Never been to Iceland

[Doggymummar]

This is going to sound like an advert. But I promise it's not.

There was a thread a couple of days ago where a lady was talking about cooking Duck for ten. We are having Duck, for two , so I read with interest. Someone mentioned that Iceland had them for £10 so I thought that's a good price, I'll get some and we can practice for Christmas.

Oh my. I had never been and the range of stuff they have is incredible! I had to get some Greggs steak bakes and Christmas bakes, of course. Joints of meat the perfect size for us with left overs. Party food, slimming world ready meals, my protein which is great for me being on Mounjaro. Fancy desserts, charcuterie platters, hors douvres everything you could want good brands too.

They didn't have the ducks, that's big stores only apparently but when I have room in the freezer I'm gonna be stocking up with a delivery from there. Pleasantly surprised, I was also the only customer which was really nice.

It was one of the first uk supermarkets to stock frozen organic veg I think, back in 1996./7

Iceland expensive like almost all shops now anyway

@BobbyBiscuits I do an Iceland order a couple of times a week - usually around £50 - £60 each time but most of what I order isn't frozen food so I don't have to worry about freezer space.
I think so many people think it's all just "freezer stuff" in there and nothing else so like you they think they aren't the "target market" but to me it's just a supermarket.
Bread, Milk, Loo Roll, Washing up liquid.... normal everyday items. They sell it all same as Waitrose or wherever 🙂

Some of their meat is from China so I avoid it as much as I can.

I do love Iceland, I know it’s ultra processed crap but their party food is lovely and I do love the Gregg’s vegetable bakes and cheese and onion bakes.

We probably place an order once a month. My mum and dad go weekly because apparently it’s 10% off on Tuesday’s for over 60’s.

😂 oh my god, this is me. I went to Iceland for the first time yesterday. I am 44. I did once try to go about 15 years ago, but I had a rucksack on and there was a security guard at the door who wouldn’t let me in with it (I suspect not all Icelands are like this, but this was in a particularly dodgy part of town). But I had the same experience as you. And then I felt really embarrassed because I am very middle class and I wanted to run home and tell dh about my virgin Iceland experience 🙈 and that is just so middle class of me. 😂 So I didn’t mention it, because he would have rolled his eyes at me and my drab narrow lived experience, but I may go back for Christmas party food!

@PromoJoJo it can be because they do a lot of branded products. They don't have own brand things like tins of beans, cereal, pasta sauses etc.
I order online for delivery though and you do get a lot of online offers which makes a difference. I shop there for convenience.

Is this a joke post?

@Londoneye20 I doubt it. It's amazing how many people don't go there because they think it only sells "cheap freezer stuff" but wander in one day and discover the Birds Eye fish fingers are exactly the same ones sold in Waitrose 😂😂😂

Before I did online shopping I would go to Iceland for their frozen vegetables. I'm vegetarian and they had a good range. Some items were cheaper such as tea bags and fruit.

They used to have 1kg of veg for £1, don't know if they do anymore.

I'm an Iceland fan! In fact, I had a delivery about an hour ago.

What made me really happy is that I wanted a three bird roast for Christmas day. All I could find was a £300 one from Fortnum and Mason (!) or a turkey and duck roulade that serves four from Sainsburys for £30. Iceland delivered a Christmas food leaflet with my shopping the other week and they were advertising a three bird roast that serves six for £13! Ordered, and it's snuggled up in my freezer.

We just went in the Food Warehouse for the first time today because we were next door and needed to pick something up. My teenage DS was in heaven. He said it was like a giant corner shop.

The frozen patisserie selection box is great, I think it's ten pieces for £6.95, something like that, we get one every Christmas

As with farm foods, if they don't state the origin, don't buy the chicken. (So many countries don't have our hygiene laws and the chickens live in filth and then the meat is chlorine bleached during processing), but with that caveat, yes, some real bargains to be had!

Cheap doesn’t equal good food. Most of the offerings are horrendously ultra processed and bad for you

Iceland delivered a Christmas food leaflet with my shopping the other week and they were advertising a three bird roast that serves six for £13!

think for a minute about how this could happen. When the alternatives were in the hundreds. This doesn’t sound like well sourced, healthy food in any way. More like shit processed shit that’s ripping a farmer off

its the only place I can buy Longley Farm cottage cheese and I like their ice-cream and ice pop selection. That's about it though.

I get it in Poundland! My mum also gets it in Asda. It's so good, I don't know why it's not more widely available.

Surely what they sell is mostly UPF?

My thoughts exactly...

@Semiramide that's no different to the other major supermarkets though isn't it?
Depends what you are defining as UPFs.
Kingsmill bread. Kellogg's cereal. Dolmio pasta sauces. Heinz baked beans. Birdseye products. Walkers crisps. Muller Yoghurts.
All just regular food products to me.
They also have fresh fruit and veg and milk etc.

The frozen sea bass fillets are excellent. They are large and cost less than fresh in Lidl and Aldi. 3 packs of 2 fillets for £10 normally.
Also their Brie is very nice.

Iceland absolutely saved me in lockdown. They don't let you book more than one delivery as for the cost of delivery, you can still get a delivery, even a same day delivery for a couple of £.

But when you're having to shop to a very low budget you don't have tor luxury to be fussy about that