I'm a firm believer in having a local butcher, baker and in this instance fruit & veg grocer that…read moreyou can pop in to easily and pick up odds and ends that you might run out of during the week. Toowong Fruit Market is just that. On occassions I need an additional ingredient for dinner, need to stock up on my Gluten Free supplies or just want to grab a bottle of milk - they're there.

Australia has a pretty limited marketplace with regards to food shopping, but this locally owned…read moregrocer seems to be bringing something to the table. It has a bit of a warehouse feel, and some clearance sales lying around, but also a fairly respectable selection, including things that aren't all that easy to find; some nice vegetarian specialty items and a decent international section. They have ample fresh fruits and vegetables and a lot of dried beans and grains, so we're not talking unhealthy food either. The location is reasonably convenient, near the hospital with ample bus access and a train station on the other side of the hospital. Some of the sale items will understandably be a tad sketch, buy you can certainly find some deals here.

As you'll see in my review of the Gabba Fruit Market, I'm a little bit attached to it. However, I…read morewas driving past Mother of All Fruits the other day and decided to check it out. I've gotta say, I was pretty impressed with the range and presentation of fruit and veg. Tucked just inside a Spar-owned shopping centre, Mother of All Fruits occupies a huge floor space. Most of this is taken up by rows of fresh produce, but there's also a section for packaged and frozen goods. The range of fruit and veg is great and their herbs come in huge bunches for around $2.95 each. There are also lots of "bucket" specials to be had where you get a reduced price for buying a large amount. For $30, I filled a green bag and walked out with a tray of 20 bowen mangoes. Pretty good value, especially the $10 tray of mangoes. Whilst extremely well organised and well presented, the only thing I don't like about this produce store is that it feels a little too much like a supermarket. I remain faithful to the Gabba Fruit Market, which has a more local feel to it and has a less hectic carpark.

If I've said it once, I've said it a million times. Walking aisles of supermarkets can be super…read morefun. Think of all the different packaging design to devour. No, just me? Okay then. Awkward. This super chic grocer is up there for me. Head straight to the aisles of jams, chutneys, and other such condiments. Packaging branding heaven. I used to live across the road from James Street Market (and still visit frequently) and yes, it is as dangerous on your back pocket as you might imagine but let's break it down. For a slightly higher price you're selecting top quality produce, specialty cheeses, sweets and other accoutrements. You've got access to a patisserie (French Twist), a florist, a butcher, a fishery and sushi bar. The produce is always fresh and the ability to walk out empty handed? Extremely difficult. Case in point: a friend and I were recently on the hunt for salted caramel for a cheesecake. Sure, we could have made it from scratch (and normally we might have) but to put it bluntly "Ain't no body got time for that!". We'd hunted a few different specialty stores we thought would be on the money but it was James Street Markets that came through with the goods. The staff member that looked after us found it on the shelf with such air and grace. There was no trouble for her to point us in the direction of the jar that held our salted caramel dreams.

Despite its namesake, the drawing card for Fine Fruit On James is actually its cheeses. Yes, yes…read morethey also have fresh fruit and vegetables but in general, I find Brisbane has such an excellent range of fresh fruit and vegies anyway, especially if you shop for seasonal produce. You can usually pick up a few unusual mushroom types at Fine Fruit On James - enokis, King Oysters, wood-ear mushrooms but Asian supermarkets usually cover the same range. I repeat, it is their cheeses which stand out against their competitors. They have everything from camembert in the Adelaide Hills to Spanish manchengo. I became a goats' cheese convert after sampling their 'Lingot Chevre De Pelussin'. They also stock a decent range of gourmet deli products such as ice creams, pates, dips, oils, sauces and vinaigrettes. For an indulgent grocery shopping experience, Fine Fruit On James is the place to go.

Milton market is a nice enough market in Brisbane. I was looking for a heavier craft experience and…read morethis particular market has more food options. There was a nice shop with scents for a car or small room that I considered getting some gifts from. Loads of food options here. From vegan, Japanese, Mexican, German and more. Lots of coffee options as well, but it was a million degrees and I was already dying from my last coffee. There was a traveling petting zoo at the market; I do not believe that this is a standing attraction tho. There was also a nice bouncy house for the kids. Great market, enjoyed the experience.

I'm cautiously a fan of the new Milton Markets (actually a relocation from another market). I don't…read moreknow about the old location, but the new one is convenient by all three of Brisbane's major modes of public transit, and also eminently driveable. It tends to be a packed house, full of bad pedestrian behavior but good vendors. The range of sellers here is eclectic and upper crust, even compared to its numerous competitors. They have some very expensive (but very good) bakers, an entire stall devoted to nut milks, a french toast truck, and, at least the last time I went, adoptable greyhounds. They also, for a market of this size, do very well on actual vegetables, including an organic farmer and several other substantial stalls. Indeed, they've got things for all sorts of people; if you want to make ultra-healthy food at home, you can come here for ingredients, and if you want to indulge, you can stop by their fudge stall. People with restrictive diets should be pretty happy; a South American stall offers to cook their breakfast dishes with cactus instead of egg (and their beans are tasty), and a variety of decent options abound. This market is mostly food (though there are a few tents of clothing and other sundries). I would suggest avoiding this place if you are a compulsive spender, as there are a lot of ways for your money to disappear fast. But since I'm self-disciplined (and my exchange rate is favorable), I find it worthwhile to visit.

