Where to buy international groceries in Ottawa, Eastern Ontario and the Outaouais

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Partially updated June 7, 2022.

Looking for an Indian grocery store, a Middle Eastern market, Latin American foods, or Chinese, Japanese, Italian, Dutch, British, Caribbean or African ingredients in Ottawa, Eastern Ontario, Gatineau or the Outaouais? You’ve come to the right place!

Many of us are cooking at home more than ever these days—and most of us are getting a bit bored with the same old dishes. So I bet the following scenario is familiar.

You start looking for international recipes online and you find a tasty-looking dish—a new take on enchiladas, let’s say, or lamb korma, sushi or chickpea salad.

You’re keen to try it, but when you scan the list of ingredients, there are a couple you’ve never heard of and you have no idea where to buy them. Guajillo chiles? Garam masala? Ponzu sauce? Za’atar?

Don’t throw up your hands in frustration and stuff yet another pan of Shake-and-Bake chicken into the oven! Check out this list of international food shops and grocery stores in and around Ottawa and you’ll soon be well stocked for whatever international cuisine has captured your fancy.

To assist readers who live outside of Ottawa-Gatineau, I’ve marked stores beyond the city with an asterisk (*). And if you live in a small community without a nearby store, there’s a list of nationwide mail-order shops at the end of the piece. Bon appetit!

Cover photo by Victoria Zakharchuk on Unsplash.

African and Caribbean foods

• Africa World Market, 1392 Cyrville Road, Ottawa
• African Queen, 2430 Bank Street, Ottawa
• African Soul Food, 425 Vanier, Gatineau
• Afro-Caribbean Groceries, 1737 St. Laurent Boulevard, Ottawa
• Afro Diva, 1315 Richmond Road, Ottawa
• All Africa Market, 411 McArthur Avenue, Ottawa
• Aunty Ann, 846 Gardiners Road, Kingston*
• Epicerie-Robert, 193 de la Savane, Gatineau
• Geeland International Grocery, 1620 Walkley Road, Ottawa
• GB Caribbean Grocery, 609-A Center Street, Ottawa
• Kool Runnings, 2200 Montreal Road, Ottawa
• L&F Montego Place, 2211 St. Joseph Boulevard, Orleans
• Marché Afrique Mont Bleu, 4 Georges Bilodeau, Gatineau
• Rhema’s African and Caribbean Market, 4380 Innes Road, Orleans
• Savannah Afro Caribbean Products, 1838 Bank Street, Ottawa
• Thirteen: A Social Enterprise (a project of the Parkdale Food Centre that sells spice mixes online)
• Tizita Bakeshop, 365A Booth Street, Ottawa

Asian supermarkets and food shops

“Asian” is an enormous category, I know! If the name doesn’t make it clear, I’ve tried to indicate which types of ingredients—such as Chinese, Korean, Filipino or Indian—you’re most likely to find in each shop.

• Arum Market, 508 Bank Street, Ottawa: Korean
• Asian Grocery, 812 Pitt Street, Cornwall*
• Best Price Oriental Market, 484 Hazeldean Road, Kanata
• BV Buy Asian Mart, 164 Princess Street, Kingston: East and Southeast Asian*
• Bombay Spices, 565 West Hunt Club Road, Ottawa: South Asian
• Divisoria Market, 1743 Carling Avenue, Ottawa: Filipino
• Fairway Trading Company, 9 ByWard Market Square, Ottawa: A bit of everything
• Green Fresh Supermarket Vanier, 29 Selkirk Street, Ottawa: Chinese
• Hung Phat Grocery, 139 Rochester Street, Ottawa
• Hungry Ninja, 1529 Merivale Road, Ottawa: Korean and Japanese snacks
• The Indian Supermarket, 1547 Merivale Road, Ottawa
• Istanbul Food Market, 200 Katimavik Road, Unit 5, Kanata: Turkish items
• Kanata Kash N Karry, 60 Colchester Square, Kanata: South Asian
• Kingston Asian Super, 461 Princess Street, Kingston: East and Southeast Asian*
• Kowloon Market, 712 Somerset Street West, Ottawa: East and Southeast Asian
• Lim Bangkok, 794 Somerset Street West, Ottawa: East and Southeast Asian
• Manphong Supermarket, 775 Somerset Street West, Ottawa: East and Southeast Asian
• Namaste Indian Supermarket, 277 Bath Road, Kingston*
• OK Mart, 141 Bentley Avenue, Unit G, Ottawa: Korean
• Phuoc Loi, 797 Somerset Street West, Ottawa: East and Southeast Asian (especially Vietnamese)

• Seoul Mart, 22 Pretoria Avenue, Ottawa: Korean
• Shopkart.ca: Online South Asian grocery story (pickup and delivery in Ottawa only)
• South Asian Supermarket, 3059 Carling Avenue, Ottawa
• Spice Divine, 160 Elm Street, Ottawa: Indian (order online for pickup on Elm; they also deliver and ship)
• T&T Supermarket, 224 Hunt Club Road, Ottawa: East and Southeast Asian
• Vaishali’s Super Store, 62 Wylie Avenue, Ottawa: South Asian
• Wah Shing, 835 Somerset Street West, Ottawa: East and Southeast Asian
• Win Tai Market, 1137 Ogilvie Road, Ottawa: East and Southeast Asian (especially Japanese)

European food stores

Yes, this is another huge and diverse category! Again, I’ve tried to narrow things down a little.

