M&S Christmas

While queueing at the M&S checkout to pay for my turkey one 23rd Dec. a few years ago, I was behind a woman who had a trolley full of absolutely everything ready made.

Turkey in a foil tin, stuffed and with bacon on top, roast potatoes, gravy, pigs in blankets, sundry veg all ready prepared, luxury custard, puddings other than 🎄ones, you name it.
Her bill was absolutely eye watering!

But I had to admire her - in a way - for evidently thinking, ‘Sod it, I can afford it, I’m not going to be slaving over a hot stove or chopping board this year…’

dalrymple23

I was rather panicked by some of the posts about booking Christmas slots for delivery. I am housebound and tried both Waitrose and Tesco. They will only allow bookings up to the end of October. Any advice on that please?

Ocado was absolutely my best home delivery service. Was devastated when I discovered that they do not deliver to this part of Norfolk. The nearest M & S is over an hour's drive away (can't get there anyway!). And, yes, there are some things which cannot be bought elsewhere.

Waitrose is not too far away and the food quality is good but their p rices have risen expotentially in the past few months. In a recent ratings score, they are more expensive than M & S.

When living in Sussex, I used to buy a discounted turkey from Sainsbury on Boxing Day (proper bronze number) and freeze it for the following Christmas! £60 reduced to £10, eg. Because I can't get out of the house, I cannot find out when these bargains happen. So frustrating.

Don't really know why I am bothering - don't know if there will be just two of our fourteen!!! Oh, well, I think there is a goose somewhere in one of the freezers!

Waitrose are offering Christmas slots separately to normal ones. If you log on to the website the slots offered are 1 hour, Christmas and saver.

I did book one after reading advice on here but was surprised to see that the three days just before Christmas Day were fully booked already.

Oh, well, I think there is a goose somewhere in one of the freezers!
My husband will be coming to yours for Christmas dinner 😀

Seems Christmas shopping has put the cat amongst the pigeons so to speak.I always have shopped for the best I can afford be that M&S Waitrose or the old favourites.Roll on the New Year

I was rather panicked by some of the posts about booking Christmas slots for delivery. I am housebound and tried both Waitrose and Tesco. They will only allow bookings up to the end of October. Any advice on that please?

Ocado was absolutely my best home delivery service. Was devastated when I discovered that they do not deliver to this part of Norfolk. The nearest M & S is over an hour's drive away (can't get there anyway!). And, yes, there are some things which cannot be bought elsewhere.

Waitrose is not too far away and the food quality is good but their p rices have risen expotentially in the past few months. In a recent ratings score, they are more expensive than M & S.

When living in Sussex, I used to buy a discounted turkey from Sainsbury on Boxing Day (proper bronze number) and freeze it for the following Christmas! £60 reduced to £10, eg. Because I can't get out of the house, I cannot find out when these bargains happen. So frustrating.

Don't really know why I am bothering - don't know if there will be just two of our fourteen!!! Oh, well, I think there is a goose somewhere in one of the freezers!

Martav: Hear hear! But that is just the sentiment of envy, made fashionable by the current government. Nice house, conservatory, driveway - must be rich - so tax it. Buy a couple of bottles of wine - must be rich - tax it. Own a holiday cottage - must be super rich - make sure that can no longer be enjoyed! Where is the Sevruga anyone?!!!

For M0nica and others, M&S has some items that are hard to get elsewhere, and generally their food quality is high (any s'market can have slip-ups, it's all bought in).

In this area we have a Waitrose, and an M&S Foodstore, also a Tesco, Co-ops for smaller shops, and Sainsbury within easy reach. The Waitrose and M&S both get absolutely overrun at Xmas.

For those on a general budget - and many are - then Aldi and Lidl will save you a significant sum over time, and for those who like to sneer at the supposed lack of quality, there's a very good reason those two have vastly more stores here than they used to, it's because the public have tried them and discovered they work perfectly well.

Still in September and already posters on this site causing problems with each other over Christmas shopping.
I 've occasionally taken offence at remarks made about posts I've made so I'm certainly not saying I'm 'above' any of this but it just struck a chord today when there are many more real problems to worry about.
Who really cares about what some unknown person (including me of course) writes on this site.? We can all just pass on by and ignore comments we don't like. Makes for a more peaceful life.

Always shop with M/S even in my younger days with children but always careful how I spent. Children had the best I could afford on the day. Now as a pensioner the prices shock me even more for different reasons but I still shop there if I am near a store . Home delivery would suit me best. No travel costs or feeling exhausted!

