Grocery stores in Spain and Malta are smaller, with a de-emphasis on pre-packaged food.   Meat shops abound where they’ll cut your chops or ribs to order.  Fish markets and produce shops are also common.  A practice I haven’t seen in the states is the locking up of grocery carts.

So, to use a cart, you insert a coin (a 50 cent piece) into the slot in the black box.  This releases the chain that links it to the cart in front of it.  When you’re finished with the cart, you reinsert the chain from another cart, which slides your coin back into your hand.  Result: no stray carts.  The smaller plastic hand baskets are ‘free’ to use, but will set off an alarm (personal experience) if you bring them through the checkout counter.  You leave them at the beginning of the checkout belt.  (They’re very tolerant of us rookies.  Either that or they’re cursing at me in Spanish with a smile 🙂

Walking to the market is the norm here, so these pull carts are common.   The larger markets provide a means to lock your cart up while you’re shopping. You retrieve it and load it up after check out, and you’re on your way. Our apartment includes one, but I haven’t used it yet, as our grocery lists are short plus the store in only 1 block away.

If you happen to have the pups with you, appears to be no problem to leave them tied up outside or inside the store while you gather your goodies. Laura