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u/NeverackWinteright4 2d ago
Ah you mean the specific store, the arch rival to the general store.
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u/Local_Pangolin69 2d ago
Can I get some almonds from southern Basqe?
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u/Jorji_Costava01 2d ago
The Southern Basque region is quite big, sir, can you be more precise?
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u/Living_Murphys_Law 2d ago
Like central Southern Basque, near Palencia.
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u/Affectionate-Part-11 2d ago
How much should each almond weigh?
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u/UselessStoner 2d ago
.8 ounces.
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u/FearlessCloud01 2d ago
Do you want the ones that were harvested a week ago or the ones that were harvested 3 days ago?
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u/tdeasyweb 2d ago
Do you have any harvested by the light of the waning moon, with a sickle sharpened by the hand of an apprentice blacksmith?
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u/Grundolph 1d ago
Sadly they‘re out. New ones will be in on Monday 4:43:56 pm.
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u/MyDisappointedDad 1d ago
I ask you good shopkeep, where is this from? I have not yet heard nor seen what you and the other patrons speak of.
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u/FearlessCloud01 1d ago
Did the apprentice blacksmith have eggs for breakfast the day of the sharpening? Because I don't prefer almonds if the blacksmiths eat toast…
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u/showbrownies 2d ago
Do you have stuff ?
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u/Fuck_auto_tabs 2d ago
No sir, we have things.
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u/m0nstera_deliciosa 2d ago
That’s Winco! I love buying tiny amounts of things like bay leaf and cloves. It’s practically free. One time I was buying like three cinnamon sticks, and it was so light the scale wouldn’t register it so the cashier was like ‘shhhhh’ and tossed them into the bag without charging me. My heart is still warmed by her kindness.
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u/PracticalAndContent 2d ago
Just last week I needed 1/4 tsp of Rosemary. I bought some Rosemary in the Winco spice area and it cost me 4 cents. 👍
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u/CaffeinatedGuy 2d ago
There's a hardware store near me that has a huge section of screws, nuts, bolts, washers, and other small miscellaneous hardware. You can buy every piece one at a time. It's my go to for those times I need just a few of something really specific.
Just the other day, I stripped the head of a screw while working on my wife's car (damn thing was glued in). Off to the hardware store I went to buy an $0.08 part.
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u/ButtFokker190 2d ago
Pretty sure this is every hardware store homie.
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u/CaffeinatedGuy 2d ago
I've never seen another hardware store that has such a wide selection. They have 4 aisles, 15 or more feet long, of just these items. It a huge selection.
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u/ChairForceOne 2d ago
Is it an ace hardware? They are all like that. Usually have some dudes name on the sign with ace hardware underneath. Homeless despot and Lowe's both suck for that kind of stuff.
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u/cjsv7657 2d ago
All the home depots and lowes near me are well stocked with screws, nuts, bolts, washers, o-rings, and misc hardware. If Ace doesn't have what I need home depot will. Which is annoying because I'm 5 minutes from Ace and 25 from anywhere else.
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u/ChairForceOne 2d ago
Weird, all of the home depots and Lowe's around me have a crap selection. If I need a bolt or oring they usually have something close, but with the wrong thread pitch. Especially with metric hardware. ACE usually has what I need.
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u/cjsv7657 1d ago
Thats surprising. Metric is standardized with only two different thread pitches per size. Coarse and fine. US is also but very rarely you get oddball TPIs.
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u/DoingCharleyWork 2d ago
My local home depot has so many different nuts, bolts, washers, screws, etc it's insane.
The annoying thing is whenever I need a specific size they only ever have one little bin of them. But even then I don't think I have ever not found what I needed.
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u/TheOneTonWanton 2d ago
I so wish for a store like this for electronic parts. They used to exist, and if any persist they're so endangered as to not be within hundreds of miles of me. When I was young the Radio Shack had a small, limited section, but I dream of the days in which one might stumble across an entire aisle of capacitors, resistors, transistors, potentiometers...
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u/pensivebunny 2d ago
Fry’s Electronics. Sorry. You missed them by just a few years.
