Which Raleigh grocery stores have the best prices on hot bars & salad bars? We checked
Downtown Raleigh’s Weaver Street Market was quiet enough one sunny afternoon in February to hear upbeat tracks by Sia and Phantom Planet in the background. But some shoppers could still be found browsing the store.
Sarah Holton, who works in the Pendo building just blocks away on Hillsborough Street, was assembling her lunch at the salad bar.
She grabs meals from Weaver Street Market about once every couple of weeks, she told The News & Observer. The pickled onions and marinated mushrooms are her favorites.
“I usually come when I don’t have enough time to make my own lunch because I’m too busy making my kids’ lunches,” Holton said. “And when I also feel like I need some good vegetables.”
Weaver Street Market is one of many grocers in the Triangle that offers a build-your-own meal bar of some kind, whether it’s stocked with greens, wings or something in between.
While the menus differ — by store and by time of day — the bars provide convenience. Shoppers can get exactly what they want in exact quantities, and have food ready to eat as fast as they can package and pay for it.
The News & Observer checked prices at nine grocery stores in Raleigh that allow customers to build their own to-go meals to find the best value.
First, the fine print
There are more than a dozen grocery stores and wholesale clubs in the Triangle, but not all of them have a BYO bar of some variety. This story only considers the stores with hot bars and/or salad bars.
We made trips to nine stores in February to record per-pound prices.
Raleigh grocery store hot bar prices
Wegmans charges the highest prices at its hot bar — $15.99 per pound of wings and Asian foods.
On the other end, Carlie C’s IGA is the cheapest option. There, salad is $7.99 per pound, and wings are $8.99 per pound.
What’s on the menu at each hot bar?
Carlie C’s IGA offers a salad bar with several greens options plus toppings such as sliced bell peppers, cheese, cucumbers, tomatoes, broccoli florets, red onions and fresh fruit. There are a handful of cubed meats for protein and a range of dressings for drizzling.
Wings come in flavors such as garlic parmesan and sweet and spicy barbecue.
At the store at Strickland and Falls of Neuse, Food Lion’s hot bar has two cuisines: wings and Asian foods. The hot bar is open 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 4-7 p.m.
Shopper Nancy Streeter visits the store every week for chicken wings. “It’s clean, and it’s good,” she said of the store.
Among the Asian foods, shoppers might see vegetable fried rice and lo mein, chicken egg rolls, black pepper steak and sesame orange chicken.
Nutritional information and descriptions of the boneless and bone-in wings, sides (like mozzarella sticks) and Asian foods are available in cards attached to Food Lion’s hot bar.
Harris Teeter’s hot bar prices vary throughout the day.
- Breakfast, served 7-10 a.m. Monday-Friday, costs $9.99 per pound.
- Lunch is served weekdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. It costs $11.99 per pound.
- Dinner is available 4-7 p.m. Monday-Friday and costs $11.99 per pound.
- On Saturday and Sunday, brunch is available 9 a.m.-1 p.m. for $9.99 per pound.
Shoppers may find among the trays items such as beef and broccoli, chicken and pasta salads, fresh fruits, salmon and chicken.
At Lowes Foods, customers can build a salad with their choice of lettuce bases topped with items including hard-boiled eggs, sliced celery, cheeses, meats, carrots, cucumbers and mushrooms, along with dressings.
There’s also a soup bar with three choices that change daily, though “cock-a-doodle noodle” is a constant.
Like Lowes Foods, Publix has a soup bar with a rotating menu.
The Florida-based grocer also features a salad bar — open 10 a.m.-7 p.m. — where shoppers may select specialty salads including pancetta and blue cheese wedge salad, caprese pasta salad and tabbouleh salad, along with the usual green suspects and toppings.
Publix offers meats such as chicken tenders and fried fish and shrimp by the pound, but shoppers must order those from the counter.
The Fresh Market’s antipasti bar is an olive-lover’s paradise. Dry-cured black, pitted calamata piccante, feta-stuffed and grilled green are a sampling of the choices.
Ready-to-eat salads and side dishes are available at the Greensboro-based grocer, but they’re behind cases, so employees have to assist customers.
At Weaver Street Market in downtown Raleigh, shoppers can find salad, soups, vegetables and other items from the self-serve bars.
Michele Block, who works near the West Hargett Street co-op, buys a meal of veggies and a starch, like rice or potatoes, from the hot bar about once every couple of weeks, she told The N&O.
“It’s convenient,” she said.
After picking up food from the store, whether it’s from the hot bar or the counter, shoppers may eat at the tables upstairs.
Whole Foods Market has one of the largest selections in its self-serve bar, which includes multiple soups, salad and ample accoutrements. Shoppers may see among the rows of foods fried chicken tenders, macaroni and cheese, roasted zucchini and mixed veggies.
Labels identifying each item also indicate whether the food is, for example, vegetarian, vegan, plant-based or keto-friendly.
In addition to its fresh pizzas, custom sandwiches and The Burger Bar, Wegmans has a wing bar, Asian bar and soup bar.
Among the Asian foods, shoppers may find stir fry broccoli and mushrooms, spicy General Tso chicken and fried rice. These foods, along with the chicken varieties including garlic parmesan chicken wings and sweet ‘n spicy chicken wings, cost $15.99 per pound and are available 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 4-7 p.m. daily at the Raleigh location.
Wegmans also offers self-serve soups, which can be placed in small, medium or large containers. A medium container is 16 ounces.
Like Weaver Street Market and several other grocery stores, Wegmans has a designated area where shoppers can sit and eat their food.
This story was originally published March 12, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
