One of my favourite little grocery shops opened again, nicer, with more fresh products!…read more The best news; they are doing a promotion day, so if youre walking in or even just past it, they are handing out goodies, like sandwiches, sauces, and fruits for FREE, spiced up with a lovely smile! :D

I couldn't live without Co-Op. The amount of days/nights we had chocolate/cake/biscuit cravings and…read moreTesco seemed just that little bit too far away, we always ahd Co-Op. The staff are lovely and very helpful, especially when one discussed with me at length why I was buying tinned hotdogs... in fairness I haven't bought them since but they were on offer. The shop is late opening which is good if you run out of electric and don't really fancy fumbling your way up the stairs. Great shop, some great offers and great staff!

Very handy little corner shop, small but has all the basics. Very little stuff is priced and the…read moretill operators know all the prices off the top of their heads. There's not many proper little corner shops left. Still nice to have one in the area.

The Co-Operative is my favourite small shop. This is due to the quality selection of groceries and…read morefriendly staff. However, it is also due to the unrivalled Co-Operative own brand products. I'm a huge fan of their ethical, community centric ethos. I love the fact I can pick up Co-Op own brand washing up liquid, bleach and cleaning products and they all carry the Cruelty Free International Leaping Bunny symbol. So I am 100% sure they are NOT tested on animals. This is very important - I wouldn't buy anything else. Great shop.

The Co-Op is great. It's an ethnical company which sells gorgeous food and household products at…read morereasonable prices. In addition the staff are friendly and helpful. A brilliant shop which also offers some super bargains and special offers. Would highly recommend.

Everyone needs a bargain, especially nowadays, and Samantha's have plenty. Space is tight and the…read morestock is crammed in, but it is still the place to go if you need to spend a bit less. Personally I pop in for their cards, which are great value. Another good buy are their soft drinks (much cheaper than buying with your lunch in some of the sandwich places nearby). It's a no frills sort of shop but not one you should rule out just because of this. It has some really good deals and is great on stocking up on bits'n'pieces for birthday parties, especially if you have a lot of goody bags to fill.

Samanthas is packed to the rafters with bargains galore for those on a tight budget or kids…read morespending their pocket money. Lots of items for a pound and good for household cleaner, bleaches, toiletries and garden supplies. Only grip is that they have to much packed in and if the shop is busy its quite a squeeze getting around the store. Staff are always willing to help

Although a bit out of the way I rather like this Sainsburys store, it's not as busy as Forestside…read moreor Kennedy Centre and has a better layout. They have a decent sized clothing section with 2 changing cubicles for trying on potential purchases, small toy aisle (so doesn't take too long to drag the kids along) and a reasonable selection of electrical goods. It has the usual butcher, deli & bakery counters. Shelves are generally well stocked and staff are willing to help you find what you are looking for. The off sales section is in the back corner and although not particularly big has a good selection of drinks. There is plenty of parking and an in store cafe. If tills are busy staff are usually quick to open up another especially when you have children in tow!

This Sainsbury's is a great example of the brand. it's a large store located just off Holywood…read moreExchange. For many years I used to work nearby, and this would have been somewhere I called into most days and done the bulk of my weekly shopping here. They have a large car park outside, and a covered trolley bay and cash-point before you walk in. The store is large, well stocked, clean and spacious. I was able to get a lot of items here that were unavailable elsewhere. They do great lunchtime offers and they stock a range of sandwiches and flatbreads from a local Northern Irish company called Deli Lites, which are absolutely delicious, and it's always satisfying to know they are supporting local businesses. They also have a fantastic salad bar where you can make yourself a small, medium or large salad with a fab range of salads, pastas, boiled eggs, etc, or you can choose something hot from their deli counter. Their chicken fillet burgers are really tasty! This Sainsbury's also has an on-site cafe which I've eaten in a few times, and it's always been good!

