We generally get them at Kroger as well (Food Lion only carries them sporadically) and they tend to be more expensive. There are some similarly priced apples (Jazz comes to mind) but the majority of them are much cheaper.
Tea. Usually a few specific brands, but I’ve yet to encounter a generic tea that was even remotely palatable. If I can’t get something good like Stash, I’ll at least go for Bigelow or Lipton or something. And really, even the good tea is still awfully cheap, as beverages go.
Mustard. There’s a specific brand of mustard (two brands, actually) that can only be found in Cleveland, and is the absolute best mustard in the world. I always stock up when I visit home.
Hellman’s Mayo
Heinz Ketchup
Soda - I buy several varieties, all name brands
Microwave popcorn. The store brand burns, Orville cooks perfectly in exactly the amount of time recommended. It is cheap in CostCo anyway.
Orowheat bread. I was spoiled by working close to their surplus store for years, but it is superior to store bread.
Mustard - I can handle several name brands, but not store brands.
Pretzels - the Safeway brand is often stale.
Some frozen veg. The store brand seems to be the leavings after the big guys are done.
On the other hand, Safeway brand ice cream is equal to or better than the name brands.
Tums. All the off-label calcium antacid tablet thingies have giant grains of chalkiness, but Tums is the smoothest.
Tillamook Cheddar
Cereal - any kind. I have no idea why store brands taste the way they do. But they do.
Tissues: Puffs
Peanut Butter: Teddie Bear or Market Basket (yes, a store brand, but I refuse Skippy or Jif)
TVs/Major electronics: Sony
Plastic wrap: Stretch-Tite
That’s all I can think of for the moment.
I love this, in that it suggests you’ve spent long hours combing the seas of processed food for the perfect miniature weiner, and found, at long last, the answer was only too obvious.
Chicken stock powder: Knorr
Mayonnaise: Thomy
Windex
Instant coffee: Moccona
Yes, Moccona for instant. drinking it right now (late morning over here). We use the drip on weekends, but I drink instant during the week when I’m at home alone. Thailand is the Land of Nescafe, but I always go for Moccona.
Diet Pepsi Wild Cherry
Black Diamond Cheddar
Jif peanut butter
Trader Joe’s Ruby Red Chai Tea
Macintosh computer - though many years ago I had an off brand Mac OS laptop with a kangaroo on it. It cost about a zillion dollars and was a doorstop within a couple of years.
There are several brands that my husband is attached to, so that’s what our household uses, but I can only think of one thing that I want the name brand of: Arm & Hammer Advance Clean toothpaste, mint flavor. The baking soda really tones down the mint to something almost tasty.
I also buy Fiber One cereal exclusively, but I lately noticed that Publix has come out with its own version, so that’s what I’ll get next time. So long, and thanks for all the brown trout, General Mills!
Love the mad multi-colour thing they’ve got going, but you have to get it exactly right not to look like a clown. Around here (Italy and Europe in general) there are lot of cheaper imitations, but they look just nasty.
All workout gear, including cross-training shoes: Under Armour or Nike
Hair care: Pantene
Ketchup: Heinze
Tuna: Cento
Power Tools: Dewalt (although this is based on budget. I’d go more elaborate if possible)
and ZIPLOC bags over all others!
Diet Coke - there are no subsitutes. When I’m in a place that serves pepsi I drink soda water w/lime instead.
Peanut Butter - I can’t believe no one has said Kraft yet. All you Jif and Skippy heretics shakes head
Mayo - Hellmans
Definitely Q-tips although if they hadn’t been listed already I wouldn’t have thought of that.
Crest toothpaste - although since it’s almost impossible to find paste anymore I’m testing out new brands. I’m not a fan of any gels I’ve tried.
OPI nail polish
Blue Buffalo dog food
Heinz Ketchup - but the sugar reduced version. I tried it durin our sugar free phase and it just tastes better.
Lord yes on the Q-Tips!
The other brands are like sticking a toothpick in your ear.
I can only think of four things. I’m happy with Kroger brand most everything. I’ll buy their peanut butter, cereal, ice cream, cream cheese, flour, breakfast bars, mayonnaise, coffee, toilet paper, glass cleaner - really, I don’t care.
But, I’ve found that Crest toothpaste is the only one I can stand. So there’s one.
Real Q-tips don’t fall apart like generics, so there’s two.
Recently I discovered the diswasher tabs, so no more Kroger dishwasher gel. Three.
And I’m quite a Honda lover. Right now there’s three Hondas and an Acura in our household.
I had no idea there was Kraft peanut butter, or reduced-sugar Heinz ketchup!
If I could find little teeny silvery sardines, like 20 in a can, I’d be eating a whole lot more sardines, but I can’t think of the brand. Maybe King Oscar?
Coca-Cola-rum and Pepsi is nasty
Beneful dog food-the only thing that keeps my giant Jack Russel from farting up a storm.
I thought of another odd brand loyalty of mine, although it’s the flip-side of the OP (I suppose it’s a “name-brand” of a sort though):
I prefer Big-K (Kroger house brand) diet cherry cola and their Mountain Dew knockoff to the real thing, and always preferentially get those over the Coke/Pepsi products if shopping at Kroger.
I am 37, and have lived (and bought PB) in Atlanta, NJ, Denver, and SF, and have never seen Kraft PB.
Joe