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Nagoya.Expat


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Shopping.Food, wine and books

Yes we live in another country, yes we love Japanese food but sometimes you crave a ham sandwich.


Please Email me if you have suggestions/ Recommendations


Hard to Find.in Nagoya

There are a number of items that we have found difficult to find in Nagoya. If you know where to get them, please email me

  • Hot Salami/pepperoni - lots of salami, but none that is spicy - mild hungarian is as hot as it gets. Best option is the salami rolled in pepper from either Effe or our local Yamanaka in Hongo.
  • Quality Australian wine (not Evans and Tate, Rawson's retreat or Yellowtail) . French wine is easy to find and prices are better than in Australia. I have found cask wine, port and VB in Yamaya) . French wine is everywhere and reasonably priced.
  • Good ranges of cheese. Especially good cheddar (sometimes Frante has italian cheeses at $20 a slice!) . Effe sometimes has terrific cheap cheddar in large blocks and has one of the best ranges of cheese in Nagoya. Mar ui Department store in Sakae also has a good range of cheeses
  • Cordial
  • Australian Breakfast cereals (sustain, Wheatbix, sultana-bran) - Corn Flakes, Special K and sweet cereals such as frosty flakes can be found everywhere, but they are expensive.
  • Aussie Meat pies (Meat-guy on the internet)
  • Roast Chickens (not KFC) - There ia a brazilian place in Toyota city and another in Osukanon . (but no stuffing! )
  • Bread - Bread in Japan is usually very sweet and just does not work with vegemite and cheese, (its ok with Jam/jelly though). The long running quest to find good bread means that we purchase bread less often and only from certain places. We buy wholegrain bread from Apita in Nagakute
  • Lamb - Sometimes you can find it, but it is hideously expensive.
  • Mint - Mint chocolate is around, but mint icecream is not common. Green usually indicated green tea flavour.

    • Cannot Find.in Nagoya

  • Self Raising Flour- You have to buy plain flour and baking soda
  • Relishs/Chutney - Nonexistent.
  • Long Grain Rice - Buy Online - http://www.indojin.com/



    • International Supermarkets in Sakae

    Kitano Ace Kitano Ace 052-259-6266,is downstairs under LaChic.It is small and central. Nothing special though Here is a useful map
    Meidi-ya Meidi-ya is one of the biggest international stores in the Japan. The Sakae store is conveniently located near Maruzen, so you can go buy a magazine as well (not cheap)
      La Cave de Yamaya (a national chain store) has a good international food and wine section. Some Australian cask wine, Occasionally Vic Bitter beer and all this at some of the cheapest prices I have seen in Nagoya. One store is located in the huge underground shopping complex under Sakae.Near Sakae Station's exit 5, look for Melza Platz.




    X-Pat Files June 2008 -

    The x-pat files newsletter for June 2008 contains an article on International supermarkets by Cynthia Howard. The article has full descriptions by Cynthia of why she liked each supermarket and what you can find inside. Most locations are listed here, but she has a few others. If you do not get the free newsletter then please go to the x-pat files website and read the article.

    International Supermarkets around Meito-Ku

    Hallo International 2 international Supermarket in Meito ku (ph 052-775-8111).Has vegemite. A small chain store.

    Effe- Opened November 2006 at Fujigaoka Station in the "linimall". (Walking distance to Yamaya) (052-776-6776). Another good international food shop with sherwoods curries, and a good range of cheese, including my favorite cheddar It also sells the NZ Whittakers Peanut bars ** Recommended ** (Note - The x-pat files identifies this store as part of the seijoishii international supermarket chain with other stores around Nagoya.)

     La Cave de Yamaya (a national chain store) has a good international food and wine section. Some Australian cask wine, Vic Bitter beer and all this at some of the cheapest prices I have seen in Nagoya. Around the corner from Effe at Fujigaoka, Meito-ku (ph 052-760-4811). ** Good for wine **

    Bom Preço Mercado - A small Brazilian supermarket in lower Seto (056-185-7108)). Colgate toothpaste, Lux soap, Beetroot, Beans, Brazilian sausages and meat, easter eggs ** Recommended **

    Sapore is another international food chain. The stores remind me of an even fancier Frante. The store I went to had the widest range of cheese of any supermarket that I have been too, but it was also the most expensive.

    Regular Supermarkets around Meito-Ku


    Frante     is an upmarket supermarket chain but the shops vary considerably. THe best we have visited is in Kakuozan near Higashiyama Park (ph 052-721-6200) it is owned by the Yamanaka supermarket chain and you can often find international food under the Frante brand in Yamanaka supermarkets. Click here for store locations.

    Daiei is a downmarket supermarket in Meito-Ku (052-704-1147) but it has different brands than some other supermarkets so is worth a look

    APITA (0561-636-777)has a large shopping complex in Nagakute near Meito ku (see website here) . It is one of the best shopping sites in the meito area. It sells australian beef steaks at reasonable prices and sells my favorite bread


    Other Discoveries.in Nagoya

  • Kahma - is not a food chain, but a cheap hardware/ handyman store. They are a big national chain. The one in Nisshin is big (Ph 056-175-5911), here is the Nisshin Kahma's web page. There are supermarkets attached to Kahma's, so it is a good one stop shop. Aoki is the shared supermarket in Nisshin.

