American stuff (foodstuffs, equipment, etc.) you can't find in Canada?

Question

I'm visiting the US for the holidays, and want to stock up on things that I can't find or have a hard time finding in Montreal. I'd already made American visitors bring me grits, orange tic tacs (just not the same when they're white), and powdered buttermilk. I finally found Old Bay Seasoning at a Jean Talon Market store.

Any other ideas? Does anyone else have things they're used to in the US that they can't find in Canada? Maybe unsulfered molasses?

Answer

Jif, key lime juice, real lemon extract, King Arthur flour,Fage yoghurt, Entenman's cheese danish (don't ask, it's a childhood thing).

I'm sure I'll think of more stuff. I love doing groceries in the ole US of A.

Answer

My wife is from the southern U.S. and we live in Toronto. You're right, definitely grits. She also brings back from "home" Zatarains mixes and spices (they cost a lot more in Canada), cottage cheese (to her the Canadian version is inedible), orange Tic-Tacs (as you mentioned), Solo canned poppyseed filling, which she uses to make poppyseed cake (yum!), Plugras butter, and BBQ stuff (spice rubs and sauces) which are generally cheaper and of better quality than what you'd find in Canada.

If you use American recipes for baking, might want to buy American flour which has much lower gluten than the Canadian variety; using Canadian flour in an American recipe doesn't always yield a perfect result. American granulated sugar is more coarse compared to Canadian (which has much finer granules); the effect of which is, 1 cup of Canadian sugar weighs more than 1 cup of American, since there's less air space. But this doesn't have as negative effect as gluten in flour does.

Look further down in the General board (this one!) for the thread about grocery shopping in Buffalo, NY (written mostly by cross-border shoppers from Toronto) for lots of ideas on U.S. food you can't get in Canada. Best hints -- for quality and selection go to Wegmans, for the lowest prices go to Aldi.

Answer

Hot Dogs (usually Nathans, but sometimes those ridiculously red ones)
Chips and Pretzels not available here like Snyders extra spicy
Cheap Beer
Huge Turkeys <$10

Also,
Maple Grove Farms of Vermont Fat Free Vidalia Onion dressing (possibly the best lo cal dressing in the world)
Smoked pork neck bones
Freezer Queen frozen sliced turkey and gravy
Shady Brook Farms ultra lean ground turkey (I appreciate the irony of buying cheap beer, hot dogs, and chips as well as fat free dressing and extra lean ground turkey...)
Skin-on Haddock fillets (you can only get skinless in Canada)
Cheap catfish
Frozen Crawfish
Cabot habanero cheddar cheese (quite spicy, puts jalapeno Havarti to shame)
Ultra cheap corned beef around St. Patricks day
House brand italian sausages
Cheap dog food (well at least before we lost good 'ol Bogie...)
Gas before returning to the border ($4/gallon is still a bargain for Canadians)
Snows clam chowder (both new england as well as manhatten)

was my response here
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/516780

Answer

Biscuits to make biscuits & gravy, deep dish pizza, tea to make thai iced tea. 


Thanks for letting us know about where to get old bay seasoning:)

Answer

Had to make a quick cross-border trip Monday after work. Before returning, stopped in the Price Chopper, Champlain NY.
Returning to Canada, I came across the nit-pickingest border agent I've seen in awhile (I don't know if he's new on the job (never seen him before and hes young) or if they're just cracking down for Xmas).
Anyways, all I have is groceries, but the guy is going on and on.
"Any alcohol?"
"No."
"No alcohol?"
"Thats right, no"
"Any beer?"
"No."
"No beer?"
"Thats right, no beer."
"Any wine? Are you bringing back wine?"
"No."
"No wine?"
"Thats right, no wine...no beer, no alcohol."

It went like that for clothes, appliances, and tobacco products.

