London Relocation: An Introduction to London Grocery Stores

In a recent post on our website, I told the following joke:

How many London grocery stores does it take to make a holiday Jell-o recipe?
Answer:  Three.

Not find that funny? Neither did I when it really did take me three different stores across two neighborhoods to find four ingredients. It’s true that shopping in London can be a challenge when looking for something very specific. Unlike the American suburbia where I hail from, there isn’t the one-stop-shopping megastore that really puts the “super” in supermarket, which is admittedly not all that bad a thing. When you move to London, then, it becomes a matter of shifting habits and scoping out what stores are in close proximity to your flat (as well as which you might utilize as a delivery option) and familiarizing yourself with which ones have which staples so you can strategize efficiently.

My personal favorites are Marks & Spencer and Tesco. Though Marks & Spencer itself is known as a department store that sells clothing, and housewares, its ‘Simply Food’ stores offer groceries. I became hooked on M&S because it’s closest to our flat, yet it also offers relatively higher-end products that promise good quality and freshness in classic, aesthetically-pleasing packaging. Its prepared dinners are also marvelous for working singles or couples that don’t have the time to cook-the important distinction between these and the Healthy Choice/Lean Cuisine-esque dinners I used to buy at home is that they are not preservative-packed, plastic-y frozen meals; they are refrigerated and fresh and made for consumption within only a few days, thus, a ‘healthy choice’ in the truer sense. Comparable in quality and pricing is Waitrose, which has fairly spacious stores. And if you love Whole Foods at home, get psyched: the world’s second-largest Whole Foods store is located right here in London, on High Street Kensington!

If you want more for your pound, however, try Tesco. They have Tesco Express stores on most high streets, and there’s a huge superstore version located at the intersection of Cromwell and Warwick Road in Earl’s Court. Because it is more affordable, I like to do my bulk-shopping there; because I don’t have a car, their online-ordering service is fantastic-you can schedule your delivery for a time convenient for you, and only for £3-5 extra.  They’ll even climb the stairs to place your food on your kitchen counter. Other reasonably-priced options include Sainsbury’s and Somerfield, the latter of which has been undergoing a nice makeover since recently joining the Co-operative Group (a consumer cooperative in which its members are its owners). Another super low-cost store is Iceland, which specializes in frozen foods that I personally don’t find terribly appetizing—hotdog pizza, for example (which, yes, would be pizza topped with hotdog slices). Good for the budget, perhaps brutal for the body. But that’s just my two pence…

Otherwise, if you’re really craving some familiar American foods from home (most expats desperately miss Kraft Mac-n-Cheese, Jif peanut butter, and maple syrup), try Partridges and the USA Food Store!

Finally, if you want the really fresh stuff, abandon the grocery stores altogether and hit the street markets! Some of London’s most popular ones include Smithfield, Spitalfields, Borough, Covent Garden, and Portobello, and there’s also an abundance of farmer’s markets scattered throughout the city.

A Brief Introduction to London Grocery Culture

One thing you’ll notice when you start grocery shopping in London is the absence of large shopping carts (called “trolleys”) piled high with a quantity of groceries only a minivan or SUV could haul home. Rather, most locals carry the small basket, filling it simply with the fresh meat and veg they need for that evening’s meal…it’s more of a ‘shop light, shop often’ mentality that is preferable when you need to walk your groceries home. It’s easy enough to pick up on your way back from the tube, after all.

If you do need to tote a bit more and don’t have a car nor wish to wait for delivery, another option is to purchase a handy personal trolley that you can cart along the sidewalk. You’ll also note how many shoppers opt to go green and bring their own environmentally-friendly, reusable grocery tote in lieu of disposable plastic bags.

Now, as I mentioned above that the British have a different word for shopping cart, you’ll find a lot of food names get lost in translation as well. Below is a brief glossary of food terminology so you know what you’re looking for in the store:

• courgette = zucchini
• rocket = arugula
• aubergine = eggplant
• swede = rutabaga
• coriander = cilantro
• porridge = oatmeal
• beef mince = ground beef
• prawn = shrimp
• crumpet = while visually resembling an English muffin (which, by the way, don’t actually exist here…my British friend only knew of them from the McDonald’s Egg McMuffin…no joking), the crumpet is almost more pancakey in texture. Phenomenal when saturated in melted butter!
• pancake = closer to a French crepe. If you want American-style pancakes, literally look for “American pancakes” on restaurant menus or make your own. Special American food import stores will sell Bisquick; otherwise, you’ll have to make the batter from scratch, as London stores don’t sell such mixes.
• flapjack = nope, flapjacks aren’t pancakes either. They are more like a thick, chewy granola bar of nuts, grains, and dried fruits.
• porridge = oatmeal
• sweets = candy
• jelly = Jell-O
• custard = pudding
• pudding = bready, spongy, sometimes cake-like desserts (sticky toffee and Spotted Dick are two varieties I highly recommend!). And often on restaurant menus, the word “pudding” is used to denote “dessert” in general.
• treacle = molasses
• biscuit = cookie
• digestive = semi-sweet biscuit with a dense, graham-cracker-ish quality, nice with tea or as an after-dinner stomach-settler (I’m an addict and don’t know what I’ll do without these in the States!)