Shopping for Food

Grocery (store) = grocer's (shop)

cereals rice buckwheat semolina oatmeal macaroni noodles sugar tea spices: pepper salt vinegar ketchup mayonnaise mustard

- крупы - рис - гречневая крупа - манная крупа - овсяная крупа - макароны - лапша - сахар - чай - специи - перец - соль - уксус - кетчуп - майонез - горчица

Bakery = baker's (shop)

a loaf of rye (brown)/wheat (white) bread bun long loaf

- булка чёрного/белого хлеба   - сдобная булочка - батон

Confectionary and Pastry

biscuits pie cake sweets chocolate a bar of chocolate

- бисквит; печенье - пирог - пирожное; торт - сладости; конфеты - шоколад - плитка шоколада

Dairy products

 

milk cream sour cream butter cheese curds yoghurt margarine vegetable oil

- молоко - сливки - сметана - масло - сыр - творог - йогурт - маргарин - растительное масло

Butcher's shop

 

beef pork veal mutton minced meat poultry chicken turkey

– говядина – свинина – телятина – баранина – фарш – домашняя птица – курица – индейка

 

Greengrocery = greengrocer's

 

beet cabbage (head of cabbage) cauliflower carrot (bunch of carrots) cucumbers lettuce onion garlic potatoes tomatoes peas parsley dill

– свёкла – капуста (кочан капусты) – цветная капуста – морковь (пучок) – огурцы – салат – лук – чеснок – картофель – помидоры – горох – петрушка – укроп

Fruits

 

apples apricots bananas berries grapes tangerine orange peaches pears plums pineapple melon watermelon strawberries raspberries cranberries

– яблоки – абрикосы – бананы – ягоды – виноград – мандарин – апельсин – персики – груши – сливы – ананас – дыня – арбуз – клубника – малина – клюква

Fish shop

fresh/salted/smoked fish tinned fish flatfish herring trout salmon caviar (red / black) oyster shrimp (prawn) lobster

- свежая/солёная/копчёная рыба - рыбные консервы - камбала - сельдь - форель - красная рыба - икра - устрица - креветка - омар

Smoked meat and sausage

bacon sausage

- бекон - колбаса, сосиска, сарделька

Drinks

soft drinks juice mineral water (still/sparkling)   alcoholic drinks (spirits) champagne (sweet, semisweet, dry, semidry) wine (red, white) vodka

- безалкогольные напитки - сок - минеральная вода (негазированная/газированная) - спиртные напитки - шампанское (сладкое, полусладкое, сухое, полусухое) - вино (красное, белое) - водка

 

Ex. 1. a) Do you usually shop at the supermarkets or do you prefer to use the local corner shop/general store? What are the differences in terms of a) price, b) convenience, c) service, d) quality and variety of produce, e) opening hours?

b) Are supermarkets really cheaper or do they cunningly persuade you to spend more money than you intend? Read the article and find out.

 

Buying foodstuffs in a modern supermarket can be considered a sort of art. It is the art of combating a temptation.

Supermarkets play a dirty trick on the customers:practically every shopper is tempted to buy things he or she does not need or cannot afford.

The mechanism of this lamentable deceit is simple. Firstly, supermarkets are laid out to make a person pass as many shelves and counters as possible. Only the hardest of souls can pass loaded racks indifferently and not collect all sorts of food from them.

Secondly, more and more supermarkets supply customers with trolleys instead of wire baskets:their bigger volume needs more purchases. One picks up a small item, say, a pack of spaghetti, puts it into a huge trolley and is immediately ashamed of its loneliness. He or she starts adding more.

Thirdly, all products are nicely displayed on the racks and all of them look fresh in their transparent wrappings with marked prices. A normal person cannot ignore attractively packed goods. And so one cannot but feel an impulse to buy. And, finally, supermarkets don’t forget about those who look for bargains. The so-called “bargain bins” filled with special offers wait for their victims. No one can tell for sure if the prices are really reduced,but it is so nice to boast later that you have a very good eye for a bargain.

So when a simple-hearted customer approaches a check-out,his or her trolley is piled high. Looking at a cashier, running her pen over barcodes,he or she starts getting nervous while the cash register is adding up the prices. And, getting a receipt,he or she gives a sigh of relief if the indicated sum does not exceed the cash he or she has.

Of course, one can give a piece of advice to the simple-hearted: make a shopping list and buy only pre-planned goods. But is it worth losing that great sensation of buying? One can really wonder.

A lot of people prefer to do their shoppingin small shops.The daily shopping route of some housewives includes visits to the baker’s, butcher’s, grocer’s, greengrocer’s, fishmonger’s and a dairy shop. In the end of the route their bags, are full of loaves of bread, meat cuts, packs with cereals, fruit, vegetables, fish and dairy products.

The explanation for this housewives’ craze is very simple. In every shop their buys are weighed, wrapped up, their money taken and the change given back. Meanwhile they can have a chat with salesgirls and shop-assistants about their weak hearts and broken hopes.

So, friends, go shoppingas often as you can. Because the simple truth is: a visit to a good shop is worth two visits to a good doctor.