{"id":617576,"date":"2025-12-07T08:43:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-07T08:43:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/617576\/"},"modified":"2025-12-07T08:43:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-07T08:43:13","slug":"supermarche-sweep-the-treats-we-love-to-buy-on-holiday-in-europe-shopping-trips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/617576\/","title":{"rendered":"Supermarch\u00e9 sweep: the treats we love to buy on holiday in Europe | Shopping trips"},"content":{"rendered":"

Belgium: \u2018I love the aromas of herbs and spices in mustard shops\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

I fell in love with Belgian snacks when cycling the amateur version of the Tour of Flanders some years ago. The feed stations along the route were crammed with packets of Meli honey waffles<\/a> and Meli honey cake<\/a>. I ate so many that I suffered withdrawal symptoms after finishing the last of them at the end of the 167-mile route.<\/p>\n

On return visits to Ghent, my first port of call is any local supermarket to buy a couple of boxes of the sweet treats. After stocking up, I head to the Tierenteyn-Verlent<\/a> mustard shop on the Groentenmarkt. The 19th-century interior is like an old-fashioned apothecary filled with the soothing aromas of the spices and herbs used in the mustards they make fresh each day in wooden vats on the premises.<\/p>\n

From there, it\u2019s a short hop to Mokabon<\/a> on Donkersteeg, a 1950s cafe that has seemingly been preserved in aspic with all the original sleek features, including a beautiful wooden bar, red walls and small round tables. At the front of the cafe is a small counter where they sell home-roasted coffee beans (they\u2019ve been roasting since the late 1930s) that they then package in distinctive yellow and red paper bags.<\/p>\n

Oh, and on that first visit, I also came home with a Belgian bike.
Andy Pietrasik<\/strong><\/p>\n

France: \u2018Artfully arranged shelves are a siren call to drool\u2019<\/strong>The Bonne Maman jam section in a French supermarket. Photograph: Andy Pietrasik<\/p>\n

The middle aisle of my local Lidl has nothing on French supermarket booty.\u00a0I once bought six big saucissons in a hypermarch\u00e9 because they each came with a free Laguiole-style steak knife. Eventually, even the dog started\u00a0turning his nose up at dried sausage treats.<\/p>\n

You know what they say about French style; well, it carries on through to the shelves of French supermarkets, each brand artfully arranged with labels facing forward and issuing a siren call to linger and drool.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s the perfectly aligned Bonne Maman jam section offering typically Gallic flavours such as mirabelle intense, coings (quince), figues violettes (fig) and reines-claudes (greengage). Identifying the different types of fromages blancs, cr\u00e8mes fra\u00eeches and creams could qualify as a specialist section on Mastermind. Then there are\u00a0the cheeses: there are countless varieties from Normandy, Auvergne-Rh\u00f4ne-Alpes and Bourgogne-Franche-Comt\u00e9.<\/p>\n

But my favourite aisles, aside from the wines, are the tins and terrines: terrine de sanglier (wild boar), terrine de lapin (rabbit), p\u00e2t\u00e9 du dimanche (pork and duck liver); cassoulet made with duck and Toulouse sausages; and my all-time Proustian taste \u2013 confit de canard. Then a quick dash through the snack section reaps armfuls of Lay\u2019s crisps, paysanne tapenade flavour (only in France); galettes au beurre (buttery biscuits); and Haribo Pik Dragibus sweets.
AP<\/strong><\/p>\n

Italy: \u2018I have a weakness for sugared jellies and lemony beer\u2019<\/strong>A confectionery shop in Florence. Photograph: John Bracegirdle\/Alamy<\/p>\n

As a child, I went on holiday abroad just twice \u2013 both times to visit family in Italy. That was the start of my love affair with Italian sweets. This is a country that loves a little something sugary and all shops, from big supermarkets to local alimentari, offer an Aladdin\u2019s cave of candies. I have a particular weakness for fruit jellies and the joy of the Italian supermarket is that you can buy huge bags of them (my favourites are Dufour\u2019s Big Frut range<\/a>), each individually wrapped.<\/p>\n

