North Park Produce

by David P.

Uzbekistan, Mexico, Russia, and Iraq are all represented here.That's how it should be.You can cop some pita bread, petite beurre cookies, pomegranate juice, and halal meat all in this one spot.The produce is always fresh, their bulk goods are stocked well, and you can have a pleasant conversation with the ladies at the checkout.I only wish that they had more people working as cashiers on the weekends.  However if you don't mind a little wait in a line that will take you down an aisle filled with cans of sardines and cauliflower leaves in brine, you just might find that you love this little international grocery too.

by Anthony S.

I absolutely LOVE imported food stores.  I feel like I am traveling every time I wander the aisles and I get to see interesting, exotic new things.  North Park Produce makes me feel like I'm walking around a bazaar in Turkey or a market in Morocco. I love that. NPP is one of my new favorite places.  If you are looking for Mediterranean, Midddle Eastern, Polish, Russian, Greek, Turkish, Hungarian, or Bulgarian foods, this is the absolute last stop for everything you need.On my last trip I netted:1) Green apple juice from Bulgaria2) Tahini from Lebanon3) Fresh feta from Greece4) Frozen falafel5) Fresh pita bread6) Spices (turmeric, ginger powder and cayenne all for $1.59 or less)But that's not all they have.  Imported pastas, canned and jarred veggies, olive oils from all over the world, dried fruit and nuts, cookies, cakes and other sweets AND an awesome deli section.  The only thing I would stay away from is the produce unless you're there on a delivery day.Stop reading this and get over to North Park Produce.  Now. Go.

by Sarah C.

One lovely Sunday evening, Nathan C. and I decided to make some homemade green curry for an under the weather friend. So we scoured the Asian grocery stores for the ingredients listed in my slow cooker recipe book. Eight hours later, we threw in the towel and admitted defeat - we could not find lemongrass or green curry paste ANYWHERE. We had to get takeout for our friend.Fast forward, one week later, and we decided to attempt the slow cooker green curry again for our church potluck. Nathan had discovered North Park Produce on Yelp during our long search, but by that time they had been closed. Not today, though...First, we indulged in the oh so yummy tamales sold out front. Mmm...so heavenly. And then we ventured inside...Glorious! We found the green curry past AND the lemongrass, and began kicking ourselves because all the other ingredients were also found in North Park Produce for HALF THE PRICE than where we had gotten them last week. Grr...Our favorite was the spices - so much spice for so much less than regular grocery store chains. We will never go anywhere else when we need a not-kept-on-hand-like-oregano spice. The produce looked fresh; they had nice sized eggplants for like $.50. We were in awe of their tortilla selection too. And honey from all over the world! We drooled over their cheeses.I wish we would have know about North Park Produce one week sooner...but now we know...and knowing is half the battle...

by David W.

The world is coming to an end: Bush gets elected for a 3rd term, foie gras is banned in the U.S., Taco Bell is the only restaurant left in the greater San Angeles area and North Park Produce has burned to the ground. Their excellent spice selection, out-of-hand quality-to-price ratio on produce and meat and nice range of esoteric middle eastern and Mediterranean ingredients: all gone.BUT - I would still go to North Park Produce because the tamales that the lady out front sells are last meal-worthy. Something to nibble away on when they start dropping the nukes.

by John D.Morgan T.Cindy H.Jenny R.Jes L.

Absolutely amazing place. I get tons of veggies and fruits here and it costs me a fraction of what it would at Vons. Not only that, but they have a great deal of other stuff like an immense array of cheese and meat. I can't really think of anything that they wouldn't have, foodwise, where you'd have to go somewhere else to complete a shopping list.The fact is, this place is remarkably cheap, quite big and has almost anything you might be looking for...especially vegetables and fruits. Forget Vons - go to North Park Produce!I like North Park Produce.I think that sometimes white people act a little funny in "ethnic" places like North Park Produce.  A little advice for my white brethren: When you see an "ethnic" food that you "just love" on the other side of the store, don't squeal and run toward it hollering, "Oh my God, I love [insert name of ethnic food] SO much!  I haven't had this since I was studying abroad in [insert name of foreign country]!"  It's okay to SAY that, just not so LOUD and not so squeal-y please.  Also, probably best not to assume that just because someone is not white that they work at the store.  (Another tip off that a person is not an employee of the store is when they're pushing a shopping cart and putting groceries into it, much like a customer would.)Whenever I am cooking with veggies, I make a dash for N.P.P.For example, I made Bruschetta for a potluck on Sunday and I bought: - 10 Roma Plum Tomatoes (fresh, bright red) - Bunch of Basil - 1 Red Onion - 7 Asian Pears (my fav fruit) - 6 Limes (just cuz you can never have too much lime laying around) - Bag of Fresh GarlicALL of this for $5.42...No joke!I'd say you can browse around the tiny store for other middle eastern items...they have a great selection of feta and olives....oils, pita breads, hummus....however, I usually stick to the produce.Like a trip around the world.  And that's just the people in the parking lot.  Asian, middle-Eastern, European, Hispanic, African, you name it.  Deli counter has umpteen kinds of feta plus other cheese, olives, hummus, tabouleh.  Fridge has yet more feta, kefir drinks and cheese.  Produce section is way cheap.  Easy to eat healthy here.  But check out the narrow middle aisles. There are chappatis and rotis next to tortillas.  There is a whole aisle of pickled spreads - peppers, baba ghanoush, etc.  A ton of different kinds of blossom waters, oils and vinegars.  Spices.  Every kind of dried bean, lentil, and grain.  And more varieties of Turkish delight than you knew existed.I was on a mission to make ghormeh sabzi and this place was the key to the kingdom! Having never heard of the herb fenugreek, much less its other name - shambalileh, I was directed to North Park Produce by some Persian friends and now I owe them dinner for their spot-on assistance. The market is small yet vibrant, loaded to the brim with specialty items that caters mostly to Middle Eastern and Mexican flavors - though keep your eye out for surprises! To top it off, it wasn't enough that every single employee there was helpful [special note to the guy behind the meat counter who may not have known the answers, but went out of his way to find them], but the other customers helped as well in figuring out the mythical fenugreek/shambalileh! While I only bought greens there, the produce looked amazing and the prices there are ridiculously low. I can't wait to go back and explore further, especially the aisles full of rose waters and blueberry syrups and all other kinds of deliciousness. They have a huge section dedicated only to spices and dried goods, plus a couple rows of bulk goods like bulgars and beans. Then there's a tiny little bread corner hidden in the back where I picked up a nan sangak [good old-fashioned Iranian flatbread, sprinkled with sesame seeds and was great heated up and eaten with my ghormeh sabzi!], and on my next trip I'm definitely making a bee-line for the lavash. And the cheese and olive case??!?! Get OUT! Have to go back and grab some, plus a container of that amazing looking hummus and tabouleh. Good stuff, this North Park Produce. Who needs mega-giant-grocers when you have places like this?

by Amos G.

I love North Park Produce. Sometimes I just wander up and down the isles, picking up jars, cans and bottles of stuff from unknown lands; most times I salivate, sometime I wince, and when in doubt I simply strike up conversation with good looking Middle Eastern men who share cooking tips with me. Pickled veggies to exotic chutneys, a vast selection of sardines and other stinky canned seafoods. Good thing I'm single.The produce is fresh and affordable. Last week I bought some butternut squash and they were great roasted simply with salt, pepper and olive oil. 99 cents each and I got 3 meals out of 2. Over the summer I was never disappointed by a grainy or mushy melon; they've all been sweet, crisp and delicious. Tuscan cantaloupes / melons are impressive.Herbs are usually fresh and abundant, bell peppers of all colors the best price in town, and vine ripened tomatoes equally in-season are easy on the wallet. And of course the cheese. I think NP Produce has around 10 fresh feta cheeses. The French Feta is my favorite; creamy and quite a salty accoutrement to any soup or salad. You can ask to taste the cheeses and the nice counter broad'll sample you some. Please do not try the goat feta unless you like what I'm guessing is the flavor of hoof.

by Morgan T.

I like North Park Produce.I think that sometimes white people act a little funny in "ethnic" places like North Park Produce.  A little advice for my white brethren: When you see an "ethnic" food that you "just love" on the other side of the store, don't squeal and run toward it hollering, "Oh my God, I love [insert name of ethnic food] SO much!  I haven't had this since I was studying abroad in [insert name of foreign country]!"  It's okay to SAY that, just not so LOUD and not so squeal-y please.  Also, probably best not to assume that just because someone is not white that they work at the store.  (Another tip off that a person is not an employee of the store is when they're pushing a shopping cart and putting groceries into it, much like a customer would.)

by Lety M.

I love this place.  It has a good Mediterranean selection of food and produce.    I some times love to stick to my roots when cooking for a large group of people.  its what Patti P would call "Lety Unplugged"  I held a 3 course Tapas event at my house.  Everything i bought for the event was at North Park Produce, they are wonderful, inexpensive, and the workers are friendly.  I can get my good fix of any type of goat and sheep feta cheese.  the Danish Dumar is my favorite cheese... light soft and salty.  I can get Nuttella there for dirty cheap!  i love that stuff,... a good selection of Mediterranean olives. Spanish, Greek, Armenian, Lebanese, Indian.  you name it ... they will have it there!  for the ethnic food that i serve this is my market of choice!

by Jes L.

I was on a mission to make ghormeh sabzi and this place was the key to the kingdom! Having never heard of the herb fenugreek, much less its other name - shambalileh, I was directed to North Park Produce by some Persian friends and now I owe them dinner for their spot-on assistance. The market is small yet vibrant, loaded to the brim with specialty items that caters mostly to Middle Eastern and Mexican flavors - though keep your eye out for surprises! To top it off, it wasn't enough that every single employee there was helpful [special note to the guy behind the meat counter who may not have known the answers, but went out of his way to find them], but the other customers helped as well in figuring out the mythical fenugreek/shambalileh! While I only bought greens there, the produce looked amazing and the prices there are ridiculously low. I can't wait to go back and explore further, especially the aisles full of rose waters and blueberry syrups and all other kinds of deliciousness. They have a huge section dedicated only to spices and dried goods, plus a couple rows of bulk goods like bulgars and beans. Then there's a tiny little bread corner hidden in the back where I picked up a nan sangak [good old-fashioned Iranian flatbread, sprinkled with sesame seeds and was great heated up and eaten with my ghormeh sabzi!], and on my next trip I'm definitely making a bee-line for the lavash. And the cheese and olive case??!?! Get OUT! Have to go back and grab some, plus a container of that amazing looking hummus and tabouleh. Good stuff, this North Park Produce. Who needs mega-giant-grocers when you have places like this?

by Maurice A.

Two words....LOVE IT!When I went to this place for the first time I was really surprised at how cheap all this stuff was. There are imported jams, teas, cheeses, hummus mixes, fresh pita, and they also sell pretty good lamb in the meat area.What I like the best is that  the imported foods they sell there have ingredients that you can pronounce and know what they are like flour, water, butter.....what a concept, no partially hydrogenated junk or corn syrup!!!! AND it was the only place I found tomato juice with only 5 mg of Na+ per serving....at the other more popular stores the low sodium one still had 500 mg.One thing though, do not go after work because it gets packed. Go around 2 or 3 if you can.Cheers!!