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Northern Manitoba town flocks to local hospital — for the food

Hospital cafeteria food doesn't exactly have a delicious reputation. But in Churchill, Manitoba, where the cost of groceries has skyrocket in recent months — a four-litre jug of milk currently costs almost $12 — residents flock to their local hospital for meals that won't break the bank.

Fortunately, the Churchill hospital's food doesn't taste half bad either:

"The food is really good here," a hospital receptionist told the National Post, adding that for $6.50, diners could buy a meal of baked chicken, wild rice, harvest vegetable soup and a salad.

"There is no other place like it. It is the best deal in town. And don't even get me started with the Northern Store [the local grocery store], where a five-pound bag of potatoes costs, what, eight bucks?"

The hospital is the town's dining hot spot, stealing clientele from other eateries because of its unbeatable prices — and its healthy, hearty menu.

Even the owner of a local bakery can't complain:

"We've got it all here," Tony Da Silva said of his Gypsy Bakery. "But the staff at the cafeteria are very good. I can't really complain about them."

Grocery prices are higher in Churchill than in southern Manitoba towns primarily because of transportation cost, CBC News reports. Because the town is accessible by rail, it doesn't qualify for food-transportation subsidies either.

The hospital's cafeteria, however, is subsidized by the government, making its meals the best — and most affordable — ones in town.