2 noticeable changes we found were buying more "own brand" stuff like beans, spaghetti hoops, pasta, rice etc. The other was cutting out buying the small jars of spices which we use quite a lot of. Once every 2 or 3 months I'll buy the larger bags from a local Asian supermarket.
Making a list and sticking to it also helps. My wife used to shop online at Tesco's, but found it too easy to order things we didn't need, so she now goes in to do the shop.
We do shopping online and get it delivered (costs £5). It's interesting that you say going in to the shop means you pay less. In theory shopping online should be more economical, as you know exactly what the bill is, and can remove items to reduce it.
We can never remove that many items, as they are essentials, based on the meals we eat.
I've even gone through bills and manually added them up, as I was convinced that Tescos had got it wrong.
about £5000data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
£20 per week on frozen food @ Iceland
£15 per week on toilletries, bog rolls, cleaning products @ 99p store
£15 on fresh food, bread & meat at Asda
= £50 a week
How is the restaurant? data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Between £40-£50 for me and the missus.
A normal week is about £40ish if we need cleaning stuff it bumps it up a bit.
We shop at Waitrose
I'd be interested to hear the bills from anyone who shops only in M&S.
A quick money saving tip -buy your vegetables at Lidl. The quality is great and the bill is about a third what it would be in the big 4. I am getting 2 weeks worth of veg -( red onions, mixed peppers, aubergine,courgettes, beef tomatos, cucumber, iceberg,bagged italian salad, fresh sweetcorn) for about £8.data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
I think it's the fact that she now pays cash rather than credit card. Shopping online was too easy too add non essentials.
I agree - my wife bought some fruit and veg there recently and we've been very impressed by the quality. It tastes better and lasts longer than the supermarket stuff.