How are you doing your grocery shopping now? If you're still leaving home to buy groceries, other than the inability to get a delivery slot from your supermarket of choice, why are you doing so?

Yup, my family heads down to the supermarket. Honestly, the probability of contracting covid when you

1. Private transport / walk

2. Don't dilly dally or talk in th supermarket

3. Take your stuff quickly and leave

The chance of getting covid if you're acting sensible is rather low.

Heading down to the supermarket once or twice a week for essential groceries.

There is a balance between staying safe.. and staying sane.

mental health is important too, i treasure the opportunity to go out (fully masked) and buy my daily meals and/or groceries.

Its very unhealthy to stay indoor whole day.... yes going out to supermarket do has small risks but life is about taking risks isn't it?

there are still people who smokes. people who drinks. people who speed.....

i think wearing a mask out to buy food, and groceries has more rewards than risks now.

PS: I am proud to say i have not used any food delivery services.. not even once. haha

Hi Clara,

Interestingly I just came back from an evening grocery run as I don't want my parents to leave the house due to their age. I'm still going to the brick and mortar stores as it's easier to buy what I need by seeing, and making alternate decisions on the fly when what you want isn't available. This is particularly applicable to fresh produce as you'll want to be careful when it comes to fresh chilled meats and veges, choosing the ones that you want (this is something that online delivery won't be able to compete on anytime soon)

I was naturally checked prior to even entering the mall, and had to provide details for contact tracing. The supermarket wasn't particularly crowded (or maybe it was because it was a weekday) and everyone was abiding the rules by wearing a mask and conciously trying to stand far from each other.

Nothing beats the joy of seeing rows and rows of fresh food and selecting them and putting them in the cart for dinner ;)

My family is still visiting the wet market these days, and I guess one of the main reason is the perceived freshness of the items you are buying. With many stalls available to pick and choose from as well, there are aplenty of options if you wanna get the best produce. Comparing that to supermarket where you could probably only supermarket-hop within an area.

Since fresh produce is very much like a "look and feel" kind of purchase, you don't exactly get to choose them when you're buying online. Unless it's those online auction that seems to be gaining popularity. So when comes to vegetables and meat for example, my family still prefers to have a first-hand look and touch to pick the best goods.

Funnily enough, similar to Cedric, my family hasn't been using any online delivery for groceries nor food as well. I guess old habits do stick since pre-covid days, so there hasn't been much of a difference for us. Besides a reduced frequency of visiting the wet markets.

There are a few food items that we just don't have the confidence of purchasing them online, such as ice cream, milk and frozen food. I think heading out to the supermarket once/twice a week is still reasonable as long as we comply to the safe distancing measures all the time.​​​

For my family, online delivery slots is one of the issue when doing online ordering because there is also other limitations Apart from the government limitations on eggs and other essentials, you will not be able to buy multiple packs of milk (even though it is not an essential). I can understand that those limiations are there to allow fairness to other online buyers during these times. Therefore, I still go to brick-and-mortar supermarkets.

Wouldn't I face a long queue? Here is where I can share a tip if you are able to execute. Sharing this to distribute the crowd to other supermarkets. The tip: Head to the quiet supermarkets that are out-of-the-way!

For example, there is Sheng Siong ITE central and there was no queue compared to another Sheng Siong at serangoon north ave 4. Going to the brick-and-mortar supermarkets near dense housing estate typically will mean facing long queues to go in, etc.. so apart from timing, here is where location plays a part to crowds.

I have been heading down to the supermarkets once every week!

We consolidate our groceries list and look to buy them all at once from a faraway supermarket so there will be less people (eg Funan Mall)

However, recently my brother bought online fish and meat from this shop called Oceanstar, and the meat produce was pretty good. Highly recommended and apparently the prices are also more affordable than most!

I go down to buy....i need fresh air and some mobility.

Okay, let me share my experience as I had to get some bandage related items urgently earlier.

Firstly, I welcome the fact that there is a dedicated staff at the entrance of the supermarket to take our temperature. In addition, there is also markings that are clearly defined on route to the cashier.

Next, the number of patrons are not significantly lesser. In fact, it feels like everyone is buying more items than it used to previously.

Personally, grocery shopping hasn't change much - online delivery for the heavy stuff while hands-on for the others. Above all, wear a mask, practise social distancing, and maintaining personal hygiene is the key.