We've been going to Hi-Top for our groceries for as long as I can remember. We've actually been…read moremoving from one place to another, yet whenever it's possible, we buy from Hi-Top. They have a very wide and often complete selection of goods. They also have fresh products that are cheaper than in other grocery stores. The downside? Hi-Top is not Hi-Tech. Their cash registers are old-school, so it takes a much longer time for you to pay for the groceries. This causes long lines that make me restless most of the time. Also, if you're gonna use a credit card, you'll need to go to the Customer Service counter just to swipe your card instead of doing it in the Cashier counter itself. So if you really want cheaper prices, you're gonna have to endure the long wait.

One of the best places to shop for groceries if you live in Quezon City. They are much cheaper than…read morebig grocery stores in malls. Parking is a bit difficult since this place is usually full but there's a parking area beside it with a rough road. I love how old fashioned they keep everything -- even the payment process. If you want to use a credit card you actually need to go to the customer service counter because they don't even have the POS for credit cards at every counter. Seems like a hassle, but I love how they've kept it traditional. This is also the best place to buy some items in bulk, we found a gallon of extra virgin olive oil for only P500 here. Just for comparison, a small 200ml bottle of good quality olive oil would normally cost about P250. So imagine my joy when I got a hold of that (I literally cooked everything in olive oil for weeks on end). If you're buying beer for a party, you can get it here by the box for less. When you're done shopping, stop by Henny Penny just outside for a nice sandwich.

Wherever you have a community of Koreans, there are bound to be Korean grocery stores. These places…read morenever bore me and there have been times where I've popped into Sarang Mart to get my money changed to avoid handing a 100 peso bill to jeepney drivers. Their shelves are stocked with anything you could ever need for a Korean kitchen and then some. I've found things like cube caramel candy (that didn't even last me a day), a red bean paste bar (tastier than it sounds), this tasty pulpy peach drink and (of course) Korean ice cream. Ah, Binggrae... whatever would I do without your bungeoppang ice cream sandwiches...? And of course, you can't count out the instant noodles and chips they have on sale. They also have frozen items in the back like frozen dumplings and kimchi if that's what you're looking for. If you're a fan of Korean food, this is a pretty good place to stock up.

Not in a hurry going home after office hours. I can still go to grocery store even late at night…read moresince its operation is until 11:00 pm. Thanks a lot Shopwise Commonwealth!

It's honestly surprising how there's so many groceries on Commonwealth Avenue. You'd think with…read moretheir number they would saturate the market. Curiously enough, each establishment is still standing. I guess they all have a target market in mind. Shopwise is the newest kid on the block and boldly opened smack dab in the middle of it all. I quickly converted to the church of Shopwise when I found out that they close at 11PM every day. During late nights working (or just bumming around) at home, I'm able to buy last minute junk food at grocery store prices and not at inflated convenience store ones. I take advantage of this late closing time even with my regular groceries. If you go during peak times, you'll go crazy with how long the queue is. At the wee hours of the night, there's only a handful of people so the queues are short and sweet.

Belcap has been around FOREVER. Even way before Maginhawa opened up as a food street, Belcap was…read morearound and thriving. Unlike everything else around it though, Belcap is more of a tiny grocery with food that you have to cook rather than actual meals that you can eat. They're known for their frozen food even though they have other things like snacks and detergent for sale too... so you can pretty much say they're a larger sari-sari store? Either way, it's the frozen stuff in the back that you need to go back for. They have all sorts of things: fish burgers, longganisa, chicken nuggets, hotdogs... but the siomai. The siomai is pretty good. While it's around 200php for a kilo, it's still a heckuva lot of siomai and makes for a pretty good meal. There's a LOT for sale at Belcap so if you're looking for a little something to add to your meal or make a meal out of, I recommend giving their freezer a look at. Protip: It's in the building that's right in front of Maginhawa's ZenTea. You have to go inside and head to the back of the first floor. Look to your left.

When I first moved to Teachers Village years ago, I'd always pass by Luisa 2 Building and wonder…read morewhat Belcap is. Was it a canteen? A supplies store? We found out then that they sell some food and groceries. OK. No biggie. Then we found out something more. PROS: My aunt used to get us these frozen chicken nuggets from the same supplier for McDonalds (or so they claim). We loved it more than the typical ones you buy at the grocery. But she lost contact with said supplier and we lost our nuggets. Good news, and the main reason we love Belcap, is that they sell these same nuggets! Hooray!; We mostly buy drinks here when we wait for our laundry to finish. CONS: It's quite dimly lit and not as exposed as the other stores. But hey, they've been around for a while and whatever their doing seems to work. TL;DR: Thank you, Belcap, for your nuggets and other processed meats for our lazy cooking consumption.

Once upon a time, this place was a humble little grocery called Eunilane. It wasn't much. Exactly…read morewhat you'd expect from any grocery. Then renovations happened and we got a new and improved Eunilane. They cleaned up the aisles, they put in more lights... everything was neater and better arranged. Then a third renovation happened and that led to Puregold. Of all of this lot's reincarnations, I think I like this one the best. While Eunilane served its purpose, there really wasn't anything amazing about it. It was just a grocery, plain and simple. What sets Puregold apart though is the fact that there are a surprising number of imported items in it. All in all, we get better selections than we ever have which is always a good thing. You can never really avoid lines though and Puregold's... has relatively quick turnovers. But then you really can't blame people buying in bulk. Unfortunately, this is what keeps the lines long. Back when Savemore opened, my grandfather was convinced whatever incarnation of Eunilane would never survive... but much to his surprise, Puregold's still here and providing good competition to its counterpart on the other side of the village. Good on them.

