Brisbane has come a long way over the years but it can still be frustrating trying to get a decent…read moremeal late at night. Hospitality workers, shift labourers and the inveterately disorganised know this fact only too well - if you end up trying to sort out dinner after the 9pm mark on a weekday you won't be able to get anything from the major supermarkets and your takeaway options will be seriously limited. That's why I appreciate the role of chains like IGA. To me, they represent the happiest compromise possible between a 24-hour convenience store and a full-blown supermarket. IGA Milton has an especially good range and boasts impressive opening hours: 6am - midnight 365 days a year (foreign readers from countries where 24-hour supermarkets are easy to find will have to excuse my excitement)! The deli here is quite gourmet, with a good selection of salamis and prosciutto as well as an array of olives. There are also some wholesome ready to eat salads and other heat-and-eat options like tortilla stacks. The nearby cheese selection showcases a well sourced selection of brie, camembert, blue and many others. I've even bought a very tasty pre-made sand crab lasagne from the refrigerated section. I suppose we have the area's high socio-economic status to thank for these epicurean touches.

Yep, I'm jumping on the bandwagon to rave about Baroona Road IGA. Such a sellout, aren't I? Hardly…read more Have you ever tried getting a park in Baroona Road Centro? It's a nightmare! My roommate laughs at me every time I say I'm popping down there for groceries and sarcastically wishes me luck getting a park, and he's not wrong. It's every man for himself when it comes to parking at this place. Horrible parking experiences aside though, this IGA is a godsend. The amount of times I've panicked when I've had nothing to take to work for lunch the next day or I've run out of milk and this place has saved me, I simply cannot count. One particular occasion I forgot it was a coworker's birthday the next day so I frantically rushed into Milton IGA at around 11pm and quickly swiped up a chocolate mud cake. It's a constant topic of conversation in my house how amazing the Baroona Road IGA's opening hours are. 6am to 12am every night; how does it get any better than that? Plus it's a TINY place, and yet I always seem to be able to find everything my heart desires. How do they manage to pack all that stuff into this tiny little space? Beats me, but they do. I prefer it to even larger supermarkets where they'd have about five hundred different brands of washing powder or mango juice because Baroona Road IGA always has what I need. For a small place, it has a ridiculously amazing selection of gourmet cheeses and healthy cooking options, plus a better range of caesar salads than I see in larger IGAs or Woolworths stores. Rather than go to Toowong's large and probably cheaper Coles, I prefer to go here. It's more convenient, and the selection is excellent. It's far better than any other chain grocery store I've experienced thus far. Everything is super easy to find whether you're in a rush or planning a larger shop. Because of Baroona Road IGA, I never go hungry. If you're a Milton/Auchenflower local, you'll find that you cherish and appreciate this IGA as much as me; if you survive the rat race of the car park out front, that is.

Standard, run of the mill 7-Eleven store. Range within this store is comparable to others. There is…read morea private car park and it is located next to a couple of bottle shops if you need to buy beer with your potato chips.

Oh look, yet another convenience store in West End. What is it about this place that makes it so…read moreconducive to having such a large number in operation? It must be all the munchies going on. What sets this place apart is the amount of Asian groceries you can get here. The store has about four aisles, two of which are dedicated to Asian 'cuisine'. The inverted commas are necessary because I'm not sure two minute noodles, no matter how many Chinese characters appear on the packaging, can be considered cuisine. But it is a tiny supermarket so I don't think they can be criticised for their choice to stock long-life products. Of course they still have the same stuff every other convenience store does; cold drinks, snacks, basic ingredients and toiletries and pre-paid phone credit. I like that this one has a little something extra.

I've always wondered what the W in W supermarket stood for…read more For a while I thought it was for Westend, but now I'm sure it's for WHATEVER. (And it really does offer a hodgepodge of products that fall under the "Whatever you could possibly Need from a convenience store" umbrella.) My favourite aspect of this store is the large range of asian groceries on display, from hello pandas, pockys and chocolate to shampoos, noodles and dried ginger there is something to satisfy everyones wants. Be sure to also check out their fridge full of delectable asian ice creams (Green Tea or blue lemonade = my life guys) Right on Melbourne St, This little store is well worth a peep in when cruising through Westend.

I often visit this 7-11 before work and on my breaks. It is clean with usually short lines, polite…read morestaff and a large, varied selection. It is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This 7-eleven has slurpee machine, ice cream freezer, coffee machine, ATM, MoneyGram machine, translink top ups, milk, bread, gum, lozenges, stationary, cards, gift bags, gift/game cards and a range of junk food. It also has health and beauty products, baby care products, toiletries, does mobile recharges and sim cards. There's also a great range of drinks, hot pies, sausage rolls and muffins. The coffee is super cheap - $1 for regular or $2 for a large and not half bad, and they also have $2 hot chocolate for those cold nights. They have healthy options such as yoghurt, bananas, apples, wraps, sushi and sandwiches. My favourite are the egg and mayo sandwiches (yet the bread can be a bit stale), the ham salad wraps, the mango cups, and cheese and crackers. Once they ran out of spoons for two days, which annoyed me as I wanted a spoon for my coffee. Expensive like most convenience stores, yet convenient. Great for when I forget something for work.

I go in every fortnight and the young man that serves me each time is so very polite and with a…read morelovely smile and even have a laugh with him. Great little store

I'm not sure this store is exactly what I would call 'convenient'; unless you've been hit by…read morecravings for some junk food or that's all your diet consists of, they won't be able to help you too much. It's a tiny little place so I suppose they've had to make some decisions as to what sells best, and they have decided to fill their shelves with mainly chips and chocolate, with a few toiletries shunned to one side on a shelf of their own. Yes, it's convenient for certain things, but not if you're in need of some last minute ingredients for dinner or don't fancy the idea of heart disease. When I called to check the opening times, the guy on the other end of the line informed me when they open quite decisively. As to when they close he didn't sound too sure - their closing time depends on trade, so be warned that what is listed is not set in stone by any means.

A swell little supermarket. Seemed to be quite busy when I was there, but the staff were pretty…read morerelaxed. Opening hours are very convenient, especially if you've had a few at the pub and need something on the way home. I bought my first ever Go card here, so this IGA will always hold a special place in my heart.

This IGA is the size of a medium sized supermarket, yet it's open at convenience store times of day…read more(6am - 12am). Store produce is made up of your usual supermarket stock (including the Black & Gold brand) but a tempting range of international influences can be found in their extensive deli and bakery. You might not have come here craving a Cheesecake Shop Cheesecake or a biscotti, but you'll probably be haunted by it for days to come.