Jestteten and Lotstetten is 25 minutes from Zurich. Straight up highway past airport. Why do people recommend places like Singen or Konstanz one hour away??
Basel is 45 minutes away from Zurich (so is France). We usually go there with the wifey because it's on the way to my hometown (I'm French) and each time we buy as much meat/fish as we are allowed, not to mention other living goods that are much cheaper in France. Regarding Quality I never had to complain about it on French meat, it's not as great as the swiss one but def on acceptable level
The motorway to Basel is usually ok but can be a real pain when people leave the office.
a place close to Zurich with an Aldi, EDEKA and Pharmacy is Jestetten.
The town just before Jestetten also has a Lidl.
also, some small businesses offer a service which allows to order in the EU. it is cool - gives you a address in the EU so when you order on Amazon.de or ebay.de you can avoid all import fees, taxes, handling etc.
search on google with terms such as grenzpaket etc.
nope, i dont. i dont eat so much meat, i dont have a car and i dont stuff fridge or freezer with things i dont need throughout 1-1.5 weeks so the whole car trip wouldnt pay-off time and patrol. we spend 400-500chf/month and i think we could save 100-150chuffs but i dont see it worth the effort... i rather use my weekend to relax in and exploring ch.
because you might have more choice? the mall, the huge kaufland, the diverse shops in that oldtown....and i belive its a more apealing city than hillybilly jestetten, no?
I do it and I live in Bern. Our monthly trek to Austria to visit gf's family has ulterior motives. Every time we end up going with an empty suitcase and back filled with food and other goodies.
Do not drive, depend on train. But the schedules are inconvenient ( 53rd minute to Schaffhausen or 6th minute of the hour to Bülach ). Konstanz has better connections ( plus the Aldi staff are way more polite than the ones here in Jestetten and Sunrise has 3G in Konstanz, EDGE in Jestetten ).
I find the meat, milk/cheese, and fruit/vegetable products in Switzerland of superior quality to Germany, and also prefer to support local small businesses, in case they go out of business!... leaving no option than joining the conveyer belt industry of dubious quality.
Just knowing that beef is "grown" by 6 month old calves being tied to a wall in a stall, never seeing daylight or smelling fresh air for 2 years before being taken for slaughter puts me off consuming any meat from Germany. The same with chicken from there ..... the meat stinks, and big plump chickens have tiny little deformed bones.
Although there are small shops who buy direct from distinctive good quality farms selling high-grade decent produce, but you won`t find these products in most supermarkets. As far as I know Markant is known for having this good quality.
Non-consumables, paper, cosmetic, toiletry products are bargains in Germany. Alcoholic spirits is also cheap (non essential)
If you`re into pre-packaged instant foods, and flavourless fruit and veges, then Germany is the place to shop and save.
I always buy groceries in France, but I work 2 minutes away from the border. More or less everything is cheaper, some by a small margin (like dairy products, beer, pasta...) other by a huge, especially meat and spirit liquors.
Also diesel is quite cheaper, so I always fill my tank in France as well.
Beware of the border controls though, I have been lucky so far but if they catch you buying more than the allowed quantities (which is very little, 1/2 kg of meat for example) you'd get a big fine.
We live 50 min by car from France, so sometimes (maybe averagely once every two months) we do drive to Thonon or Evian to buy some food. But but... I find the price there expensive (still a little cheaper than suisse, but obviously more expensive than other markets "deeper" in France. People say that these kind of supermarkets near the border are targeted for rich Suisse people looking for bargain so they raise their price... Don't know if it is true though.
I guess that is normal, the closer to the border the more expensive everything is. Also Thonon and Evian are very touristic towns so it is normal that the prices are higher there. If you are willing to drive a bit longer you can find much better prices in Annemasse (I guess you live east of Lake Leman, right?)
I live in Geneva so I usually go to the other side of the lake, to Ferney-Voltaire, Saint Genis Pouilly or Thoiry. Carrefour and E.Leclerc are really cheap with not-so-bad quality. In Intermarche (Saint-Genis) you can even shop online, and then go to the store just to pick up the bags, it's really quick ( www.expressmarche.com )