Grocery Stores

Let’s Eat!

Whether your student lives on campus or off, they will need groceries. Boca Raton has plenty of places to shop in this regard. For those new to Florida, let me first introduce you to Publix. Publix is a Florida-based supermarket with every department found in most grocery stores including produce, deli, meats, canned goods, seafood, frozen foods, flowers, bread, soda, and stationery, candy, dairy and so forth. There are many Publix supermarkets not too far, but definitely driving distance, to FAU’s campus. One of the closest ones is Publix’s Greenwise Market which is one of three locations in Florida. While you can find Greenwise products in most Publix locations, this store specializes in providing predominantly organic or made with no artificial ingredient favorites as well as a great prepared foods section for those who do not have time to cook and a coffee and smoothie café.

My friend gave my daughter a Publix gift card for her high school graduation.  It is a special card, as the parent gets one part of it where they can add to the student’s card at any register. Since my daughter was not on the meal plan, it was very easy for me to add money to my card for her weekly and it went directly to her card.

The closest grocery store is Whole Foods which is found in the University Commons shopping center, located directly across from FAU. For those who have Amazon prime accounts (remember your student discount for Amazon prime), you get discounts including 10 percent off sale items and exclusive deals. To get these discounts at Whole Foods, download the Whole Foods app and sign on with your Amazon prime log in info. You can show it to the register cashier or give the phone number associated with your prime membership.

There are no shortages of grocery stores in Boca Raton including The Fresh Market and Trader Joe’s. Another market not that far from FAU is Joseph’s Classic Market. They sell everything from hand-butchered meats to homemade cheeses, freshly baked pastries, produce, deli and prepared meals.

BJ’s is located in Boynton Beach, about 20 minutes from campus. If you aren’t familiar with BJ’s, it is a membership only wholesale store.  It is well worth the small annual membership fee to get items at a great price.

Many students will buy groceries at Costco or Walmart.  Your student can always try  Walmart online grocery shopping. Check this out…your student signs up and keeps a running list of what they want/need and when they reach $30 and can’t wait any longer; they choose a pickup time. They will get an alert within a few hours when their groceries are ready; then drive up to the store and someone brings it out to them and puts it in their car (or hands it to them if they are not in a car.) It goes on a credit card and could not be more quick or easy. Target is another option though a little further away from campus.

Another new food store entry about 20 minutes from campus is Sprouts Farmers Market in Deerfield Beach. Sprouts is a healthy store offering fresh, natural and organic foods. They have fresh produce, deli, butcher shop, and fish market.

If your student can’t get to the grocery store, Shipt will deliver their groceries right to them (for a fee, of course). And, there is also Instacart which delivers from Publix, Whole Foods, Costco, CVS and more.

Get the App

Have your students download the apps for any of the grocery stores that offer them. Both Publix and Whole Foods apps and websites have digital coupons. Taking a little time to check off the coupons they may use saves them, and possibly you, some money.

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