Then he asks if I'm bringing any gifts across.
"Yes."
Now I've got his attention.
"What kind of gifts?" you could almost see the big AH HAH light up behind his eyes.
"Lets see, a dry-cured salami, a couple SPAM single serves, habanero cheese, and blue potato chips. I might give the kielbasa away, or we might just eat it ourselves, don't know yet"
He's looking at me like I'm from mars, his jaw is slack, and a silence settles...
"A salami as a gift?"
"Yeah, I think salamis make great gifts, plus you can't get spam single serves in Canada. And the cheese? Its not like that girly-girl pepper havarti, no way, its got chunks of real habanero and is killer hot. I THINK you could get those blue potato chips in Canada, but you really have to look around. The guy who runs our Wednesday night poker games really likes them so I got them for him. And the kielbasa...well you know about that"
The wife leans over and says "He's really into food".

He had me pop the trunk and rooted through the grocery bags then waved me through in apparent disgust.

I can still see him: "A salami as a gift?"

Answer

Our female relatives who live in Montreal always stock up on our baking powder when they come south of the border. Ours is double strength and yours is only single?

Answer

More like, what can you get in Canada that you can't get in the States? I bring back boil-in-the-bag couscous and a lot of English and Canadian jam, especially one with a brand I think is ED Smith, flavor "Midnight Berry". English chocolate. Candied fruit for baking, in big bulk bags, much less expensive there. A kind of cracker (name is something like Crackbread) that resembles the crust of French bread. And many cans of maple syrup. There used to be a bakery in the Montreal train station, don't know if it's still there, that sold a maple pecan bread that would stop traffic: it was loaded with pecans and big gobs of maple sugary stuff that turned gooey and warm when you toasted the bread. A serious message to any US people who live close enough to drive over the border: go to Canada to grocery-shop. If I lived close enough I'd do it every week.

Answer

In BC, President's Choice stores have both orange tic tacs and Old Bay Seasoning (just saw them at SuperStore today).

Answer

Milky Way Midnight bars and A&W Vanilla Cream Soda. Together, bliss.

Answer

See's Chocolate (Rocky Road), Baby Ruth and American Mars Bars (which are different from the Canadian ones). Actually any regional candy and chocolate bars would be good. Wine, Craft Beer, U-Bet chocolate syrup.

Answer

Alexia Crispy Snacks! They featured them in a Top Chef quickfire and they are good! I picked some up in Buffalo and they are far superior to any other chip/snack food. I've been looking for them here in Toronto but so far no luck. Try them if you can - you'll be hooked!

Answer

Too late, I know, but one thing I heard about this summer, and can't get in Canada, is "Creamsicle Poptarts". Yeah, I know they're terrible for you, but that flavour sounds very intriguing.

Answer

It is all about the Rotel.......there is no Rotel here in Canada - although I can now find it in Seattle. Rotel, the best can of genius - tomatoes and green chilis - perfect to add to stews, soups........and if blended with a little bit of cumin, an acceptable salsa. Canadians don't know much about queso with Rotel and Velveeta - but if you ever want to make it for Canadians, be sure to bring some cans of Rotel.

Answer

Cheez-its.

Answer

I just read about this in a magazine: Coconut milk ice cream! Apparently there's a company called Turtle Mountain and they make coconut milk-based products. 

Coconut milk ice cream? Yum! I'm salivating right now!

Answer

Here's my list: US-version of Corn Pops (totally different than Canadian version), Jiffy corn muffin mix, malt powder, KC Masterpice BBQ sauce, Rotel, Red Zinger tea, Bush's Best baked beans, IBC black cherry soda, cherry Pepsi and strawberry-flavored soft drinks. Beyond that, it's just absolutely shocking to me how cheap, in general, food is in the US compared to the prices of food in Canada (again I'm generalizing, obviously some stuff is less expensive in Canada). Not only is the selection in the US far larger but I seem to come back with a lot more things when I shop in the US versus when I spend the same amount in Canada.

Answer

I have to get a friend to drive me to Plattsburgh every 2 months to stock up on Wild Cherry Diet Pepsi.

Who's going next week?

Answer

Can't get Cheetos Flaming hot in Quebec, don't know about the rest of Canada. Love them.

Answer

FUNYUNS

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American stuff (foodstuffs, equipment, etc.) you can't find in Canada?

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