Chiang Mai grocery price check

[Airalee]

Every so often, someone will find their way to the Chiang Mai forum asking the impossible to answer question of "how much does it cost to live in Chiang Mai".  Of course we will then hear from people who can't imagine spending more than ฿15,000 per month and are quite satisfied with their lifestyles and on the other extreme, those who rent ฿50,000 condos and only dine at the finest restaurants.

 

So...I decided to dedicate a thread to the cost of groceries where we can post photos and prices of our latest food acquisitions, whether they are ฿10 bags of chicken feet or ฿3000 wagyu steaks and informing people where they can get said items.

 

Lets get started with some cheese.

 

Pecorino Romano from Rimping    ฿950/kg

[Airalee]

Lemnos Parmesan ฿700/kg at Rimping

[Airalee]

Smoked Processed Cheese ฿560/kg at Rimping

 

[Airalee]

Kens salad dressing ฿65 at Rimping

[Airalee]

Organic Romaine Lettuce ฿37 for 150g at Rimping

 

[Airalee]

Shallots ฿89/kg at Rimping

 

[Airalee]

Cucumbers ฿45/kg at Rimping

 

[Airalee]

Litehouse bleu cheese dressing  ฿249 at Tops

 

[Airalee]

Smoked peppered chicken chicken breast. ฿80/100g at Tops

 

[Airalee]

Italian picante sausages ฿250/500g at Rimping

 

[KhonKaenKowboy]

Royal Project beats the pants off Romping on salad veggies.  Ken's is pretty good...their Northern Italian is excellent...65 isn't horrible, just double the US.  Paul Nueman must be about 110+.

[chiang mai]

Rimping prices on everything are always going to be far higher than the alternatives for buying those things, markets for example.

 

And imported items are always going to be a far higher than domestic items.

 

Given those things are true, I don't see the objective of the thread.

[Airalee]

4 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

Rimping prices on everything are always going to be far higher than the alternatives for buying those things, markets for example.

 

And imported items are always going to be a far higher than domestic items.

 

Given those things are true, I don't see the objective of the thread.

By all means, feel free to post any product you care to, from whatever market you obtain it. Be it a traditional Thai Market, Rimping, Big C, Tesco, 7-11...wherever.  Admittedly I was a bit bored, but thought it would be a fun exercise to show people what they can eat here and what it would cost regardless of the type of food. ?

[Airalee]

1 hour ago, KhonKaenKowboy said:

Royal Project beats the pants off Romping on salad veggies.  Ken's is pretty good...their Northern Italian is excellent...65 isn't horrible, just double the US.  Paul Nueman must be about 110+.

Haven't seen the Newmans Own brand lately but if I remember correctly, it was about ฿120 or so.  I was pleasantly surprised at the price of the Kens.  Litehouse is ridiculously expensive.

[KhonKaenKowboy]

19 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

Rimping prices on everything are always going to be far higher than the alternatives for buying those things, markets for example.

 

And imported items are always going to be a far higher than domestic items.

 

Given those things are true, I don't see the objective of the thread.

Seems a lot more clear than the objective of your post.

[NancyL]

Wow, this can become just like Facebook with people posting pictures of food.

[zeichen]

So your idea to help people is post pictures from your latest shopping trip at rimping.  If you only buy western imported items that might help, but then you fall into the same category of huge difference in cost of living.

 

I don't pay 19 baht for 2 cucumbers I pay 5 baht.  I don't pay 89 baht a kilo for shallots or red onions I pay 35 baht. 

 

So in fact this thread will be very long with lots of pictures and won't help anyone either.

[recom273]

Coming from the south - Tops is our go to for western food.

 

Im here in CM on holiday, although there is a far better choice in Rimping, the price is way higher than out local Tops - the vegetables are outrageous when compared to the market.

 

Jus sayin'

[LivinLOS]

7 hours ago, chiang mai said:

Rimping prices on everything are always going to be far higher than the alternatives for buying those things, markets for example.

 

Those things dont exist in Thai markets.. 

 

I dont find rimping significantly higher on like for like supermarket items.. The problem is when in rimping I dont buy like for like.. I get carried away with all the lovely nibbles and things I like rather than things I need. 

 

 

[TheFishman1]

And the point is O market is cheaper TIT

[Sparkles]

Makro is far cheaper than Rimping and the Mae Hia branch has a varied delicatessen section.

 

Fruit and veges you can go to the fresh markets which are all over the place ,why would you buy those from Rimping ?

 

Do some research and you will find there are many people selling cheese ,bacon,cold meats,sausages etc etc from home or small retail outlets.

 

Not one outlet is going to satisfy all needs

[WinnieTheKhwai]

8 hours ago, chiang mai said:

Rimping prices on everything are always going to be far higher than the alternatives for buying those things, markets for example.

 

And imported items are always going to be a far higher than domestic items.

 

Given those things are true, I don't see the objective of the thread.

