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I waited at the cash register for about five minutes, jingling my keys and making loud digestive sounds in an effort to get someone, anyone's attention. I was starving from a hard workout and the salad I had just designed using the store's spectacular salad bar was sitting there on the checkout counter calling my name the way small animals do before you eat them.

I eventually decided not to wait any longer and simply sat down next to the register and started eating my creation. About half way through, the cashier showed up looking as though he had come off a short bout of rough intercourse. I stood up and made a move to pay for my lunch.

The problem was, and we both realized this at the same time, that I had already eaten half of my un-weighed salad: leaving the true price—much like the worldwide population of oriole birds—incalculable. The cashier was thrown off and spent some time gazing into the cash register as if looking for some secret solution etched into the keyboard. Meanwhile, I stood there examining myself, trying to figure out from the small bulge in my belly, just how many ounces of salad bar I had ingested.

This predicament is not an entirely inaccurate representation of the gourmet food scene here in Panama. Because in my opinion, although new trendy restaurants pop up all the time, finding good gourmet or specialty grocery stores throughout the country is anything but a straightforward process.

Don't expect supermarkets like El Rey to have anything too gourmet. You won't find prepared sushi. You won't find much of a selection of olive oils. You won't find a terribly diverse offering of breads. What you will find are nice uniforms. Do you like me?

If you're looking for a special product, meaning something outside of the traditional Panamanian food realm of plantains and long grained rice, your options are limited. You have Riba Smith, which is the most sophisticated large grocery store in the country. They have some pretty extensive imported products, a decent produce section, and ugly uniforms. I like you.

You also have Deli Gourmet (the site of the salad theft incident). They have several locations in the city (Calle 50, El Dorado, and Obarrio) and cater to the preppy or JJ (pronounced yay-yay) crowd. The JJ's in Panama are the ones who drive nice cars, wear designer clothes, and reek of expensive perfume. My college roommate used to starch his La Coste collar making it stand upright, so I guess I'm not really one to talk. They have nice uniforms at this place.

Other options include several small and hidden specialty stores that I'm not going to tell you about or else they won't be all for me any more. I've not had a hard time finding Asian ingredients thanks to the large immigrant population, but don't recommend Chinatown for anything other than getting mugged: it should be named Chinaghetto. Things like Indian spices, Italian sauces, and Middle Eastern pickles can be tricky but Super Kosher is an option. It's a large store near Punta Pacifica and no, you don't have to wear a Jewish beanie to get in. King's Food is an Indian shop in Paitilla next to the Arrocha. Another store called Minimax (in Paitilla) does good Thai, Japanese, and Indian ingredients as well. But for a “cosmopolitan” city, while restaurants here represent just about every ethnicity on the planet, specialty grocery stores are not nearly as common as you'd expect. Similarly uncommon, are health food stores for you hippies to get those weird powders and herbs.

So there I am, essentially on trial for eating an illegal salad. The cashier and I eventually agreed that I looked like I had eaten about half, and it would be fair to weigh the remainder then multiply it by two for the final price. What I didn't tell him though was that I like to eat the best (and heaviest) ingredients first. The baby corn, the hearts of palm, the pickled brussel sprouts. And for that, I would have Deli Gourmet fooled for life.

Comments (3)

melissa: great report! Hola Matt! I think it is time for more specialty stores to open, the city is growing so fast---what we have right now is not enough :- 1 May 24, 2007 Matt Gallant: You Forgot One... Hey Matt, You forgot "Organica" in Punta Pacifica... Next to "Cine2go". Best place in town to get "speciality" organic foods. It's NOT Vancouver, but it's a start... Keep pumping out the good info, Matt 2 June 07, 2007 Beth: Salad Bar! I am excited to hear of a good salad bar in town!!! So far I have been relying on hotels for good salad bars, but this one sounds promising. Thanks for the report! 3 September 11, 2007

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