• Adams Sausages, 1437 Michael Street, Ottawa
• Athena Gourmet Greek Imports, 368 Bank Street, Ottawa
• Bakkers General Store and European Deli, 1004 Manotick Station Road, Greely: Products from Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, Poland, Russia and more
• Baltyk Delicatessen, 935 Carling Avenue, Ottawa
• La Bottega Nicastro, 64 George Street, Ottawa: Italian
• Casa Nicastro Delicatessen, 304 Preston Street, Ottawa: Italian deli
• Charcuterie Irina A&F, 115 Saint-Joseph, Gatineau: Eastern European deli
• Continental Delicatessen, 57 York Street, Ottawa: European sausages, deli meats, packaged goods
• Di Rienzo Grocery and Deli, 111 Beech Street, Ottawa: Italian deli, sausages, cheeses
• Duke Fine Foods, 2120 Robertson Road, Unit 110, Bells Corners: Products from across Europe, especially Eastern Europe and Russia
• Dutch Groceries and Giftware, 1400 Clyde Avenue, Ottawa
• European Delicatessen, 1568 Merivale Road, Ottawa: Central and Eastern European meats and other products
• Farmer’s Pick, 1430 Prince of Wales Drive, Ottawa: Italian bakery, European deli and more
• Istanbul Food Market, 200 Katimavik Road, Unit 5, Kanata: Turkish items

• Ivan’s Meat and Deli, 1496 Stittsville Main Street, Stittsville
• Jacobsons, 103 Beechwood Avenue, Ottawa: British and European packaged goods, meats and cheeses
• Lakomka International Deli, 1127 Baxter Road, Ottawa: Russian/European
• Little Euro Delicatessen, 2 Goldridge Drive, Kanata
• Little Italy Fine Foods Orleans, 2701 St. Joseph Boulevard, Orleans
• Luciano Foods, 114 Preston Street, Ottawa: Italian
• Mario’s Food Centre, 381 McArthur Avenue, Ottawa: Portuguese/Brazilian
• Il Negozio Nicastro, 792 Bank Street and 1355 Wellington Street West, Ottawa: Italian
• Nicastro’s Fine Foods, 1558 Merivale Road, Ottawa: Italian
• Pasta Genova, 234 Wellington Street, Kingston: Italian*
• Polka Delicatessen, 1574 Walkley Road, Ottawa: Polish
• The Scottish and Irish Store, 2194 Robertson Road and 1717 St. Laurent Boulevard, Ottawa
• Stolichni Deli European Delicatessen, 2280 Carling Avenue, Ottawa: Eastern European foods
• Ullrich’s, 214 Pembroke Street West, Pembroke: European-style deli*
• Wedel Touch of Europe, 5 ByWard Market Square, Ottawa: Eastern European meats, candy, bread and more

Latin American markets

• Bienvenidos Latin Market, 1731 St. Laurent Boulevard, Ottawa
• La Chingadera Mexican Market, 740 Bank Street, Ottawa
• Los Hermanos, 300 Main Street, Picton*
• Little Latin America, 764 Somerset Street West, Ottawa
• Mama Cora Latin Market, 274 Montreal Road, Ottawa
• Mercado Latino, 67 Montreal Road, Ottawa
• San Jose Mexican Foods, 1017 Carp Road, Stittsville
• La Tiendita, 848 Merivale Road, Ottawa

Middle Eastern and North African specialties

• Aljazeerah Food and Meat Market, 1101 Wellington Street West, Ottawa
• Ameer Grocery and Meat Shop, 1800 Bank Street, Ottawa
• Arya Food Market, 508 Gladstone Avenue, Ottawa
• Boucherie Atlas, 25 St-Joseph, Gatineau
• Barakat Market, 1656 Bank Street, Ottawa
• Damas Supermarket, 3033 Carling Avenue, Ottawa
• George’s Meat Shop, 3681 Innes Road, Orleans
• Marché Adonis Mediterranean Market, 1055 St. Laurent Boulevard, Ottawa, and 920 Maloney West, Gatineau
• Marché Al Andalous, 743 St-Joseph, Gatineau
• Mid-East Food Centre, 1010 Belfast Road, Ottawa
• New Middleast Supermarket, 1755 Bank Street, Ottawa
• La Palmeraie Epicerie et Boucherie Halal, 277B St-Joseph, Gatineau
• Shiraz Food Market, 725 Somerset Street West, Ottawa
• Sultan Meat Shop & Grocery, 2446 Bank Street, Ottawa

Multicultural groceries

These food shops specialize in hard-to-find groceries for multiple cuisines. I’ve tried to give you a sense of what you’re most likely to find, but many of these stores have a little bit of everything.

