Sainsbury's Chipping Norton

On the edge of town

The proper weekly shop

Every stay needs one big shop, and this is where we do it. The Sainsbury's in Chipping Norton is a full-size superstore on the edge of town, which makes it the one place near the cottage where you can fill an entire trolley in a single go: fresh fruit and veg, meat and fish, a bakery, the wine aisle, and the whole boring-but-essential middle of the store where the loo roll, dishwasher tablets and bin bags live. If you are settling in for a week, this is the arrival stock-up that sets the rest of it up.

Being a superstore rather than a high-street food hall, it simply carries more of everything. That matters when you have a houseful to feed for seven days and would rather not be nipping out for one forgotten thing each evening. There is a generous car park that rarely fills, so loading up a week's worth into the boot is painless, and it is an easy fifteen minutes from the cottage by car. Do this shop on your first morning and the fridge is full before you have properly unpacked, which frees up the rest of the week for the good stuff: long lunches, farm-shop detours and not thinking about food at all.

“Do the one big shop here on your first morning, then spend the rest of the week raiding farm shops for the good stuff.”

What goes in the trolley

A week in a cottage full of people eats through the basics faster than you expect. This is the list we work through on that first big run, and a superstore covers all of it under one roof.

• The staplesMilk, bread, butter, eggs, tea and coffee, plus the tins, pasta and rice that quietly hold a self-catering week together.
• Fridge fillersCheese, yoghurt, ham, salad and snacks for the days you are out walking or down at Soho Farmhouse and nobody wants to cook.
• The unglamorous essentialsLoo roll, kitchen roll, washing-up liquid, bin bags and dishwasher tablets: the things you only notice when they run out.
• Drinks for the weekA case of something, a few decent bottles of wine and soft drinks for the children, bought once rather than in dribs and drabs.

Which shop for which job

Chipping Norton is unusually well served for a market town, and each of the supermarkets earns its place for a different reason. It is worth knowing which to point the car at before you set off.

Come to Sainsbury's for the proper weekly shop, when you want to fill a whole trolley in one trip. The M&S Foodhall on the high street is the treat run and the first-night dinner: a roast chicken, a good bottle and the bits nobody feels like cooking after a long drive. The Co-op is right in the middle of town for quick top-ups and the one thing you forgot. And Aldi is the budget option when you are feeding a crowd and watching the total. Between the four of them you can stock the cottage kitchen without ever driving far.

Little and often, or one big run

We tend to do the one big superstore shop here early in the week, then top up from the farm shops and delis closer to the cottage for the more interesting things: local cheese, proper bread, seasonal veg. It is a good rhythm. Sainsbury's handles the staples and the fridge fillers; the independents handle the things you will actually remember eating. If you would rather order ahead, a full-size store like this is also the natural place to arrange a click-and-collect so it is waiting when you arrive, though it is worth checking slots on the day.

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Also nearby

• Co-op Chipping Norton · Supermarket · Chipping Norton
• M&S Chipping Norton · Food hall · Chipping Norton
• Aldi Chipping Norton · Supermarket · Chipping Norton