dingbat

I should have shares in this place:

http://www.dickenssweets.com/

Gravy granules are $5.95 aggh!!!! They have toffee bon-bons and Lucozade so I don't care how much I spend.

Dorothy

Don't know what any of you are talking about. I use Bisto all the time...PG Tips tea is available in most large grocery stores and Paxo stuffing is what we had at Christmas!! Oh and tonight it's steak and kidney pie for supper. Bought it at the local shop in Burlington Ontario. My granny (from London) used to shop at a store in Etobicoke area of Toronto for all of the wonderful things from England...Taverner's candies in the little tin, licorice allsorts, etc. I'm sure if you look you will find all of the things you miss from home. Almost every large city will have a British shop with all of your favourites.

Rich_007

Obviously you live in a Brit-centric locale....some of us happen to live further afield where the demand for Liquorice Allsorts, Stella Artois and Pie and Mash is less pronounced.

Somehow here in the wild west we manage to survive on the measley staples sourced from the local grocery stores and via home cooking. And it's nice to embrace the process of Canadianization rather than having to cling grimly to those oh-so-wonderful things of Britishness.

Brits have a sad reputation for clinging to the coat tails of the distant homeland. I say live the life fully and embrace every aspect of it for its difference, not for its familiarity.

Each to their own though.

Rich.

Island_Girl

Victoria BC has food stores that bring in many foods that my husband loves and I am finding many of our local stores and markets are now bringing in British favorites I have been able to find Paxo stuffing, Bisto gravy granules, Ribena, Colman's of Norwich sauces, Ambrosia's Devon Custard plus many other favorites kind of makes it a bit nicer when your far away from home.

You just have to do a bit of research in the town or city where you relocate to...good luck.

CalgaryBlade

Stella Artois originates from Belgium, although most of the stuff sold in the UK is brewed under licence by Whitbread in the UK.

The Stella Artois in my local here is imported from Belgium, similarly the Guinness and Kilkenny are imported from Ireland which makes them all pricey but IMHO worth it when compared to the Canadian stuff (which is like making love in a canoe).

If only they would import Staropramen.

The Lea and Perrin's Worcestershire sauce here is made in the UK, but oddly the HP sauce here is made by Lea and Perrins ... in the US.

I was pleased to read on the packet of the After Eights I bought at Xmas, that they were made in Switzerland.

We also had Bassett's Liquorice Allsorts at Xmas, but they were made in Ontario.

Rich_007

Of course but it is drunk by streetwise hard men and is not colloquially called wifebeater for nothing

eg from the urbandictionary website:
Wifebeater:
Proper Noun: Strong lager, esp. Stella Artois with a tendency to induce wife-beating in the drinker. If the drinker is unmarried, this takes the form of generally directed rage. As in "Do you fancy a wifebeater"?

Rich. :scared:

dbd33

I think all British foods are available here but Marmite is expensive and only sold in small jars, best to bring some giant ones as it keeps forever (the jar we're using now has an offer of a free record on it). Beer in bottles can be problematic in Ontario as imports are a government monopoly, we bring Fuller's from the US.

CalgaryBlade

I think it says more about that sort of drinker than the drink. The Stella drinkers in my local seem level-headed types.

Mind you at $6.50 a pint, it's a drink to be savoured not swilled.

Calgal

I'd say there's something wrong with it! My Marmite (bought in Safeway) is exactly like the English (have a look on the label and see if it says "Imported from UK" or "Made under licence in Canada"

Used to get Imported Branston Pickle in the grocery store, and noticed the current jar tasted different! When I checked the label, I see it is now made under licence here.

Biiiiink

I'm glad to throw out those little jars... clearly you've instilled some sort of no-knife-back-in-jar-after-being-on-toast rule, I haven't managed that yet and am sick of crumbs and butter smears by about day 2 of our jars' lives

hot wasabi peas

Tomatos.

I know you can't bring them but enjoy them while you can. In Canada, the store bought ones taste like metallic fish. Tomatos are one food stuff I will miss when I go back to Canada; I can polish off a pound of those sweet little baby roma's in a flash.

I can get good tomatos in Canada but it usually involves a visit to family members and their gardens. :scared:

Purley

I bought Marmite at Superstore in Regina. I like the stuff but I have to admit that its full of salt and probably not very good for you. I really do like Paxo, but again its probably full of unpronounceable chemicals like all packaged goods and while I had some at Christmas that was brought back from England, most of the time I make my sage and onion stuffing out of breadcrumbs and sage and onion - what a novel idea!!

scrubbedexpat074

Exactly... Just forget about what you can't get...

"Can't get Bisto" - learn to make your own gravy, it's not rocket science.

daft batty

calgal- mine was english bought in tescos

am wondering if the old sitff was so old it had condensed into the dark sticky stuff

Biiiiink

That's great if you're having a roast...pain in the backside if you're not