There are a number of similar names for this small, but mighty, establishment floating around on…read morethe internet: Ninth Avenue International Foods, Ninth Avenue International Market, International Grocery & International Food, Ninth Avenue International Grocery, or just what's written on the sign: International Grocery. Whatever the actual name, it seems that this Mediterranean specialty store has been open since 1947, run first by the Smitsis Family, and then the Karamouzis (including brothers Sotiris, Dinos, and Panayiotis). The Karamouzis moved it a few doors north to its present location in 1983. The neighborhood around the store has evolved a great deal over the years, but inside, old world charm persists. Everywhere you look there are bulk bins, barrels, and sacks brimming with: - Spices: all the staples needed for Mediterranean, Indian and North African cuisines, including za'atar, dried tamarind, cloves, allspice, rock salt, cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika, red pepper, black mustard seed, etc... - Dried fruits: pineapple, apricots, raisins, figs, diced orange peel, dates, etc... - Dried nuts: cashews, macadamias, almonds in every form, walnuts, pistachios, etc.. - Grains, beans, lentils, and flours - Coffee I love that International Grocery has stuck with bins and barrels for all these years. Bulk bins were the norm when the store first opened and are so much more environmentally friendly than the ubiquitous single use plastic packaging we see nowadays. Environmentally conscious folks are increasingly coming around to appreciate bulk bins and I wouldn't be surprised if they became the hot "new" trend in coming years. If you stick with something for long enough, it comes back into fashion, right? The wonders don't end with all those glorious bins, however. Far from it. Improbably, all of the following (and more) also neatly fit into a store the size of a suburbanite's two-car garage: - Olives -- about 10-15 kinds by my last count, but I've seen even more varieties at times. I love my crisp, green Castelvetranos and black Kalamatas; the Progeny loves her pimento-stuffed Manzanillas. - Antipasti (mushrooms, artichokes, giardiniera, gigantes plaki) and preserved lemon peel - Feta (Bulgarian, Greek) and other cheeses - Tzatziki and other spreads - A variety of fresh and packaged pastries (baklava, kourabiedes, koulourakia) and halvas - Olive oils, pomegranate molasses, carob molasses - Pita breads and pasta - Rose water - Amardeen (an apricot leather used to make a Syrian drink of the same name) Prices are quite fair and the owners + staff are kind, generous, gentle and gracious. When my 10-year old privately expressed interest in the orange peel to me, one of the owners overheard and offered her some to try. They didn't look at all askance when she delightedly opened various bins to sniff the beautiful aromas within. (I did teach her to waft the smells to her nose by hand a la chemistry lab, instead of sticking her head into each bin.) As much as I detest the areas around Port Authority -- it's one of the dirtiest, smelliest parts of NYC -- I do go out of my way for International Grocery and will for as long as we're both around.

Absolutely love this place! First found it when looking for some spices I'd never heard of before…read morefor a Palestinian dessert. International Grocery had these and many other spices, grains, nuts, flours, everything you can think of, from multiple cuisines from many cultures around the Mediterranean. They also have fresh halvah, and delicious spanakopita, freshly made! I got into the habit of buying several generous servings-- one for now, several for my freezer. What a great find!

Great good, great prices & great service. Every single I've had there has been fresh, delicious &…read moreaffordable.

It is a highly recommended Uzbek foods grocery place! In NY!…read more I was impressed by the highest quality plov, Somsa and manti kinds cocked out of native Uzbekistan. They do it really great! Juicy and yummy! Once you checkout your picks you may enjoy it at your place or University park near by. Once you miss a real Uzbek foods, Go immediately to this grossery place! There are five of them in NY.

Always great customer service, and we always find what we need. Prices are good and always able to…read morebuy our European snacks! They have different types of frozen Burek. Granted fresh ones always taste way better but this is the second best thing when you get that crave.

I worked at Euromarket in Astoria, Queens, New York for 8 full days. The owner, Panayiotis Menikou,…read moretold me to bring two forms of ID and said we would complete the paperwork later. After I left for personal reasons, he initially avoided paying me -- not answering calls and not showing up to work when I came by. I eventually went to the store late one night to speak with him in person. After arguing for about 20 minutes, he only paid me half of what he owed me. During my time there, I also witnessed serious food safety issues. The store was selling expired products -- including pantry items and drinks -- and instead of discarding them, employees were instructed to erase expiration dates using rubbing alcohol. Several customers even complained about expired items while I was there. Please be aware of these practices before supporting this business.

Love coming to Ten Ichi! They have the most amazing finds and I LOVE Ramune. They have all…read moredifferent types. So good. The shop is well organized by product making it such a cute little shop you can't help but want to shop in. Stopped in for a smorgasbord of foods. Today's haul consisted of BIG shrimp shumai. Chicken Teriyaki with white rice, Pork belly, various sushi rolls, mochi, sushi sandwiches, curry and cheese rice balls. So good. So delicious. Very flavorful and most importantly super fresh. We got a strawberry sando, which was light and fluffy and the strawberries were perfectly ripened and sweet. Highly recommend everything! The staff are all super friendly and accommodating. You have questions, they have answers. Card and cash accepted!

Cute little market of goodies ! Great selection of hot foods and sushi to go . Many international…read moregoodies including Pokémon and Hello Kitty. Small inside but well stocked , be ready to browse the aisles intently. So many great items .

Tashkent is an excellent place to do food shopping. The produce is consistently fresh,…read morehigh-quality, but still cheaper than the nearby supermarket chains. I won't get my onions, bell peppers, or cucumbers anywhere else, and their satsuma mandarins are also a great find. The meat selection is excellent as well and very fresh. The hot food bar is always worth a stop. Their plov (beef or lamb) is a great deal at $9.99/lb, and the meat is unbelievably tender and flavorful. It often runs out later in the day. The samsa are massive, flaky, and come stuffed with pumpkin, beef, lamb, or chicken. The manti and bilyash are also fantastic. You really can't go wrong with any of the prepared foods. They also carry a wide variety of Central Asian and Eastern European groceries, including seasonings, teas, sweets, pickled vegetables, honey, and more. The bread selection is another highlight, with fresh Uzbek non or lepeshka. The space itself is pretty small and cramped, so it feels more like a quick "grab what you need and go" kind of store rather than a place to casually browse. A line of only a few people can stretch to the back, but the cashiers do a great job keeping things moving. Tashkent also recently opened a location in Manhattan that I checked out, and it's a larger space with even more selection.

Such disappointment:( I bought a cake for a birthday three days ago :( it was very dry, impossible…read moreto eat. I throw out $12 in the garbage.. when I tried it. It tasted like it was over there in the fridge for a week or more. I do not recommend this place.

The hot bar section is one of the best values in the area for lunch or dinner. For ~$10, you can…read moreget two sides with either rice and noodles and a soft drink (or soup of the day if you don't like soda)! They rotate the sides occasionally so you can try new things with each visit. I usually get the shrimp and the eggplant as my sides with noodles - highly recommend the shrimp, I think it's one of their best items there. It's more authentic and healthier than Panda Express down the street and you get a lot more variety. The dry pot section is also pretty good depending on their protein selection for the day, but the value is with the hot bar section.

Thanks to Yelp I found Koufuku! I was looking for a place to grab a quick lunch in the area and was…read morevery pleased with the offerings at Koufuku! The lunch options were plentiful and what a deal- you get rice or noodles (or both!), and two entree choices plus a drink or soup for under $11. The staff were so helpful and offered their recommendations. I ended up getting a plate with fried rice and stir fried noodles with veggies plus mushroom chicken with other delicious vegetables and also spare ribs in a sweet sauce. Everything was phenomenally fresh and delicious. I would love to go back.

I love the hot bar/boxed food at this supermarket!! The servers are fast and generous. It's such a…read moregood deal for the amount of food they give you. The boxed meal set comes with a choice of soda or soup - definitely try the bone broth soup, it's so good! There is a seating area in the grocery store near the doors if you opt to eat in.

Convenient Asian super market with one of the best lunch deals in the area!…read more In general the store has the basic stuff you need (Asian condiments, rice, ramen, snacks). There's also home goods stuff downstairs. Not a lot of produce, sometimes doesn't even have some of the basics (green onions). Prices are a bit higher than they should be but still reasonable for the area. Coffee/bakery shop inside called Progreso, although it was closed when I went the other day. Boxed lunch where you can pick a carb (chow mein, rice noodles, rice) + 2 or 3 sides. Most of the same dishes everyday but some do change. They really pack the box! Build your own dry pot (price based on weight). 30% off sushi after 7pm

