Where to get Indian and Caribbean groceries in Toronto

“The Checkout” series was first released in 2022 as a social media exclusive on The Green Line’s accounts. For our September 2025 Action Journey on meal prep, we’re adapting it to share the stories behind two grocery stores that you can visit to shop for ingredients that’ll come in handy for Indian or Caribbean recipes. 

Ever stepped into an ethnic grocery store and felt transported to another country?

Toronto has hundreds of specialized grocery stores that carry authentic and flavourful offerings that reflect the city’s ethnic diversity.

After all, Toronto is the most diverse city in the world. It’s home to 1.54 million racialized people, which is 55.7 per cent of Torontonians, according to the Statistics Canada census report from 2021. 

Across Canada and in our city, immigrants play a major role in the food industry. Sixty per cent of business owners in Ontario’s food sector are immigrants. Toronto-based research suggests that ethnic food businesses provide opportunities for immigrants and refugees to connect with their homelands and with each other. What’s more, these businesses allow newcomers to integrate better and give back to their new community. Flavour and food have the ability to connect vastly different cultures, teach tolerance and create shared interest, researcher Nicole Smith argues. 

Each dish and ingredient tells a story that reminds people of their upbringing, culture and family — and ethnic markets make finding remnants of home in the form of a delicious dish more accessible.

If you want to dive into Toronto’s rich collection of ethnic cuisines, check out this Map of Ethnic Grocery Stores by the Scarborough Environmental Association. You can explore stores across the city based on the countries of origin. 

For a more focused deep dive, join The Green Line on a trip or two to see what Royal Kerala Foods and Amerex Caribbean Grocers have to offer. 

Each product is carefully curated and tells a story that’s dear to the store owner.

Royal Kerala Foods

Located at 1840 Ellesmere Rd. in Scarborough, the store offers ingredients that are central to many Indian dishes.

Owner Saji Mangalathu, 60, is originally from Muvattupuzha in Kerala, India. In 1996, he opened Royal Kerala Foods to serve Toronto’s large Indo-Canadian community.

Mangalathu has a background in food service, which is why he opened his own grocery store. “I like to eat safe, clean food, and I like to share my knowledge with the customers coming to my store,” he says. When Mangalathu arrived in Canada, he chose to live in Scarborough because of the growing community of Keralites already living there.

Curious about what’s on the shelf?  Let’s follow him around his store to see all he offers. 

COCONUTS

“Kerala” means “land of coconuts” in the state’s Malayalam language. Since it’s in a coastal area, Kerala cuisine often features coconuts. “Fresh coconut, grated coconut, coconut oil,” Mangalathu explains. “Anything in Kerala cooking comes with coconut.” That’s why he stocks a variety of coconut products, from fresh and frozen to whole and grated.

SAMBAR

Sambar is a vegetarian curry. Mangalathu carries liquid and powder versions. He also offers a ready-to-go option for people who don’t know how to make curry. Sambar curry usually consists of a variety of vegetables and lentils, and is served with rice.

MATTA RICE

Although the most common rice associated with Indian cuisine is basmati rice, in the south — where Kerala is located — brown rice is king. Royal Kerala Foods’ house brand matta rice is parboiled to cut back on cooking time without sacrificing the nutrients and fibre in the bran.

JACKFRUIT BIRYANI

Mangalathu shared this “unique, hidden item” in his freezer because “jackfruit became a hot item” recently. For vegetarians, jackfruit biryani is a filling alternative to meat-based curries, he adds.

COWPEAS

INSTANT GINGER COFFEE

In the winter season, a common drink in Kerala is chukku kaapi, which is dried ginger brewed with coffee powder. The drink is locally touted as a cold remedy, according to Mangalathu. Common additions include holy basil, black pepper and jaggery.

Owner Shazim Amir, 50, is originally from South C in Nairobi, Kenya.

He founded his original grocery business in a flea market under the name Caribbean Islands Fruit Corner in 2001. It was located in Merchant’s Flea Market at Warden Avenue and Eglinton Avenue East. Amir says customers return because they can rely on him to provide a warm, personalized and curated shopping experience.

In 2020, Amir moved to his new location at Kennedy Road and Eglinton Avenue. He started his business to promote healthy eating because “food is medicine.” That’s why Amir still has customers “from back in the flea-market days” who ask him over WhatsApp about the produce he gets in store each week. Amir’s personal touches, like cutting off only as much yam as a customer needs, means he provides a uniquely old-school shopping experience.

From staple ingredients to delicious drinks, let’s see what Shazim Amir has in his grocery store.

CHENET

Chenet is almost like lychee, but smaller and a little more tart. Since he has customers who are originally from all over the Caribbean, Amir needs to know all the different names an individual piece of produce can have. He says this fruit can be called: chenet (Trinidad), guinep (Jamaica), skin-up (Grenada), ackee (Barbados) and kenep (Haiti), just to name a few.

“EASY-COOK” OXTAIL

Amir explains that “easy-cook” refers to oxtail that comes from a younger animal, which means it cooks faster and stays tender. He says many grocery stores don’t always specify the kind of oxtail they’re selling, instead opting to sell cuts from older animals at the same price.

BREADFRUIT

SOLO SOFT DRINKS

The story of this iconic drink from Trinidad and Tobago has an unlikely tie to Canada. The founder, struggling to find affordable bottles for his growing soda business, discovered a Montreal drink company that was closing down and was selling their bottles for cheap. The catch? They all had the word “solo” and a little pilot printed on them already.

BIG FOOT

Big Foot is similar to Cheetos, but with a different, spicier seasoning. Another classic snack food from Trinidad and Tobago, Amir says many of his customers grew up eating Big Foot, and become really nostalgic when they see the bags in his store.

MANGOES

JAMAICAN GINGER

Amir says his customers would never forgive him if he didn’t shout out Jamaican ginger. Ginger is a staple ingredient throughout the Caribbean. The tight little nubs of the Jamaican variety are spicier and more nuanced than the bigger, cheaper kind that Amir says can taste watery and muted.

Fact-Check Yourself

Sources and
further reading

Don’t take our word for it — check our sources for yourself.

The Green Line

How to meal prep like a pro: Recipes from Toronto chefs

Scarborough Environmental Association

Map of Ethnic Grocery Stores

Instagram

Amerex Caribbean Grocers

Instagram

Royal Kerala Foods

Statistics Canada

Immigration matters in food services

Bielefeld University Research

Refugee Foodways: How Ethnic Cuisines Can Help Newcomers to Integrate in Canada