, ‘go a block that way, turn left, and there’s a bank a block or two down.’
That’s what we did and by the second block, we hadn’t seen a bank. I figured that I hadn’t understood correctly when Grant noticed that the building we were standing in front of was an under renovation bank, so little signage, but it was open! I understood the directions just fine!
My card once again got refused and I was getting a little nervous, but I decided to try one more time and instead of requesting a specific amount, I chose their highest pre-selected amount, 2,000 pesos. Success!
The Ley was just a couple of blocks away and, dang, there’s a Banamex ATM right there! I wouldn’t want to take out a large withdrawal there (rent), but it would be good for a smaller amount.
The store was wonderful! It’s just a small ‘express’ Ley and I know that stores like Soriana, Mega, and Walmart would have a lot more choice, but this was a million times better than what I’m used to back home with our crappy Co-Op grocery! I was able to get some brands that I’m more particular about (I don’t eat a lot of pasta, but when I do I favour Barilla), prices were cheap, and the produce was so fresh and more varied than what I can get on Isla. I will want at some point to take a pulmonia to a larger store to get more variety, but I am thrilled to have this Ley within walking distance!
Now that I have a proper receipt, I can give some exact prices for those who are curious about such things. I prefer to buy things on sale when possible, so the following are discounted prices unless I put an F in front of the price for full price. Prices are in pesos/CAD/USD.
(I am amused that the receipt is in alphabetical order, btw!)
Avocado (3 Hass): 8.06/0.65/0.57
Almond milk (one carton, purchased as a gift for Dale): F33.90/2.74/2.40
Red onions (two medium): F7.32/0.59/0.52
Jalapeño pepper (one small): 0.20/0.02/0.01
Crema (Mexican sour cream, medium tub): F21.60/1.75/1.53
Saladitas crackers (big box): F36.70/2.97/2.60
American-style turkey ham (two packages): 39.00/3.15/2.76
Romaine lettuce (small head): F14.90/1.20/1.06
Key limes (about a dozen): 1.65/0.13/0.12
Butter (small stick): 11.00/0.89/0.78
Barilla pasta (two bags): F32.60/2.63/2.31
Bananas (about six): F11.40/0.92/0.81
Oaxaca cheese (2 400g packs): 99.60/8.04/7.06
Philadelphia cheese (one brick): 19.90/1.61/1.41
Ramen noodles (4 packages): 10.00/0.81/0.71
Bacon (small package): 34.90/2.82/2.47
Tomatoes (4 small): F8.82/0.71/0.63
Red grapefruit (2 big): 6.55/0.53/0.46
Yoghurt (large tub): 22.90/1.85/1.62
Beer (8x355mL cans at the Super Deli on Isla): F90.00/7.27/6.38
I think it’s obvious that dairy prices are the best deal in Mexico. I don’t know about meat prices yet (still waiting to be able to cook…) but my biggest luxury item in Canada is a staple item here. Full price, a brick of Philly cream cheese is about four times more expensive in Assiniboia and the tub of yoghurt would have been easily 7 or 8CAD! I’m trying a different brand, one that has fewer ingredients (ie. more natural). It’s coconut pineapple and I’m itching to get into it. 🙂
Bacon was the last thing I picked up. I didn’t go in with a list, not being certain of what I’d be able to find, and I’m glad I did a final sweep of the store and stopped at the deli counter. Bacon is tocino, BTW.
I came to the store with my own bags, including an insulated one that my friend L gave me. I filled one of my Nalgene water bottles about two thirds full last night, stuck it in the freezer, and topped it off this morning. This gave me not only cold water to drink while we walked around, but an ice pack to keep things cold in my insulated bag. I was able to tell the bagger to put the cold things in the insulated bag and the rest in the cloth one and she understood me perfectly. You have to tip baggers, so I gave her 2 pesos plus all the small change (centavos) that I’ve been collecting since it doesn’t seem to be any good for anything else.