• B&H Your Community Grocer, 301 Rideau Street, Kemptville: Along with lots of very local products, you’ll find goods from Atlantic Canada and Britain *
• La Brûlerie, 69 St-Joseph, Gatineau: Along with its own line of gourmet coffee, this shop sells a wide range of spices, oils and other packaged products
• Cedars and Company, 1255 Bank Street, Ottawa: Lots of Middle Eastern foods; smaller selection of Asian, Latin American, Italian, and other products; range of spices
• Chilly Chiles, Bayshore Shopping Centre and Tanger Outlet Mall, Ottawa: Hot sauces, spices and dried peppers of every description, including lots of American barbecue sauces
• Cooke’s Fine Foods and Coffee, 61 Brock Street, Kingston; 2395 Princess Street, Kingston; 280 Main Street, Picton (Picton location is seasonal, so call ahead to check hours): Wide range of Canadian products is complemented by a selection of international sauces and other packaged goods*
• Exotic Bottega, 100 Murray Street, Ottawa: Snacks from around the world.
• Food Basics, multiple locations: A reader gave a shoutout to the popular discount supermarket for its excellent selection of reasonably priced international foods, including sauces, rice and more
• Foodsmiths, 106 Wilson Street West, Perth: This natural/organic grocery store sells lots of spices, flours, pulses and other basics of international cuisine*
• Grace in the Kitchen, 255 Kanata Avenue (Centrum), Kanata: Alongside kitchen gadgets, cookware, cheese and locally made frozen entrées (and more), you’ll find some international spices, oils and sauces
• Mrs. McGarrigles, 311 St. Lawrence Street, Merrickville: Known mainly for their fabulous house-made mustards, this gourmet shop also sells lots of sauces and spices made by other companies*
• Noor, 332 Richmond Road, Ottawa: Spices and other ingredients for a variety of world cuisines, as well as to-go samosas, baba ganoush and other treats
• Quattrocchi’s Specialty Foods, 662 Montreal Street, Kingston: Lots of Italian products, as well as spices and other hard-to-find groceries from around the world*
• Rosie Yumski’s, 24 Church Street, Westport: As well as teapots, cooking utensils and other kitchen gear, you’ll find lots of international spices and sauces*
• Shirin Market, 700 March Road, Kanata: A reader was delighted to find Matouk’s hot sauce from Trinidad and Tobago here; wide range of Middle Eastern, Asian, European and Caribbean foods
• Silk Road Foods, 1618 Merivale Road, Ottawa: Middle Eastern, African and South Asian products, including baked goods, meats and spices
• Thana Markets, 386 Bank Street, Ottawa: South Asian and Caribbean products

Canadian online food companies

If you can’t find those unusual ingredients locally, check the links above; many shops do mail order. You could also try these online food stores.

• My Dutch Store*
• Singal’s Indian Grocery Delivery*
• UniMarket Latin Food*

Looking for international cookbooks?

If you’re seeking new recipes from different world cuisines to shake up your home cooking, here are just a few of the countless cookbooks released in the last few years that promise to introduce home chefs to exciting new dishes. Note that the links below are affiliate links, which means I’ll earn a small commission if you buy the books via those links. And if you do so, thanks very much for supporting this website!

In Bibi’s Kitchen: The Recipes and Stories of Grandmothers From the Eight African Countries That Touch the Indian Ocean

A few weeks ago, I clipped out a pasta recipe from this book that The Ottawa Citizen had reprinted. I haven’t had a chance to try it yet, but I have all the ingredients! The spice mix alone—which can be used in other recipes—looks really intriguing. And In Bibi’s Kitchen has garnered all sorts of rave reviews.

Plenty: Vibrant Vegetable Recipes from London’s Ottolenghi

Suffice it to say that I would make a very reluctant vegetarian—I’ve always seen veggies as very much a sideshow to the main (meat or pasta) event. However, since buying this book a few years ago, I’ve started to change my mind. Written by a British-based celeb chef, Plenty draws on multiple Middle Eastern influences to bring veggies front and centre on your plate. A French-language version is also available.

The Caribbean, Central & South American Cookbook: Tropical Cuisines Steeped in History

I haven’t bought The Caribbean, Central & South American Cookbook yet, but because I love Caribbean and Latin American food, it is definitely on my radar! And at just $12.99, the price is right.

And finally…

This list is by no means complete. If I’ve forgotten your favourite international grocery store in Ottawa, Gatineau, Eastern Ontario or West Quebec, let me know.

Some of the grocery stores above deliver. If you’re looking for additional delivery options, check out my huge post, How to get groceries delivered in Ottawa and beyond.

And if you’d like to take a virtual trip to Japan without cooking anything yourself, here are my tips for visiting Japan without leaving home.

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