Chinese supermarkets - Midlands or online?

twofishes

Hi everyone

I am very very soon (Sunday!) moving to Northampton for uni and was wondering about Chinese supermarkets in the town or elsewhere in the Midlands (that can be accessed by public transport please), or other bargainous ethnic food shops. I know of the online places (Wing Yip, Wai Yee Hong) but are there any good places in Northampton? Food shopping in general will be awkward because my nearest supermarket is Asda, but it is too far to walk yet it is not on a bus route at all :mad: I can get a bus to Morrisons, or get a day ticket and go to Weston Favell and go to Tesco/Aldi/Lidl.

Any hints would be very welcome :j

frugal_shopper_2

It's been a few years since I was in Northampton so it's possible they may no longer be there but I always shopped at Apna on Kettering road (near the turning for Clare street) & the Oriental Supermarket on Earl street (walk to the other end of Clare street then turn left). There was always a few other Oriental, Indian, Afro Caribbean etc... food shops that came & went but these 2 had the biggest ranges of Indian & Oriental foods & both would allow you to negotiate on prices and/or chuck in freebies once you became a regular customer particularly Apna I got some huge discounts there.

flubberyzing

No advice on the chinese supermarket, but just wanted to say hi as a Northampton resident!
If you don't mind saying, where in Northampton will you be? I know you can get a bus from town to Tesco Extra on Mereway, which is my "local".
Feel free to PM me if you have any questions!

twofishes

Thanks guys. I will be on Park campus which is the one further out of the town centre (by the golf course). There's a free bus between the two campuses for students but the Avenue campus is right by the Racecourse park which I have been warned about :O

dogstarheaven

i don't tend to go into a chinese s/m until i need to buy a certain item that can't be bought from a normal shop, or getting it cheaper - noodles, soya/oyster/sesame oil/sweet chilli sauce/normal chilli sauce/miso paste/black beans/preserved veg etc.

as these things will last a fair while as they tend to come in big bottles/packets. the rest of the ingredients are fresh or can be bought just as cheaply like in a normal s/m:=

tesco's do a jasmine rice in a large sack for £9 (not sure how many kg's)

fresh tofu - £2

OP: what sort of ingredients would you need that you can't stock beforehand before you set off for uni?

twofishes

I'm at uni now, but outside of termtime I live in a very white neighbourhood in a semi-rural area. In any case from living in areas with Chinese supermarkets before, there's a definite difference in price imo with things like fresh Asian herbs, garlic, ginger, noodles etc - they are cheaper because Chinese people will use them every day whereas regular supermarkets sell them as specialist items. Also I didn't take any food to uni as I didn't know how much kitchen cupboard space I had!

Allegra

Well, hello and welcome - I work where you'll soon live, so if you need any info etc., feel free to PM. OK, shopping wise - a little Spar on campus for emergencies, and occasional good offer; 10 minute walk down the hill into Kingsthorpe, where you'll find a little Asda, a Waitrose, and Cool Trader (excellent for your milk, butter and various other bits and bobs) - and the campus shuttle does go past Kingsthorpe front, so if you feel it's too far to walk (it's not, unless you have mobility problems - I walk to work from 15 minutes further away than the Asda), you can always hop on the bus for free.

For ethnic shopping your best bet is Kettering Road, a short walk from Avenue Campus - I can't recall a specifically Chinese grocery store, but plenty of Indian and Eastern European ones that sell a range of ethnic foods at bargainous prices.

Good luck and enjoy the student experience.....