You can still get reasonably priced groceries 30 minutes from Mankato. All of this was $193.17!
Most people have never heard of Mike's Discount Foods. They are a grocery liquidator with locations in Montgomery and Comfrey. Regular grocery stores and big box stores regularly rotate the product on their shelves because items were discontinued, seasonal, or close to the expiration date. Mike's buys all the random items and resells it at a fraction of the cost.
There are some caveats when you shop at Mike's.
- This is not the place to go with a grocery list and a plan. Be flexible and think of it as a treasure hunt because you never know what will be on the shelves from week to week. You can check their Facebook page for info on some of the new products. Be prepared to find unusual items like furniture or pallets of socks.
- Staples like bread, milk, and eggs can cost more than in the regular stores. They stock these for locals who don't want to drive to Mankato just to save $0.50 on a gallon of milk.
- Expiration dates aren't a hard and fast rule here. The yogurt I picked up today is dated for May 18th. However, yogurt is fine to eat well past the expiration date.
- There are no grocery bags. They do have boxes available.