Fabulous place in trendy West End. Part butcher, part grocer, part Fromagerie this new venue is a…read morefeast to your senses! The Schulte family runs it and with that you're guaranteed amazing meats & small goods. The place also features a walk-in Fromagerie with a brilliant selection of imported and local cheeses. I'm of course biased t wards the Swiss raw milk cheese available there but there are many other brilliant options from local goats milk cheese to English cloth bound cheddar. There's also a The Source store as part of the concept and a bakery is also on the map.

So I moved from Clayfield to West End and left behind an award winning butcher and fruit shop…read more I was bereft. The weekend markets just shunt off old supermarket stock, and the local butcher... well, I was better off with the supermarket. Cruising along Montague I stumbled The Stores. There's a bar/restaurant at the entrance, and once inside you're greeted with a deli, fruit shop, butcher, dedicated cheese room, an organic whole foods store, and soon there will be a bakery too. I have to say it plainly. All the fruit and vege I've had has been sensational. If it's local, it will tell you where it's from. The butchers are Schulte's in the Lockyer Valley (yay, award winning butcher!) Basically, if you're near West End and you're after fruit, veg and meat, The Stores is for you.

Milton Fruit Bowl is the best place to buy fruit on the west side in my opinion. Although my…read morefavourite Brisbane fruit and veg shop is All About Fruit at New Farm, Milton Fruit Bowl is a very close second and if I'm over this side of town it does just nicely. I find that their selection and quality of tomatoes exceeds everywhere else including All About Fruit. Their prices are more than you would pay for fruit and veg in a supermarket, but the freshness, quality, and variety is far, far better. Their fruit is actually ripe and tasty, unlike a lot of the tasteless, hard-as-rocks fruit you find elsewhere. As well as fruit and veg, Milton Fruit Bowl sells lots of nibbles like dried fruit, nuts, lentils, and confectionery and they often have some really lovely looking flowers at bargain prices. It's very handy having the Milton Fruit Bowl in this shopping strip because right next door is a deli and a butcher and there's also an IGA so if you need ingredients for a dinner party or something, you have everything you need in one centre. Milton Fruit Bowl has been around since the late 80s and even now is something of an undiscovered gem. You never see it packed full of people the way you do at Rock'n'Roll on the south side or James Street Markets, yet the quality is better and the prices similar or even lower. Make sure you get a piece of the wonderful fresh produce in this Fruit Bowl.

There's two shops in this local strip of convenient shops in Milton that when I was local were my…read moredownfall. IGA the first and Milton Fruit Bowl the second. It's like they tag team eachother, and add in the butcher and Tognini's deli goods, and you're set. You need not go anywhere else for your fresh produce. There's a level of #smugtrolley that comes from shopping at a spot like Milton Fruit Bowl but from that level of virtuosity comes the knowledge you're supporting a family-operated local business and that, in my experience, the quality of produce was always at the highest. Yes, I probably paid for it but they always, for example, came through on more specialty items that may not be as easily able to purchase from the supermarkets. A great local spot to keep up your sleeve! Pro Tip: Often you can purchase olive trees, fruit plants and herbs from the front of the store.

Ashgrove is a bustling little shopping strip, in large part due to Ashgrove Fresh. I've been…read morecoming here for years and years due to their good quality produce at very cheap prices. They always have pre bagged specials outside such as red and brown onions for $1.99 per kilo bag, and are usually the cheapest and best place to buy tomatoes. The owners make sure they buy what is in season, so you may find locally grown mini roma tomatoes, so sweet they could be in a fruit salad, or crunchy peas grown and picked outside of Brisbane. Free range eggs are also significantly cheaper and fresher than the supermarket brands. There is also a very good deli selection of both dry and fresh goods. Fridges groan with imported cheeses, meats and olives and there are some great dried deli items available that are usually only seen in specialist import shops. The best part of shopping at Ashgrove Fresh is the staff, it's a family run business and it shows. I'm greeted by name and have occasionally walked out with a free bunch of flowers (they're already open Sun, take them!). I'm pretty sure THAT has never happened in a chain supermarket...

Has Ashgrove Fresh Fruit Markets had a make-over? I feel like their rocking a brand new look and as…read morea result they've taken the fresh-fruit offering to another level. There's fresh produce, deli cabinets of Roza's dips and sauces, loaves of fresh bread and several shelves of suitably smugtrolley ingredients. And it's still got that family-owned feel. There's a friendly face greeting you at the counter. It matters. It makes it a welcome place to shop, to stock up on fresh produce as you need it. Prices are pretty easy on the back pocket, too.