  • Daiso
    Daiso- Is a great version of the100 yen shop. There is one in Sakae (location) and another on the 363 close to Meito-ku/Nagakute. They are bigger than most 100 yen shops and Daiso is a great place to stock a house if you are moving. Plates, glasses, all sorts of kitchenware, party supplies, stationary ** Recommended **


    Nitori
    Nitori - There are many stores, but the closest to us is on the 153 halfway between Nagoya and Toyota city (near i-mall). Nitori is a version of IKEA. A lot of the expats we know have had their rental furniture sourced from here. If you are looking for extra lamps, chairs, storage, rugs, etc then try here. Phone 052-848-0033



    HiAce
    Hi-Ace -
    052 701 9111
    My favorite store for stuff, it has electrical, gardening, furniture, sports equipment, BBQ's etc,etc, go, look discover.
    ** Highly Recommended **




    • Product Where to Find
    'normal' Bread (Called English bread in Japan) Frante (Kakuozan), Apita (Nagakute) has rye bread which is very good
    Salt and Vinegar chips Frante (Kakuozan). Effe
    Pataks, Milo Hallo International 2
    Cheap Wine, VB Yamaya, Apita (Nagakute) also has a good wine selection though not as cheap
    Tim Tams, Cadbury Chocolate Easy to find in most supermarkets
    Schweppes tonic Water Daiei, Yamaya
    Berri Orange Juice Expensive but easy to find
    Tacos, Corn Chips etc Hallo International 2 , Frante (Kakuozan), Effe
    Cheap Steak Apita (Nagakute) has Aussie steak as well as the usual Japanese style steaks.
    Frozen Peas Surprisingly hard to find. Not consistent.



    Outlet.Shopping near Nagoya

    Toki outlets is about a 30 minute drive from Meito-ku and is the more practical outlet mall, with Big John, Timberland, Gap. Nagashima is about 1 hour by car from Meito-ku, it has more big label shops and a roller coaster park attached to it. It is not as good for shopping, but much better for an experience.

    Nagashima Outlet Mall (Jazz Dream Theme)
    Toki Premium Outlets (Colorado Ski Village Theme)




    English Language. Bookshops

    I have not found an english language bookshop in Nagoya, but some of the larger bookshops have quite extensive english language sections. Prices, especially for magazines are not cheap. I prefer Maruzen as it is the most convenient and it has a large selection.


    JR Takashimaya
    The largest English language Bookshop in Nagoya (Maruzen may have a better selection) in Nagoya is on Level 11? of the JR Takashimaya Department store in the "JR Central Towers" Building at Nagoya Station in the City Centre. It has a wide selection of books and magazines. Note that the store is actually called Books Sanseido.


    Maruzen
    The third floor of Maruzen Bookshop in Sakae (052-261-2251), (Near Mar ui department store ) has a terrific selection of books and magazines, it rivals if not betters the selection at JR Takashimaya. - Thanks Sue for finding it. BTW, The latest free what's on guides, Japanzine and Nagoya Calendar are usually available near the 3rd floor cash register.

    The Aeon Nagoya Dome Mae Shopping Center ( beside the Nagoya Dome) also has a bookshop with a reasonable english language section. (Get off at the Nagoya Dome on the Meijo Line)



    Online.Shopping

    The Meat Guy - Reliable
    Foreign Buyers Club - Expensive but if you really want it get it here
    Amazon Japan - has english books. (I bought books from Amazon USA but they took 10 weeks to be delivered. So I don't recommend them.)
    CaveYamaya (Japanese Only)



    Clothes and.Shoes

    If we do buy clothes and shoes then we either do it online, or go to the outlet malls. Neither of us fit into Japanese sizes so it can be tricky to find things. The two outlet malls sometimes have bigger sizes in stock than the city stores do. This is not always the case. Also note that there is a big tax on leather in Japan so leather shoes are very expensive. We usually buy shoes overseas.

    JC Penny will deliver to Japan - Delivery can take a month or two, but the price is astounding. We can buy 3 pair of Levi 501's at JC Penny for the same price as One pair in Australia. There are also more size options than in Australia.


    a Last Resort.- Ask online

    If nothing on this page helps then try asking online. It is pretty easy. The best forum is at Japan-guide. I got the good tip for buying Jasmine rice from the forum.



    Shipped from Home

    I returned home to Melbourne in September 2006 and mailed back a range of things to Nagoya. I thought that this list might be useful for other expats about to come to Japan or families thinking of ideas on what to send.

    Japan has a low tax on alcohol and cigarettes. Spirits especially as cheap in Japan. In the reverse there is a high tax on leather. Leather goods, especially leather shoes are very expensive.


    Packets with individually wrapped items are always good as they can be shared out for other workmates/expats to try.

  • Sultana Bran - Breakfast cereal
  • Sustain - Breakfast cereal
  • Minties - lollies/sweets
  • Snakes - lollies/sweets
  • Chicos - lollies/sweets
  • VioletCrumbles - lollies/sweets
  • Chocolate Royals - Biscuits
  • Anzacs - Biscuits
  • Twisties - Chips/crisps
  • Magazines (Who, Womans Day, New Weekly, Vanity fair, Empire)

    • Dec 2006 - We have also shipped Christmas puddings, pickles, Jelly beans from the chemist (Only the best) and BBQ shapes

    Feb 2007 - back home for work so I carried back
  • a Bamboo Steamer, Magazines, mouthwash,
  • queensize bed sheets
  • Spices (Pepper Steak, Moroccan etc)
  • packets of Smarties,
  • Sweet mustard Pickles, Chutney
  • Gravy
  • Twinnings Tea

    • We have taken many things back to Australia as Gifts
    Small supermarket toys,
    Japanese Christmas cards,
    KitKats





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