I also never leave Italy without several boxes of Baci chocolates<\/a>. There is something so beguiling about these \u201clittle kisses\u201d, the mound of nutty filling encased in dark chocolate with a whole hazelnut popped on top and then wrapped in silver and blue paper with a message of love tucked inside. Don\u2019t even think of buying them at the airport, where they mysteriously triple in price; instead, find a Prix, which is super cheap, or, for more choice, the big supermarket chains such as Coop and Conad.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve driven to Italy, then a supermarket sweep will lend itself to armfuls of groceries worth bringing back \u2013 olive oil, pasta, balsamic vinegar and don\u2019t forget the porcini mushrooms \u2013 but make sure you leave room for a couple of packs of Birra Moretti Limone<\/a>. While you may be tempted to scoop up a bottle of limoncello, everyone knows it never tastes as good once you get it home. Much better to get that citrusy hit in a beer. Basically, it\u2019s an Italian shandy made from lager and Sicilian lemon juice, making it low alcohol \u2013 and delicious. Turns out those tangy, citrusy notes are the perfect accompaniment to a delicious bag of sugared jellies.
Max Benato<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ireland: \u2018Skip the Taytos and get tortilla chips made in Tipperary\u2019<\/strong>Smoked wild Atlantic salmon from the Woodcock Smokery, Skibbereen. Photograph: Paul Sherwood Photography<\/p>\n

For Irish expats on a trip home and international tourists alike, it is almost\u00a0mandatory that you stock up on Barry\u2019s tea and Tayto crisps before leaving the country. They won\u2019t let you through airport security on your way out if you don\u2019t have at least one big red box of teabags and a few jumbo packs of salted potato snacks crammed into your suitcase.<\/p>\n

Fine as these exemplars of Irish marketing ingenuity are, I\u2019m here to tell you that other great products do exist; it\u2019s just that sometimes you need\u00a0to dig around a bit to find them. Most Irish supermarkets supply a range of farmhouse cheeses such as Gubbeen and Durrus, which are wonderful, but I\u2019d go the extra mile for\u00a0Boyne Valley B\u00e1n, a magnificent hard goat\u2019s cheese available at Sheridans cheesemongers<\/a>, which has\u00a0shops and concessions around the\u00a0country.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d also track down a big jar of Harry\u2019s Nut Butter<\/a> (the original paprika flavour with the shades-wearing elephant on the label) and White Mausu\u2019s dangerously addictive peanut <\/a>r\u0101yu<\/a> \u2013 both easy to find in delis and some supermarkets too (SuperValu usually has a good selection of small Irish producers).<\/p>\n

I might lose my passport for saying this, but I\u2019d skip the Taytos and grab a bag of Blanco Ni\u00f1o tortilla chips<\/a>, made in the very un-Mexican county of Tipperary but no less spicily delicious for it. And be sure to pick up some smoked fish \u2013 Burren Smokehouse<\/a> is good, and widely available, but Sally Barnes\u2019s Woodcock Smokery<\/a>, though harder to come by, is the gold standard.
Killian Fox<\/strong><\/p>\n

Germany: \u2018I head for in-store bakeries and deli counters\u2019<\/strong>German bakeries sell a huge variety of breads. Photograph: Jurgen Wiesler\/Alamy<\/p>\n

One of the things I miss when I\u2019m travelling away from Germany is the fantastic bakeries. Most of the big supermarket chains \u2013 such as Edeka and Rewe (which tend to be pricier than Aldi and Lidl) \u2013 have in-store bakeries selling everything from pastries to pretzels.<\/p>\n

But few things say \u201chome\u201d to me more than the aroma of freshly baked Br\u00f6tchen. I don\u2019t even know what the proper translation would be \u2013 bread roll? Bun? Bap? \u2013 but you can get them in many different varieties, with sunflower or poppy seeds, made from sourdough, or as a soft pretzel roll. Fill them with cream cheese, cheese or meat from the deli counters for a good value lunch or breakfast.<\/p>\n

Germany\u2019s highly federal system is\u00a0reflected in its regional cuisine \u2013 which is sometimes represented in the\u00a0fresh counters, too. If you\u2019re in Bavaria, please try a pretzel and white\u00a0sausage with mild mustard, or\u00a0in northern Germany a bread roll with battered fish or pickled herring. And if you\u2019re longing for a sugar hit, Hamburg\u2019s finest Franzbr\u00f6tchen with\u00a0butter and cinnamon should do the trick.<\/p>\n

From the confectionary aisle I\u00a0would stock up on Ritter Sport chocolate and vegan gummy bears or\u00a0liquorice from Katjes<\/a>, one of Germany\u2019s largest sweet makers and\u00a0a\u00a0pioneer in using plant-based ingredients and natural flavourings.<\/p>\n

However, the thing I miss most about German supermarkets when I\u2019m abroad is the good old deposit system, called pfa\u0301nd, where you return plastic bottles and cans to the supermarket and get up to 25 cents each. They then get recycled. Throwing them in the bin just does not feel right.
Anna Ehlebracht<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Belgium: \u2018I love the aromas of herbs and spices in mustard shops\u2019 I fell in love with Belgian…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":617577,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5174],"tags":[2000,299,5187],"class_list":{"0":"post-617576","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-eu","8":"tag-eu","9":"tag-europe","10":"tag-european"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/617576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=617576"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/617576\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/617577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=617576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=617576"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=617576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}