Lopia (Photo by Luis Samayoa/Stripes Japan)
When you move to Japan, one of the most common activities you’ll encounter is shopping at a local grocery store.
I’ve been here long enough and visited many grocery stores to know the tricks of the trade, particularly when it comes to sales. Beyond the normal weekly sales, you’ll discover there are nightly discounts on prepared foods and meat to get them off the shelves and even special day sales.
Lopia (Photo by Luis Samayoa/Stripes Japan)
Lopia (Photo by Luis Samayoa/Stripes Japan)
At my local Lopia supermarket, for instance, Niko no hi (Meat Day) falls on the 29th of every month (except February).
When my wife first told me about it, we went for some early shopping in December.
When we walked in, we made a beeline for the meat and seafood section. The pork, beef and chicken were marked down few hundred yen compared to normal days, which was nice.
Lopia (Photo by Luis Samayoa/Stripes Japan)
Lopia (Photo by Luis Samayoa/Stripes Japan)
After a few minutes of shopping, our basket was filled with steak, a lot of Japanese domestic chicken, pork and some seasonings. Meat and poultry can get a bit expensive in Japan, but on Meat Day we splurged and still stayed within the limit of our budget. A cool way to save some yen!
Lopia is a supermarket chain with locations all over the mainland, but check your local supermarket or butcher shop to see if they participate in Niko no hi!
Things to know
Info:
The sale is on the 29th of each month, only February is excluded.
7-11 ATMs are inside the supermarket entrance.