Many travellers eagerly research the best restaurants or food tours before heading somewhere new, but you don’t necessarily need to make a reservation or spend a lot of money to experience a truly local food scene.
When I first started traveling, I was on a strict budget and didn’t have money for gourmet restaurants. I sustained myself largely by shopping in ordinary supermarkets. They were always cheap, and I knew I would easily find an array of local foods in one place.
Going to supermarkets started as a money-saving measure, but I now realise how much those shopping excursions enriched my travels.
My budget these days is a little more generous, but I still find myself seeking out local supermarkets wherever I travel. It’s the one place I know I will brush shoulders with locals, even in towns overrun with tourists. Often, I will ask my fellow shoppers or check-out clerks for advice about what to buy or where to go in their town.
Supermarkets are also a great place to get a good look at local culture. I can usually tell at a glance if the local culture values fresh fruits and vegetables over highly processed foods, how people snack and what they drink. Now that I frequently travel with my kids, we always discover new candies and treats at supermarkets. (And we usually bring some home.)
I’m not alone in thinking a visit to a supermarket can be a highlight of any trip. We spoke with several travel experts who suggest you do the same.
Michael Soud, the co-founder of Travel Insighter, has been to 106 countries. He makes it a point to visit supermarkets wherever he goes. “A visit to a supermarket is an anthropological experience every single time,” he said. “There is an infinite number of products that can be on the shelves of a supermarket, so the choice the supermarket makes is the best insight into what a local community values.” He always checks out the frozen food aisle because “invariably, if something has been turned into a frozen food, it’s a local staple,” he said.
Supermarkets “are more than just shopping spaces. They’re cultural hubs. They offer insights into local life and are fun,” Abdellah Bouraihan, an Intrepid Tour Leader in Morocco who regularly takes his tour groups to local supermarkets, said. Bouraihan thinks these visits are an important part of getting to know the local culture. He explained going to supermarkets provides travellers with “an authentic look into the daily lives of locals and allows them to see how people shop, what products are popular, and the cost of everyday items.” He added it’s also a great place to buy snacks, spices and goods you won’t find in typical tourist shops catering to foreigners.
Bouraihan also thinks that supermarkets are a great look into how culinary preferences have evolved. “The types of bread, spices and olives in Moroccan supermarkets not only showcase the country’s culinary preferences, they also show how modernity blends with tradition,” Bouraihan said. That’s because these traditional items are often displayed alongside international foods that have found their way to Morocco, he explained. Plus, he likes that going to a supermarket is a quick, inexpensive way to expose travellers to a variety of local specialties at once, especially if they are only in the country for a short time. In Morocco, tourists can try traditional cookies and locally made almond milk in one visit, he said.
My hometown of Washington, D.C., is best known for its national monuments and Smithsonian museums. It’s easy for visitors to overlook that D.C. is home to the largest Ethiopian population outside of Ethiopia. However, walk into almost any D.C.-area supermarket, and you will likely find Ethiopian foods and spices, such as Injera crisps, a clear sign of the significant Ethiopian presence in the area.
Sound has noticed similar trends in supermarkets elsewhere. For example, on a trip to western Sydney, Australia, he noticed that supermarkets increased the size and range of their halal sections to accommodate the dietary preferences of newly arrived immigrants from Afghanistan.
Many professional chefs, including Amanda K. Lindquist, executive chef at Wailea Beach Resort and the Marriott Culinary Council Lead in Maui, make it a point to shop at supermarkets when she travels. “It has truly enriched my cooking style as well as broadened my horizons,” she said. Lindquist eats at plenty of restaurants when she travels but says that going to supermarkets allows her to understand regional cuisine better and provides additional inspiration for her own cooking. She’s also discovered spices at supermarkets abroad that she hadn’t come across before. This has enhanced her cooking at home and work.
Lindquist especially enjoys buying local salts and olive oil. “Each salt has a slightly different taste and texture,” depending on the region, she said. Lindquist discovered a great salt cured with red wine from the Basque region of Spain, which is known for its wines. Similarly, the taste of olives oils Lindquist has found in supermarkets varies “depending on where the olives are grown, the climate, the soil, the method,” she said. By venturing into local supermarkets, Lindquist has found olive oils with sweet, vanilla flavours and rich flavours she describes as “almost like meat.”
Visiting a supermarket can even create memories that last. While travellers are often exposed to new flavours at restaurants, supermarkets are where they can delve into the raw ingredients used to create their favourite dishes.
Bouraihan says that former tour group members often tell him they try to recreate Moroccan dishes at home, using the spices or ingredients they bought at a supermarket during their trip. Favourites include mint tea and experimenting with tagine recipes. “It becomes a way for them to stay connected to the culture and memories of their trip,” he said.
In her kitchen, Lindquist has several items she’s gathered from supermarkets during her travels, saying they “take me back to the amazing places that I have traveled to and the people that I met.”