Grant was a gentleman and insisted on carrying my heaviest bag all the way back to the panga and then home! It was nice to have a pack mule. 😀 I stopped at the City Deli for beer, we both went next door to get a fresh batch of tortillas, and I met Dale on the way home so I was able to give her the almond milk (the look on her face made me glad I thought to do that for her).
I came home and made wraps from my lovely warm fresh tortillas, Philly cream cheese, wonderful tomatoes, and some ham. Yum!
It is possible to eat very well and cheaply in Mexico. Insisting on NOB brands brings up the cost but is well worth the added expense in some cases. Carrying groceries could be a problem when you do not have a pack mule. I am envisioning one of those fold up mesh baskets with wheels but I have no idea of the cost or availability in MX.
I am convinced that all you RVers complaining about the butter are buying margarine, which is like movie popcorn ‘butter’, very yellow and salty with a fake butter flavour, rather than real dairy butter, which is like butter back home. I did that once and never again. The real butter would pass as Canadian butter in a blind test taste.
I know the difference, and it would never pass a blind taste test unless the participants also had no taste buds!
We’re not buying the same brands, then! I’ve had zero issues with the mantequilla here…
We tried every brand as Norma was getting desperate looking for something that tasted like our butter at home. Our last year in MX she loaded one whole shelf in the fridge with about 15 pounds of butter from the US.
That’s funny. You need to come here with some US butter so I can do a proper comparison. 😉
Croft, I’m not super particular about brands, but when it comes to cream cheese, I only want Philly, which is four times cheaper here. For pasta, I prefer Barilla, which is about six times cheaper here. I haven’t seen anything yet that is pricier than back home. I’ll likely get a better comparison at a larger store.
I was going to bring my grocery cart on wheels but correctly suspected that the sidewalks here wouldn’t be good for that. I could have brought this stuff home on my own, but barely. My options are to either shop more often so I bring home less or… take a pulmonia! It’s about 40 pesos from the Ley to the panga and I think about the same from the panga to home on this side. I’m also going to consider a backpack.
Thanks for sharing the price list. I normally get plain yogurt, and then add my own fresh fruit. No extra ingredients that way. Curious about the use of pulmonia; as it means pneumonia in Spanish.
I usually do plain yoghurt with fresh fruit, too, but with my weight still dropping and all the exercise I’m getting, I’m using flavoured yoghurt as a treat, the way I used to do with ice cream. 🙂
Pulmonias are golf kart type taxis unique to Mazatlán. This is a good article about them: http://allaboutmazatlan.com/blog/the-pulmonia-taxi-of-mazatlan-is-a-must-catch/
I think the name might have been a tongue in cheek reference to the fact that you could get pneumonia if you rode around in one on a cold night.
Norma used to grab canned Danish butter at about 100 pesos a can every time she saw it. You could hear my teeth grinding right across the store every time she did.
Great idea, the water and ice bottle trick!
It’s wonderful that you post prices of your groceries etc. I’m sure that if will be of great value to your readers.
Cheers.
I thought the water thing was pretty clever, too. 😀 As for the prices, you prompted it! 🙂
If you drive the few blocks to the panga then your only cost will be the pulmonia one way to the panga. There are always fellows looking for a few pesos to carry your things to the boat for you. We used the same tank of gas all winter going back and forth to the panga and driving to the lavenderia.
I refuse to drive to the panga on this side. It’s way too close. Most cases, I’d just pack mule my bags when I get on this side or if there’s something particular large, then I’d get a pulmonia.
I was thinking you might be able to tip one of the bag packers enough to carry your bags from the Ley to the panga for much less than hiring a pulmonia.
Croft, it’s quite a long distance, about 15 minutes on foot. I really don’t find a pulmonia expensive at only about 3 or 4CAD. Anyway, this isn’t going to be a regular thing.
You are lucky to have your health.
I am and all that walking is going to keep it that way, I hope!