M&S Foodhall at Cribbs Causeway is huge and has a very large selection of vegetables, fruit and fresh foods, sourced in the UK.

I used to shop there weekly with a friend, unfortunately don't get there often now.

It depends what you eat BarbadosBelle. M&S has a good selection of ready meals, cakes and pre made salads. Waitrose has a far greater choice of vegetables to cook yourself, it also champions small producers, and offers a more innovative range. Their cheeses and desserts selections are second to none.

MOnica

M&S food has, for at least four decades, always been superior to Waitrose.

I've had a very large Waitrose within an easy 8-10 minute walk of home for all these years, but have always preferred the 15-20 minute drive from home to Cribbs.
.

Stillness

I’ve already decided to let Xmas marketing go hang. There’s too much of it and it’s started too early. I feel everyone has reached saturation point with Xmas luxury food and I’m going to go back to some more homely…and cheaper… stuff this year. If we have family here, it’ll be just a good roast with some (cheap) crackers), Christmas pudding and/or a nice dessert. A couple of bottles of good wine and that’s about it. The rest of the time will be ‘ordinary’ food and presents will be books that the gc want and money for the ac which they always have but it won’t be going up to cover rises in costs I’m afraid. It’s all too expensive and I’m not prepared to go into debt to line even more people’s pockets.

I'm with you on keeping it small Stillness, I love a town hall Christmas fair over a city Christmas market, shopping in my high street over a shopping village and having a go at making decorations, the wreath, pud & cake myself (not a brill cook!) Only gifts for kiddies, I read old fashioned Christmas books & try to be out enjoying nature as much as possible wearing a Christmas bobble hat & string of tinsel wrapped around my walking stick
I once heard someone say about Christmas -"doing less to feel more.

The only thing that bothers me about excess Christmas food, is the thought of any of it being wasted. I still feel apoplectic about someone’s DiL - mentioned on here or on MN- who binned a turkey with masses of meat still on it, just a couple of hours after 🎄dinner, because - so she apparently reasoned - it had been sitting on the sideboard for those 2 hours. 🤬

If there were any justice in this world, such wanton waste would be punished by starvation rations for a fortnight. In a rat-infested dungeon. When I’m a dictator I will enact my wanton-waste law forthwith. 😈

As long as food is eaten and enjoyed, I really couldn’t care less how much people buy.

Christmas is about fun, food and personal responsibility. I buy what we want, and need, there is no gluttony or waste.
I love good food, a real Christmas tree, good wine with lunch, and seeing family.

MissChateline

Personally I can’t bear the whole Christmas thing. Mountains of expensive food that you wouldn’t normally eat, feel guilty about having eaten for days afterwards and the stress of it all. The over consumption of food, gifts and all the trappings we are bombarded with for the next 11 weeks. Then it’s all over and the credit card bills arrive.
It’s a long walk on the moors to Top Withens, a cheese sandwich and a flask of coffee. Perfect.

You only have mountains of expensive food etc if you have chosen to buy it. Nobody is forcing you to shop for Britain, eat as if there’s no tomorrow and max out your credit card!

I’ve already decided to let Xmas marketing go hang. There’s too much of it and it’s started too early. I feel everyone has reached saturation point with Xmas luxury food and I’m going to go back to some more homely…and cheaper… stuff this year. If we have family here, it’ll be just a good roast with some (cheap) crackers), Christmas pudding and/or a nice dessert. A couple of bottles of good wine and that’s about it. The rest of the time will be ‘ordinary’ food and presents will be books that the gc want and money for the ac which they always have but it won’t be going up to cover rises in costs I’m afraid. It’s all too expensive and I’m not prepared to go into debt to line even more people’s pockets.

MissChateline

The over consumption of food, gifts and all the trappings we are bombarded with for the next 11 weeks.

It sure does feel a bit like we're under 'attack': when you enter your local supermarket and your ears immediately have to tune in to "Feed the wuurld" or "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" (and you're pretty certain it's more likely to be a wet one) - where the staff are rigged out in a green and red variety of clothing... with either deer antlers or the traditional hat perched on their heads + sometimes a bit of glitter or tinsel added for good measure - ^it can be quite overwhelming

It’s a long walk on the moors to Top Withens, a cheese sandwich and a flask of coffee. Perfect.

My father used to attempt a similar walk at Christmas. He lived in or near Haworth, and was a dedicated member of the Brontë Society - he even named his (very tiny and modern) house "Top Withens" - and his two cats apparently responded to the names "Brontë" and "Branwell" - you can guess the theme of the Christmas cards I used to receive. I'm more of an Austen fan.

