Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on The Penny Hoarder.
Ever shopped at restaurant supply stores?
Food and supply prices keep rising. And, we’re in the season of parties, picnics and vacations.
Even if you aren’t entertaining, it’s always a good time to look for deals.
We did the math comparing grocery store, warehouse and restaurant supply store prices to see if you can save (and if so, how much) for that party or feast you want to throw. (Or to just chip away at that grocery bill.)
In the end, shoppers stand to save at restaurant supply stores.
What Are Restaurant Supply Stores?
They exist to, you guessed it, supply restaurants. In addition to food items in higher quantities at lower prices, restaurateurs can find inexpensive, yet durable, kitchen supplies. Common supplies include mixing bowls, cooking sheets and utensils. You can also find food service items like napkins, plates and cups.
However, they’re not just for restaurant owners. Savvy shoppers have used brick-and-mortar restaurant supply stores to buy equipment for their kitchens for years.
The pandemic drastically impacted the restaurant industry, with more than 110,000 restaurants initially closing in 2020. Restaurant supply stores needed to pivot to stay in business. Doing so meant more of them opened their doors to the general public.
Here is a list of both storefront and online restaurant supply stores (with grocery items) around the country:
- Chef’s Store
- Food Service Direct
- Food Service Warehouse
- Gordon’s Food Service online store and Gordon’s Food Service brick-and-mortar stores
- Green Mountain Food Service
- URM Foodservice
- WebstaurantStore
What’s Different at Restaurant Supply Stores?
Here’s a look at what sets them apart, other than price.
Package Sizing
Package sizing is an important factor to keep in mind if you want to explore these stores for your regular shopping. It’s common for them to sell in bulk.
Do you have enough storage space? Will you get bored with eating five pounds of chopped lettuce? If the food spoils, you haven’t saved any money in the end.
Portion Sizes
Another factor in comparing prices is individual portion sizes.
For example, we looked at the price of salmon burgers. At the grocery store, each individual burger is 3 ounces, while individual patties are 4 ounces at the restaurant supply and warehouse stores.
Selection
The last thing to think about is the range of selection. A grocery store might have several versions of the same type of food (looking at you, frozen pizza aisle). The other stores will probably have a smaller range of choices.
Online vs. Brick and Mortar Restaurant Supply Stores
While no shipping cost applies to in-person shopping, online stores may offer free shipping over a certain amount (anywhere from $150 to $750), or on your first order.
And, shipping fees don’t necessarily cancel out savings. A case (144 count) of spinach-flavored, gluten-free wraps, sells for $34 at Webstaurant, and it ships for $18.49. That works out to 36 cents per wrap, far below the grocery store cost of $1.10 per wrap.
Online restaurant supply stores don’t stock some items you might need, or they may not stock them in a way you might use them. We didn’t find any fresh greens online, nor could we find cans of soda.
Is a Paid Membership Worth It?
In some cases, online restaurant supply stores charge a membership fee. For instance, Webstaurant has a Plus membership for $99 a month, which includes free shipping and prioritizing orders.
Clearly, it is geared toward businesses. Most of the other online restaurant supply stores encourage you to create accounts, but there aren’t membership charges.
Warehouse stores, however, do have membership fees. Costco starts at $60. Sam’s Club starts at $50. BJ’s is $55. Depending on how often you shop and how much you need, memberships can be worth it.
Let’s Compare Prices
Say we’re throwing a summer shindig with beef burgers and buns, potato chips and plates. Here’s how grocery stores, warehouse stores and restaurant supply stores stacked up against one another.
The following lists for each type of store the prices and price per ounce or unit for beef burgers, buns, potato chips and plates.
Grocery store:
- Beef burger: $9.96 for 32 ounces — 31 cents per ounce
- Buns: $2.94 for 15 ounces— 20 cents per ounce
- Potato chips: $1.98 for 8 ounces — 25 cents per ounce
- Plates: $5.18 for 100 — 5 cents each
Restaurant supply store:
- Beef burger: $24.99 for 80 ounces — 31 cents per ounce
- Buns: $3.79 for 22 ounces — 17 cents per ounce
- Potato chips: $4.99 for 20 ounces — 25 cents per ounce
- Plates: $5.49 for 100 — 5 cents each
Warehouse store:
- Beef burger: $18.98 for 48 ounces — 40 cents per ounce
- Buns: $3.78 for 30 ounces — 13 cents per ounce
- Potato chips: $2.98 for 16 ounces — 19 cents per ounce
- Plates: $23.98 for 600 — 4 cents each
Our Conclusion
The warehouse clubs gave the best deals for our imaginary party items, but that doesn’t include the cost of membership. Grocery stores had better-than-expected prices on the plates.
But overall, the cheapest way to throw your party, if you have room to store things, is by shopping at your local restaurant supply store.
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