Supermarket - AKL CBD

[SuperDan]

Hi, I was wondering about any good alternatives to Countdown Supermarket in CBD. There is another big supermarket near Victoria Park. Which is the closest PakNSave (is it worth going there).
Just moved here, and I think Countdown is quite expensive.
Thanks for your advice/ recommendations.

[Fern01]

If you find Countdown expensive, don't go to New world supermarkets. (They have to pay for those "fly buy" points, somehow).

[dilanium]

I normally shop at countdown/woolworths I find they're comparable in price to Pak 'n Sav but it's a much nicer experience.

If you want to save money find local markets (usually on the weekends) for greens and go to a butcher like a meat export warehouse for meat. Try bulk food stores for your dried goods and beans and such.

However, I have NO idea where to find any of these places in Auckland.

[Rubyshoes]

We shop at the Countdown - it is a bit more expensive now that it's rebranded than when it was still Foodtown, but still cheaper than New World. I don't know where the nearest Pak N Save is, but if we're out shopping at Sylvia Park, we'll usually pick up our meats there before hitting the train home.

That's really the only thing that we found noticeably cheaper at Pak N Save than Countdown.

[Rubyshoes]

Oh, and the Tai Ping Asian Market just around the corner from Countdown on Beach Road usually has fruits and veggies much cheaper. It was so great when we were still living next door to it!

[Ngeru]

I find everything is more expensive in Countdown/Foodtown than Pak N Save unless they have an extraordinary offer on. Rarely are the normal Pak n Save prices beaten and believe me I shop to a tight budget and know the price of everything I buy regularly. I pop into Countdown once a week on the off-chance that they might have the odd bargain cheaper than Pak n Save but overall I find the prices usually a good bit dearer apart from their Home Brand range and there's not much in that range I would consider buying.

Pak n Saves I can think of are at Henderson (Lincoln Road), Wairau Road (North Shore), Albany and Sylvia Park. None of them very convenient for the CBD but probably worth a trip for a once a month stock up on the basics.

[urban78]

Hiya,

The two closest Pak N Saves to Auckland CBD would be the Mount Albert one, on New North Road (1167-1177 New North Rd) and the other at Sylvia Park, which is just straight ahead on the motorway (around 15 mins drive).

If you don't have a car, the Sylvia Park one would be more convenient, since there's a train that goes from there to the Britomart in the CBD.

[akp713b]

Yeah the Mt. Albert one is the closest unfortunately. My first 6 months in NZ back in 2006 I lived just down the road from the CBD Foodtown (now Countdown) and the prices were high. But the worst part was when the Foodtown workers went on strike and their shelves were almost empty. Since I didn't have a car I had to ride the bus all the way to Mt. Albert and back to shop. Added a couple hours and $8 to every grocery trip for 3 weeks!