Throughout the Mediterranean, breads and pastas are universally inexpensive and readily available, and Asian cooking supplies are expensive and somewhat limited. The biggest challenge has been finding a regular supply of dried hot chilli pepper which we use a lot of, and is something we now bring with us. Hot sauces are also limited and a small bottle of Tabasco sauce is around 5 euro (large is almost 20 euro!)
Now that we are thinking of heading off the dock in a month or so, we are starting to make a provisioning list. This reminded us of the countries we’ve visited and the items that were either a great price or great quality, in each one.
France – We were in France for two seasons and thoroughly enjoyed the high quality of cheeses, wines, canned prepared meals such as Cassolette, 2016 Season One: More shopping and Trouble fueling up marinated anchovies, and frozen seafood from the Cabesto store. Cabesto is actually a marine supply and outdoor sports store, but it has a large frozen seafood section. Fresh produce was available and fairly priced in the grocery stores. Cantaloupe was terrific in the summer at 1-2 euro a piece. Outdoor markets had lovely produce but were generally much more expensive, although a great place to get ripened fruits and produce for same day consumption. Just don’t squeeze the tomatoes or peaches!
Spain – Most of our cruising was through the Balearic Islands, but we did spend several days in Barcelona and Girona. We found that the cured meats,https://www.gorightmeow.com/2016/06/29/season-one-week-2-and-3-still-not-onboard/ vacuum sealed olives, liquor, and canned fish were well priced, and produce was fresh and abundant. Beef was flavorful and good cuts were priced in the medium range 500 grams for 5.66 euro. https://www.globalprice.info/en/?p=spain/barselona-supermarket
Sicily – For quality tomato products you can’t beat Sicily! All the canned, jarred, and tetra packed tomato products were obviously picked at the peak of ripeness and were delicious. They did have a higher price point but we thought it was worth it. Sun dried tomatoes were fabulous, and Todd ate them like potato chips. We bought them from the large farmers markets along with anything that was in season. The best oranges we’ve eaten were in Sicily. Crackers and dry breads were a good staple with lots to chose from, at bargain prices.
Coffee beans have been getting more expensive and harder to find since we left Sicily, so it’s a good idea to lay in kilo bags of LavAzza (our fav) if you find yourself in the area. It was between 12 and 15 euro for a kilo when we were there in 2018. (We weren’t using whole beans in France so can’t speak to the prices there)
Greece – Good prices are to be found for almonds and other nuts, olive oils, canned Dolma, and dried beans. Other canned goods and fish was expensive. Fresh meat and chicken were medium in price and tasty, so we filled the freezer before we came to Montenegro just in case we had 2 weeks of quarantine when we arrived. (We didn’t as Greece was then “a Green Zone”)
Montenegro – So far we have been impressed with how reasonable the prices are for produce, fruit, fresh pork, and chicken (a small chook is less than 3 euro), and canned fish. The beef is medium in price so about the same as Spain, and although still flavorful it’s “tougher” and better for stews! Coffee beans are not easy to find in kilo sized bags in the grocery stores. We did find a Coffee and Tea emporium that sells a kilo of good beans for 22 euro wholesale.
The smoked meats are amazing and rival Spain. There are so many cuts we don’t recognize, and haven’t figured out if they are an ingredient in local dishes or to be eaten sliced like the dry salami’s. Beer is between 69 cents and 99 cents for a tall can which makes it one of the best places to pack away a few flats for later consumption. Our grocery bill is around 300 US$ per month here, so about 1 full cart at Trader Joes.
