23 thoughts on “It’s my fruits in a box

  1. Christelle

    The same box here was about 9$ if I remember… And they traveled a week in a boat. So not as good anymore. I didn’t buy any. I used to love it too and bought a box when I lived in town! Enjoy ’em for me!

    Reply
      1. Kate M.

        Yes, I looked it up today. Never been there, although I seem to recall once going to the SAQ that’s in the same general area. Those businesses are seriously not intended to be walked to and the northern side of the Papineau-Crémazie intersection is vicious on foot.

        Reply
      2. Maria Gatti

        I go over to de Lorimier when trying to access those shops, but that is by bicycle. Papineau-Crémazie is a VERY unsafe intersection for pedestrians and cyclists. And yet there are a lot of people in northeastern Villeray just south of the 40, a bit of a food desert except for the MAXI on the Ahuntsic side. I started doing that when giving language lessons at Cirque du Soleil many years ago.

        I’m glad you’ll be featuring this danger spot.

        Sometimes METRO and IGA can be competitive in price with the larger stores. You really have to watch the circulars – or visit supermarches.ca – there is a large IGA at the corner of Jarry and Christophe-Colomb. Alas the former METRO on Villeray is some lesser banner, and I imagine that Metro Bourdon (Jean-Talon and avenue de Chateaubriand) and Metro Marciano (Bélanger and Fabre) are out of your way.

        Reply
        1. Kate M.

          The store that used to be a Metro on Villeray is now a Uniprix drugstore, so it’s out of the running.

          Are we really “supposed” to shop for food in the biggest stores? I find them tiring and a terrible waste of time. My favourite fruit-n-veg store (Fagstein knows it too) is about twenty feet square, but unfortunately it closes down for winter (!). In Villeray there’s a passable Provigo on Saint-Laurent just south of Crémazie. An unsung gem is Intermarché Palumbo on Chabanel, but unless you live or work over there it’s somewhat out of the way.

          Reply
          1. Fagstein Post author

            Are we really “supposed” to shop for food in the biggest stores?

            I shop where it’s cheap. That means that, for food that comes in a box, I go to a big box store (and buy mostly in reasonable bulk).

            Produce, on the other hand, seems to be cheaper in markets (when it’s local) or small fruiteries for the most part.

            Reply
  2. Adi

    I HATE clemantines ! Why aren’t they bringing REAL Mandarin oranges anymore ?!?! I have to hunt those down in Chinatown and the Kimfat market in Brossard..

    Sometimes living in Toronto has its advantages and ethnic food is one of them.

    Adi

    Reply
  3. W G, Gatineau

    boxes of persimmons (aka kaki) are my personal favorite thing about november december. Let them ripen, then ripen some more… omg I am in juicy snatch heaven! I mean snack heaven obviously, little freudian slip there.

    Reply
  4. Maria Gatti

    Boxes of clementines are often a loss leader or way of getting shoppers into a supermarket. Smaller supermarkets that belong to chains can be competitive though; you have to look at circulars most of which are at http://www.supermarches.ca – Intermarché doesn’t seem to be there yet, though, and they have good produce and good prices. No Intermarché in Villeray though – you’d have to go east to St-Michel or St-Léonard, north to Ahuntsic, southeast to the Intermarché on Beaubien near Garnier or southwest to Mile-End or the Plateau.

    I mostly shop at Jean-Talon Market and fruteries and grocery stores near by, whether the closest Metro (Bourdon, corner Jean-Talon and avenue de Chateaubriand) or the IGA on St-Zotique between St-André and Boyer – though the larger one at the corner of Jarry and Christophe-Colomb has the same promotions. In the depths of winter, I actually find that price and quality of fruit and veg at Milano is very good since they’ve expanded their produce section, though it is a pricy gourmet supermarket. Often better than JTM out of season, and I’ve always found affordable stuff. And don’t forget the knot of Sino-Southeast Asian shops on St-Denis near Jean-Talon.

    Kate, the Uniprix at the corner of de Normandville and Villeray used to be a Provigo; the former Metro was some blocks east of there (it was very small). Kate, where on earth is that wee and evanescent greengrocer? Yes, Marché Palumbo is a gem – great cheeses. I drop in there when cycling to Marché central, but it is out of the way except for the people in that isolated corner of southwestern Ahuntsic.

    Steve, you might be interested in a sojurn to the large Asian supermarket Kim Phat at 3733 Jarry E. It is on a rather desolate industrial stretch of Jarry in St-Michel, but direct by the Jarry bus http://www.kimphat.com/ A huge array of foods and a good (if very neon-lit) lunch counter. Adi, I don’t know there you live but Kim Phat (note spelling) has supermarkets there in St-Michel and in Côte-des-neiges as well as Brossard. There is also Marché Hawaii in Ville St-Laurent, and no doubt other East and Southeast Asian supermarkets to be found.

    Reply
    1. emdx

      No need to go that far. The new Swatow shopping mall that just opened in Chinatown has a great oriental supermarket downstairs that is just as great as Kim Phat. The live fish tanks (even if you don’t eat fish) there are worth the detour!

      Reply
      1. Maria Gatti

        emdx, “that far” depends on where the person in question lives and works. But I will make a point of visiting the Swatow mall supermarket. What is its name? I have a monthly OPUS pass this month, so I’ll just take the 55 bus down there and back up here. I haven’t visited “Comme les Chinois” blog for a while. http://commeleschinois.ca See Cédric is now living in Hong Kong (so is Chris de Wolf, I believe?) so someone else will have to report on that new supermarket. Thanks, emdx!

        Reply
  5. Erin

    Some big stores can be a pain, I agree. I particularly like Metro Marciano and IGA on St-Zotique…just seems fresher, although technically both are big stores.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *