Tips to survive grocery shopping in Qatar

Expat shopping is always a game, but right now I am on the verge of winning!  It is still taking a little work to get used to the fact that everything costs two to three times what it does in the States AT LEAST, but once you wrap your mind around that and establish a "three times the normal price is the new normal" mindset, things start to go much better!  So, in the interests of helping out the next person who moves here and does the same exhaustive Googling I did, here are some tricks I've picked up so far:

1. Arabic writing on labels is your friend, especially if you recognize the label otherwise.  Philadelphia cream cheese imported from the US?  A gazillion Riyals.  Philadelphia cream cheese with labels in Greek and Arabic?  The same price as a local product also called "cream cheese."  I haven't tried this one out yet, but there's no need when Philly is also available!
2. Which leads me to my second tip: try the local brands.  No, better yet, love the local brands!  As I said, most food items are two to three times more expensive than I'm used to (although my Canadian friends here find Qatar to be quite reasonable, which makes me sad for our neighbors to the North), but imported foods are always at least that and then some.  (Just one example from today's grocery run, I just saw Ragu pasta sauce for over $6 a jar.  Fancy Italian-American brand I could have bought at home but never did?  $9 a jar.)  And yet, right there on the same shelf, other brands of pasta sauce (with Arabic) for only $2-3 for the same size.  My theory is try them all and find the local one you like best.  And never look back.  Your wallet will thank you!
3. Embrace the unexpected.  I told you all about my love for bottled lemon mint, right?  A friend here mentioned that her son loves that carrot-orange juice and is so sad when he is back in the States and can't have it.  I am all about finding new favorites and eating them into oblivion and then mourning their loss on our visits elsewhere instead of constantly obsessing over things I can't have (root beer, I'm decidedly NOT looking in your direction).  Have you heard of Tim Tam cookies?  They're caramel-filled, chocolate-coated biscuits that taste a lot like Twix bars but are much, much cheaper and kept with the crackers so you feel almost virtuous picking them up!
4. Suspend logic in favor of diligence.  What's that, you say, it makes no sense that applesauce would be kept with all the other sauces, like barbecue sauce or cocktail sauce or hoisin sauce, so why would you think to look there?  But oh, my friend, if you didn't, then no applesauce for you.  And why are tortillas kept in three different parts of the store, including with the "ethnic" foods, in the refrigerated imported snacks aisle, and in the bread section?  No idea, but the ones in the bread section are cheapest, though still a staggering $4 for a package of 6 (it hurts me even to type that, let alone pick up two packages).
5. Become a hoarder.  The availability of products varies wildly here.  If you see something you know you use and love and haven't seen before much, like, say, today's bounty, corn meal (I am so excited about this, I can't even tell you!!!) buy as many as you think you can use before the expiration date.  Actually, today was a red-letter day: not only did I find Quaker yellow corn meal (!!!), I also found another product I'd never seen before called Aunt Jemima's self-rising white corn meal mix that contains corn meal and leavening agents and will also make great cornbread.  I bought both.  I will probably go back tomorrow and buy some more of the yellow corn meal just to be safe.  I know people who have stock piles of canned black beans, which are notoriously difficult to find here.  And don't think I won't stockpile them myself if I am ever lucky enough to beat them next time!

I'm sure I will have more tidbits in the future; I'm only a month in, folks! I am planning on being an expert at this before I leave, whenever that is!