Upfront. my wife does 90% of our shopping. but, when i do venture out, i have discovered that there are two excellent time periods to shop, that are better than others. and, this includes ********* shopping. after 10 am(after everyone else is already at work) and after 2 pm(lunch time is over). i generally head out around 10 am. i have found that i have the roads to myself and the stores are most-vacant during those time periods.