If you are a non-Thai living in Bangkok, Thailand, or just someone who loves food that is not Thai food, you will soon find yourself trying to find the best places to buy imported food in Bangkok. Luckily, buying imported food in Bangkok, although not cheap, is easy.
Many supermarkets, stores and specialty shops sell imported food from countries like the US, the UK, Japan, Korea, China, Germany, France and Italy and most of them are quite easy to get to.
Villa Market – Of course, one of the most popular places in Bangkok to buy imported food is Villa Market. With several branches around the city, the most famous one is on Sukhumvit Road Soi 33, just down the road and across the street from Emporium Mall. Villa Market sells imported food from the UK, the US, Italy, Germany, Japan, Korea and Australia, just to name a few.
You will find imported Australian lamb, salmon from Scotland, French oysters and Japanese beef. Packaged and canned foods sold at the supermarket include American cookies and breakfast cereals, British chocolate and puddings, Japanese noodles and Korean kimchi.
Villa Market also has a wonderful selection of French, Italian, Chilean, American and Australian wines (plus loads more from other countries) that’ll go perfectly with any meal. Villa Market has 12 locations in Bangkok, so there should be one near you.
Gourmet Market at Siam Paragon – One of Bangkok’s most upscale shopping malls is also home to one of the best places in Bangkok to buy imported food. Gourmet Market supermarket is in the mall’s basement and is a massive store full of thousands of imported food stuffs.
Scottish fish, Japanese sushi, British biscuits, American peanut butter, Japanese frozen foods, Spanish olives and Italian pastas – there’s so much to choose from, you’ll be lucky to leave here without a stuffed shopping cart and several hundred dollars poorer.
Do not miss the cheese and meat counters too – deli items from all over the world although it’s hell on the wallet. In fact, be warned, prices are steep (Gourmet Market is one of the most expensive places to buy food in Bangkok) but, if you’re craving a can of British baked beans or a Japanese ice cream, you’ll find it here. Next to Siam sky train station in downtown Bangkok.
Tops at Central Chidlom – Tops is a Thai supermarket with branches all over Bangkok. While many of their branches sell imported food stuffs, the large Tops branch on the ground floor of Central Chidlom is the place to shop for imported food difficult to find anywhere else.
They have a superb deli section with imported meats, cheeses, dried fish and other food stuffs, as well as shelves stacked with Italian pasta, American cake mixes, Finnish crispbreads, cans of Dutch pâté, Japanese seaweed and Korean crackers. Central Chidlom is next to Chidlom sky train station.
Quintessence – A local secret, Quintessence is a small shop selling the best imported cheeses in Bangkok. French, Dutch, German, British, American cheeses are all here and every one of them is ten times more tasty than any Thai cheese you’ll ever taste.
It is also a cute shop to visit too both inside and out. Located on Sukhumvit Road, Soi 23, look for the cream and black striped awning.