Fruit
Jun 24th 2004, 10:24 am
#1
Just going for Holidays
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2004
Location: Paignton, Devon
Posts: 521
Fruit
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
Jun 24th 2004, 11:24 am
#2
Just Joined
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 10
Liftman
I lived in Vancouver for over 5 years and can honestly tell you that the fruit (and veg) do not taste as nice as the British/European. I knew people from various countries who lived in Vancouver and they all thought the same. There is no taste whatsoever, and they are also very expensive. In UK you pay a certain price for melon/cauliflower/etc. but in Canada you pay per kilo.... and it can cost a small fortune.
Glasni
I lived in Vancouver for over 5 years and can honestly tell you that the fruit (and veg) do not taste as nice as the British/European. I knew people from various countries who lived in Vancouver and they all thought the same. There is no taste whatsoever, and they are also very expensive. In UK you pay a certain price for melon/cauliflower/etc. but in Canada you pay per kilo.... and it can cost a small fortune.
Glasni
Jun 24th 2004, 11:24 am
#3
Just Joined
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 10
Liftman
I lived in Vancouver for over 5 years and can honestly tell you that the fruit (and veg) do not taste as nice as the British/European. I knew people from various countries who lived in Vancouver and they all thought the same. There is no taste whatsoever, and they are also very expensive. In UK you pay a certain price for melon/cauliflower/etc. but in Canada you pay per kilo.... and it can cost a small fortune.
Glasni
I lived in Vancouver for over 5 years and can honestly tell you that the fruit (and veg) do not taste as nice as the British/European. I knew people from various countries who lived in Vancouver and they all thought the same. There is no taste whatsoever, and they are also very expensive. In UK you pay a certain price for melon/cauliflower/etc. but in Canada you pay per kilo.... and it can cost a small fortune.
Glasni
Jun 24th 2004, 11:51 am
#4
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Joined: Apr 2004
Location: Bath UK to Penticton, Okanagan BC in 2002
Posts: 241
Re: Fruit
Originally posted by liftman
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
Hi
We live in the Okanagan where fruit is grown so it is very fresh and cheap too! It tastes much better than most of the fruit I have tasted in the UK. Along the side of the roads are fruit stalls where they sell it and so it does not come much fresher than that!
Veggies are about the same as in the UK however potatoes here are horrible! Hard to find good cream too and I often crave for single cream.
Enjoy your strawberries,
JJ
Jun 24th 2004, 11:52 am
#5
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Joined: Apr 2004
Location: Bath UK to Penticton, Okanagan BC in 2002
Posts: 241
Re: Fruit
Originally posted by liftman
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
Hi
We live in the Okanagan where fruit is grown so it is very fresh and cheap too! It tastes much better than most of the fruit I have tasted in the UK. Along the side of the roads are fruit stalls where they sell it and so it does not come much fresher than that!
Veggies are about the same as in the UK however potatoes here are horrible! Hard to find good cream too and I often crave for single cream.
Enjoy your strawberries,
JJ
Jun 24th 2004, 3:33 pm
#6
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Joined: Sep 2003
Location: Upstate South Carolina
Posts: 30,768
Re: Fruit
Originally posted by liftman
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
Iain
Jun 24th 2004, 4:05 pm
#7
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Joined: Nov 2003
Location: Vancouver Island
Posts: 298
We went to a pick your own strawberries 2 weeks ago (which is very popular on the island), and it cost 2 dollars a pound, which is pretty cheap. Cant get fresher than that. Some varieties are nice while other ones lack flavour.
As for out of season strawberries, dont buy them. They are usually over sized and are devoid of flavour.
Melon is cheap when in season, we have seen it as low as 49 cents per pound recently and it will go down further.
Apples same as UK in taste and price, pears can be pricey.
Potatoes are not very good, cauliflower is more expensive than the uk as well.
As for out of season strawberries, dont buy them. They are usually over sized and are devoid of flavour.
Melon is cheap when in season, we have seen it as low as 49 cents per pound recently and it will go down further.
Apples same as UK in taste and price, pears can be pricey.
Potatoes are not very good, cauliflower is more expensive than the uk as well.
Jun 25th 2004, 1:48 am
#8
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Joined: Feb 2004
Location: In the Boonies outside of Halifax, NS, Canada
Posts: 606
Re: Fruit
Originally posted by liftman
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
I am sitting here with a half pound punnet of English strawberries and half a pint of double cream.
What are the strawberries like in Canada, and all the other fruit too?
Taste
Quality
Price
PEI potatoes are good and theres an abundance of them here in NS Liftman so you'll be ok
Jun 25th 2004, 2:09 am
#9
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Location: British Columbia
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Have generally found apples to be big and bland. This is odd in that, say, Braeburns still get shipped from New Zealand whether in Canada or the UK. Just seems that the North American market prefers things really big and hence tasteless and the small tasty ones get sent to Europe.
However, given the positive replies above perhaps I'm missing something - where are you folks buying your apples from? I've not had much joy in Vancouver - do you stay away from the supermarkets?
Cheers, Iain
However, given the positive replies above perhaps I'm missing something - where are you folks buying your apples from? I've not had much joy in Vancouver - do you stay away from the supermarkets?
Cheers, Iain
Jun 25th 2004, 4:03 am
#10
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Location: Bath UK to Penticton, Okanagan BC in 2002
Posts: 241
Originally posted by Iain Mc
Have generally found apples to be big and bland. This is odd in that, say, Braeburns still get shipped from New Zealand whether in Canada or the UK. Just seems that the North American market prefers things really big and hence tasteless and the small tasty ones get sent to Europe.
