Panama Groceries 101

     Grocery shopping.Sounds mundane, right?In the good old U.S. of A., you can walk the aisles of Kroger or Albertson's in your sleep and manage to get home with everything you need.For the gringo in Panama, there is a bit of a difference.In Coronado, where we live, there are more shopping options than most other small Panamanian towns for two reasons.First, Coronado has a large expat community, and secondly, it is a resort area that people flock to from the city (Panama City) on weekends and holidays.Starting at the top of the food chain (pun intended), there is Riba Smith, a newer upscale store that I have not even patronized yet.According to hearsay,it is a source for gourmet, organic, and specialty products. The basic supermarkets are Rey and Super 99.

Then there is Machetazo, which is a grocery/deli/everything else store, and by everything else, I mean you can purchase an accordion, for example.How convenient! Machetazo has three stories of merchandise, with special separate escalators to transport your cart up and down.

Accordion on the shelf at Machetazo

Add to the equation the countless Mini/Supers, which are tiny Mom & Pop stores, and the roadside stands and street vendors, and fishermen...you get my drift. 

 

If you are lucky, you can buy fresh fish from a guy like the one in the picture below.Fresh in Panama means the fish are still flopping around. The fishermen will clean and fillet your purchases for you for an extra buck. 

Fisherman and his catch

     My grocery shopping trip today was a simple run to Rey, which still was time-consuming.It will get faster as I learn what is available and rethink my menus and habits.Juice, coffee, and sugar,but not Minute Maid, Maxwell House, or Imperial.No jumbo economy size, no bulk Costco-style packaging- my trash bags came in a package of 6, and the biggest carton of milk was a half-gallon. 

Guava-pineapple juice

BEST.COFFEE.EVER.

Sugar

There is a lot less processed food in our pantry, and a lot more fresh produce to wash up.The only things in the freezer are ice trays and paletas (ice cream bars).Despite all of the differences, the basics remain.I am soaking beans overnight to cook tomorrow.We will have juice & coffee in the morning, but the sugar that goes into the coffee is not snow-white.And with any luck, our dinner is swimming around in the Pacific as I write this.Bon Appetit!!!