The 5 Best Grocery Stores to Go to If You Have to Drag Your Kids Along

This month we’re talking about all the different ways we grocery shop now, including the story of a guy who shops online to protect his mental health, secret tips for Costco shoppers, and the definitive guide to bagging your own groceries. Check out the complete series here.

Costco obsessives share their best tips for getting the most out of the bulk-shopping behemoth.

I used to dread taking my kids to the grocery store. It’s enough to take them kicking and screaming to their own after-school activities, but to take them to run an errand that wasn’t centered around their world—the horror. I tried Instacart and other grocery deliveries, but I would often forget the one item I really needed to get dinner on the table. So off I would go, bracing myself for a meltdown in aisle five, often over the flavor of Annie’s bunnies, or a tantrum that resulted in a game of dominoes with the boxed macaroni display.

Then one day I walked into Trader Joe’s and an employee asked my son, “Have you found the eagle?” Those five strange words changed my grocery experience forever. It turns out that Trader Joe’s hides a stuffed eagle in a different place in the store each day. Kids who find it are rewarded handsomely at checkout with an organic lollipop.

Once my kids had a purpose in the store, other than pulling things off the shelves, they started to love grocery shopping, and dare I say, about 75% of the time I actually enjoy going to the grocery store with them too. So, I started to investigate what grocery stores offered and I was pleasantly surprised to see the effort, especially at these five spots.

Trader Joe’s

Many frequent TJ’s for their cult favorite products (hello, dark chocolate–covered almonds), but I frequent the store for my own sanity. The aforementioned eagle keeps my kids focused while I load up my cart with things that are actually on my list. The store's employees creatively perch the bird in floral wreathes or next to the new products chalkboard, so this is a search and find activity, not a 30-second distraction.

The sample station is another highlight. There, kids can drink juice and fall in love with a new dish that they probably would never touch if it was on your own kitchen table. If the oh-so-kind employees see kids on the verge of a tantrum because they don’t like the sample, they often offer a cookie to nip it in the bud. Some TJ’s also have free, mini fresh fruit stands available if your kid needs another snack along the way.

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At checkout, kids score a bunch of fun, seasonal stickers that are sometimes even scratch n’ sniff. If you are noticeably struggling with your groceries, even if you don’t scream “help me!” first, they’ll ring the bell to get someone to walk them out to your car for you.

Mariano’s

This Chicago-based grocery store entices kids from the get go with their souped-up, double-seater car carts. Many grocery stores have race car carts, but Mariano’s has the cream of the crop: taxis, firetrucks, police cars, hot pink flower cars, and even the rare John Deere tractor. They are bulkier to navigate than your average cart, but kids will actually want to stay inside them, rather than darting off to find bunny crackers while you have your back turned.

Fresh squeezed orange juice and blueberry muffins are often offered within 150 feet of the entrance, squelching the “I’m hungry” whines from the get-go. The deli counter will always give a slice of meat, cheese samples are available in the cheese section, and at some locations there is guacamole crafted and sampled on site. The stores also frequently host kid-friendly concerts and arts and crafts activities.

If this doesn't entertain and distract your little ones enough for you to successfully get through your list, divert your cart immediately to Mariano's prepared foods section (taco bar, sushi station, BBQ spot) and forgo cooking for the night. They also use the app ClickList (as do many grocery stores across the country) so if you can plan in advance, you can avoid going in to the store and have the groceries delivered to the parking lot on the way to soccer practice.

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Publix

If your kids do well with the less-is-more approach, these Southeastern grocery stores are perfect. A free cookie is available as you roll by the bakery and a balloon is handed out at customer service or checkout. Some of the party-planning desks have crayons and coloring pages to squelch the “Are we there yet?” calls on the way home, and the store also offers a free smash cake with the purchase of a cake for your child's first birthday. Plus, some of their stores have specific checkout lanes free of candy and magazines—the things kids most often grab and have tantrums over. The best part? After you pay, an employee will wheel your cart to your car while you corral your kids.

Stew Leonard’s

These tri-state New York area grocery stores, a.k.a., “The Disneyland of Dairy,” offer plenty of distractions at the ready. They have a dizzying array of dancing animatronics (a la Chuck E. Cheese) that kids can control with the push of a button, so they can watch skateboarding bananas, singing chickens, and piano-playing vegetables while you grab what you need.

Wow the Cow often wanders the store (so if your kids are fearful of dressed-up characters, maybe steer clear) and there are samples in every department, from freshly baked cookies in the bakery to chicken burgers at the butcher and Not Your Mama’s Brussels sprouts (with maple syrup and bacon) in the produce department. Several locations also features Stew’s Little Farm—petting zoos where kids can visit and feed animals and eat ice cream, which is a great prize at the end of a successful shopping trip.

Fred Meyer

If grocery shopping with your kids still sounds downright miserable, then Fred Meyer would be your ultimate pick. This Pacific Northwest grocery chain offers a free Playland (read: babysitting room) at select locations, where young kids (mostly aged 2-6) can color, play, craft, and read with trained childcare staff while you have a blissful hour to grocery shop without the kids in tow. Since it may not take a full hour (and if it does you can always pop in to see if the kids can stay a tad bit longer if they aren’t at capacity), there’s no harm in taking the extra time for a moment of zen. Flip through a magazine or grab a coffee while you're still alone—you’ll be a better parent for it.