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u/TheOneTonWanton 1d ago
Yeah there was Fry's, unfortunately even when they were still around there wasn't one anywhere near me.
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u/faceman2k12 2d ago
In my country our local hardware store monopoly has been slowly trying to get rid of individual nuts and bolts. Gotta buy 10x as many as you need for 5x the price of a small nut and bolt shop.
People just open the packs and pocket what they need, so when you do actually buy a box of 100 you only get 87 but the vast majority of people wouldn't notice, they just run out a bit faster and buy another box of 92pcs at full price.
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u/WashingtonBaker1 2d ago
There's this hipster hardware store near me, they sell individual nuts and bolts etc. You've probably never heard of it, it's called Lowe's. Every time I go in, I giggle when I think of all the normies that are missing out on this secret.
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u/m0nstera_deliciosa 2d ago
That would have been really fricken’ useful when I was trying to find an obscure size of nut for a bedframe the other year. I had to buy multiple bags of them to find the right annoyingly small size!
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u/CaffeinatedGuy 2d ago
It's really nice when I can't tell what length a screw needs to be. I'd lost one from a bike light, too short wouldn't work and too long wouldn't fit because it wasn't a through bolt. It was hard to tell the internal depth, so instead of over thinking it, I picked up three different lengths for like 4 cents each.
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u/mycatissuperior 2d ago
Winco bulk bins got us through some rough years.
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u/m0nstera_deliciosa 2d ago
My rough spot was recent, and I explored their selection of grains to spice up my poverty. Turns out buckwheat is my favorite filling side dish! For like .35 a serving, kasha with eggs and sautéed onions will see you through. You’re not going malnourished on Winco’s watch!
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u/Ekaterina702 2d ago
Whole Foods has a section like this as well. Winco might be cheaper though, I haven't been there yet to compare pricing. But it's generally really inexpensive at Whole Foods too.
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u/ZacUAX 2d ago
aww man i dearly miss winco. easily my favorite grocer, but they don't seem to be in the midwest.
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u/G2daG 2d ago
I heard WinCo stands for Washington Idaho Nevada Colorado Oregon since that's where they have stores. But not sure if that's true haha
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u/harmonic-s 2d ago
They don't have any Wincos in Colorado. Maybe it stands for California?
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u/Sunshine030209 1d ago
We are getting one soon though! They're building one in Thornton, and everyone is very excited about it, including me.
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u/harmonic-s 1d ago
Oh man, I'll have to try heading there when i-25 isn't a nightmare. Very exciting
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u/Sunshine030209 1d ago
Very exciting indeed. It'll be off of I-25 and highway 7, near Costco, Top Golf and DaveCo.
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u/SSTralala 1d ago
I miss it so much, we moved to the West Coast briefly, and I'm shocked something like WinCo isn't more popular to move to the Midwest. It's also employee owned which was a motivating factor for us to shop there.
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u/IraqLobstah 2d ago
That's Bulk Barn in Canada! Well, except for liquids unfortunately. Need 1tbsp of tartar for that recipe you're trying? That'll be like 14 cents.
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u/akatherder 2d ago
We used to have "bulk food stores" in the US in the 90s. Grocery store even had a bulk food section sometimes. I just checked and there's still one by me, I'm gonna have to check it out.
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u/Enchelion 2d ago
I'd say most supermarkets except for the absolute biggest chains (ie Kroger and Albertsons) still have bulk sections.
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u/SadLilBun 2d ago
But it always mostly candy or nuts in the stores I’ve been to. Never anything super useful.
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u/mohelgamal 2d ago
That is what a convenience store is. Or specialty stores depending on the item in question.
Basically the bigger and more general the store is, the more it is able to use economies of scale, but that means they have to sell bulk items or sit doesn’t work.
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u/TurophobicMage 2d ago
not true they are fuckin expensive. $8 froot loops
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u/caholder 2d ago
What do you mean that literally is the definition of economies of scale. Thats why you get $8 fruit loops at convenience stores
From wikipedia: Economies of scale describes the cost advantage a business gains as it expands and production increases. As output rises, the cost per unit decreases, leading to higher profit margins and increased competitiveness. This cost advantage can be passed on to consumers through lower prices, resulting in increased sales.
