das Lebensmittelgeschäft

Billa is the grocery store we go to on our street. Do not ever go grocery shopping from 5:00-8:00 pm, for you will surely come out with a splitting headache. People are through with work at this time, you see, so it becomes extremely crowded and noisy. You will be forced to wait in line for at least ten minutes.

Billas are much smaller than a QFC or Albertson´s, but it is still very possible to get a good assortment of food. I usually buy the same sorts of things:

Yogurts (Clever or Ja, Natürlich! Brand),
Müsli (Ja, Natürlich!),
Cheese (Joghurt-Käse),
some kind of meat (salami, schinken, etc.),
Bread (brown healthy stuff that doesn´t taste as good, or semmeln, which are white rolls),
cheese spread (that term sounds disgusting, but it's quite tasty and much better than cream cheese),
some sort of fruit and/or veggies
Soup, Pasta or Rice
and every now and then I will buy chocolate (Milka: haselnuss or fruit and nut are my favorites) or Nutella with Butterkeks (sweet crackers)

There are no shopping carts (who buys enough food to need a cart?), only small, hand-held baskets. Be sure to bring your own bag to carry your groceries home. Once they have rung up your food, the cashiers just throw your food to the side and you must have a way to collect them. It’s like a race. See if you can stuff your food items back into the hand-held basket before the cashier is done ringing them up. This is easier when one has only a few groceries, but look out if you’re stocking up for the week. I have found it to be much easier if you put the food back in the grocery basket, move to the corner where the tables are, and then load the groceries into your bag at your own pace. This way, you will not have angry Austrian customers accumulating behind you and the stress level will be kept at equilibrium.

If the cashier says something to you, it’s most likely “Do you have a Billa card?” Just say “Nein” and you’ll be set.

I went grocery shopping the other day and ordered a fresh sandwich from the deli. It still fills me with utmost satisfaction when I successfully order something in German. "Ein Semmelsandwich bitte, mit Gouda und Farmerschinken...Ja, das ist alles. Danke sehr," for example.

It will be strange to grocery shop in the States once again. Where's the challenge?