A friend of mine once asked me for a fried rice recipe and I gave them my trusty chicken fried rice with gai lan recipe. I followed up with them the next day to see how it went and they said it was good, but something was different. They asked me what “gai lan” was and I explained to them that it was Chinese broccoli. They said that they weren’t able to find it at their local grocery store and used regular fleurette broccoli and that by using soy sauce, would rationalize it as being “Chinese“. After I stopped pounding my head against the wall, I tried to figure out if the problem was my friends or the fact that I didn’t specify where to get the ingredients… especially after I found out that their pantry soy sauce was the kosher-gluten-free variety.
So here is a round up of all the Asian grocery stores, and super markets in and around the greater Montreal area where you’ll be able to fulfill most (if not all) of your Asian groceries and Asian specialty item needs (maybe even the kosher soy sauce). Let’s face it, if you’ve been to an Asian grocery store before, it’s easy to lose at least an hour of your day looking at all the obscure exotic items in colourful packaging depicting images that may or may not be politically correct here in the west, plastered with delicious “Engrish” phrases that promise a “vitalizing good taste and happy fun time” upon consuming a curious beverage whose poster-boy is a dated picture of Tom Selleck in a Hawaiian shirt and hot pants.
Marché C&T 8200 Boul Taschereau Brossard QC J4X 2S6
Marché C&T 12200 Boulevard Laurentien Montréal QC. H4K 1M9
Marché Hawaï – Pie IX 9204 Boulevard Pie IX Montréal (Québec), H1Z 4H7
Marché Hawaï 1999 Marcel-Laurin Boul Saint-Laurent, QC H4R 1K4
Les Aliments Kim Phat 7209 boul Taschereau Brossard, QC. J4Y 1A1
Les Aliments Kim Phat 3733 Jarry Rue E Montreal, QC H1Z 2G1
Les Aliments Kim Phat 3588 Goyer, Montréal, QC H3S 1J1
Marché Kim Hour 4777 Avenue Van Horne Montréal, QC H3W 1H8
Marché Kim Hour 7734, Saint-Michel Boulevard Montreal, QC H2A 3A5
Marché Thai Hour 7130 Rue Saint-Denis Montréal, QC H2S 2S5
Marché Kei Phat 4215 Rue Jarry Est Saint-Leonard, QC H1R 1W9
Marché Fu Tai 6700, Chemin de la Cote-des-Neiges Montréal, QC H3S 2B2
Marché Heng Heng 8050 Boul Taschereau Brossard, QC. J4X 1C2
Kein Vinh Trading In 1062-1066 St-Laurent Montreal, QC.
Marché Kim Po 5505, av Victoria, Montréal, QC H3W 2R2
Jangteu Korean Grocery Store 2109 Rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest, Montréal, QC H3H 1M6
Jangteu Korean Grocery Store 2116 Boulevard Décarie, Montréal, QC H4A 3J3
Montreal Korean & Japanese foods 6151 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest Montréal, QC H4B 1L9
Miyamoto 382 Victoria Av Westmount, QC H3Z 2N4
Sheng Tang Supermarche 1425 Rue du Fort Montréal, QC H3H 2C2
Marche Oriental St-Denis 7101 Rue Saint-Denis Montreal, QC H2S 2S5
Supermarché G & D 1006 St Laurent, Montréal, QC H2Z 1J3
Sheng Tai Marché 4850 Boulevard des Sources, Dollard-des-Ormeaux, QC H8Y 3C7
Most of these store feature in-house butchers where you will be able to get awesome cuts of meat as well as fresh fish (fresh as in still alive and swimming) as well as pastries and baked goods. Please contact the stores directly for opening hours.
8 comments
Could you please share your fried rice recipe?
I don’t know where I can get the cooking wine you specified for your Ma Po tofu recipe. At one point, Marché Oriental had cooking wine, but I don’t think they carry it any more.
Forgot to say – thank you very much for this list!
Has anyone here been to both Marché Hawaï locations? I’ve been told the St-Laurent one is larger and better stocked; is that true? It is much more direct for me to get to St-Léonard, and I can cycle there if this bloody snow ever melts. (I live near Marché Oriental).
Thank you!
I’ve been to both, the picture at the top of the post is actually the Hawaii-Pie XI location. They’re comparable and both very very large. I’ve been able to find the cooking wine at most of the bigger Asian supermarkets. Both: Pearl River Bridge “cooking liquor” as well as Shao Hsing or something similar (with a light blue label.) I’ve used both of these and they both do the same job.
There is a new West Island Asian grocery store called Sheng Tai, 4850 Boul. Des sources D.D.O H8Y 3C7. One word: FRESH
In reply to the last comment, also on the West Island is Marché Kim Hoa, 4843 Des Sources. It’s almost across but a little north of Sheng Tai. The front looks really worn, and the shop is small, but honestly, I prefer it to the new place. The people at Kim Hoa are friendly, especially if you go there more than once, and they go out of their way to help you. Also Kim Hoa sells a lot of organic stuff. (Not produce, but soy sauce, teas etc)
At Sheng Tai last week, the woman in front of me at the checkout was buying something that was on sale in the flyer, still one day left for the sale, but the cashier, though acknowledging the flyer, said there was no special price. I tried to buy lotus leaves, and no one knew what they were. It seems most of them don’t speak much English or French. When it opened, I was impressed, but not any more. I’m back to my old fave, Kim Hoa. Smaller but much friendlier and helpful.
Marche Hawai on Marcel Laurin has been closed since around Feb/Mar. But it looks like a new one will open at some point. New sign already in place. Lian Tai. I wonder if it’s any relation to Sheng Tai.
It’s actually the same owners as Fu Tai in Cote des Neiges.