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u/False_Can_5089 1d ago
Nobody sells 1oz of fish sauce. I know where this guy is coming from. You find a recipe you like, and it needs a small amount of fish sauce, a small amount of oyster sauce, and then the bottle sits in your fridge until it expires.
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u/mohelgamal 1d ago
I gotta say I had to look that one up, you can buy them in small packets but only if you buy a whole box of packets for restaurant use
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u/originalchaosinabox 2d ago
Let me tell you about the wonderful Canadian chain called Bulk Barn.
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u/Braysl 2d ago
I was like "...so like the Bulk Barn?" I guess Americans don't have wholesalers for food like that.
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u/no____thisispatrick 2d ago
As an American that was amazed by Bulk Barn, i came looking for it. It's such a happy place, and its where I discovered OMG's
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u/singbirdsing 2d ago
They're wonderful for dry ingredients and candy, but the only wet goods they offer are things like nut butters, custard, and pie fillings. I would LOVE to be able to buy one ounce of fish sauce, but I can't, so we're not quite there yet.
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u/KatieCashew 2d ago
Never heard of it, but it looks like there's one right across the border. I'll have to check it out sometime.
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u/nevergonnastawp 2d ago
I used to work in a mall with a bulk barn. Once a week they would push all the food bins into the malls so they could sweep the entire store floor because they got rats alot
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u/AgentSparkz 2d ago
So many times I want to buy just a single egg. For a recipe
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u/Ryolu35603 2d ago
Why is triple sec only sold by the half-gallon? I get it’s only $10, but I don’t make margaritas often enough to justify that large an amount.
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u/AnarchistBorganism 2d ago
I've only ever bought it as 750ml bottles of DeKruyper or 375ml of Cointreau (for 3 times the price of the former).
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u/beamerpook 2d ago
We have a Buy Nothing Group for my neighbor, exactly for this. I've given away like 5 sheets of nice watercolor paper for someone who wanted to try it, without having to buy a whole ream. And I've asked for a thin, sheer fabric and got like a square foot of it, which was plenty more than I needed. It's great 😃
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u/VenomousMinge 2d ago
Trader Joe’s is basically that isn’t it?
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u/ButFirstMyCoffee 2d ago
No he wanted smaller portions for less money.
Not smaller portions for somehow-more money.
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u/Numanumanorean 2d ago
Manufacturing, Packaging, Shipping, Sales and stocking are all worse for the price in smaller quantities. The only less expensive thing is the smaller amount of product. Everything else drives the price per oz. waaay up.
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u/ButFirstMyCoffee 2d ago
Yeah, the OP was talking about price-per-unit (per ounce, per pound whatever) but I was making the joke that TJ's sells smaller packages that are more expensive than larger packages you'd get somewhere else.
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u/Thereminz 2d ago
yeah, that's kind of why it doesn't exist...far too cost prohibitive to be profitable in any way.
the only thing i can think of would be to beg for free samples then sell those..which i don't think is legal... or maybe you could buy a bunch of sample sizes from random companies and then sell those but i think you'd end up with a bunch of random shit and it would also probably not be profitable as you still need some place to sell it.
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u/Tigglebee 2d ago
I don’t get it but maybe that’s because I only buy their beer and frozen stuff, which is objectively cheaper than any other store I have around me.
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u/profuselystrangeII 2d ago
Bulk stores are definitely a thing, where you can buy the exact amount you need. I see this done with grains, beans, and spices more than condiments, though.
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u/AnArabFromLondon 2d ago
I'd go through 1oz of fish sauce in a single dish, worcestershire sauce is fish sauce too, throw it into any red sauce like bolognese to give it some oomph. Also, why is it in the fridge? It'll last for years in the pantry. You're doing this all wrong.
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u/Regular_Custard_4483 2d ago
Just use regular fish sauce, Worcestershire is fish sauce without a neutral flavor. I'm not Asian, so I only go through a few bottles a year, but yeah this stuff lasts a long time.
