A great grocery-shopping-out-of-town experience (a favorite vacay pastime). Great selection, clean…read more& varied; from prepared, fresh & canned. Saw some things we don't know about in Florida...flat cabbage, brown tomatoes, cheese curds, ethnic burger patties! Popped in after walking to True Loaf Bread Company this a.m for some fabulous artisan baked goods

We ordered takeout sushi from Farm Boy for our team lunch. Omg they tasted fresh and quite…read moredelicious. Price is also reasonable for the portion size.

A huge shout out to Catie S for telling me about this place because it is awesome! Fruits Express…read moreis a fruits and vegetables wholesaler but they are open to the public. Some things are huge bulk sizes like their gigantic bag of spring mix ($13.50) and flat of 30 eggs ($5), but some things you can buy smaller quantities like their 1 pound clamshell of strawberries ($1.75), bunch of spinach ($1.50), bundle of asparagus ($2) and 6 pack of avocados ($4). I think prices vary depending on what's in season, but prices are definitely cheaper than regular prices at grocery stores, and some things are even cheaper than grocery store sale prices. The place is a warehouse so it's industrial looking and not fancy. You'll see staff walking around with restaurant order sheets and loading orders up into a dolly and putting boxes into their trucks. It's cash only and there are no lines, no cash register, no receipts. You just find the owner (or ask anyone who works there and they'll direct you to the owner) he'll add things up in his head and give you the total. You pay him and leave with your goodies. In addition to fruits and vegetables, they have huge cans of tomato sauce too. The owner, Hassan, is super nice and friendly. We chatted a bit and I discovered that they've been open for around 5 years but just opened up to the public 2 months ago. All staff there are really nice too. One guy showed me where the bags were and another one asked me if I wanted a box to put all my stuff in. And when I left another guy asked me if I needed help loading my stuff into my car (I didn't actually buy that much but it was stuffed in a box so I guess it looked heavy (?)). Anyway, everyone was really friendly and helpful. So this place is on Canotek in an industrial strip mall. Follow the sign towards the back of the complex. There's a door marked "Fruits Express" it might be obscured by one of their delivery trucks, which was the case when I did my first lap around the building looking for this place, lol. There's lots of free parking. This place rocks! It's a bit far from my house, but is on the way to places I go to frequently, so yeah, I'll probably become a regular!

I love fruits express! It's an industrial spot that wholesales to restaurants, but who also sells…read moreto average joes like me. I have saved a ton of cash by buying produce here. Hot tip: they also sell eggs. You sacrifice some of the conveniences of the grocery store (hours, aesthetic, location) but the prices are just about half of the grocery store, so it's totally worth it. I tell all my pals to go to Fruits Express. If you can make it out to Canotek within their opening hours, there's no reason not to give them a try. Oh, and they will like you better if you bring cash ;-)

My friend met up with me at Ottawa Farmers' Market a few Sundays ago, to show me around this market…read moreand the Glebe. It was gracious and a lot of fun! I was last at Aberdeen Pavilion four years ago. We were at 613flea on a Saturday. On Sundays, it switches to being the Ottawa Farmers' Market here. It's cool that if you love farmers' markets, you can get your fix the entire weekend here. We walked around, browsing and thinking about what we wanted to get for lunch. We sampled homemade kimchi that was pretty good. Free samples are always terrific. I always find inspiration being a tourist and witnessing products that I have never seen. Vodcow was one of them. It's a lactose-free chocolate cream liqueur. Cool! Che Malambo caught my attention. Whenever I see an empanada, I want it. It's exactly what happened at this stand. I got a beef empanada that had so much filling that it wanted to burst. It was my first time having egg sharing the same filling stage as the beef. The egg was excellent. The filling was seasoned nicely. The outer part of the empanada was yummy. There was live music happening as we browsed. There was also a strawberry social inside Aberdeen Pavilion, but we didn't see much. It was a bit of a disappointment, as it was strawberry season. No demos. No samples. Nothing. Oh, well! We both stopped at the Thai Kitchen Catering Service stand. I ended up getting more finger food. I ordered a pork wonton and a shrimp spring roll. The man at the stand was so nice that he gave me a pork wonton on the house. I also got a Thai iced tea. Drinks were self-serve once you got a cup from him. I made the mistake of pouring sala cider instead. Oops! He was great getting me another cup and I made sure that I got Thai iced tea, which was cold and excellent on a hot day. We sat down and ate. I loved my pork wontons. They were crispy on the outside. The filling was nicely seasoned. I could taste basil, which made them heavenly. There was decent shrimp filling in the spring roll, which had a nice crunch to it. My friend got the chicken pad khee mao. She loved it. She said that it had bean sprouts, which she wasn't fond of. There weren't a lot of them and ate them all. I didn't have a chance to swoop in and eat them for her! It was fun watching a couple across from us with tackle eating a jerk chicken meal. We may have missed that stand, but we were practically doing play-by-play commentary about the jerk chicken going down. People-watching is a fun activity here. The produce and fruit that vendors had this day looked so fresh and vibrant. Although I didn't see much going on at the strawberry social, I will remember smelling ripe strawberries as we passed by various vendors and how happy I was. (259)

