With everyone exceeding their food budget (if they make one), shopping habits had to change. For example, buying store brands. Not only are store brands cheaper by 20 percent or more, but they’re often of premium quality too. Many supermarkets want their private label to exceed the quality of name brands.

A case in point is Target’s Archer Farms products “The finest products with the finest ingredients.” This is a good week to try them at SuperTarget: All of the Archer Farms products are discounted 15 percent through Saturday.

 Not happy with the store brand? Take it back for a refund. Target will probably want a receipt, but I’ve never had a problem with unreceipted returns at Cub or Rainbow.

Aldi is the store brand king, of course. Lower prices than even Wal-Mart. And they stand behind their products too, no questions asked. My favorite recent store-brand purchase is Target’s Archer Farms kettle chips. My least favorite was Rainbow’s version of Q-tips. The cotton tips were flimsy.

 Got a good or bad store brand to share?  I’m still searching for a store-brand of facial tissue as soft as Puffs. No store has even come close. Yet. Â

The gift cards are already discounted at Restaurant.com but now through Monday, Oct. 13, take an additional 70 percent the already discounted prices. That means you’ll pay $3 for a $25 gift certificate. Just put in your zip code to find Twin Cities restaurants near you. Use the discount code SAVE at checkout for the additional 70 percent off. Notice the restrictions for each restaurant. You need to spend $35 at Joe’s Garage to be able to use the $25 discounted certificate. Also, it’s only good Sundays through Thursdays. Â

If you haven’t signed up for email notification at Restaurant.com, it’s time. The new discount code FESTIVE now in effect will save you 60 percent off the already discounted gift cards. The code is in effect until Sunday, Sept. 21.

Twin Cities restaurants on the list include Falafel King, Kieren’s, and Sgt. Pepper’s Grille and Bar. Pepper’s in Oakdale is an especially good deal (9 certs left at this writing). Get a $10 gift cert. for $1.40.  

There are some caveats. Buying multiple certs and stacking them on one visit usually doesn’t work (one cert per visit) and at places such as M & S Grill in Minneapolis, you have to spend $150 before you can use your $75 gift card. That’s great if you’re in a group of four but maybe not for two.

 Remember to put in the discount code at on the purcahse page to get the additional discount. Am I missing any other gotchas?

Just got back from Rainbow in the Quarry in Minneapolis where blind taste tests were taking place–name brands vs. store brands. I didn’t even try to guess which was which–I just thought about which root beer and chips I liked better. I preferred a less sweet root beer and a lighter, crispier chip and both were Roundy’s brand. (The losers? Barq’s and Lays.)

Until 4 p.m. Aug. 22, anyone can do the taste test and get a Roundy’s hotdog or brat or Italian sausage plus chips and a drink for a buck. Roundy’s chairman Bob Mariano said he’s a fan of Roundy’s Italian sausage and ice-cream. I told him that Roundy’s could spend more time perfecting their versions of Q-tips and Cheerios, which are both inferior to the name brand.

I hope the days are over when consumers are still bypassing store brands because they think them inferior. I’m a big fan of most store’s private labels and buy them regularly. And I don’t hesitate to return anything substandard.

Anyone else have a favorite or least favorite store brand out there?

 One last unrelated tip: Go to www.restaurant.com  and use discount LABOR through Sunday (Aug. 31) and save an additional 60 percent. No lie.

The inventory from the Simon Delivers shutdown is making its way down the, well, food chain. When the grocery delivery trucks made the last round of deliveries at the end of July, the company still had more than 10 semi-truck trailerloads of groceries in the warehouse.
Enter Mike Abernathy of Mike’s Discount Foods in Fridley, 763-572-2254, and Hilltop, 763-502-8999. Abernathy bought the inventory, which is in pristine condition, but is selling it for about 30 percent less than at a mainstream supermarket. Prices are below wholesale, said Abernathy, including frozen dinners and other groceries. The sale began Sunday. Only the perishables such as milk and cheese are gone.

Here’s an excerpt from a column about salvage grocery stores that I wrote last year.

So Low in Minneapolis and Mike‘s grocery outlets represent only a fraction of competitors for the Twin Cities food dollar, but they’re growing for a good reason. Consumers report that they view grocery store prices as the most inflationary, more so  than home furnishings, home electronics and drugstores, according to a national study of 812 consumers conducted in 2007 by ChainStoreAge.com and Leo J. Shapiro and Associates in New York City.

   “The Twin Cities went a long time without very many low- priced stores,” said David Livingston, of DJL Supermarket Research in Milwaukee. Now it appears we’re playing catch-up. Aldi, Costco, SuperTarget and Wal-Mart SuperCenter are all adding stores in the Twin Cities in 2008. Aldi, which started with an Inver Grove Heights store in 2003, now has 20 Twin Cities locations and plans to add three to five stores each year for the next several years, said Cathy Misko, vice president of the Minneapolis division.

Abernathy, who owns Mike‘s stores in Fridley and Hilltop,
said that they always do better in a down economy. His customers save 50 percent or more than at full-priced stores on products that are near their expiration, produce such as smaller watermelons or items that have been discontinued or have packaging or label changes. (Note: the Simon Delibvers items are not at or near expiration.) Most, though, come for staples: meat, produce, bread and canned goods. Most of Abernathy’s products are name brands, an
advantage he claims over Aldi, which stocks mostly private-label items.

