Impulse Buys at the Grocery Check-Out

[SethG]

My apologies if this has been covered before, but I didn't find it.

I often stop for a few groceries on my way home from work, and one market I frequent sells these Ritter Sport chocolate bars. I always tell myself I won't be buying one of these today, and yet I very often end up buying it, all the while telling myself I'll eat half and give the rest to my wife. Then I gobble it up in seconds. I've never yet made it home with one of these bars.

How about you? What do you buy at the register and guiltily snarf down?

[guajolote]

any magazine with paris hilton on the cover.

[cbel964]

magazines. food or otherwise.

[tommy]

donuts.

[Squeat Mungry]

My neighborhood produce store, where I do most of my food shopping aside from the Farmer's Market, does not keep magazines, candy, batteries, etc. by the checkout, but rather something that is even more alluring to me for an impulse buy: that's where they keep all the spices! I can't get out of there without at least one packet of something or other to experiment with.

Squeat

[bilrus]

At my local "Gourmet" store I can't not buy at least one, maybe two packages of the European version of what I grew up knowing as "Sugar Wafers".

Back in the day thy came in and came in artifical Chocolate, artifical Strawberry and artifical Vanilla.

I can't for the life of me thing of the brand name, but they come in Vanilla, Lemon, Raspberry and Chocolate Hazelnut

[Chad]

Weekly World News. C'mon, how could anyone resist a 72 point headline screaming "I was Bigfoot's love slave?"

Chad

[hjshorter]

Magazines, mostly food but the occasional Real Simple or People sneaks in sometimes. And mints or gum.

[lamb]

If supermarkets sold shoes, I would be in impulse buy trouble

Otherwise, not much I have to impulsively have there.

[v_wang]

count me in for People. i just can't help myself.

Edited December 8, 2003 by v_wang (log)

[tryska]

vogue and bazaar.

and saveur.

Edited December 8, 2003 by tryska (log)

[denise_jer]

Magazines, especially if the cover recipe looks really tasty!

Mints

And last month I bought some invisible cards - a clear deck of cards. I couldn't stop my hand from reaching for them!

[ludja]

At my local "Gourmet" store I can't not buy at least one, maybe two packages of the European version of what I grew up knowing as "Sugar Wafers".

Back in the day thy came in and came in artifical Chocolate, artifical Strawberry and artifical Vanilla.

I can't for the life of me thing of the brand name, but they come in Vanilla, Lemon, Raspberry and Chocolate Hazelnut

Do you mean Manner Wafers from Austria?

Link here:

http://www.buonappetitony.com/html/cookies/manner.asp

my favorites are lemon and hazelnut.

ps. those do sound like something I would snag at the last minute and then eat in the car...

Since I usually bought those at a german deli/meat store, made me think of something else to buy and eat a la minute. Little pre-cooked hot dogs at a german deli; hard to resist after being engulfed in the absolute best yummy smell of a german deli.

[fifi]

The check out line at Hong Kong Market is deadly. There are all of these enticing candies, spices, and other odd-ball things that I have no idea what to do with. My curiosity gets the better of me.

[Anna N]

Magazines if they are food related or if they promise to dig me out of my chaos and get me "Organized at Last"!

[iain]

Food magazines...usually food and wine or cook's illustrated.

[Comfort Me]

I have no shame. If I'm gonna binge, it's going to be high in fat, salt, and things that have little relationship to food occuring in nature.

For me it's the extra-large bag of fried (crunchy) Cheetos! With a quart of milk. Man, that's living.

As Cartman would say, "Hey! I want my Cheesy Poofs!"

[bilrus]

At my local "Gourmet" store I can't not  buy at least one, maybe two packages of the European version of what I grew up knowing as "Sugar Wafers".

Back in the day thy came in and came in artifical Chocolate, artifical Strawberry and artifical Vanilla.

I can't for the life of me thing of the brand name, but they come in Vanilla, Lemon, Raspberry and Chocolate Hazelnut

Do you mean Manner Wafers from Austria?

Link here:

http://www.buonappetitony.com/html/cookies/manner.asp

my favorites are lemon and hazelnut.

ps. those do sound like something I would snag at the last minute and then eat in the car...

Since I usually bought those at a german deli/meat store, made me think of something else to buy and eat a la minute. Little pre-cooked hot dogs at a german deli; hard to resist after being engulfed in the absolute best yummy smell of a german deli.

That's them. I like Lemon and Vanilla.

I'm not a huge chocolate fan so I haven't tried the chocolatty ones.

But right now I think I'll go have a big chunk of the worlds largest custom imprinted Chocolate Bar our office recieved as a gift.

Thanks.

[torakris]

I am glad I am not the only one!

I swear sometimes those food magazines just jump into my cart

[prasantrin]

Mentos. Mint flavoured, of course, none of that fruity stuff for me. I can eat a whole roll in less than 5 minutes (and not feel sick afterwards).

[cakewalk]

Weekly World News.

Heh heh.

That and a Kit Kat. Heaven.

[gourmande]

I have no such impulses at the grocery store, however, the market's "offerings by the exit" are more tempting and what I always succumb to at least once a week (or is that weak?!): cheeses, cornichons, what, a new condiment?

[Toliver]

Slim Jims.

I see them at the checkout stand and just get a hankering for them and boom, they jump into my cart. I usually regret it when I begin eating one and feeling the beefy greasy texture in my mouth that makes them so...unique.

[browniebaker]

Can anyone resist the cherry Chapstick? (I keep one in every room of the house.)

People magazine is such a good read!

[birder53]

Magazines - particularly gardening issues.