Where do you find whole grains — other than Whole Foods? Health food stores are a great option if there's one in your area, but we're curious, where do you shop for these new-but-old menu items for less than $8 per pound?!
Growing up my grandparents belonged to a food co-op where everything came in large bins and was self serve. This seems to be a thing of the past and lately I am having trouble tracking down my whole grains without paying an arm and a leg for them.
Often you can find deals at Indian, Asian, Mediterranean, or Latin American markets if you know what you're looking for or what it's called in another language. Health food markets are an option, but lately they don't seem to be quite as cheap as they once were.
Where are you doing your shopping for these healthy nuggets of joy? Share your tips and city in the comments below!
Related: Fresh Flour: Grinding Whole Grains At Home
(Image: Flickr member emilydickinsonridesabmx licensed for use by Creative Commons )
5 Things Paris Taught Me About Travel
Recipe: Ham, Cheddar & Chive Egg Bakes
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Bacsac Bacsquare 04...
Apartment Therapy's Sofa Shopping Guide
Nikki’s Sweet and Cheery Print Studio
I look for deals on amazon, and there's a local company (I'm in the Pittsburgh area) where I buy in bulk. I had to ask around to find it, but I imagine there are other stores like it in other places. http://www.frankferd.com/
Health food store, in the bulk bins. Oddly, the nearest Ocean State Job Lot also carries a surprising collection of Bob's Red Mill stuff, so occasionally I can get a good deal on those.
I live near a Sprouts and I can find quinoa in the bulk bin there. Sometimes it goes on sale - I just bought some for $2.99/lb. I believe I have seen it in the bulk bins at Whole Foods and even Kroger, as well - although not all Krogers have the bulk bins or health food sections.
Whole Foods is my first choice--especially since they recently expanded the sections in Chicago to include an even wider variety of grains, beans and flours. But for some things, I hit up Indian grocery stores on Devon--particularly rice in large bags, semolina, flattened rice, some beans ... If I had a co-op or something similar nearby, I'd probably try that, but I prefer to my grains from bulk bins, so for me, Whole Foods is pretty much my only option since I don't like having things shipped.
It depends on what we're buying and how much we need/want. For some of the specialty stuff (quinoa, bulgur, etc) we have to hit Whole Foods in the bulk bins. Everything else, we tend to be able to get in our local grocer.
co-op bulk bins.
Mostly I hit up the bulk bins at Sprouts and Whole Foods, but they frequently run out of quinoa. One Safeway near me also has bulk bins and was the only place to find red lentils for a while.
@Jonna, my Big Lots has some Bob's Red Mill, but usually only the soup mixes.
In San Francisco, the bulk bins at Rainbow Co-op Grocery are the best--huge selection and high turnover.
I have been purchasing a lot of these items at my local Big Lots. Recently, they have moved them over to the very very reduced area, and they've been very cheap!
Sometimes you can find them at Costco.
Vitacost.com offers whole grains (and things like quinoa spaghetti noodles) by Bob's Red Mill and other brands at discounted prices, so I've been stocking up from that site periodically.
I but quinoa and brown rice at Winco, and I buy most of my other whole grains from the bulk bins at Winco. I can find most things there, and the few things I can't I get at my monthly trip to a local health food store.
I mean, I BUY quinoa and brown rice at COSTCO ;) whoops.
If you live in Texas (and maybe other SOuthern states, I don't know), Fiesta is hands down the best. I can get 6 months worth of chickpeas for $2 and 6 months of quinoa for maybe $8? Don't even get me started on lentils. I go to the HEB (our Star/Shaws, Krueger, Albertsons equivalent) every week and a half or so for my produce because the selection is strangely broader then, but for pantry staples and spices I stock up at Fiesta every 3 months or so. Did I mention the pirates' stash of saffron I can get there versus the arm and a leg at my regular place? Fiesta is a treasure trove because while it's marketed mostly as the Texican grocery, it has huge European, Middle Eastern, Indian, African, and Carribean selection. The Asian selection is decent, but Austin has a million gigantic Asian grocery stores for a broad selection.
In Canada, so I go to Bulk Barn and as mentioned before, costco.
Costco. Organic, pre-washed Quinoa. (We're in Toronto.)
I used to live about a mile from Bob's Red Mill, so stopped in all the time. They have bulk bins at their store. Now that I've moved a few hours away, I usually stock up when I'm in Oregon. If I need it sooner, I'll stop at the local co-op and buy from the bulk bin.
Local co-op, Trader Joe's, Earthfare, local grocery store, and Whole Foods. But Whole Foods is usually my last resort because the other places are cheaper. I try to buy them in bulk when available.
I do love TJ's Organic Tri-Colored Quinoa, it's quite inviting to the eyes.
Here in Portland,Oregon, Bob's Red Mill is one option, but many of their items are carried in bulk at Winco (also called Cub Foods in some states) - I can buy 25# sacks of steel cut oats or whole wheat flour there, although they can be bought in smaller quantities in the bulk bins. The prices tend to be lower at Winco than at Bob's Red Mill. The selection is very good at Winco, and I can even purchase baking powder in the bulk bins, so that rather than having an entire can of it go stale, I can buy a smaller quantity. Costco also carries some grains, such as various rices, quinoa (an excellent value - I hope they continue to carry it). There are a few items which I have had trouble finding elsewhere, such as whole wheat couscous, which popped up at Trader Joes, of all places! We also live near a store which caters to restaurants, and they carry some grains in larger quantities. I agree with the comments of others re: Whole Foods prices - more than I care to pay. We have a relative wealth of ethnic stores, too, in Portland and Beaverton, and can find a wonderful selection of spices, sesame seeds, sauces, etc. I have ordered some items through Amazon, too, when I have had trouble finding them locally.
Many whole grains originate from other countries, and our family is fortunate to have residents from these countries represented in our neighborhood (University City in Philadelphia). We have a great Middle Eastern market (Makkah Market) that sells farro, wheat berries, and other grains, and a local grocery store (Supreme) carries a lot of grains eaten in South America, including several types of quinoa!
Trader Joes or a great bulk food store in Ann Arbor, MI - By the Pound on Main Street.
If you live in Montreal, QC-- I have two options... Costco or Yupik in Marche Centrale. The nice thing about Yupik is that you pay on a sliding scale. (5 items or more will net you the deepest savings)... I've only ever found mulberries and farro there. I freak out every time I go there... a bag of raw cocoa beans will cost you about $13 per 1/4 kg at the health food store; whereas it'll cost $19 per kg at Yupik (5+ items price). WIN.
You can't get the discounts online, and not everything is listed but... here's the address: [url]http://www.yupik.ca[/url]
Rainbow Grocery! Oh SF, how i love thee.
I live in Provo, Utah at the moment and there's no Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. But Winco has great bulk food bins and Azure Standard sends a route here once a month. Their prices are excellent for organic food.