Your local dollar store may sound like a one-stop shop for inexpensive food.
But is it really?
Sometimes, it's better to take your business elsewhere.
Here are a few items you should never buy at the dollar store.
The sketchiest of all dollar store purchases has to be steak, right?
A quality cut of beef like this normally costs you at least $10 per pound, so you have to
wonder what dollar steak is all about.
WCPO in Cincinnati tested out some one-buck-steaks from the Dollar Tree in 2016 and discovered
they're the so-called "utility cuts" often served in institutions like prisons and school
cafeterias.
So, as you'd expect, this thin and rubbery meat is not exactly the créme de la crème.
Unless you like your fajitas as cheap as they are chewy, avoid this so-called bargain and
fork over a bit more for a quality cut.
The reviews are in, and dollar store cheese stinks.
Food and beauty blogger Kallie Branciforte checked out some Dollar Tree "shreds," for
example, and out of the first eight ingredients on the package, none were dairy.
To be fair, it's labeled "Pasteurized Process Topping" instead of "cheese," so it's not
like they're trying to pull a fast one.
Other online reviews not only say it tastes bad, but also point out that it doesn't really
melt, which is very un-cheese-like.
In fact, if you look again at this particular package, it says "Now melts!," so at least
the Dollar Tree higher-ups were aware of the issue and tooks steps to fix it at some point.
"Ugh.
Adulting is so hard."
Now, there's nothing wrong with enjoying cheap processed cheese-like shreds or slices like
those sold by Kraft since the '50s, but why scrape the bottom of the barrel?
If you like cheap cheese product, go for it, but do yourself a favor and pony up a bit
more pocket change for something that doesn't taste like damp cardboard.
So dollar store steak is out of the question, but what about those premade frozen burgers
for just a buck?
Surprise!
They're anything but juicy and delicious.
One YouTube food reviewer decided to put a dollar store burger to the test and noted
a heavy bun to meat ratio with a "not so great" taste upon first bite.
As for the burger patty itself, the adjectives "odd," "salty," and "crumbly" were used.
Not exactly the sort of mouth-watering description one hopes for with a burger review.
On the plus side, the cheese did appear to melt.
With cereal prices expected to increase up to 1.25 percent by the end of 2018, and as
much as another 3.5 percent in 2019, according to the USDA, buying a box for $1 sounds like
a deal that's too good to pass up.
However, if you see a name brand cereal at the dollar store, they're likely selling you
a smaller box that's actually more expensive per ounce.
So if the name brand cereals are a no-go, surely the generic brands from the dollar
store are fine, right?
Wrong.
Brent Shelton, an online shopping expert, told Reader's Digest that generic brands at
the dollar store are likely there because other stores had a hard time moving the product.
"It's likely one reason this food is on the dollar store shelf is because the taste is
subpar to other brands in the grocery store."
Smaller boxes with less flavor?
Not exactly a bargain.
If you want to be the best bargain shopper you can be, you're gonna have to do some math.
And at your local dollar store, there are quite a few items that simply aren't a great
bargain, even if they're just one buck.
For example …
Cartons of milk at a dollar store south of San Francisco were found by the Guardian to
be "only 16 ounces, which prorates to $8 per gallon."
This means it's more expensive than the most expensive milk at Whole Foods.
On what planet does it make sense to pay more for dollar store milk than you would at Whole
Foods?
What about canned goods?
One dollar a can sounds like an easy way to pinch pennies, but really, it's not.
Grocery stores often sell canned foods, especially vegetables, for a lower price.
Another example?
Those convenient single liters of soda could cost you more at the dollar store than a two-liter
would at your average grocery chain.
In fact, you'll be paying nearly double the price you would at your local store, since
most major chains often run sales that advertise two-liters for only $1.
Even the regular pricing at most grocery stores isn't much higher than $1.
If you're a soda drinker, it's best to shop around.
Those little bottles might be cute, but they're definitely not going to save you any money.