Buenos Aires Grocery Shopping

Grocery shopping in Buenos Aires can be an adventure or a headache depending on your  language ability and need for specific items. In most of Argentina people still buy groceries  the old fashioned way . . . no they don’t trade tomatoes for sausage; they shop in a dozen different stores for different types of products.  We have a butcher half a block from us, a vegetable stand on one corner, a bakery around the other corner and two small "supermarkets" which are usually owned by Asians (and sometimes certain products are cheaper here). But if you want to find almost  everything in one place there is a solution- Coto!!! Coto is a massive grocery/consumer goods store.  It is a little like Super Wal-mart or Target, but  not quite as nice.  The first time I discovered Coto, I was overwhelmed because from the outside Coto looked like just another grocery store. Maybe it was a little larger and brighter than the  rest, but when I went inside to see if they had soy milk,  I was wowed by the selection of various products and how the store seemed to never end.   They sell everything; fans, refrigerators, TVs, 20 different brands of toilet paper, fresh meat,  a variety of wine and alcohol.  I couldn’t believe it!  You could find anything you needed in  one single store!!!  As tempting as it was to buy two cart loads of items, we knew the walk home  would be too much, so we purchased my soy milk and some paper towels (which are smaller than the average) and made our way to the checkout.  That is when we learned – Coto Delivers!!! All you have to do is shop as normal, then tell the check-out clerk you would like it delivered.  Make sure you know your full address, and a few hours later your groceries items will be brought to your front door.  They have air conditioned vans that drive around the city making deliveries, so you don’t have to worry about spoiling meats and vegetables.  It is only a few pesos, plus  a tip to the delivery boy.  Isn’t Buenos Aires wonderful? There are other grocery stores in Buenos Aires, like Disco, Dia Supermercado and Carrefour.   My favorite (after Coto) is  Disco.  It is usually well lit and well stocked.  The Disco’s can vary  from one neighborhood to the next, but overall they are much nicer than the other supermarkets. At the Disco you can find everything you NEED to make a nice dinner, but you may not find  everything you want.  For example, we wanted pepper, plain black ground pepper, but all we could find was peppercorns.  At Coto we found a small package of ground pepper at least,  but it was a little hard to find it. It seems like pepper it is not just that popular here as it is in the States. Even at the restaurants, all you are going to see on the table is salt...not pepper...? Shopping at Coto or Disco can be an easy, relaxing experience (except for the slow cashiers and the fact that they take forever to swipe a card the old fashioned way) but I wouldn’t make it my only grocery shopping destination.  I believe there is something romantic about stepping into the  past, about having to interact with people before taking home your groceries.  I really enjoy  talking to a butcher to get your meat, tasting the cheese at the local cheese store before you make a purchase, and having freshly baked bread from the neighborhood bakery.  Not to  mention, the food always taste better after you’ve walked to five different shops to buy it. =) Note: Make sure you know that if you are ready to check out in one of the lanes that  says "15 items or less" THEY REALLY MEAN IT! Otherwise, prepare to leave some of your items behind :s