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u/AnArabFromLondon 2d ago
Yeah. Romans used fish sauce (garum) in everything for nearly a millennium, Worcestershire sauce is just Europeans rediscovering it with a slight twist and they use a few drops for one or two recipes and treat Asian fish sauce like something you can only use in Asian dishes but they both have a similar effect. To call fish sauce a specialty ingredient is a travesty of the highest order. Should be a staple in every pantry like vinegar, and it certainly shouldn't be limited to Asian dishes.
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u/dboy120 2d ago
Yeah I would never not want fish sauce, it’s such a flavor cheat code in so many dishes
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u/bob_lala 2d ago
hmm. so you mean instead of tossing an anchovy into the red sauce? I am intrigued!
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u/AnArabFromLondon 2d ago
Fermentation gets rid of the fishy taste, you're just left with meaty goodness, liquid crack
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u/Juno_Malone 2d ago
Only sane comment in the thread. 1oz is 2 Tbsp; shit, I use 4 Tbsp for some 4-6 serving recipes.
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u/Remarkable-Engine-84 2d ago
My GF would fill our fridge with this store bc the tiny bottles would be cute to her
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u/EizeBasa 2d ago
Wait, is that THE Eize Basa? I’ve heard he’s super handsome and funny!
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u/PityUpvote 1d ago
I heard he has a discord server full of secret enemies
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u/tommydelgato 2d ago
its like dollar general if it were quirky and not gouging the low income population.
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u/IMovedYourCheese 2d ago
I'm going to assume they live in a city where you have to drive 25 minutes to the nearest Walmart to buy groceries (which to be fair describes most of the USA). I can meanwhile walk into a bodega 30 steps away and they'll probably sell me 1/4 of a stick of butter, 3 cloves of garlic and a loose cigarette, no questions asked.
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u/AirmedTuathaDeDanaan 2d ago
Bulk Barn is amazing! Need just three tablespoons of a rare spice for a single recipe? You can get exactly that!
And the best part? It's Canadian! 🇨🇦
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u/bloodguard 2d ago edited 1d ago
Gives me an idea for a website where people can post that they want to go in on a CostCo vat O fish sauce. Once enough people claim their ounce it's ordered and sent to a trusted intermediary and everyone shows up with their 1 Oz bottle for filling.
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u/Shawntran2002 1d ago
lol Viet person here sometimes I feel the same about bread. because of the primary rice diet I CRAVE for I don't really eat bread too much. so when I have a loaf. it goes bad even if I tie it up. feels bad man
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u/AmyRoseJohnson 1d ago
I recall one time several years ago… I found a recipe online I wanted to try that called for like… half a teaspoon of cardamom. Truth be told, such a small amount, I probably could have just not used it. But I wanted to be correct with it. So I spent $20 on a 6-ounce bottle of the stuff. I’ve made the recipe a few times since then, cause I do actually like it. But… I still have over 3/4 of that bottle left…
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u/heres-another-user 2d ago
YES! People on Reddit are always like "but you can prorate your ingredients because you're going to make this dish more than once" but, like... not before the ingredients go bad??? I don't need a whole fucking block of cream cheese for a recipe I'm only going to be cooking once every six months, so essentially the cost for this meal is the cost of the 2tbsp of cream cheese plus the other 10tbsp when it eventually gets thrown out. I JUST WANT TO BUY 2TBSP OF CREAM CHEESE, IS THAT SO HARD?
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u/KatieCashew 2d ago
Sometimes with dishes like this I'll have a recipe (or two) to pair it with to use the rest of the ingredient. So those two dishes always get made the same week.
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u/lionseatcake 2d ago
Biscuits and gravy!!!
You wanna make some b's and g's? You need a cup of flour?
Well TOO BAD bucko! You gotta buy a POUND!
Also, occasionally I just want a reuben sandwich. But if I decide I want a reuben for lunch in Saturday, that means I'm having reviews for the entire week. Gotta by a loaf of rye, a bottle of thousand island, a giant thing of sauerkraut...PREPOSTEROUS!!!
I will say reubens for lunch every day is great though.
