While there are a fair few similarities between supermarkets in the UK and US, there are also some major differences
An American woman left social media users gobsmacked after she highlighted the stark differences between UK and US supermarkets following her visit to a Sainsbury’s store in London. Natalie Barbu, hailing from Miami, took to recording her experience at one of the supermarket’s London stores.
Sharing her video on social media as @nataliebarbu, she said: “I was shocked at the grocery stores in the UK. Here are some differences that I noticed as an American shopping at Sainsbury’s, which is one of the biggest grocery stores in all of London.” She also noted that the supermarket reminded her of Walmart.
Drawing comparisons between the UK and US, Natalie was taken aback right from the entrance of the store. “One thing I couldn’t comprehend is the fact that you had to bring a coin in order to get a shopping cart,” she shared.
“You also have to bring your own bags when shopping, because if not, they will charge you for a bag, and you were able to scan your own items as you’re shopping.”
As the shopper navigated the food aisles, Natalie stumbled upon yet another unexpected find, reports the Mirror. “The first thing that I noticed was the meat selection was definitely different than what we have at home, and British people definitely love their sausages. So it’s not ground beef, it’s beef mince.
“British people will also find any excuse to put something into a pie or a pastry. They’ll put meats, they’ll put eggs. Anything can turn into a pie, pastry, or a roll.”
However, Natalie wasn’t taken aback by the rows of baked beans on the shelves. “Of course, you have everything you need for a Sunday roast or an English breakfast, like beans,” she said. “They love baked beans, and they’re very different than American baked beans.”
Yet, the eggs caught her attention. “You definitely won’t see this at an American grocery store, but the eggs are not refrigerated, and you will never find these prices there.”
Advancing through the store, she praised the “iconic British meal deal”, before pointing out more differences she noticed. Natalie said: “This has been hard for me, but there are no dill pickles, only sweet ones.”
She continued: “What we call chips, they call crisps, and there are slight differences. Like notice in the Doritos, they’re not cool ranch, it’s just cool original.”
Concluding her video, the shopper acknowledged the various linguistic differences she’d spotted. “We just call certain foods different things. Like porridge is oatmeal, zucchini is courgette, and eggplant is aubergine,” she told followers. “Are there any other differences that I missed?” Her caption added: “There are some things the American mind can’t comprehend when shopping at a British supermarket.”
Commenting on the video, someone pointed out Brits say “shopping trolley” not “shopping cart.” Another viewer wrote: “After living here two years I’ve noticed they don’t have pretzels and honestly the section where they have cookie and cake mix is not very good!
“Not a lot of chocolate chip options, if any. Also no meatloaf mix pre-made and a lot of dairy products that come in containers don’t have lids, only plastic peal off tops.”
Elsewhere, someone replied: “As a Brit living in the US, the US supermarkets are SO BAD and overpriced. Give me a Sainsbury’s, Tesco Express, or M&S snacks any day!!!”