My Sunday isn't complete without a trip to the Gabba Fruit Market. It's a little bit out of the way…read morefor me, so I like to make one trip and stock up on all my fruit and veg for the week, so as to avoid shopping at Coles and Woolworths. The produce at the Gabba Fruit Market is fresher and often much cheaper than that sold in the supermarkets and if you shop according to what's in season, you can fill a couple of green bags for around $30. They also have a great sales rack, selling produce that's nearing its expiry. I hate to think how much the supermarket giants must throw out just so that they can have display shelves full of "perfect" or under-ripe produce, but it's so nice to see places like the Gabba offering its old produce to customers who are happy to slice off the mushy bits and, of course, get a bargain. The Gabba Fruit Market also sells a small range of packaged, canned and other goods such as dairy products and bread. They often have great specials on staples like canned lentils and dried pasta. Make this part of your weekly ritual too!

With a respectable collection of dry goods, dairy and, of course, all the fruit and veg you could…read morewant, this top-shelf greengrocer really is a practical alternative to the supermarket. You'll find reasonable quality fruit and veg at very cheap rices: eg. * Watermelon @ 69c/kg * 3 avocados for $2.50 * 1kg bag of red onions for $1.99 * 5 ruby grapefruits for $2 * Jap pumpkin $1.29/kg And the list goes on. The specials no doubt change but you can rely on finding a bargain here. Last I went there were some pretty good specials on dry goods, like two boxes of cous cous for $3 and jars of olives for $2 each. The counter staff are pretty nice, just watch out you don't get bowled over by one of the burly guys wheeling around stock in trolleys.

Upon discovering Charlie & Liz's, I've decided I would happily catch the bus from New Farm to West…read moreEnd every week to buy fruit and veg in order to stick the finger to the corporate grocery giants. You might ask why I would go this effort? Well, I'll tell you. At this "Self Serve Fruit Mart" the produce is fresher, the prices are lower and service is friendlier than any Coles/Woolworths experience I've had. Not only that, but the produce is all seasonal and chances are the farmer who grew it is benefitting much more from the stock sold. I am a HUGE believer in supporting local business, so if you're in, around or even ever in West End, I would highly recommend you pick up your weeks groceries from somewhere like Charlie & Liz's Self Serve Fruit Mart. Not only will you save money, but what you spend will be feeding the local economy and helping more locals out.

I often walk past this fruit and veg shop and whether I need anything or not, my eyes linger on the…read morebeautiful displays of fruit stacked up on the footpath. My legs keep going but my head and neck kind of lag behind, the voice in my head saying, "Maybe I NEED some of those mangoes or perhaps a pineapple." Whilst this is a nice little fruit and veg shop with temptingly displayed produce, I'd never do all my fruit and veg shopping here as it's too small and too expensive. I try to do a bulk shop on the weekend at either The Gabba Fruit Market or the Davies Park Markets, where you really get value for money, but if I forget something, I'd much rather pop into Charlie & Liz's than go to Coles. It's a handy little store, in the middle of Boundary Street, the produce is good and supporting small businesses is always good.

Everyone needs that little convenience store on the corner to run to in the mornings when there's…read moreno milk or bread in the house. The only difference with the St Lucia Supermarket is that it's not little and I run to it when I run out of fruit, vegetables, meat and spices. You could easily do a week's worth of grocery shopping here, however the small shopping baskets sort of prevent that from happening (unless you are the Incredible Hulk/can survive off lettuce for every meal). This place houses everything from heavy duty household cleaning products, to cat food, personal hygiene goods, juices, baking goodies and a variety of frozen Asian food products. They often have specials on particular products (there's often cheap pumpkins advertised out the front) and have an assortment of banana bread, muffins and slices at the counter, which sometimes act as a necessary source of comfort food. So if you're in the area and are running low on literally anything/everything in your house; you can be sure to replenish your depleted stocks here.

I never really even paid attention to the name of St Lucia Supermarket until I had to write this…read morereview. Up until now, I always referred to it as the little Asian Supermarket on Fred Schonell. I have a warm spot in my heart for this grocery store. It was my local one for so long and I felt as if I visited it on almost a daily basis to pick up my milk and bread. It was flooded out earlier in the year but luckily has made a full comeback. This is not your average supermarket. They sell slices of homemade banana bread or cakes on the front counter, and you always see the same staff who are kind and friendly. They have a great fresh food section. While it does not have a huge selection of vegetables you will find whatever they do stock is often of great quality and in season. They also stock a lot of Asian vegetables and packaged foods here that aren't easily available elsewhere. If you wonder down the very tight aisles to the back you will find a tower of two minute noodles, bread, bags of rice and a wall full of spices. They have freezers full of pork buns and dim sums. They also stock all your other basic foods and needs like toilet paper, pencils, batteries etc. While not good for a big shop (you couldn't fit a trolley down those aisles if you tried), it is the perfect spot to pick up those few missing ingredients for your next meal.