I visited Food Lion for the first time, and the grocery store is truly a coupon lover's dream

Food Lion, a grocery store owned by Ahold Delhaize USA with locations in 10 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states, prioritizes affordability, freshness, and community engagement, according to the company's website. 

Grocery shopping is probably one of my favorite activities. I love spending time in the produce section and scanning the different aisles for ingredients that inspire me. Part of the fun, in my opinion, is exploring different stores and markets wherever I go.

So on a recent trip to Charleston, South Carolina, I spent some time walking the aisles of Food Lion to see what it was like. 

With tall ceilings and loads of floor space between sections and aisles, this Food Lion location felt like a true supermarket rather than just a grocery store. 

I didn't see anyone struggling to get their cart past another customer's (something I see and experience myself a lot in New York), and there was ample space for checkout lines to form. 

Each aisle was plastered with yellow-and-red sale signs in numbers too high to count. From the company's website, I knew that it was big on affordability, but these just confirmed that they put that value into practice. 

I'm not used to seeing seven shelves stretching almost the entire length of a long grocer aisle filled with at-home baking mixes. Usually, at the smaller stores I visit, it's just a few rows that are maybe five or six boxes wide. 

This selection was overwhelming in the best way, and they seemed to have plenty of each mix in stock. 

The shelves were fully stocked with more than nine different brands. From marinara to vodka sauce, blends that included garlic and ones that featured herbs, shoppers had plenty to choose from. 

I also saw that Rao's (which is one of my favorite jarred sauces) was on sale for $5.90. I seriously contemplated buying two jars and bringing them back to NYC with me where they typically sell for just under $9. 

I saw store-brand products ranging from frozen meatballs to milk jugs to packaged pasta. 

These products generally seemed to be priced lower than the name-brand alternatives, though that was dependent on whether there was a sale. 

I'm used to seeing one or two aisles of freezers and refrigerators, but not as long as they were at this Charleston Food Lion. 

Filled with the usual frozen fruits and veggies, ice cream, frozen dinners, and, of course, french fries, I was impressed with how many of these items were also on sale. 

Directly to the right of the store's entrance, I saw a small section of prepared foods, which included ready-to-grab, already hot fried-chicken pieces. I see this in my local grocery stores as well, so it felt familiar. 

This was part of the deli section, where customers could order sandwiches and meats as well. 

Next to the chicken station was the bakery. There were already-made cakes available for purchase in all shapes, sizes, and colors, as well as a station where you could order a custom cake.

I tried one of the store's plain vanilla sheet cakes for myself, and while I didn't love the sugary icing, I thought it would have been OK as a last-minute addition to a celebration.

Neither section was as overwhelmingly impressive as the store's dry-goods options, but I think there were still plenty of sales to make it worth your while. 

In my experience with this one Food Lion location, packaged goods seem to be where the store's ability to provide variety really shines. 

There were more options for packaged deli meats here than I've seen at other stores I'm used to visiting. 

Options dwindled again when it came to milk and eggs. 

I also noticed that this store didn't have a butcher. Instead, it offered a range of already-cut steaks, poultry, pork, and fish. 

Making my way back to the front, I came across a vast alcohol section. The store was selling just beer, hard seltzer, and wine, but that was still something I'm not used to in New York because of state laws — though I have seen it in other parts of the country. 

While some departments were more robust than others, and I do love being able to speak with a butcher during my shopping trips, I left Food Lion wishing I had a similar option by my apartment in New York. 

The number of sales combined with the level of variety was enough to make me frustrated that this chain is only in 10 states.