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Here’s how grocers are trying to steal Valentine’s Day dollars from restaurantsHere’s how grocers are trying to steal Valentine’s Day dollars from restaurants

Food retailers say skip the reservations and pick up what you need for a cozy night at home

Heather Lalley, Managing editor

February 11, 2025

3 Min Read
Sliced steak, bottle of red wine
Walmart is offering a Valentine's Day steak dinner for under $50. Walmart

The competition between grocers and restaurants for consumers’ food dollars has intensified in recent years, driven by a widening (though now slimmer) inflation gap between the two.

We’ve seen grocers step up their prepared meal offerings and in-store foodservice selections and now, it seems, they’re trying to horn in on a time-honored tradition: Going out to a restaurant for a Valentine’s Day date.

Enter the country’s biggest grocery-seller, Walmart. This year, the retail giant is offering up a steak dinner for two for under $50, all available for one click.

Head to Walmart.com/steakdinner and two New York strip steaks, a package of steam-in-bag asparagus, a side of heat-and-eat mashed potatoes, a bottle of California red wine, and two slices of cheesecake can be added to your cart. (On the North Side of Chicago, that comes to $43.87, a price that’d be tough to beat at any sit-down restaurant.)

Walmart is also selling heart-shaped cakes ($16.97 for a single layer and $24.98 for two tiers) and offers floral delivery to go with the meal. Delivery is available in as soon as 30 minutes with the chain’s Express Delivery option.

Consumers are looking to purchase simple gifts for Valentine’s Day, with 62% opting for chocolates, 43% buying cards, and just 33% springing for dinner out, according to data from Kroger’s research arm, 84.51.

Related:DoorDash and Instacart to square off with Super Bowl commercials

Batavia, Ill.-based discount grocer Aldi, known for its budget-friendly store brands, is also promoting a range of Valentine’s Day date night offerings, including lobster ravioli, petite sirloin steaks, stuffed Atlantic salmon, and twin packs of cheesecake.

“Looking to impress that special someone without breaking the bank?” Aldi’s website states. “Whip up a surf and turf Valentine’s Day dinner from Aldi.”

The Fresh Market, based in Greensboro, N.C., is billing its Sweetheart Ribeye, trimmed in the shape of a heart, as “cupid’s secret weapon,” and suggests pairing the steak with Heart-Shaped Maryland Crab Cakes and red wine. The grocer also offers take-and-bake brie wrapped in puff pastry, heart-shaped crackers, as well as instructions on its website for making salami roses to garnish a charcuterie plate.

Texas-based H-E-B is also selling a heart-shaped ribeye steak among its Valentine offerings, as well as ready-to-eat sushi combos in pink, heart-shaped packaging. The regional grocer also sells an assortment of chocolate-dipped strawberries decorated with toppings like pecans and crushed cookies.

Whole Foods takes the competition a step further, urging shoppers to “skip the reservations” with its ultimate Valentine’s Day dinner spread.

Related:Mollie Stone’s joins the loyalty bandwagon

“Why brave the Valentine’s Day scramble for a restaurant reservation when you can go tothe best restaurant of all: The one in your kitchen,” the Amazon-owned grocer says on its website. “You don’t need to make a reservation, you get to call the shots on the lighting, the music—and most importantly—the menu.”

For that menu, Whole Foods recommends ribeye paired with lobster tail, served with twice-baked potatoes, lemony roasted asparagus, chocolate-covered strawberries, and a crisp Champagne. 

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About the Author

Heather Lalley

Managing editor

Heather Lalley is the managing editor of Restaurant Business, Foodservice Director and CSP Daily news. She previously served as editor in chief of Winsight Grocery Business.

Before joining Winsight and Informa, Heather spent nearly a decade as a reporter for the daily newspaper in Spokane, Washington. She is the author of "The Chicago Homegrown Cookbook." She holds a journalism degree from Northwestern University and is a graduate of the two-year baking and pastry program at Washburne Culinary Institute in Chicago.

She is the mother of two and rarely passes up a chance to eat tater tots.

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