 

You could see how things change when you look it up in a couple years.  For sure, half the products posted by the OP didn't even exist in Chiang Mai at any price when I moved there.   After that they did exist but at really high prices. And now the prices the OP posted for most of the imported items are really quite reasonable.   (Less so for the onions of course but you'd expect that. :) )

 

I think the Mrs. sourced an insane quantity of spinach for 40 Baht yesterday; maybe I'll take a picture later. 

[elektrified]

14 hours ago, Airalee said:

Lemnos Parmesan ฿700/kg at Rimping

 

Actually that price is very good. Gekko shop which has excellent cheese prices, charges 1 Baht per gram for Parmesan. Buonissimo is even a little more @ 1.15 Baht/gram. So this is really quite good.

[MrBrad]

As for produce at the local market vs at the supermarket, I wonder about this:

 

I have bought locally grown carrots, for example, at my neighborhood market, but wonder why, after 2 or 3 days on the counter top, they get limp and begin to turn black.  Even in the refrigerator carrots do not keep well.  And when cleaning and cutting the carrots, why does the cutting board turn orange?  I've never had these kinds of issues with carrots back in the States. 

 

I by far prefer the more expensive produce which is organically grown, and perhaps even imported from Australia.  The premium price is cheap insurance.  Who knows what is sprayed on the fruits and vegetables here?  Whenever I can--especially in my own kitchen--I prefer foods that are good for my health, rather than deleterious.

 

[recom273]

1 minute ago, MrBrad said:

As for produce at the local market vs at the supermarket, I wonder about this:

 

I have bought locally grown carrots, for example, at my neighborhood market, but wonder why, after 2 or 3 days on the counter top, they get limp and begin to turn black.  Even in the refrigerator carrots do not keep well.  And when cleaning and cutting the carrots, why does the cutting board turn orange?  I've never had these kinds of issues with carrots back in the States. 

 

I by far prefer the more expensive produce which is organically grown, and perhaps even imported from Australia.  The premium price is cheap insurance.  Who knows what is sprayed on the fruits and vegetables here?  Whenever I can--especially in my own kitchen--I prefer foods that are good for my health, rather than deleterious.

 

I think you are totally correct - but who's to say that veg here isn't treated with whatever chemicals - there isn't any food packaging standard here, lying about everything else seems commonplace - why not food.

 

 

[johnnysunshine]

There exist so many Organic fresh markets all over Chiang Mai where you buy Organic foods really affordable...check it out for a market near you...amazing quality for less money!

[Airalee]

3 hours ago, zeichen said:

So your idea to help people is post pictures from your latest shopping trip at rimping.  If you only buy western imported items that might help, but then you fall into the same category of huge difference in cost of living.

 

I don't pay 19 baht for 2 cucumbers I pay 5 baht.  I don't pay 89 baht a kilo for shallots or red onions I pay 35 baht. 

 

So in fact this thread will be very long with lots of pictures and won't help anyone either.

The thread would be more helpful if people like yourself would post pictures of your 5 baht cucumbers and let us know where we can get then.  As I've already said (twice)  everybody is welcome to post anything they like.

[laochef]

I think the OP, Airalee, is coming up with an interesting thread. MrBrad is right about organic etc. The amount of synthetic fertilizer (N-P-K, only...), pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, etc., etc.

in TH is enourmous... One of the largest Agro-Chemical companies here, is having a meeting every year - they are using the "Phu Yai Ban" headmen, to promote their goods. The top guys gets a car, 1,000,000 THB cash etc., etc. (What Thai farmer dares to say no to the Headman ? unless you're a wealthy "Gentleman farmer", Thai or Farang...))

A friend of mine is living next to a Watermelon farmer. He was told by the farmer NOT to eat watermelons, as they inject chemicals, prior to selling, to make the melons taste better...

I am happy to pay double, or more, to buy Certified Organic, any day. There are reasonably priced farms, certified by USDA, Japan and the EU, REAL certification agencies - not "Pay-for-the Cert"... BS agencies. Also for meats, 250THB for 500gr of Sloanes Sausages can't be considered expensive (Especially compared to locally made, with lots of "meat" powders, fillers etc.) Freerange chicken, from Lanna, for 210THB a kilo is also not bad, compared to the commercial Thai Battered chicken (which the "Big Agro" now produce in Laos, together with pigs...all fed antibiotic-hormone laden pellets, imported from TH. ( I have a neighbor here in Laos, producing pigs, for CP).

[Dante99]

1 hour ago, laochef said:

.... There are reasonably priced farms, certified by USDA, Japan and the EU, REAL certification agencies - not "Pay-for-the Cert"... 

Where are these certified farms?  Thailand?  Laos?  Or in the US, Japan and EU?

 

Do they sell their products in CM? Where?

[sirmud63]

15 minutes ago, Dante99 said:

Where are these certified farms?  Thailand?  Laos?  Or in the US, Japan and EU?

 

Do they sell their products in CM? Where?

ya, id like to know also. because ,after much research for my restaurant in CM, im pretty safe in sayin iv never  seen anything that even comes close to certified organic here .