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AL Premium: Huge new Asian & Middle Eastern grocery store at Eglinton & Warden

Eug

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This place recently opened in an old space after the Rona there shut down, on Eglinton just east of Warden.

The name is rather uninspiring - A1 Premium - and the only thing I can find about it online is this registration info:

https://secure.profilcredit.com/Subjects/Detail.aspx?id=525477

[EDIT] Thanks to yyzhyd but it's Al Premium not A1 Premium [/EDIT]


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Nonetheless it's a great store, best in the area IMHO. It's sort of like T&T (which is owned by Loblaws), but not just Chinese. It's East Asian and South Asian as well as Middle Eastern, and all the mainstream stuff too, catering to the local population in that area of Scarborough. Very nice store - Best in the area IMHO.

IMG_20130107_123700_807_zps272f1d54.jpg


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It's got a fish market, which is actually partially separated from the main area, probably to keep the fish smells a bit more confined. There are live fish of course, and they'll clean them for you if you want. Lobster is way cheaper than Loblaws.

Because it's catering to both Middle Eastern and East Asian, they've actually got two meat shops. One is Halal, and one is Chinese.

IMG_20130107_131743_757_zps05b6976a.jpg


You can also see the Chinese take out area with the BBQ duck, not too far from the Halal butcher. In between are sushi and cheese.

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The take out area also has other foods. I asked some Indian customers in the store and they said the Indian takeout was quite good.

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I'm definitely going to be frequenting this store. Our main grocery store used to be the Loblaws at Victoria Park and Gerrard, but I see myself going to this place more often. Cheaper and fresher fish, cheaper cuts of meat, and it has most of the usual supermarket stuff but with all the ethnic ingredients in addition.
 
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Heh

An "Asian" supermarket in the true sense of the word!
Heh, funny you should mention that. I was going to
mention "East Asian" and "South Asian" in the title along with "Middle-Eastern", but couldn't fit it. Maybe I should have just said "East, West, and South Asian" instead. :)

I wonder who owns it.
 
Very Loblaws MLG-esque.
 
Small correction the store's name is AL Premium as in "The Premium" if translated from it's arabic origin.
Website: http://alpremium.ca/
Ah yes, thanks. No wonder I couldn't find anything on it.

I guess that suggests the owners could be Middle Eastern, but decided to cater also to the East Asian and South Asian population as well.

Very Loblaws MLG-esque.
Well, the Loblaws Maple Leaf Gardens is more upscale with more expensive cheeses and stuff. But it's also more expensive.

This one is more like the waterfront Loblaws which IIRC isn't quite as upscale as Loblaws MLG.
 
I'm still waiting for an upscale East Asian shop (think a Chinese or Korean Pusateri's). The market is there, so why not open one?
 
I'm still waiting for an upscale East Asian shop (think a Chinese or Korean Pusateri's). The market is there, so why not open one?

Seafood City from the US westcoast has been scouting for location(s) in the GTA for a while now. Although they aren't that highend, they do provide a unique food experience (target Filipinos & Asians). Finding the ideal location has been a challenge. Stay tuned.
 
My wife says there is a West Indian / Caribbean section in the aisles at Al Premium too. No jerk chicken takeout though. :(
 
Interesting, I'll have to check this out!

In related news, there is a new supermarket going in less than one block away. The current BRICK store in the 'Eglinton Crossing' complex is being shrunk to accommodate a full sized grocer there as well.

I don't know who is going in there yet.

Between those 2, the Metro at Eglinton Square in particular, but also the Big No Frills may face pressure. Not sure about Walmart which is newer at least.
 
Interesting, I'll have to check this out!

In related news, there is a new supermarket going in less than one block away. The current BRICK store in the 'Eglinton Crossing' complex is being shrunk to accommodate a full sized grocer there as well.

I don't know who is going in there yet.

Between those 2, the Metro at Eglinton Square in particular, but also the Big No Frills may face pressure. Not sure about Walmart which is newer at least.

I think it's Marche Adonis.
 
Thanks for posting this thread, Eug, I haven't even heard of this supermarket, AL Premium, but judging from those photos, it looks well-organized, very clean and well-thought out. Very impressed. Now I feel compelled to head over and check out this place personally. Plus, it's always good to see something new, fresh and exciting in this stretch of Golden Mile.
 
I think it's Marche Adonis.
Cool. My wife is from Montreal and she's been to Marché Adonis a few times there and liked it. She said it could be cleaner though.

This is their site, and they do mention a new Mississauga location, but I didn't see anything about a Scarborough location:

http://www.adonisproducts.com/index.php?lang=en

Thanks for posting this thread, Eug, I haven't even heard of this supermarket, AL Premium, but judging from those photos, it looks well-organized, very clean and well-thought out. Very impressed. Now I feel compelled to head over and check out this place personally. Plus, it's always good to see something new, fresh and exciting in this stretch of Golden Mile.
Very clean and well laid out. I think some of them are still getting the hang of things though, in terms of organization. It's kinda of annoying only a few checkout aisles take credit. If they're going to take credit, they may as well have it for all aisles. So what happens is you have the cash aisle with a few people, but there is a long line up at the 1 or 2 credit card aisles.

Also, I thought it was a bit odd too that the bubble tea place there advertised hot soy milk, but when someone tried to order, they said they're completely sold out... despite the fact they sell volumes of unsweetened soy milk in the grocery area just next to it. If they're out, can't they just walk over 30 feet and pick up a few containers of it?

They have lots of types of hot cooked food for sale... but no knives. So, we bought a tandoori chicken leg to share and sat there in the cafe area ripping it apart with our fingers and forks.

However, overall I'm very happy with the store. The Metro is OK, but I'm not a fan of the No Frills at all, so I've tended not to do grocery shopping around there... until now.

My mom lives next to a Pusateri's, but we almost never shop there. The prices on regular stuff is just too high, so we just go to Loblaw's instead. The stuff we get at Pusateri's is dessert and stuff like that, but I'd rather just go do Dufflet's directly.
 

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