The Netherlands is a real melting pot of cultures. Eindhoven is blessed with more than 150 different nationalities: a very diverse city! And with the arrival of all sorts of different cultures, we are also treated to new eating habits. Personally, I always enjoy this most when I’m abroad: discovering typical regional dishes. If enough people from a certain country come to live there, there will be a store which focuses on selling food from that country. And that has two (positive :-)) sides in my opinion: the immigrants can continue to enjoy the food they might miss from home and we can cook more varied and try new recipes more easily. Win-win situation, right?!
I have made an overview of my favorite international stores that I know in Eindhoven. Of course there are more but some are just not that great with dust on the cans and stickiness. Two points of attention: if it’s busy it’s generally good and also check if the store has a fruit and veggie department outside with those crates. That usually indicates daily fresh deliveries and enough customers to have those…
Moroccan & Middle Eastern
Diyar – Kruisstraat 43A
This store has fresh fruit and vegetables as well as fresh (halal) meat, long-life products and a fantastic bakery with two large ovens where fresh tandoori bread is baked all day long. Thick recommendation!
Al-Andalus – Robbenstraat 1
This is not as great as it used to be when it was still called Al Andalous. Regardless, this is the only place as far as I know where they have some more specific Moroccan goodies, especially around Ramadan.
Turkish
You can find Turkish shops everywhere nowadays. Popular for the much lower prices of, for example, avocados and fresh herbs. My favorite in terms of fresh stuff is Yasar Market, located at Tongelresestraat 256A. It is always busy but their olives and dates are worth the wait for me. They also sell some homemade spreads and stuffed peppers, etc. Perfect for when you’re having drinks and bites at home. If you just want a lot of choice and want to browse around, be sure to walk around the Woenselse Markt. There are many such shops and you can easily compare.
Spanish
El Quijote – Strijpsestraat 83
The Spanish store on the Strijpsestraat has been well known for quite some years. Tasty Spanish wines, snacks and oils can be found here alternated with crockery and a catering service.
Bulgarian
Bulmarket – Heezerweg 137
This Bulgarian store opened recently in the Stratum district. A small store with a limited assortment: biscuits, cheeses, dairy products, shelf-life products, canned products and drinks.
Bulgarian Store – Edisonstraat 125
A Bulgarian business with mainly shelf-life products and lots of sweets and snacks.
Russian
Nostalgia D & R – Pastoor Petersstraat 133
There is a small Russian shop near the Kruisstraat with mainly shelf-life products and gift items, books, souvenirs, etc.
Polish
Max Market – Aalsterweg 36
We have a nice Polish community in Eindhoven and they have also opened several shops. The largest with the most choice is the Max Market. It is useful that you look up in advance what exactly you need for a recipe (in Polish) if you don’t speak Polish, because most packaging has only Polish text, haha!
Indian
Rohit Tropical Shop – Sint Bonifaciuslaan 308
This place offers Indian products, both the shelf-life and fresh kind. In addition, quite a few ingredients from the Surinamese kitchen can be found here.
Swedish
This is cheating a bit, but if you’re craving for something Swedish you can always visit the Swedish Foodmarket at Ikea. They sell some well known things there. IKEA Eindhoven is officially in Son, just after the border with Eindhoven. Put Ekkersrijt 4089 in your navigation.
Italian
La Semolina – De Stadspoort 6
I doubted whether I should include this place in the overview: it is not exactly the same kind of store as the other tips. But there is a lot of fresh (prepared) food and it offers delicious Italian delicacies but more as a caterer than a supermarket / grocery store. Still the prices are reasonable and the quality is good!
Asian
(In this category I don’t mention Amazing Oriental specifically, as it’s a chainstore and you can find it all over the Netherlands.) In Eindhoven it is located at Langdonkenstraat 7)
Amazing Sang Lee – Woenselse Markt 17A
This is probably the most well known one but in my opinion it is also the best in general. They even have fresh tjendol! The combination of supermarket and snack center makes it very chill to buy both your shelf-life foods and fresh items. The store also carries some Mexican products.
Toko Djawa – Edisonstraat 127
Tasty Indonesian food, both fresh meals and the ingredients with which you can prepare them yourself.
