Quote Originally Posted by terryh View Post
I vaguely recall sometime back in the mid-eighties when I first started exlporing Detroit, traveling, I think it was somewhere between Eight and Six mile roads, a German themed store that sold food and assorted goods imported from Germany,maybe someone has a recollection of the place. Anyhow where are the good spots in Detroit to buy imported -ethnic foods. There is an African Marketon [[Livernois) that sells fresh Kenke, and I noticed a Carribean foods store on the Blvd that I think is closed now. Obviously Southwest Detroit is loaded with markets that sell imported food, how about the rest of the city.

I remember visiting a small mom and pop Italian market between and Eight and Six mile back in 96, think it was named Julians? There are some markets in Dearborn that are loaded with imported foods from Germany;Balkans;Greece;Egypt;Yemen etc. Joe and Eddies market on Schaefer has a large selection of bulk nuts and raisins [[not sure where they were harvested but the price is much lower in Dearborn than the markets around Ferndale) A very large selection of sweet treats and goodies can be found. Maybe its because we have so much mass produced food here, or the soil is better-whatever the reason the food quality to me seems better on much of the imported yummies. I gobbled a wafer bar covered in chocolate that was made in Lebanon and it tasted much better than the Little Debbie crap Ive ingested. Same with the Balkan cheeses and meats...honey made in Germany....Italian pastries....mmm
Also world cultures have for many centuries have been modifying and perfecting flavors...
The German store you are talking about may have been Old Country Imports located on Gratiot across from the former Montgomery Wards a block north of 7 Mile. They closed in the later 80s when owner Lucy Evans died.

The last metro area German only import store [[Buchholz Imports on Old 13 Mile in Warren) closed last summer. However many German products can be found in Nino Salvaggio's, and Meijer's. In fact Meijer's has a special aisle just for imported items [[at least they do at their Roseville store).

And each of the 3 Polish Market locations sells many German items, since many German companies [[Bahlsen, Dr. Oetker) sell the same items with either German or Polish printing on the packaging.

Due to the borders between Germany and Poland changing so often over the last 500 years, about 1/2 of all their food specialties are common to both countries.