New Yorkers tell painful stories about overpriced groceries while shopping

Inflation may have eased a little, but high prices are still hitting consumers hard.

The Post spoke to New Yorkers at the city’s grocery stores about how rising prices for staple foods are forcing them to change their habits and cut costs.

Here are their stories:

Joey Rafanan, 76, East Village, Manhattan

Inflation is hard on the retired doctor because it forces him to cut back on his favorite food, eggs.

“I used to eat eggs every day for breakfast, [I was] I buy eggs all the time. I would eat scrambled eggs five days a week,” he said. “I would eat boiled eggs at night as a snack while watching TV, but now I can’t do that, it’s too much.”

Rafanan, who was shopping at Trader Joe’s in Union Square on Thursday, even had to reduce the size of the eggs he eats.

“I used to buy big eggs, but now they are big or regular. Now I mix eggs with tomatoes, with potatoes,” he said. “I’d buy [bigger] eggs and meat every week, but now I can’t afford it.”

Fran Carpentier, East Village, Manhattan

A freelance editor and mother of a young son said that milk constantly empties her wallet.

“The cows went on strike and I missed?” she said. “I feel sorry for everyone who is raising small children and has to buy a lot of milk.”

Recently, she has reduced her consumption of meat dishes, including butter and steaks, due to sky-high prices in supermarkets.

“I worry every day about how much it costs me to serve food to the table,” she said, adding that even her Thanksgiving dinner was more meager. “This year I just didn’t go crazy like I usually do.”

Diane Page, 63, Nassau, Long Island

To save money on the market, the 63-year-old nanny replaces meat dishes with pasta several times a week.

“I don’t buy in bulk like we used to, especially ground beef. beef crazy [expensive],” she said. “I buy a lot less meat.”

In addition to giving up the main hamburger, she said she eats more leftovers and tries to waste less.

“Where we used to go to the supermarket every week, I don’t do it anymore. We try to stretch everything and [go] every other week,” she said. “We cook for two days, three days, and this is what we eat. Making more pasta. I’m just making adjustments.”

Yerevant Kasparian, 52, Queens

The office manager was forced to skip special seafood and other treats due to the rotten economy.

“For the New Year, instead of smoked salmon, we got sausages, the simplest things, nothing extravagant,” said Kasparyan. “When it comes to meat, you cut it down to the basics. Not as extravagant as appetizers.

For breakfast, he says, he eats “more oatmeal, more cereal” and has started buying eggs once every two weeks.

“You’re just trying to better plan your budget,” he said.