Supermarkets in Natal

This page brings info for those who need or want to go to supermarkets in Natal.
Reasons to go to a supermarket: if you want to prepare your own food; if you want to save some money (buy stuff and stock in the fridge); if you just want to see what locals buy (you may have a particular interest in visiting the fresh fruits section).
Although there are small groceries and convenience shops all around the city, most people in Natal go to the bigger supermarkets for a monthly or biweekly shopping; some stores sell only expendables (food, hygienic products, etc), while some sell also durable goods (clothing, appliances, etc). The variety of products is about the same in all markets; prices obviously vary, there are frequent "promotions", but none of the bigger chains is clearly cheaper than the others.

The main supermarkets in Natal are:

Carrefour Natal
A subsidiary of French multinational corporation Carrefour. Their only store in Natal is close to Natal Shopping.
Sells food and goods. They claim to have a money back guarantee in case you find another place with lower prices, but the guarantee is full of strings attached. Management is bureaucratic: just getting an erroneous price fixed (hint: compare the price announced with the price actually charged) takes a lot of talking.
The only credit card accepted is their own.

Hiper Bom Preço
Two stores, one on the way to Ponta Negra and the other closer to Praia do Meio. (Update 2004) It is a property of Dutch multinational Ahold. (Update 2006) Now, it belongs to American group Wal Mart.
Bom Preço has a very good bakery (which makes several kinds of bread, sweets, etc, many of which prepared with a Brazilian touch; if you enjoy bread, you should visit this bakery), and (usually, but not always) a good selection of fish and sea food.
Hiper is also the market with the best air-conditioning system in Natal.

Nordestao (no website!)
Several stores across the city, easily identifiable by a big Brazilian flag.
Doesn't sell goods. A particularly good fruits section.



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