   Still, some new customers might recoil at buying perishables near or past the expiration date.  Products near or at their expiration date aren’t usually a food safety issue unless the packaging has been compromised, said Heidi
Kassenborg, acting director of the Dairy and Food Division at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Milk that has curdled might be undrinkable, but it’s not unsafe, she said.

   In general, avoid any bulging containers and cans with dents on the seam or any item in which packaging is irregular or broken.
Kassenborg said that food salvage stores in Minnesota have not been cited for any significant safety concerns since she started in 2003.

   Tuesdays continue to be Abernathy’s busiest day. That’s the day senior citizens get an additional 10 percent off, so business doubles. “Older customers tell their middle-aged kids where they got a great deal on blueberries,” he said, “and pretty soon they’re shopping here, too.”

 WHO HAS THE LOWEST PRICES?

   Meat: Costco and So Low. Many readers rave about the quality and price of meat at Costco (ground beef with 12 percent fat, $2.39 per pound; boneless chuck, $3.29 per pound; boneless pork loin, $2.69 per pound, and a cooked rotisserie chicken at $4.99 for 3 pounds).
(Prices checked July 21, 2007.) So Low‘s prices were slightly higher than Costco’s on ground beef and boneless chuck but lower for boneless
pork loin.

Staples and snacks: Aldi. Its selection is much smaller than a
typical supermarket’s, but prices on staples such as oil, salt,
flour, sugar, pasta and canned goods are hard to beat. Salted
snacks and cookies are mostly private label, but the prices are 30 to 50 percent less than name brands. The Fit & Active line has fewer calories.

   Produce: Mike‘s Discount Foods. Prices are 30 to 50 percent less due to surplus from another store’s ad, inconsistent sizing or slight over-ripeness.

   Store brands: Cub Foods . Many store brands now equal or surpass the name-brand quality, according to Consumer Reports. Cub sells cheaper store brands in hundreds of categories using names such as Aloft, Home Best, Awesome, Carlita, Nature’s Best, Cub Foods and Our Own.

   Prepackaged specialty foods and organics: Trader Joe’s. The produce selection is sparse and the stores are small, but prices on specialty items and organics are much less than Whole Foods.Â

Going to a “factory” to eat cheesecake, now there’s a concept. Thirty years later, the Cheesecake Factory is going strong, charging $6.25 to $7.50 per slice. But not on Wednesday, July 30, when the restaurants fete their customers by charging only $1.50 per slice.

 The deal is for dine-in customers only. The Southdale restaurant (Edina, 952-653-3333, http://www.cheesecakefactory.com/) will be even busier than usual, so you may want to go at off-peak hours between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. Reservations are only allowed for parties of 7 or more.

I’m no chocoholic, but the best truffles I’ve ever had locally are from Chocolat Celeste (2506 University Av. W., St. Paul, 651-644-3823, www.chocolatceleste.com). For the first time ever, the chocolatier is discounting all of the chocolate inventory 50 percent from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, July 25-26. Mind you, these babies aren’t cheap. The price per truffle ranges from $3 to $6 (before discount) depending on the quantity purchased, but the quality is superb.

 This is a rare opportunity to buy a gift box for a birthday, anniversary, shower or hostess gift. Refrigerated, the chocolates keep about 10 weeks. Unrefrigerated, they last about two weeks, said owner Mary Leonard. And the reason for the sale? A large canceled order. If you’ve never tried them before, the Chai, Golden Cinnamon and Chili Pepper are oh so special. Â

Cutting back on eating out? No need to at www.Restaurant.com. Save 70 percent on certificates at more than 30 local restaurants. A $25 gift certificate costs only $10 or buy a $10 cert for $3. Typically, the discounts are only 50 percent, so this is a rare bargain. Note that some restaurants have restrictions such as dinner only. 

If you prefer more upscale restaurants, sign up for email alerts at www.tcoriginals.com.  Once a quarter, the site sells gift certificates at restaurants such as Murrays, Dakota, and Lake Elmo Inn discounted 30 percent. The popular ones sell out the same day as they’re posted.  Only a handful remained on the site earlier today.

Yes, yes, I realize that a local blog about deals should have been done years ago. A dose of Dollars and Sense on Tuesdays and Steals and Deals on Thursdays isn’t enough. Frugalistas need a daily dose of deals. I traverse the Twin Cities for good deals but, hey, I can’t be everywhere. You know a good deal when you see one, so share it after you’ve nabbed yours. 

Here’s one to get you started: Lunds and Byerly’s reacted to the demise of Simon Delivers by offering a $20 off any a purchase of $100. To register, go to Lunds/Byerly’s. The upscale stores still offer home delivery service too. Byerly’s/Lunds not your style? At the other end of the spectrum is Aldi. Don’t bother trying to call them. The no frills store don’t publish phone numbers, take credit cards or checks. But you’ll save 20 percent even compared to Wal-Mart SuperCenters. Â