If you’re looking for the best grocery store in Houston, Texas, this guide will help.
Ever walked the aisles of your usual grocery store, asking yourself whether you’re able to get it cheaper anywhere else? What other brands are on offer?
Well, worry no more, as we’ve done all the hard work for you, and below, you will find all you need to know about the 7 best grocery stores in Houston, Texas.
7 Best Grocery Stores in Houston, Texas
In this guide to the best places to shop for groceries in Houston, we will look at locations, opening times, ease of access, service, prices, and grocery choices.
And with that, let us begin our supermarket sweep and find you the best place to get your goods.
1. Central Market
| Address: | 3815 Westheimer Rd, Houston, TX 77027 |
| Website: | centralmarket.com |
| Opening Hours: | Monday- Sunday: 8 am till 10 pm |
Central Market is a high-end grocery store that makes shopping feel like a fun day out. With all the beautifully arranged and themed sections, it’s a charming experience.
The food displays are eye-catching, and the produce is all high quality or organic. The fruit section during the fall time is a definite eye-pleaser.
The layout is excellent, with easy-to-follow arrows guiding you around to each department. It means you can find your way around and quickly get to the aisle you need without having to wander up and down.
They have ample parking and an on-site cafe, serving fresh coffee, cake, beautiful sandwiches, and amazingly fresh sandwiches and homemade soups. It’s worth a visit, even if just for browsing and a bite.
The prices here tend to be a little higher than your usual grocery store. And a thing for sure, they assure all the products to be of good quality, such as their cheese selection, meat and fish deli, and freshly prepared fruits and salad.
Central Market is known to get very busy in the evenings, so we recommend paying a visit earlier in the day. Due to the parking and very narrow aisles, it’s a much more pleasurable experience during the quieter periods.
2. Trader Joe’s Houston
| Address: | 2922 S Shepherd Drive, Houston, TX 77098 |
| Website: | www.traderjoes.com |
| Opening Hours: | Monday-Sunday: 8 am-9 am |
Traders Joe’s is a national chain grocery store. They have been serving the public since as early as 1967 and pride themselves on the best quality products for everyday needs.
Trader Joe’s is unique in that you won’t find a lot of branded products here. Instead, you will get exciting and unique items and everyday necessities, all with the Trader Joe label.
They only stock the best quality and best value for money they can find. Every product they sell goes through a rigorous testing process before it’s deemed worthy of a spot on their shelves, which makes them pretty unique.
Trader Joes are a big believer in equality; therefore, you will never see special offers, discounts, or coupons available. The point is that every customer gets the same great value at all times.
The staff is super friendly and accommodating and goes above and beyond to make your shopping experience fun.
Inside the store, there is cool labeling, and you look at signage everywhere. Everything feels themed with underlying humor, and the whole time you’re inside, you feel the warm and welcoming atmosphere. Overall making it a great shopping experience.
You can purchase pretty much anything here, from food to flowers and much more, each product with its quirk. Some things can seem quite pricey on first look, but this is only due to their quality and rarity.
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3. H-E-B
| Address: | 1701 West Alabama St, Houston, TX 77098-2807 |
| Website: | https://www.heb.com/ |
| Opening Hours: | Monday-Sunday: 6 am-11 pm |
H-E-B, which stands for “Here Everything’s Better,” is a go-to store when you practically need anything. They get their supply from local producers. There is 100% pure meat and products sourced from all over the globe, and it’s easy to see why it is a popular favorite.
They offer an on-site pharmacy, so prescription drugs are available to be collected from here during their opening hours (be sure to check the website as these differ from the main store hours)
They offer curbside pick-up, and home delivery, making them accessible to practically everybody.
Inside the store, they have a meat market, a cheese deli, a beauty section, a flower shop, a bakery, a seafood counter, and fresh produce, as well as an EV charging station and self-check-out. So there is absolute ease of shopping here all around, with everything being in one place for convenience.
They have a fantastic selection of seafood, from Chilean Seabass and Red Snapper to Snow Crab and Texas Gulf Shrimp. There is also a good choice of dressed and prepared seafood.
Their alcohol and beverage selection is massive, and you’ll find something for every occasion, in general, no matter what your needs are. You’ll find what you’re looking for here, and at a very reasonable price too. The only downside is, there is so much on offer you will likely come out having bought a lot more than you probably intended.
4. 99 Ranch Market
| Address: | 1005 Blalock Rd, Houston, TX 77055 |
| Website: | https://www.99ranch.com/ |
| Opening Hours: | Sunday-Thursday: 9 am-9 pm, Friday-Saturday: 8 am-9 pm |
99 Ranch Market was initially established in 1984, making it a long-running grocery business. The owner found a gap in the market of the usual American grocery stores and decided to open up a store with an Asian twist. It allows communities to experience the authentic flavors of Asian cuisine.