However, given the positive replies above perhaps I'm missing something - where are you folks buying your apples from? I've not had much joy in Vancouver - do you stay away from the supermarkets?
Cheers, Iain
Have generally found apples to be big and bland. This is odd in that, say, Braeburns still get shipped from New Zealand whether in Canada or the UK. Just seems that the North American market prefers things really big and hence tasteless and the small tasty ones get sent to Europe.
However, given the positive replies above perhaps I'm missing something - where are you folks buying your apples from? I've not had much joy in Vancouver - do you stay away from the supermarkets?
Cheers, Iain
When I don't buy of the fruit stalls in the summer then it is either Safeway or Sav On. The apples I buy are also shipped from NZ, so not sure, next time I buy one I will eat it really slowly and have a think about whether or not it really is good! I am sure sometimes we get used to things without really noticing!!!! Trouble is when I go back to the UK on trips I spend all my time eating chocolate and not apples so I guess it has been a long time since I ate UK fruit! Do you know anywhere that sells UK chocolate?!
JJ
Jun 25th 2004, 4:35 am
#11
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Location: Toronto
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there's a Cadbury's shop in the Bay in Toronto - but it's probably a long way for you to come........
Jun 25th 2004, 7:57 am
#12
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Location: Uk/Erbil Iraq
Posts: 34
as a professional pastry chef running my own business in the uk i use huge amounts of berries over the year.There is nothing like english strawberries but the season is so short and so weather dependant so most of the time its force grown spanish, dutch, etc
You can get decent raspberries again for a short time but i think its generally poor in the uk unless you get organic.the other berry seasons are very short after that its imported tasteless expensive stuff.
Western canada will provide me a great choice of of fruit for my business when i set up there and what ive tasted in vancouver has been to a higher standard
You can get decent raspberries again for a short time but i think its generally poor in the uk unless you get organic.the other berry seasons are very short after that its imported tasteless expensive stuff.
Western canada will provide me a great choice of of fruit for my business when i set up there and what ive tasted in vancouver has been to a higher standard
Jun 25th 2004, 10:10 am
#13
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Joined: Jul 2002
Location: Toronto, Ontario
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For those of you in Toronto you could try where I work (http://www.wholefoods.com/toronto)
It's an all natural & organic supermarket so basically everything we sell is all natural (ie no artificial ingredients, flavours, colours, sweetners etc) and some is organic too. Our produce dept is pretty good and gets stuff from all over. Also the meat and Seafood is good as we only buy our stuff from farms we certify and personally inspect so no hormones and all proper natural feed with no animal by products and no iradiation etc.
Ours is the first one in Canada but we have like 160 stores in the US and are the only supermarket chain in the world certified organic in the US.
For those in Vancouver we are opening a new store in west vancouver at the new Park Royal Village next to the Park Royal mall (www.shopparkroyal.com) and we are opening another one in Oakville just west of Toronto and then more in the next few years in the GTA and Vancouver areas etc.
I work mainly with grocery purchasing and we bring stuff in from all over the world including some British stuff but it is hard because of our ingredient rules, gotta avoid all those E numbers.
Well that is the end of my plug but it's worth a look if you want some goof natural and organic produce/meat/seafood etc and also we have a bakery and prepared foods section and more.
Drew
It's an all natural & organic supermarket so basically everything we sell is all natural (ie no artificial ingredients, flavours, colours, sweetners etc) and some is organic too. Our produce dept is pretty good and gets stuff from all over. Also the meat and Seafood is good as we only buy our stuff from farms we certify and personally inspect so no hormones and all proper natural feed with no animal by products and no iradiation etc.
Ours is the first one in Canada but we have like 160 stores in the US and are the only supermarket chain in the world certified organic in the US.
For those in Vancouver we are opening a new store in west vancouver at the new Park Royal Village next to the Park Royal mall (www.shopparkroyal.com) and we are opening another one in Oakville just west of Toronto and then more in the next few years in the GTA and Vancouver areas etc.
I work mainly with grocery purchasing and we bring stuff in from all over the world including some British stuff but it is hard because of our ingredient rules, gotta avoid all those E numbers.
Well that is the end of my plug but it's worth a look if you want some goof natural and organic produce/meat/seafood etc and also we have a bakery and prepared foods section and more.
Drew
Jun 25th 2004, 2:27 pm
#14
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Do you know anywhere that sells UK chocolate?!
They also sell things like hob nobs if you get really desperate for that UK style low chocolate content high sugar fix.
Apples taste like apples, but then I don't like them that much anyway.
The saskatoon berry pies sold by the saskatoon farm nearly Calgary are better than anything containing strawberries that I've ever tasted.
Fresh Okanagan grapes taste like bugglegum, but they make great jelly.
Jun 25th 2004, 2:50 pm
#15
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Joined: Jun 2004
Location: Calgary since 2001.
Posts: 274
There is a great little sweet shop in Banff that sells all kinds of English chocolate and confectionery. It was like paradise the first time I went in there.
Fruit is okay in Calgary from the supermarkets, but I've had some horrible experiences with watermelon. I find selection is a little limited compared to the big UK supermarkets.
Forget real cream - it just doesn't exist in [at least this part of] Canada. You'll have to make do with synthetic stuff, or squirty stuff from the cans. Fortunately, Ambrosia custard is sold everywhere in Calgary, which almost makes up for the shortfall.
Fruit is okay in Calgary from the supermarkets, but I've had some horrible experiences with watermelon. I find selection is a little limited compared to the big UK supermarkets.
Forget real cream - it just doesn't exist in [at least this part of] Canada. You'll have to make do with synthetic stuff, or squirty stuff from the cans. Fortunately, Ambrosia custard is sold everywhere in Calgary, which almost makes up for the shortfall.