Your 'long walk' does sound appealing though...

😁

The best Boxing Day 'walk' was with them riding their new bikes or trikes along a seafront somewhere.

A Boxing Day walk on the Peak District moors was compulsory here - my children, in their early teens, hated it. They were singularly unmoved when we had a rare sighting of a mountain hare one year, and not even turkey sandwiches, soup and a pocketful of Quality Street would sweeten the deal. It was bitterly cold; there was usually snow on the high ground, and the only thing they craved was a warm fire and the tv! Strange how they went on to do the self same thing with their children!!

The gluttony at Christmas always concerns me, my late MIL would spend £100’s on M&S food, she once ordered enough stuffing for 36, all the veg was ready prepared, she bought gravy ready made!
Most ended up in a bin.

😲 Christmas leftovers (bubble and squeak etc) are often better than Christmas Day food itself.

It’s a long walk on the moors to Top Withens, a cheese sandwich and a flask of coffee. Perfect.
Yes, do what you want to do.

However, if you have family it could be more difficult, small children wondering why Father Christmas didn't come or, if he did, wanting to play with their toys, someone not able to march to the top of a hill and everyone complaining that they can eat a cheese sandwich any day of the year!!

A Boxing Day walk is more or less compulsory, though.

GrannyGravy13

MartavTaurus

Just use Deliveroo instead! No £40. Though it's not really for big quantities.

I have never used Deliveroo, Ubereats etc., perhaps that should be my next mission 😹

I never use Deliveroo, they just annoy me, my perception is they exploit their workers and employ people illegally. I just don't like the way these people operate so I make it my business not to use their services. We don't often order takeaways, a couple of times we have from our local Indian restaurant, we go and pick it up.

Having said that I know my children use Deliveroo, they like Waggamama takeaways, when one of them and his o/h were staying with us for a week, they ordered a Deliveroo from Wagga's and had to wait absolutely ages and then son moaned and moaned because they'd forgotten the chopsticks first world problems

I do occasionally get groceries delivered from Ocado. I've always been fairly confident about picking up Christmas food, albeit in dribs and drabs before the day. I like to have a good look at what I'm buying particularly with regards to meat, fruit and vegetables. I've also read horror stories of rotten turkeys being delivered at a very late stage and one customer had their turkey substituted for turkey dinosaurs, which I think was an entirely inappropriate substitution and of course ruined their Christmas. Wise maybe to have a joint in the freezer as a backup

Mountains of expensive food that you wouldn’t normally eat, feel guilty about having eaten for days afterwards and the stress of it all. The over consumption of food, gifts and all the trappings we are bombarded with for the next 11 weeks. Then it’s all over and the credit card bills arrive.

Never had a Christmas like that.

MissChateline

Personally I can’t bear the whole Christmas thing. Mountains of expensive food that you wouldn’t normally eat, feel guilty about having eaten for days afterwards and the stress of it all. The over consumption of food, gifts and all the trappings we are bombarded with for the next 11 weeks. Then it’s all over and the credit card bills arrive.
It’s a long walk on the moors to Top Withens, a cheese sandwich and a flask of coffee. Perfect.

That sounds an idyllic way to spend Christmas Day. I'm not often on my own on Christmas Day, but when I am I go for a long walk. I live in central London so there are plenty of tourists out and about, so I don't feel alone. I enjoy the opportunity to have time to reflect, and to appreciate the quietness of the city which is without its usual noise and crowds.

I will have ventured into M&S a day or two beforehand to buy one of their Christmas meal deals. Indian food was my choice a year or two ago.

Personally I can’t bear the whole Christmas thing. Mountains of expensive food that you wouldn’t normally eat, feel guilty about having eaten for days afterwards and the stress of it all. The over consumption of food, gifts and all the trappings we are bombarded with for the next 11 weeks. Then it’s all over and the credit card bills arrive.
It’s a long walk on the moors to Top Withens, a cheese sandwich and a flask of coffee. Perfect.

I love to see what’s available at Christmas online and instore catalogues however I rarely buy anything now.
When I was working and time was short I would buy a few treats from Booths.
Their Christmas book is a thing of joy!

I have the luxury of time, two freezers and a Thermomix so it’s very easy to make my own “goodies”

The gluttony at Christmas always concerns me, my late MIL would spend £100’s on M&S food, she once ordered enough stuffing for 36, all the veg was ready prepared, she bought gravy ready made!
Most ended up in a bin.

I have a rule that no more food comes in the home until the Christmas food is gone.
It’s a Sunday roast with a few extras!