When is everyone doing their Christmas food shop?

[booame321]

Thinking about doing mine this weekend or is that too early?

Just get it as soon as you're able to.
I called into my local retail park Tuesday morning it has four major supermarkets close by.
It was total gridlock all around. Barely a parking space to be had. Just horrendous. I reckon it'll only get worse.
Unless you're shopping on line then it can wait.

I've got a chicken in the freezer (it's just me and 2 kids on Xmas day) and everything else is being delivered the weekend before Xmas. Just need to get milk and bread from the co-op. I hate going to the shops at this time of year.

Oh, thank fuck I don't have to do this crap anymore. I can remember in the past driving to a large supermarket about 7am to do my Christmas food shop around Christmas Eve then going into work for a couple of hours before going home (and shoving a few things in the fridge at work ).

These days life's much more relaxed and it's actually quite pleasant popping into the nearby town on Christmas Eve to pick up a few bits and pieces. No problems parking and everyone in a cheery mood.

Side of salmon, pigs in blankets, quiche, sausage rolls, turkey and gammon all in the freezer already - got the last two today.

Got the crackers and the quality street, the pudding, crisps, nuts, cheese biscuits, bake-at-home bread rolls, chocolate biscuits, pickles etc. so most stuff that keeps is already sorted.

DH and adult dcs can do the drinks shop in the next few days.

Nope never doing Christmas Eve again. Went last year only to get some crackers and drinks and it was a claustrophobic nightmare. Felt sorry for all of the staff.

Delivery booked for the Sat before. Will have freezable food prepped next week.

Click and collect booked for Saturday 22nd morning. This weekend is too early for anything fresh.

Delivery booked for the 22nd which gives enough time for an emergency dash to the shops for anything forgotten/substituted!

I have an online order coming this Saturday, with food for next week and a few more of the more stores items that are needed (I've been doing a clear out recently and need a restock). And the last of the wine I want for hosting a gathering on 26th.

I have another online order for next Thursday 20th, which has most of the fruit and veg, cream, sausage meat etc for Christmas dinner and things for over the weekend.

I will go to M&S and Leonidas and the cheese shop in town near work late next week - Thurs or Fri probably - to get some nice things.

I will go to local butcher on Saturday, and see what I can get by way of a turkey. There's a large supermarket, and a Lidl right next to the butcher, and other options locally, if I fail in those.

And as I am doing a "bag pack" for Scouts on 23rd, I have picked up the last shift, so can whizz around and get anything else I need then. Or I'll have got them over the weekend - as I will only have a few things to get, I don't mind going into a supermarket.

It's a case of pacing myself - and trying to avoid having to gird my loins for tackling the supermarket with a long list and a wonky trolley over the weekend of 22nd....I'd prefer to be trying to do something with pastry that may result in something resembling a mince pie emerging from my oven!!

My delivery is booked for the 23rd which gives us the 24th if anything is missing/forgotten.

We seem to live in a weird black hole and our supermarkets are busy, like a normal weekend, but not overrun on Christmas Eve.

Being delivered on the 22nd, if anything’s missing then I will pop out the next day to get it. It’s only me and 2 dd’s Christmas Day so we are having chicken instead of turkey.

We’ve done most of it already in stages over the past few weeks, just as part of our weekly shop.

At the weekend we’ll get a few more things, including the goose (frozen, this year).

Evening of the 22nd we’ll go out quite late and do our last shop of everything that needs to be bought closer to the time.

It’s great - no fuss, no stress, no crowds.

Did long life goods this week (three different shops), have pre ordered turkey and various other bits for collection Christmas Eve, will pick veg then. Will head for remainder of fresh stuff Friday 21 as guests arrive on the Saturday!

Likely to do the fresh shop on Friday 21st (late evening) or Sat 22nd at 7am, will see how I feel.

Getting all the dry/storecupboard bits tomorrow after the school run.

I'm sure I'll be picking up bits and pieces at points too.

I m collecting Christmas lunch from m and s at 9am xmas eve but I need to do a shop for snacks, booze, cheese and our Christmas Eve buffet. I ll probably go late (10pm ish) on 22nd.

Very early on Christmas Eve morning. DP leaves for work at 6.30 am so I'll probably go at the same time.

There are several supermarkets, butchers, greengrocers and 3 farm shops within a few miles of our house, so options if I can't get everything in the first shop I go to.

Just me and DP at home this year, so we're just having a fairly simple roast, home made trifle and booze/nibbles/leftovers over the next day or two, so as long as I get the basics, I'm not that bothered what we have.

We are getting party bits for xmas dinner so probably the weekend before. I have considered getting some in advance and freezing but a lot of it looks as though it won't freeze well. It is M&S stuff so 5 days max on dates.

We've already got most non-perishable items, and DH will do a perishables run Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve morning.

In the past I have done the Ocado or Waitrose ordering and delivery, which costs a ridiculous delivery fee, and then so many things were missing we had to go shopping anyway. The last couple of years, we leave it until the last day, the turkey is ordered to collect, and we just go in and buy everything else fresh on Christmas Eve. Always a good atmosphere, generally quite quiet, as everyone else has already done their shopping, and actually quite festive :-) We also find we buy less, and have less waste, which is a good thing.

Done a lot of it already and it's stashed in the freezer.

I am having fresh, short shelf life stuff such as cream and veg, and heavy stuff such as booze, all delivered on the 22nd.

I'm hoping to do it Friday 21st - I used online delivery for years and every year stuff didn't turn up and ru bish substitutions, even though I tried lots of different supermarkets.

In person is the only way!

Mainly Fri 21st, but then will top up later. I have a pull-along trolley so can walk to 2 supermarkets and in one I can buy a whole trolley full and be on the way home while others are still queuing to park.
We have a tradition of hitting the large Tesco and Sainsburys with an hour to go and getting random bargains - it's not stressful if you don't actually need anything.

No Sainsbury's deliveries left for Christmas Eve, or 23rd. I don't want Saturday 22nd.
So I'll be buying perishables last minute, I guess.

I'm going to do mine in the late afternoon of Thursday 20th as I am busy every day from 21st to 24th. I don't trust online delivery at xmas as half the bits end up missing!

I'll be trekking up to Sainsbury's early on Xmas eve morning. Couldn't get a slot and didn't want to rely on it too much in case stuff wasn't in stock. We've got a small fridge anyway so couldn't pack it full weekend before.