8 Grocery Stores and Specialty Food Shops to Visit for a Tasty Souvenir of Alberta

Are grocery stores the hottest new destination for food-minded tourists? Food shopping offers a glimpse of how locals live and a chance to buy savoury souvenirs that reflect the food grown and raised nearby. 

Food-wise, Alberta is probably best known for its high-quality beef—and you can find excellent bison meat here, too. Our ample farmland and climate are fertile ground for grains (including red fife wheat prized by bakers), haskap berries and root vegetables. Alberta’s also Canada’s largest honey producer, resulting in lots of fresh and flavourful varieties to try.

Together, these fresh ingredients fuel an industry of craft snacks, sauces and other tasty treats packed with Alberta flavour.

Visit these local shops for a unique taste of Alberta’s bounty of ingredients and artisanal food products.

Hidden gem food shops around Alberta

Longview Jerky Shop: The official snack of cowboys

Coming upon the Longview Jerky Shop is a sure-fire sign you’ve arrived in cowboy country. Festooned with a cut-out of a silhouetted cowpoke, a Cowboy Trail road sign and a mini chuckwagon, the shop proudly lets its Western ranch culture flag fly. Located in the village of Longview, just 85 km (53 mi) from Calgary, a jerky pit-stop is a must on a road trip through Alberta’s picturesque foothills.

There’s a reason this shop has been a staple since 1978. While the quirky decor is part of the draw, the jerky is the star. Made from the same Alberta cattle grazing in the nearby pastures, this beef jerky is undoubtedly the official snack of Alberta’s cowboys. 

Shelf-stable and worthy of a good long chew, Longview’s original jerky is as traditional as it gets. That said, curious palates should try flavours like ginger beef (based on a Calgary-born Chinese takeout staple), spicy dill, or Jamaican jerk. Bison, elk, turkey, chicken and pork jerky are also available.

Spring Creek Market by Rusticana: Canmore’s independent grocer

Staying in a cabin in the Rockies? You’ll likely have a kitchenette, so a good local grocery store is worthy of being your first stop. Buy the basics for your morning toast and eggs or evening cheeseboards at the cozy Spring Creek Market by Rusticana in Canmore. It also happens to stock plenty of local flavour.

The focus here is often hyper-local, with brews from Mountain Blends Coffee Roasters and Canmore Tea Company and a selection of local Grizzly Paw soda. Find quick dinner options with fresh ravioli from the Canmore Pasta Co. and pesto from Rafferty Farms in nearby Foothills County. Fresh Alberta produce lines the cooler shelves with locally baked bread at arm’s reach. 

There’s plenty to take home after your mountain excursion is over, too. Flavoured oils and vinegars bottled by Evoolution are a great take-home gift, as are snack mixes and granola from Alberta’s Going Nuts. If a trip to the Cowboy Trail isn’t in the cards, the shop also carries a selection of Longview beef jerky.

Sylvan Star Cheese Farm Store: Simply great gouda

If Alberta had a provincial cheese, it would likely be Sylvan Star Cheese’s Grizzly Gouda. Studded with the delicious salty crystals that come with aging, the gouda is an undisputed hometown hero. Dutch in origin, the award-winning cheese has become a symbol of Alberta’s dairy industry. 

You can’t get far in Alberta without encountering Grizzly Gouda in a grocery store or restaurant. Still, it’s worth heading to Sylvan Star’s home base, located 20 km (12 mi) northwest of Red Deer. Surrounded by lush farmland, this is where the sixth-generation cheesemakers make the famous cheese.

Grizzly Gouda abounds, but the facility’s farm store also boasts other styles of gouda as well as gruyere, havarti, edam and other cheeses. Take a taste of some of the flavoured cheeses too, with an added zing of dill, mustard, truffle or other spices and herbs.

Where to buy food souvenirs in Calgary

Cookbook Co. Cooks: Ingredients for the home cook

This unassuming shop near Downtown Calgary is a wonderland for food and wine lovers. At the back, you’ll find the friendly MetroVino wine shop and the delicious Noble Pie pizzeria. Downstairs, cookies, cakes and pies await at the Decadent Brulee bakery. But the main attraction is a charming cookbook and specialty food shop filled with aisle upon aisle of tempting artisanal treats.

Cookbook Co. Cooks started as a small cookbook store over 40 years ago. Owner Gail Norton has since grown it to include the ingredients needed to complete and compliment the books’ recipes. Shoppers can stock up on distinctively Albertan products like grainy Brassica Mustard, made with locally grown mustard seeds. 

Look for other local favourites like Drizzle Honey, Pioneer Butchery salami, and Porter’s Tonic cocktail syrup. Don’t forget to check out the selection of cookbooks for a longer-lasting souvenir.

Cooking for yourself while you’re visiting? Check out their selection of Alberta-made pesto, sausages, charcuterie—and even sourdough starter.

Calgary Co-op: Big stores with a community focus

To the outside observer, Calgary Co-op stores may look like regular supermarkets. But unlike corporate chains, the over 20 stores are independently owned by a group of over 440,000 community members. That neighbourly spirit is a point of pride for many shoppers.

A fiercely local mindset is reflected in the products Calgary Co-op sells. Each store carries essentials (like locally roasted coffee) alongside Alberta-made treats. Many of Alberta’s most iconic ingredients are highlighted, including local honey, bison, canola oil and red fife flour. 

Calgary Co-op also supports local entrepreneurs. Products like Mitsoh Pemmican, Righteous Gelato, and Crave cupcake mixes all line the shelves. Locally made spirits and beers are available at Calgary Co-op’s popular liquor stores.

Empire Provisions: Artisan charcuterie and more

This welcoming neighbourhood deli is the playground of Calgary food lovers Karen Kho and Dave Sturies. The pair opened the shop to showcase their house-made sausages and charcuterie in 2017. Don’t resist the urge to eat a meal or snack in the store’s cafe, but leave room: the shop offers plenty of goodies to take home. 

Empire Provisions offers imported delicacies, but local products also get a chance to shine. Look for Asian-style chili crisp from Monster Foods and locally roasted coffee from Calgary Heritage Roasting Company.

Empire also sells a house-made line of provisions. Since packing sausages in your suitcase probably isn’t an option, pick up jars of their pickles and condiments, all perfectly Albertan additions to your sandwiches or charcuterie boards back home.

Where to buy food souvenirs in Edmonton

Duchess Bake Shop: French baking, Alberta-style

A French-style oasis in the heart of Edmonton, Duchess Bake Shop is known for its impeccable cakes and pastries. Indulge in a box of macarons or picture-perfect tart here, then explore the shop's line of less-perishable baking items and treats.

Duchess Provisions products include fragrant raspberry rose jam and a house-made salted caramel that begs to be eaten straight from the jar. Bakers can fill their pantries with flour blends, dried rose petals and other specialty supplies. Shortcut-seekers might instead choose a pre-mixed bake-at-home cookie kit. 

Duchess's blissful vibes can be extended with the shop’s selection of proprietary tea blends. Take home packets of premium tea leaves spiked with aromatic flowers, fruit and spices as a relaxing keepsake.

Good Goods: Tasty gifts with a conscience

Edmonton’s Good Goods is a store that also acts as a community builder. The woman-owned and -operated shop is all about championing Canadian makers. As a bonus, the store allows shoppers to feel good about contributing to the local economy. 

Good Goods isn’t exclusively a food store, but the bright shop is full of tasty things to eat and drink. Hungry visitors can grab jars of Alberta-made OG ghee, Lessig Ferments cocktail cherries and Noorish honey. Sustainably minded products are prioritized alongside goods from other women artisans.