Top 5 South Asian Grocery Stores in Brampton
Published February 8, 2019 at 7:30 pm
It’s a well-known fact that you’ll find one South Asian grocery store for every five minutes of driving in Brampton!
Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration. But there are an abundance of South Asian grocers all over the Flower City, so you can find good samosas and cheap, fresh veggies at almost every major intersection in town.
A good Indian grocery store typically has a wide selection of produce, plenty of Indian snacks — the best of them imported from India, and, of course, a food table complete with fresh, made in-house hot jalebi, samosas, and subzi (veggies cooked with spices and curries). And let’s not forget towers and towers of atta (flour) and Maggi noodles.
Without further ado, here are the top five South Asian grocery stores in Brampton!
5) Subzi Mundi
There are three locations of this awesome and authentic South Asian grocery store in Brampton — one at Ray Lawson and McLaughlin, one at Peter Robertson and Torbram, and one at The Gore and Ebenezer — and while Subzi Mundi is missing a hot table, the store makes up for it in product selection and fresh produce. In terms of products, this place has almost every Indian snack you can think of, with a wide range of biscuits and packaged sweets like besan (“chickpea fudge” according to the packaging!). The frozen section is ideal for if you want some easy Indian food, stocked with everything from frozen dosa to frozen curry. Subzi Mundi also carries Ramdev products (a famous Indian yogi who has a line of natural and ayuvedic products), for all of those aunties and uncles looking for them, organic Indian spices and flours, big packs of Maggi noodles for just $1.79 each, and even a dhol (a fantastic double-headed Indian drum)…for just $300 plus tax! The one thing that really stands out at Subzi Mundi is the freshness and variety of their produce — they even carry fresh methi (fenugreek), which is popular in a lot of Indian dishes. Bonus points go to Subzi Mundi for being one of the remaining Indian grocers in Brampton that sells Indian movies and CDs (shout out to Bollywood)!
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4) Fresh Pick
This grocery store is located in a longstanding plaza in a residential neighbourhood near McLaughlin and Charolais. This location used to be the popular Golden Groceries chain grocer that I spent a large part of my childhood at. But Golden Groceries hasn’t been there for some time now, and Fresh Pick is still up to par! Fresh Pick is full of specials and discounts, from their groceries to their food counter. Chai, for example, is a staple in any South Asian diet, so you’re guaranteed to always find a deal on loose leaf black tea here. Whether you’re looking for achaar (pickled vegetables), Punjabi-style biscuits to dip in your tea (stacks and stacks of them…see below!), or even Maggi noodles, Fresh Pick is easy to navigate and will nearly always have what you’re looking for, whether it’s fresh veggies or authentic Indian snacks. There’s also a hot table here, complete with sweets, but you’ll want to order ahead of time. Their samosas are the bomb, their sweets are delicious, and you can snag instant noodles at four for $1, or packs of Indian biscuits at $0.79 each — remember those wild discounts I mentioned?! Over all, there are tons of fresh picks here.
At Chinguacousy and Dusk, Indian Foodland is located in a plaza with a parking lot that might test your nerves. But after you’ve fought your parking lot battle, you’ll be glad you soldiered through! Indian Foodland has everything from sweets to spices, from fresh produce to Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, and from paranthas made in-house to frozen paranthas you can heat up later. Indian Foodland does carry all of the staple items you’d expect from a solid Indian grocery store — towers of atta (flour), sooji (semolina) and ajwain (carom) biscuits, and even such popular Indian soft drinks like Thums Up (like Coca Cola) and Limca (like 7UP). But the best part of Indian Foodland is the hot table! They have aloo (potato) paranthas that you’ll fall in love with, indulgent sweets, fresh jalebi for $4 per pound, curries, biryani, mango shakes, and beyond, and everything is delicious. So, you can do your groceries and get your takeout all in one go.
Indian Punjabi Bazaar is right across the street from Subzi Mundi in a plaza on McLaughlin and Ray Lawson, and the variety is unreal! It’s a very organized grocery store, complete with fresh produce, towers of atta (flour), and a takeout counter. Of course, they have the staples — Punjabi biscuits, spices, and frozen paranthas included — but their hot counter is incredible. It’s complete with La Rocca cakes, subzi, heaps of fresh jalebi, curries, and endless, fresh sweets! The takeout counter is kind of hidden, though, so be sure to check the back left corner after you walk into the store. The Maggi noodles in our cover photo are from Indian Punjabi Bazaar, too, perfect for anyone trying to eat on a budget priced at just a few cents a packet, which must be super convenient for the Sheridan College students living nearby. Over all, solid on options for Indian spices and snacks (be sure to check the area where they keep the chips and you’ll find some spicy, crunchy options like Kurkure — a popular brand that’s like Indian corn puffs), the veggies are fresh, and the hot table is on point.
1) India Bazaar
The first thing you’ll notice when you get to this large grocery store near Kennedy and Sandalwood is the oldschool Bollywood music blaring from the outdoor speakers, which puts you in the best mood to grocery shop — a Bollywood mood! When you walk in, the same Bollywood tunes fill this large grocery store, which is never too crowded, always clean, and carries a wide variety of items. Here, you’ll find Britannia butter cookies and pistachio almond cookies perfect for dipping in your evening chai, saltines like soya sticks, banana chips, roast channa (chick peas), and moong daal (lentils), assorted nuts with spices, frozen everything — from samosas to dosa and everything in between — and even a deli inside of the store with boneless chicken, goat meat, fish, and beyond. The variety at their takeout counter is also incredible, with veggie and meat options alike — here, you’ll find chicken curry, veggie and meat samosas, curries, subzi, never-ending and indulgent sweets, and even fish pakora, all for dine-in, takeout, or even catering. There’s a seating area, too, if you just can’t wait to devour your goodies. Over all, a solid South Asian grocer in Brampton, fit for all your Indian grocery needs.
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