Along Kalayaan Avenue, Puregold is hard to miss. It's your landmark that you're almost exiting…read moretowards Quezon City Circle and you should brace yourself. It's also my landmark that I should turn right if I don't want to miss my street when going home. PROS: It's quite accessible. It's the perfect place to pick up toothpaste or pancake batter or some odd thing you forgot to buy during your usual supply run in the grocery store. It's especially useful for those who attend mass in the nearby church beside Claret. Then after a little errand, you could go to Matalino for lunch/dinner! Yay! CONS: I don't really enjoy the place because it's crowded and has little space. There's always a line too, because a lot of sari-sari stores get their supplies from Puregold I think. Although, in my opinion, there may be stores with cheaper products if you buy in bulk, especially if you run a little store. TL;DR: Puregold is nothing special without its accessibility. It's plain and simple and not the most comfortable grocery shopping experience.

Unimart has always been one of my preferred supermarkets in Metro Manila…read more I enjoy shopping here because I find everything I need and want, and in reasonable prices. I would have given a 5 stars but on paying at the cashier they did not accept my Chase Visa card. We were previously at Landmark and Fishers Mall a day or two ago, and they both accepted my Chase visa debit card. It was a good thing I had cash. Then we decided to have merienda at their cafe and on paying our bill my sister gave her senior card, and my wife and I gave our Nevada ID to show our age. Our IDs were not accepted either. We told them that our IDs have been good at every dining establishment we've been to but they still declined. I realize now that it is a company policy and the employees have nothing to do with this decision. It is just sad that they prefer to alienate their old customers who are balikbayans now. It is a total discrimination for us. We as Filipinos were never discriminated on in the United States, and now we were discriminated in our own country. I hope they enforce the same discriminating policy to the Chinese nationals.

Doing some shopping here in Greenhills, San Juan City…read more Clean place to shop. Well lighted, almost new supermarket in the area. Service staff are courteous and helpful. Almost all products are being sold here. Pricey merchandise as compared to public market prices. They cater to upscale customers, tourists and visitors in the area. The only setback for foreign visitors is you can't use your foreign credit cards to make your purchase in Unimart. They only accept Philippines banks issued credit cards. You need to pay CASH! I would like to suggest for Unimart's meat and fish outsourced vendors; Unimart management must provide de-sanitizers and paper towels to customers buying fish and meat. It's so unsanitary!

Lots of great chinese pasalubongs.. They are all very…read morehelpful. There are different varieties of candied dried fruits.

I think specialty delis/food stores have their own unique charm and Bee Tin in Bindondo is no…read moreexception. Located at the heart of Binondo on Ongpin Street, Bee Tin has not changed much over the years, making it a must-see stop in Chinatown. The Chinese deli/food mart has everything you need from preserves, imported food, Chinese candies and sweets, cured/smoked meats, dehydrated produce, frozen goods and more. I really like going here because there's so much to see and buy that's not usually in your local grocery. I think I picked up the habit of learning how to appreciate delis such as Bee Tin thanks to my grandma who'd always bring me whenever she needs to replenish her supply of preserves. Speaking of preserves, you really have to taste Bee Tin's selection because there's a lot of them! They are neatly stored in bins and you can buy them according to weight. My favorites are the plums - they are pretty large and the mix of sweet and sour has a nice effect on the palette. Another thing I'm crazy about is Bee Tin's beef jerky. While they also have the packaged kind of beef jerkey (I'm looking at you Cow Label), their own mix of the large and leathery strips of beef is a class of its own. You can also purchase these according to weight, and we tend to buy a lot of it. (Might as well make the drive worth it right?) The taste of the beef jerky plays between sweet and salty and the meat itself isn't too hard to chew on. Before I go to the check out counter, I also make a beeline to the chocolates and candies section. Sometimes they stock these really weird but good gummy candies from China (I once bought P5 packets of peach and cola flavored candies - these were really good!), and they also have imported Japanese chocolate snacks like Pocky. Other stuff you can see at Bee Tin are the packaged noodle soups, dry seaweed, Chinese candies and chocolates, haw flakes and lots more other stuff. Another plus for Bee Tin is that their prices are a lot cheaper than in regular groceries.

Before going home, I always pass by Super 8. They offer all the basic brands that you will need in…read moreyour every day needs. They don't have fresh meat or fresh veggies or fruits. Though they don't offer you a wide range of ingredients, this grocery store is enough to supply you with all the basic things that you will need. All the local brands from chips, to noodles, to canned goods, processed foods, to your basic laundry and cleaning needs, you can buy it here. They also have friendly staff that will gladly assist you.

Super 8 is one of those grocery stores that's conveniently placed near residential buildings such…read moreas ours. It's actually great! We don't have to go far for the things we need. All we have to do is walk outside, cross the street, and enter the store. However, while they may be close to us, we still choose to buy our groceries in other places. This is because they have a lot of missing items from their assortment which are usually common in other groceries, so I don't know why they wouldn't have them. On the bright side, they do have those little forgotten food items that were so beloved when I was younger. I thought they were phased out, but there they were! I guess I'd go to Super 8 just for those!