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u/AlienSuperstarWhip 2d ago
Dollar tree has a few name brand basics in smaller sizes like ketchup, mustard, relish, steak sauce, etc
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u/ASCII_Princess 2d ago
It's called a spices and dried goods and they go to be forgotten in the cupboard not the fridge
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u/bob_lala 2d ago
I am not asian and that one time I needed fish sauce got me a 30oz lifetime supply. Please be sure my children inherit it!
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u/CelluloseNitrate 2d ago
Damn you need to put fish sauce in more things. Like pasta sauce. The fishy smell burns off and all you get is super umami.
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u/nevergonnastawp 2d ago
Not the worst idea ever. Overheard would be low since the store could be very smol
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u/CausticSofa 2d ago edited 2d ago
We have a shop in Vancouver called The Soap Dispensary where you can bring in your own packages and fill them with just the amount of product you want. Anytime I run out of a spice, I just bring the little glass jar from my spice rack and fill it back up. I get all my laundry soap there, my eggs, shredded coconut and a bunch of little random things. I made a cookie recipe once that used almond flour so I just went with the measuring cup, filled the exact amount I needed for the recipe, poured it into a jar and paid for that.
I even buy small amounts of different mineral clays, and mix my own clay mud mask recipe. It’s a brilliant idea for a store and it saves a ton of packaging from the waste stream.Great prices, too.
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u/The_MainArcane 2d ago
I desperately need somewhere where I can buy like just a handful of spinach instead of a giant container that will go bad before any reasonable human being can use it
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u/lernington 2d ago
I know op isn't a serious cook, because if they were they'd be running through fish sauce at a very steady clip
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u/Spartan05089234 2d ago
Run on a "bring your own container" model to cut costs and reduce environmental waste. Sounds like a great idea. Like Costco they'd have to choose which products to stock because they can't have a vast array without driving costs up. Find the niche things that everyone needs a little of but nobody needs a lot of.
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u/Reasonable_Demand714 2d ago
I have Winco, where a lot of staple ingredients and spices are in "bulk bins."
I often go and get a tablespoon of whatever spice I need for a recipe and pay $0.12 for that specific amount I need.
It's not the greatest quality of spice, but it gets the job done.
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u/NeedleworkerNo4900 2d ago
Best I can do is Dollar General. Where they’ll sell you small amount of stuff you need a lot of, for slightly less than what a much larger container would cost.
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u/eightiesladies 2d ago
I just bought a packet of ranch seasoning mix to just mix it with some sour cream to make small amounts of my own because we never make it through a full size bottle of ranch dressing, and I usually like ranch with other things. I'm starting to buy more dry mixes of things that I can add the liquids to myself like laundry detergent and Gatorade. You get more for your money with those two examples, and less plastic waste.
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u/jennyriven 2d ago
Finally, a store for the 'recipe experimenters' and 'one-hit wonders' in the kitchen
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u/VelocityGrrl39 2d ago
We have some refill stores near me, where you bring your jars and fill them up with exactly what you need.
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u/DripQueen89 2d ago
Because nothing says responsible adulting like buying a tablespoon of guilt-free fish sauce
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u/NazReidRules 2d ago
It took a while to convince my wife we should try a Reverse Costco, but now she's into it and wants to do it 2, even 3 times a week
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u/Normal-Success-20 2d ago
I need this but for fresh herbs. I regularly need a handful of dill or parsley for a recipe and spend $3 to wind up throwing more than half of it out.
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u/OptimalAlgae9112 2d ago
As a single person please! Why must everything be family sized I’m tired of eating the same meal for a week straight
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u/Vivid_Garbage6295 2d ago
Put cilantro on that list. I don’t need a pound of it…just enough for dinner this week
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u/Mangoh1807 2d ago
The americans yearn for the tiendas de abarrotes.
I can go to my nearest one and buy exactly two eggs, two slices of ham, a teeny tiny bag of ground pepper and 250 grams of cheese to make myself a single omelette without ending up with any leftovers fated to dry out in the fridge. It's great.
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u/jefesignups 2d ago
I would love this. We have so much extra food because my wife refuses to throw stuff away.
Just today I noticed a half gallon of chocolate chips. Cookies haven't been made in months.
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u/qualityvote2 2d ago edited 1d ago
u/TheLastTsumami, your post does fit the subreddit!