The Spar Experience

I'd like to invite you to share with us in "the Spar experience." Michael and I are trying our best to fit in with the locals, but we're not quite there yet. I'd like to think we're getting a little better every day, but the simple task of grocery shopping is not always as easy as it seems.

We tend to make our daily run to Spar around 5 in the evening. Because the store is only a short walk from our apartment, we make frequent trips, as most Austrians do. Bear in mind, that this little Spar is about a fourth of the size of your traditional U.S. grocery store so even if we bought out the entire store, we wouldn't have much. We also have to carry it all home, which is another reason we don't buy too much in any one shot. Actually, it's quite nice that the store is small because it eliminates any decisions we need to make about which brand to buy, etc. I once read a book called "The Paradox of Choice." It talks about how we have too much choice in our society and how it can actually be debilitating because we are overwhelmed with choice. I agree. Simpler is better.

We start outside the store by "buying" our grocery cart. You need to stick in a coin to unlock a cart. You get the coin back when you return the cart. Then we proceed to produce. They have your basic fruits and vegies, but you don't have to deal with the choice of organic vs. regular on every single item. Yes, they have the "bio" product for some items, but that's it. Two choices and you're done. Also, when you buy something in the produce section, you have to weigh it yourself and print out a sticky label with the cost so they can scan at the register.

Dairy is similar to the U.S. except for the size of containers/packages you buy. The largest milk we can buy is one liter. We buy half-fat milk which is 1,8% fat. Skim truly will taste like water when we get back home. The deli and bakery sections take up the back wall. This is an intimidating section for me because you have to ask for the food you want. Add to that, the food is measured in kilograms so I have no idea what to ask for or how much I will get. I let Michael do the talking...and the math.

Some staples in our kitchen include pasta, rice and these semmel rolls that Austrians are fond of. One thing I like about the Austrians is that they don't mess around with packaging or try to skimp out on giving the consumer a full box. When we buy a box of noodles, it lasts us a good 3 or 4 meals. In the U.S., one box would feed us only a meal and a half or 2 at the most. Time and again, I'll be pleasantly surprised when I open a box of tea, cereal, rice, you name it, and it's full! - unlike the U.S. where the package is inevitably half empty.

One of the first times I went to Spar, I spent a good hour in the store walking up and down every aisle examining the food and trying to determine what was what. The more I become familiar with it, the more I realize they have most of the same products we have back home, including chicken breast which caused me momentary panic because I couldn't find it for the first week. We tend to cook most of the same things we cook back home, but we also have to work with what they have here. We've had some fun trying to cook more Austrian dishes, but last night we caved in and made Mexican. It took some improvising though since they don't have black beans, enchilada sauce or green chilies. There was a small 2 feet by 2 feet section with tortillas, taco sauce, taco seasoning and chips. We definitely paid a premium on the Mexican fare, but it was worth the splurge.

Last but not least comes the checkout. This is truly the most stressful time of all and you will soon see why. Normally they have two or three registers open at a time and there is always a line. The line moves quickly, however, as most people only buy a handful of things at a time. There is this one older woman I always see in the checkout line (ok, I've only seen her twice, but I like to make a good story). She always buys just one or two things and then gets a few cans of beer just for good measure, haha! Seriously, she throws down two beers when she checks out! Of course, anyone can buy beer in the grocery store. It's cheaper than water. You can also buy Jaegermeister in the checkout aisle. It's right next to the gum and candy. Then you walk out to the parking lot and see teenagers drinking beer and smoking at 4 or 5 in the afternoon. It's normal I guess.

Anyway, back to the stressful checkout situation. Michael and I are getting more efficient, but it definitely takes the two of us to make it happen. Before the cashier starts scanning our items, she says "Grüß Gott", we respond and then she begins. Scan, scan, scan, scan, scan. Michael waits on the other side and quickly bags. There's only room for one customer's groceries at a time so there's pressure to hurry with the bagging. I try to help with a second bag so we can keep pace with the cashier. We reuse the bags we bought on our first trip to Spar. If you don't have a bag, you buy one for 20 cents. Inevitably she's done scanning before we're done bagging and she calls out the price. I fumble through the coin purse looking for exact change while Michael dishes out the bills. Our pulses have quickened as we try to hurry to find the correct change. Sometimes we just hand the bill and deal with the large amount of coins that come back to us. We're fumbling with the change and receipt, not to mention the unbagged groceries we're awkwardly carrying out of the store trying to bag as we walk just so we can get the heck out of there. We walk out the store, take a deep breath and laugh at the awkwardness that just took place. How do the Austrians do it with such grace and ease? Michael and I both usually work up a sweat as we try to make it through the checkout gauntlet.

After catching our breath, we return our cart, collect our coin and walk home. Time for dinner. Amen.