Best Turkish supermarket in western Queens. OH, THE ONLY…read moreTURKISH SUPERMARKET IN WESTERN QUEENS? Okay, slightly kidding since it's the size of two bodegas, and Sunny grocery on 43rd (a block away) is also a Turkish grocer, and it carries slightly different things. One of the fun things about visiting a foreign city like Istanbul is to go native and visit corner produce stands, grocers (Şok or Migros) or hypermarkets (like Carrefour). What I will do is look at the items, and based on some researched numbers, get an idea for how things are. For example, in Nov 2023 a 500g bag of Caykur Altinbas classic tea is 95 TL. A six pack Pasabahce tea glass set (çay bardak) is 99 while ones from Sahil is 27 at Şok. A bottle of full fat Ayran is 12, a subway ride is about 15 and a breakfast set is about 200. The monthly minimum wage is about 23000, and average rent for a dinky apartment in Zeytinburu is about 16000 TL. The current exchange rate is about 30 TL to 1 USD with an 80% inflation, so you need to hustle to survive on Istanbul money, but as a tourist, you can make out like gangbusters if you stick to domestic products and shop around. So what does that have to do with shopping at Turkiyem? Well, certain useful items are oddly inexpensive due to lower relative pricing in Turkiye, but you just have to think outside the box. For example? The pasabahce 6 pack tea plate for 8 bucks (I think they were like 75 TL)...can you use it as an olive/nut plate for parties? Yes - better than Ikea in most cases. What about the big 500g bag of Caykur loose earl grey for 4.75? Yep. What about that 3.50 jar of Tomato paste? High quality and much cheaper than Concertina, stick it in an ice tray, freeze and ziplock bag it up. The olive bar here? Cheaper than Parrot foods and just as decent. Same goes for Turkish Olive oil - same or higher quality than Italian without the markup. Of course, not everything is well priced. That 2 lb bag of Reis red lentils (Turkish brand, Kazakh lentils) is 6 bucks. Go to Patel Brothers in JH and it's 5 bucks for a 4 lb bag of Canadian lentils, which tastes the same in Turkish lentil soup). Arborio rice too difficult to find? Use Baldo (it's a Turkish hybrid for making Pilaf), but don't pay 6 bucks for a 2 lb Reis bag here - go to Mediterranean Foods in Astoria and look for the Krinos brand, which is often around 5. But what is this place really good for? Well, it's a good one stop shop for Turkish items but minus a few things. For example, if you want Tulumba (Turkish honey glazed churro nuggets), that's Sunny on 43rd, and the good stuff is at A&D Turkish market in Bay Ridge. Want great Baklava? Antepli in Bay Ridge. If you want single serving Kahramaras style Dondurma (Turkish ice cream) which is freaking delicious served with Turkish tea and baklava? Grand Bazaar in Cliffside park. In terms of Turkish markets It's not nearly as big as Istanbul Food Pazaar in Clifton (NJ) or Portokali Market in Sheepshead Bay, or even Nizaam in Cliffside Park, but you know what? If you want pre-packaged Moda Dondurma sliced up and ready to go in Queens? Check the freezer here. Want a crapload of dried mint at a reasonable price but without the stems, or Aleppo peppers for lentil soup without paying the absurd markups at Sahadi's? Pul Biber, check the spice aisle. Hell, they even got multiple varieties of dried peppers hanging on the ceiling and more spices and teas than you know what to do with. It's just as much fun to browse as Parrot Foods on Sunnyside, and you can chat with the Butcher and get tips on cooking. Yeah, some places are cheaper or have more stuff, but often, they win out on convenience. If I have a Zipcar for the weekend and don't mind driving to NJ, I'll head to the big Turkish markets and maybe get something really Turkish, like Beyran soup from Gaziantep on the other side of the Hudson. Otherwise I drop by here for small culinary reminders of Istanbul. So yeah, stop by. I do that once a month. Oh yeah, can someone tell the owner to install a few price validators? They don't mark most of their items so the pricing is always an educated guess. Considering that it's all in their system, might as well have something that tell the customers how much they are...

This is my go to place for spices and if I need to find herbal tea. Their cheese, yogurt, milk ,…read morebeverages and frozen section is without prices. I bought philo dough with price $3.75 at the register was charged $4.50 when I showed them the price sticker they reimbursed me but it's not the first time. It's overstocked and would suggest you check for expectation dates on products and prices before you buy. They sale spices, halal meet, baklava and herbal teas. I wish there was someone who can explain some of the products.

This has become my top grocery store in the area! They always have a great selection of bok choy…read moreand mushrooms, as well as pantry staples. The staff is sooo friendly. And they just started serving ice cream!

I had a bad experience from this market they sell expired things I brought a Coca-Cola they made…read moreme pay that 5:43 it's expired I'm disappointed

G Mart opened recently in Jackson Heights though I'll be honest, I'm not 100% sure what the "G"…read morestands for (Good? Gracious? Great?) but it is very convenient if you're getting off the train at the Jackson Heights stop. It looks very much like they took an old warehouse sized space and converted it into a clean looking market. There market has two levels, a primary level where you'll find most of the goods including produce, dry goods and even a small housewares section towards the back. Step up a couple of stairs from the produce section and you'll be in the seafood section. The market was very neat and organized and it looked very clean. All that said, do not expect a ton of selection here. Their brand diversity was fairly limited which is no big surprise given the relatively small space for a supermarket. From what I saw the prices here were average and not particularly expensive or cheap. If you're in the area this is a good spot to grab some groceries. You may not have the widest selection available to you, but it will do in a pinch!

The past few years of Woodside has seen an influx of Asian businesses, some of them in the form of…read more99 cent stores, eateries, and in the case of G mart, supermarkets. Is it a knock off of H-Mart? Maybe. Is it better than making the trip to Flushing or perhaps Elmhurst? That really depends. By no means is this a destination worthy grocery shopping experience. However, for Woodside residents in a pinch and in need of some Chinese produce, seafood selection, and imported snacks, this place works. The selection isn't going to wow any seasoned shopper in these parts, but it has all the basic areas taken care of. It's also a little bigger than it looks from the outside. In any other western supermarket, this would be a C-Town or Key Foods, but what they have is comparable to things I'd find out in semi-nearby Elmhurst. The meat selection / butcher area has some pretty solid prices for beef bones, shanks, and organ meats. I also think the seafood section and the slabs of fish they have daily is somewhat impressive given how light it is crowd wise. Their produce feels limited, but I think it's better to look in the morning for things like watercress, snowpeas, etc, before it runs out. Overall, I think they bring a lot of value to the hood. Not just in terms of affordability, but they do it better than a lot of their nearby competition. Service seems fine overall and I like that the store is clean and organized.