I love the Farmer's Market at Lansdowne. They are open year-round! In the winter they are in the…read moreAberdeen Pavilion, other times of the year they are outside. They are open every Sunday. Everything at the market is locally grown or made. They have lots of vegetables and some fruits, products like honey, maple syrup, jams and spreads. I have to admit that my favourite vendors are the ones that sell baked goods or ready to eat foods (like arepas, and samosas). There are also artisans that make jewelry, soaps, wooden cutting boards, and other items. Some vendors are there all the time, and some only occasionally. If you like Farmers' Markets, why not head down to Lansdowne and check this one out and support our local entrepreneurs?

It was very quiet on a cold winter day when we were visiting. No vendors were located outside of…read morethe market itself, so quite contrary to what I expected, but we still loved it. Plenty of street parking too. We toured the market itself, found clean bathrooms on the second floor with some art displayed, ate some bakery goods @ Le Moulin De Provence bakery and took photos with Ottawa sign.

A great place to hang out and try out a variety of food across the restaurants. In terms of food,…read moreit is one of the most happening areas in the downtown Ottawa. We tried a couple of places like Peace Garden Vegetarian, Maverick's Donut Co, and Pure Power Juice Bar and pretty much all the three were great or really good. We did go to Cupcake Lounge but they were out of vegan options. In front of a couple of shops, on the other side of the pedestrian paths, there are also open seating options since most of the shops, unless restaurants, do not have an inside seating option. There is a paid parking with the entrance right at the intersection of Parent Avenue and Clarence Street, which can be easily full on a busy day with some space available on the open terrace. For foodies, this place shouldn't be missed for sure!!

Came in on Saturday to sandwich with the wife. Farmers pick is the absolute best place to get a…read moredeli cut sandwich in ottawa. When you go there's usually a line up but the team in the deli section are pretty quick. Lunch or dinner farmer pick is an amazing option for a good meal.

The best little shop in the area. Their sandwiches are absolutely fantastic, with the service being…read moresuper quick too! it's always busy in there and it makes sense because they've got a quality that no one else in the area can top. it's very convenient as I love very close by, but given that they're a smaller business do expect the prices to be a bit higher than the regular grocery store for most things. totally okay though!

My first visit to a Whole Foods Market was years ago, after completing a job interview in Yorkville…read morein Toronto. I definitely remember what I got: a slice of tiramisu. At that time, it was the only Whole Foods in the greater Toronto area. Whole Foods has grown on me, likely because Markham has one and I frequent it often. I don't fit the profile of a typical Whole Foods shopper who tends to carry expensive handbags, must get everything organic, and can afford all things expensive, including tiny bottles of elixirs that extend their years on planet Earth. I like their dairy-free items. I love Carbonaut bread and the entire bakery section, including tiramisu. There are specific items that I get at this store. If I'm looking for romaine lettuce or celery, you'll likely see me at a grocery store that offers these items at normal, cheaper prices. Four years ago, I was in the Glebe and saw this Whole Foods store. I didn't go in. I had already got what I needed at a Metro. On my most recent visit, after spending a few hours exploring the area with a friend, I realized that I needed almond beverage and lemons. I had yet to set foot in any grocery store. They were good reasons to check this store out. I had parked underground. The elevator got me to this store. I exited the elevator on the main floor to hit Winners. This store has a cafe that occupies the entire floor. It was busy just before noon. People must love getting coffee and a baked good here. When I returned just past 5 pm, you could hear crickets on this floor. The cafe was closed. It was different. My local one is still open when I'm there at 7 pm. I have yet to hit the cafe at any Whole Foods location. I took the escalator up to the second floor, which is where the entire supermarket is. I immediately found almond beverage. Organic. Sugar-free. Perfect. I also found the produce area. The Rainier cherries looked good. They were also so expensive that I blocked the price out and moved on. I got a couple of lemons. You could get a bag of six. The price was the same if you calculated how much one lemon was going for, so you might as well pick your own pristine-looking lemons. I looked around. It has the usual salad and hot food bars. You pay by weight, which does add up if you aren't careful. There were lots of snacks and drinks to choose from. A can of flavoured carbonated water was going for $2.69. It makes you wonder how this store determines the prices that it sets. It was enjoyable looking at the plants and flowers. It's a nice grocery store. I had an equally nice woman at the checkout area. I paid for my items with a debit card. I didn't need a bag. My lemons were already in one, so I carried it and my carton of almond beverage to the elevator. It was convenient taking the elevator down to the underground parking lot. I walked to my car, paid for parking, and left. The lemons and almond beverage were great. I'm glad that I got what I needed at this store. I had a fun time shopping here. It's my second Whole Foods that I've been to where it has two floors. We'll see if I return in another four years. Maybe I'll try the cafe... haha! (262)

