Lahore, THIS Is Why You Need To Grocery Shop Online!

I don’t know about you, but it took me decades to become a grocery shopping ninja. 

Through the pre-adulting wonder years, it was as easy as arriving at Al-Fatah, grabbing a Shezan mango and some Super Crisps, and watching Nano slice and dice her way through the entire ordeal like some supermarket sensei. 

The golden days of college entailed an obscene diet of dorm food, bean and cheese burritos and, once a week, cooking a massive, mostly desi meal to share with a horde of hungry friends, but pulling that off literally a no-brainer — hitch a ride to the nearest Indian store, pick up Shaan masalas, buy ingredients listed on the backs of those boxes. Boom. Done. 

And then I got married…*dun dun duuuuun*…and shit hitteth the fan. 

Basically, after moving in, like a good ghareloo bahu (and an A-grade idiot), I offered to take over the sauda-stocking scenario. I probably should’ve stopped to consider that a) I’d never gone grocery shopping on such a massive scale and b) I had no idea what these people shopped for, but, no, I was a fool in love. My mother-in-law resolved the latter dilemma by handing me a three-page (back and front) list scrawled in Urdu. Bullets of sweat broke out. I dialed in my besties for back-up and almost half the day later, we wrapped up an expedition that can only be described as waging war with over-zealous, jiu-jitsu trained aunties battling it out in a Game of Thrones: Ghee Edition. 

Between then and now, I’ve tried more than a couple of “systems” to make the entire process less painful — Excel sheets, streamlined lists, highlighting old receipts, memorizing the layout of my favorite grocery store, hefty tips — but about a year and a half ago I called it quits. Not because I’m a quitter, FFS, but because Allah Mian loves me and some genius launched 24/Seven.pk, Lahore’s first full-scale online grocery shopping app and website.

THIS is a goddamn revolution, folks!

Not only do they carry thousands of products from all of my go-to brands — from grocery items (including fruits and veggies), to toiletries, to cleaning supplies, to pet food, and pretty much everything in between — 24/Seven also has an awesome bakery section courtesy of Kitchen Cuisine and fresh, organic produce from Nadoz Greenz. Wikka, wikka, whaaaaa!

No lies, Lahore, this isn’t just a grocery shopping game-changer — it’s literally the answer to all my domestic house-wifey prayers and here’s why you need to hop on this gravy train, like, right now.

Convenience, Duh: You mean I can lounge in my ugliest nightie, sip chai with some light Justin Bieber playing in the background, shop at ungodly hours sans the kids, and buy a mountain of Doritos without being stared down by judgey, organic-only yoga moms? Why would anyone say no to that?

Zero Hassle: No traffic, no crowds, no lines, no tipping 10 cashiers because even though they didn’t do jack they said, “slalaikum, baji.”

Bye, Bye Impulse Buys: No tiny cups of insanely expensive Haagen-Dazs, no crazy candy aisle, no old-ass imported juices, no cute eidee/ salaami envelopes, lingering in your face, tempting your weak soul while you try to will your wallet shut.

No Freak Out At Check Out: When the cashiers at Al-Fatah start screeching item codes at checkout time, for a second, I marvel at their monster memory banks. Then, I low-key panic because, let’s be real, those numbers sound random as hell. Most times, that’s obviously not the case, but because I have no clue what “baasat code batti panji chappan” means, how can I be 100% certain I haven’t just put a down-payment on a three-legged unicorn?

Point is, I like a neat little breakdown of my bill, preferably with tiny pictures, so that I can save myself an anxiety attack and actually know what I’m buying, while I’m buying it, complete with clearly marked prices and clearly listed quantities, thankyouverymuch.

Snug As A Bug: This might sound like a strange one, but with a sudden uptick in violence across the city, you’re not insane if you want to limit unnecessary trips to crowded markets and department stores. Instead, sit back safe and let technology take care of the rest.

Dude, They DELIVER: Oh yeah, uh huh, uh huh *shoulder shimmy*

SECRET SUPER PERK 💃 - Cut Your Brain Some Slack: Do you know what one of the shittiest feelings in the world is? Pulling into the driveway after an endless supermarket run and suddenly remembering you forgot the frickin’ Sufi soap! 

Yup, even though you buy the same staples month after, there’s always that one sneaky sucker that slips through the cracks. 

No more, darlings, no more.

Create a user account with 24/Seven and they’ll save all of your previous orders and, with a single click, they’ll load any of those orders right back into your cart* the next time you go shopping — yes, even your mom’s 3000 item long monthly raashan! Add new items, ditch the ones you don’t need, clickety-click to check-out, and, peace, home-fries.

Tell me we’re not living in the future!

Now go, download the 24/Seven app for iOs or your Android or mosey on over to their website and sign up for a user account to get an instant Rs. 50/- credit. Mm-hmm, kiss that supermarket stress buh-bye, fo’evaaa. 

* This feature is currently only available on the 24/Seven.pk website. The 24/Seven App is slated to include this feature starting early April.