As far as local convenience stores go this is a really good one in most respects, with only one…read moremain flaw which I will say before going on to praise the place! The forecourt is too small and parking is hard and quite frankly frustrating at times. The shop has grown and expanded over the years but the forecourt hasn't which makes it gridlock at times! Onto the shop though, and it is great. There is a surprisingly large of items in all the different areas: it is more like a mini supermarket than a convenience store. There are great selections of fruit and veg and baked goods, and there is a delicious deli counter, with a delicious old lady called Eleanor who works behind it ! ;D The staff here are really bubbly and friendly, which can't be said of a lot of shops of this nature. The prices are surprisingly competitive compared to other stores like spar etc, only the Big 3 stores can really defeat it! Oh I forgot another criticism. The name. It is a joke. That is all!

Petrol is more expensive but you have to pay for convenience when your driving and the red lights…read morelit up like a Christmas tree for fuel. Expensive but good service, ideal spot to stop and check your tyres for damage as the surface of the moon would be smoother than the roads around ballygowan. There's a coffee shop/cafe above and hot food counter downstairs. There's a much better selection of groceries in ballygowan thanks to the garage, before it was there all you could get was spuds. For anything remotely different you had to drive to comber or ards. Now there's any amount of choices.

Decent store for essentials, however the small car park is often a nightmare as it's very cramped…read more Good for popping into if you've forgotten something but I wouldn't recommend doing the weekly shop here as prices are fairly expensive on some items! The staff could be more friendly as I call in quite often but rarely even get a hello at the tills

This store is a decent size and offers all of the basics that you would expect. There is a small…read morebutchers counter inside as well as a average sized fruit and veg section and a small freezer section. There are often some very good special offers on so it is worth popping in now and again to see if you get a bargain! You can buy the National Lottery and get cash back from the tills which is useful and the staff are nice and pack your bags for you. Outside there is a small, rather cramped car park that can be difficult to navigate and a cash machine.

Sainsbury's is my favourite supermarket. Its quality products are the best available and it sells a…read moregreat range of items. I'm a fan of their vegetarian foods and Sainsbury's own brand items (love Sainsbury's Nut Cutlets and veggie mince). They have the best labelling of all the supermarkets with all their own brand products clearly labelled as to whether or not they are vegetarian or BUAV approved (not tested on animals). In addition their brand match scheme ensures you don't pay more with Sainsbury's than with another supermarket. As per Sainsbury's website "When you buy ten or more different products, we'll tot up the comparable brands in your basket. If you could have paid less at Asda - even because of the deal - we'll give you a coupon for the difference off your next shop." I always use my brand match vouchers at my next Sainsbury's grocery shop. Plus their wine selection is superior to all other supermarket selections. Quality store with unbeatable prices, pleasant to browse and lovely, helpful staff. Perfect. At Christmas and New Year Sainsbury's have a special range of fabulous food you can order and collect in store, I would especially recommend the: *Three nut roast with cranberry sauce *Butternut & mushroom en croute *Limoncello buche de Noel If you want indulgent, treat foods try Sainsbury's 'Taste The Difference' range. This blows every other supermarkets 'luxury' items clean out of the water. Definitely the best you'll get, bar none.

Sainsbury's is the main supermarket in the Forestside shopping centre, so for this reason it is…read morealways packed, no matter what time of the day it is. The supermarket has all the stuff you would expect and more, and is a good place to get all your weekly shop done. They have a very large fruit and veg section, complete with salad bar if you are that way inclined, with a very large delicatessen meat and cheese counter. The store also has a large range of magazines, books, CDs, DVDs and games, and is always worth a check for a better price if you are about to buy a recently released item from HMV. As for the rest of the store there is a large range of everything as you would expect. The store has its own cafe which is good for pacifying those who have been dragged along or those who have worked up a hunger in their arduous shopping trip! The store also has installed self scanning machines, which is a real boost to customers as they can get in and for a few items much faster than in the past! I will sign off with a tip: try the white chocolate and cranberry cookies from here. You will not find a better cookie from any supermarket, pinky promise!