You are greeted by an abundance of counters and options inside the store, including a seafood market, meat deli, a bakery serving hot baked goods straight from the oven, fresh produce, and an on-site cafe.
They also have an in-store deli pick up, where you can phone ahead and pick up, or even order, then go and do your shopping and collect your meal on the way out. They have things like sweet and sour pork ribs, fried noodles, roast duck, and chicken wings.
The prices are low here, meaning you can shop on a budget. The only thing is you have to be aware that it is an Asian market, so don’t go there expecting your usual weekly shop.
5. Sprouts Farmers Market
| Address: | 195 Yale St, Houston, TX 77007 |
| Website: | https://www.sprouts.com/store/tx/houston/the-heights/ |
| Opening Hours: | Monday-Sunday: 7 am-10 am |
Sprouts Farmers Market is something else in the world of grocery shopping. There is so much going on we found it hard to pick which parts to tell you about. The main thing we can say is, you just have to go and experience it for yourself.
The variety on offer is overwhelming here. And you genuinely won’t know where to start, so perhaps don’t visit if you’re on a time limit.
For the central part, they have a deli, a meat and a seafood counter, a bakery, a dairy counter, alcohol, fresh produce, vitamins and body care, and frozen foods. They also have a section where you can bulk buy products, such as whole and ground spices, dry fruit and nuts, beans, peas, and grains.
All of their products are organic and sustainably sourced, which, yes, makes them a little higher in price than the stuff you may pick up in your usual grocery store, but boy can you tell the difference in quality.
The overall experience in-store is impressive, and they have some fun signage around the aisles to make you smile and make your shopping even more enjoyable.
You can also shop with them online, where they make it super simple to shop suited to your lifestyle. So, whether you’re a vegetarian, eat gluten-free, or are on a keto diet, you can shop in all these sections.
Apart from all these things we mentioned here, they also offer outside catering. So, if you have an event coming up, be sure to contact them to see what they can provide for you. They come highly recommended by the locals.
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6. Phoenicia Speciality Foods
| Address: | 1001 Austin Street, Houston, TX 77010 |
| Website | https://phoeniciafoods.com/locations/downtown-market/ |
| Opening Hours: | Monday-Wednesday: 9 am - 7:30 am, Thursday - Saturday: 9 am - 8 pm Sunday: 9 am - 6 pm |
Phoenicia Speciality Foods is a gourmet market situated downtown. It is a one-stop-shop for all your provisionary and household needs.
This shopping spot makes your weekly shop feel more sophisticated than usual. Because whatever they sell are quality products – fresh meats, seafood, signature coffees, artisan bread, boutique wines, premium beers, or rustic style pizzas.
In addition, they have a gastro-pub that offers live music, art exhibits, and other family-friendly events. They have a weekend brunch menu, a weekly steak night, and an excellent selection of fine ales and cocktails. This bar makes this store an attraction to locals and people passing through.
They also offer curbside pick-up, home delivery, and outside catering, so they are accessible to anyone wanting to shop gourmet.
There are ample parking spaces. But keep in mind, they do get rather busy, so if you want a quieter experience, the weekday afternoons are probably the best time to visit.
7. The Kroger Co
| Address: | 9919 Westheimer Rd, Houston, TX 77042 |
| Website: | https://www.kroger.com/stores/details/034/00363 |
| Opening Hours: | Monday - Sunday: 6 am - 11 pm |
Kroger is probably one of the biggest when it comes to grocery stores, and their list of store services goes on and on.
One thing they offer, which is worth talking about and makes this place stand out from the rest, is their new drone-delivery service, which started in 2020. This new innovative way to shop means customers can access anything, anywhere, anytime.
Kroger prides itself on giving back to the community and economy. You can read all about their purpose and plans in more depth on their website.
So, when it came to the groceries, we were interested to see what the biggest grocery store had to offer, and we weren’t disappointed.
The expected bakery, seafood market, flowers, alcoholic beverages, deli counter, and cheese sections were available in-store. But on top of these, there is also an olive counter, drive-through pharmacy, sushi, Starbucks, cosmetics, boar’s head, tortillaria, and red box rental service.
There are also the options to get fuel, withdraw money, and so much more.
They are very budget-friendly, with most products being affordable and not overpriced. They also have many offers, including weekly specials and coupons, so keep up to date with them to ensure you don’t miss out on any bargains.
Summary
So that does it; we hope that, with our guide, we’ve broadened your choices and perhaps even introduced you to something completely new when it comes to where to get the best groceries and more. If you enjoyed this read and would like to see more, check out our review of Japanese Discount Store Daiso in Houston, TX, and Best Plant Nursery in Houston, Texas.