Last weekend Barb and I went to the new location of Bosa Foods on Kootenay Street in Vancouver and all I can say that we were both really impressed. The impression started as we pulled into the packed parking lot and immediately noticed this beautiful building which looked more like some kind of restaurant as opposed to a specialty food store.

The inside of the Bosa Foods store is clean and modern (recently opened at this location in October 2006) and offers a staggering selection of Italian foods: sausage, speciality meats, cheeses, pasta and olive oils are just the tip of the iceberg. They have about 12 separate isles full of different products, a huge counter offering fresh meats and cheeses as well as a separate counter where they offer a variety of pre-made sandwiches. I ordered one with ham, olives, peppers and tomatoes on a nice crusty pannini.

Among the 15-20 items that we purchased at Bosa Foods last Saturday, we also purchased a nice loaf of bread to have with dinner that night. Selecting a loaf of bread to buy was a more difficult task than we thought given how many different types of bread that they offered.

We walked out of Bosa Foods with 4 bags full of a variety of different products that we had purchased. Our time there was limited due to another engagement but both Barb and can hardly wait to go back there again and spend far more time.

Baden

---

Bosa Foods
1465 Kootenay St., Vancouver
(604) 253-5578

---

The ethnic flavour along the Burnaby Height area is definitely Italian you can find all kinds of great restaurants and specialty stores for anything in this category of Italian foods. Of this category, one of our very favourite store to buy Italian food is known as Cioffi’s Meat Market & Deli.

If you decide to visit Cioffi’s (especially on a weekend), first be prepared to find the store pretty crowded. It’s been like this every time that we have gone there and really says a lot about how popular this place really is. Second, if you want to buy anything from the deli counter, and believe me you will, take a number as soon as you walk in the door.

The sheer variety of the products that Cioffi’s carries is quite amazing considering that it is such a small store. From dozens of different kinds of cheeses to fresh meats and sausages of every variety to dry and canned goods – they’ve seemed to have a little of everything.

Behind the deli counter there is a small army of women in uniforms running back and forth running an array of slicing machines and putting together the particulars of everyone’s orders. At any one time there is at least 10 people lined up at the counter so the need for the numbers is an absolute necessity to avoid a riot.

When we were there last weekend, I picked up a bunch of their fantastic spicy Italian sausages which I will soon be making as the key ingredient in my spaghetti sauce. Deep red with chunks of meat visible through the casing, these kinds of made-fresh sausages are nothing like “name brand” sausages that you find in stores. If you’ve ever eaten these types of real sausages, you’ll never go back to anything else.

If you plan on going to Cioffi’s, I strongly recommend that you park your car for a few hours and stroll along Hastings street and enjoy the many different stores and even stay for lunch at one of the local cafes. After even just one visit to The Heights, you will be counting the days until you return again.

---

Cioffi’s Meat Market & Deli
4156 Hastings Street, Burnaby
(604) 291-9373

---

Baden

One such place that I happened to discover a few years ago is called the Gourmet Warehouse.

I first discovered the Gourmet Warehouse almost by accident when they were in their previous location literally in a back alley in an industrial area of Vancouver off Pandora street. It was an understatement to say that they used to be in a bad location – a worse place probably couldn’t have been chosen deliberately. The Gourmet Warehouse has since relocated to a far better location and has a much larger store located on East Hastings at Clarke.

The Gourmet Warehouse stocks a wide selection of all kinds of kitchen gadgets and cookware in addition to a large variety of specialty food items. They even happen to carry that complete chef’s uniform if you happen to be in the market for such a thing.

In all of the times that I have visited the Gourmet Warehouse, I have been impressed by the helpful staff who have always been plentiful and eager to help – but not in an intrusive way.

For those specialty items or just anything that your are looking for to meet your gourmet needs, check out the Gourmet Warehouse.

Baden

---

The Gourmet Warehouse
1340 East Hastings, Vancouver
604-253-3022

---

As I said in my previous article, I was looking for things like black cardamom seeds, whole nutmeg, cinnamon sticks and cloves. While all of these spices were available at my local supermarket, most of them came in large bags and I was looking for just a fraction of that amount for this cake.

Pretty much by accident, we happened to be driving up Fraser street at that time and saw the yellow awnings of the store called Super Spice House. We immediately pulled over to the side of the street and I ran across to check out Super Spice House while Barb waited in the car.

Stepping into the Super Spice House shop was like being instantly transported into some place in India. There were rows upon rows of bins containing spices which were only partially familiar to me but it was the smell that was so exotic.

It took me far longer to find what I was looking for mostly because I spend an extra 15 minutes or so just browsing through the diverse selection of spices and foods that Super Spice House carried. I made several mental notes of some things that I may want to come back for and took my small selections of spices to the front to be paid. All in all, it cost me about $1.50 for what I needed which was a bargain by any measure.

No doubt, I will be returning back to Super Spice House in the future for when my cooking needs once again extend into the more exotic frontiers.

Baden

---

Super Spice House
6169 Fraser St., Vancouver
604-323-2529

---

As you might imagine with me just coming back from Germany just over a month ago, German foods are more in my mind than usual but so it isn’t unusual that Barb and I would go to checkout a place called European Speciality’s Warehouse last weekend.

Located near the entrance to Chinatown on 220 Prior St. at Main St., I had been told about European Speciality’s Warehouse by a friend that I work with who goes there on a regular basis. I had actually gone to European Speciality’s twice before I went with Barb and on both occasions didn’t get there early enough as they close at 1PM on Saturdays.

While Barb and I explored the products on the shelves, Barb would stop every few feet and point out some product that her parents used to buy when she was growing up. In case you’re wondering, Barb’s parents bought a lot of German stuff on a regular basis.

We ended up picking up several items from European Speciality’s Warehouse but one of the items in particular is a cheese that happens to be a favourite of Barb’s mother which called hartzkäse (which means cheese from Hartz region of Germany).

Sidebar: When Barb and I first when to Germany together in 2001, Barb’s mother Ruth asked us to bring her some hartzkäse from Germany. We did bring it back to Vancouver but it got confiscated at the airport by Canada Customs people. To say that Ruth was disappointed is a huge understatement.

Although it took 5 years, we finally got Ruth her hartzkäse that we bought for her from European Specialty’s and she was definitely happy to get it.

Baden

---

European Speciality’s Warehouse
220 Prior St., Vancouver
604-688-9528

---

While the fresh slices of sweet mango have to be the best part about the taste, I think that it’s the look of the cake (covered in the bright yellowy-orange slices) that makes up for a good deal of the visual appeal.

I usually don’t like any type of cake that’s much too sweet and on that point, their mango cake doesn’t disappoint. The cake is composed of layers of moist white cake in conjunction with whipping cream and more mango slices. The whipping cream is perfectly made and not the overly sweet pre-made type that comes in a spray can or tub.

Maxim’s also carries a variety of Chinese buns which I also love and the best part is that pretty much everything in their stores is priced extremely well.

Maxim’s has five locations in the Lower Mainland and if you stop by the nearest location to you, I gaurantee that you won’t be disappointed.

Baden

---

Maxim’s Bakery
5613 Victoria Drive, Vancouver
604-323-1551

---