I mean it overhyped in my opinion! It's pricey and in this economy who ca affort 10& strawberries!read more

Was there this afternoon, bought some strawberrys and Hot house tomatoes…read more Then I got home, around five thirty the tomatoes. And the strawberrys, went into The garbage. I bought three pints,of strawberries many went in the garbage,and the tomatoes also. This is my, second visit that I threw food. Out in the garbage, I'm very sorry but it's my last.

A wide variety of fresh produce available. The meat section is very good. The steaks are always…read moretasty and tender.

They have some good deals with the pc optimum points card and sometimes in store specials. The…read morestore is clean and the staff are relatively pleasant to deal with. This location is relatively small compared to other Loblaw locations. You can find most of what you need, but there are some things that are not available here. They only take Visa & MasterCard; no AMEX.

We passed by Loblaws craving for sushi, and as usual, you can find all your cravings at Loblaws…read more We visited the store and the selection was quite big for a supermarket. The staff was very welcoming and happy to help. When we located the sushi fridge, we decided to try the below: Spicy shrimp mango roll Dragon boat Assorted maki boat California nigri boat Sushi ginger and wasabi are already included in the set, but unfortunately, we did find chopsticks For presentation, the boats and selection were well displayed and well organized For the taste, i would give 3/5. Flavors were not very relevant, and one piece of salmon has a weird taste. The dominant taste was the sushi rice, and the makis were a bit dry.

It's a great addition to the neighbourhood. It's not huge but the layout and density of products…read moremakes it a good option for grocery shopping. There is a good selection of produce and products, many on sale. The cashier was very courteous.

Great staff. The most important thing in a store like this is making you feel at ease and while I…read morecannot remember her name (and should), the clerk was terrific: funny, interesting, and very helpful. If you're intimidated or feel awkward about going into a store like Wanda's, this is the one other go to. They will make you feel welcome and help you with any questions you have. Great people.

This is a sweet little market, recently relocated to the Museum of Nature. It was on the St. Paul…read morecampus for years, and they're having a bit of a tough time regaining the traffic, though I'm totally unsure why! I loved this place. It's not crowded like some of the bigger markets, and it's located on the property of one of my favourite buildings in the city. I can't think of a better way to spend the afternoon than to visit the museum, pick up some fresh produce, and then have a picnic lunch on the grass. A group of us went on a tour with nutritionist Amy Longard who brought us to different booths so we could find out about the farmers and their products. Each vendor had a lot to tell us about their farming practices and the specific produce they sell. It was so interesting to hear about all the love, care, and effort they put into their work. As mentioned in Spike's review, the products must be local (which means they need to come from a 100 mile radius or 164km), and they must only sell their own products (i.e. they can't sell their friend's jam or honey, it must come from their farm). There were quite a few farmers from Perth, which I thought was interesting. We saw some great products here including fresh produce (kale, carrots, berries, tons of leafy greens, cabbage, potatoes, apples, and more), vegan food (I had a delicious wrap from one of the vegetarian booths who made dips), jams and canned fruits and veggies, beautiful baked breads and sweets, herbs and salts, meats, eggs and more. Hall's Apple Farm was there with baskets of apples, but also a ton of their other products, like apple cider vinegar, apple butter, and more! One of my favourite booths was a gentleman selling sunflower oil, which was delicious. Many of the booths offer samples, which is awesome! If you're looking to support local, you need to check this place out. There's been talk of it having to close down due to a lack of attendance, so come out and show your support for our local farmers!

The Main Farmers' Market in Old Ottawa East is on the campus of St. Paul University. It's like a…read moremini version of Sunday's Landsdowne Park market. Many of the same vendors and the same "gotta be local" rule. Although there are fewer vendors than LP, the upside is that it runs on Saturdays and there are almost always free parking spaces nearby. It is not quite as good in the meats and 'meals-ready-to-eat' department and it does not have the wonderful Art-Is-In Bakery stand. Otherwise, you can go a day early to visit Hall's apples, the Jamaican veggie guy, the Niagara soft fruit folks and berry boy at Avonmore farms. Don't forget to buy a bag of Avonmore's homemade tea biscuits a.k.a. the base for a perfect shortcake. Also, I like the funky cookies at B'Goods (I don't think they are at Landsdowne). Their chocolate chile cookie will perk you right up.