T&T Supermarket Grand Opens in Lansdowne – First Look

On August 16th, 2018, the largest T&T Supermarket in all of Canada will open up in Lansdowne Centre. At 70,000 square feet, it’s not just a supermarket, it’s an immersive shopping and eating experience where people can momentarily be transported to Asia and have access to all it has to offer.

Since the supermarket is HUGE, I don’t have enough time to go through everything. Instead, I will just highlight areas that are unique to this flagship location. First off is the in-house Starbucks. As a person who lives close by and will frequent this location, I can’t tell you how amazing it is to have a Starbucks location right inside where I can just pick up a frap after grocery shopping.

Right off the bat, I have to tell you about the Seafood Bar because I think it’s an extremely exciting and innovative addition to T&T. Not only can you purchase fresh seafood from the counter, you now have the option to have it cooked right then and there for you to eat! In true restaurant-style fashion, you can even choose the cooking method and the accompanying sauces at supermarket prices.

As you can see from the menu, the prices are very reasonable and for those who don’t want the fuss of cooking seafood at home and having a ton of heavy shells (aka organics now) to throw away, I think this is a great alternative.

This is the sample platter menu ($12) which is a pretty good deal if I say so myself!

A sample of the cooked seafood you can expect from the Seafood Bar. Out of all the items I tried, everything tasted very fresh.

The other new section I was super interested in was this Asian Street Food area. Apparently they serve over 30 varieties of authentic snacks from China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

I do find that in Vancouver we lack restaurants and establishments that sell snack sized authentic Asian snacks for an appropriate price. Sometimes, you just don’t want a full meal and want something small, but made fresh to order, you know? I will definitely be back to try some of these items like Popcorn Chicken, Northern Lamb Soup, and Taiwanese Rice Noodle Soup.

Here is the menu for your reference. The prices are almost too good to be true, am I right? I think this menu caters greatly to people who want just a nibble before going home.

Here you can see the Popcorn Chicken, the Yam Puffs, and a variety of other Asian snack pastries.

These yam puffs are slightly purple on the inside which leads me to believe it’s made with purple yam paste. The consistency is similar to mochi which I quite enjoy.

This is a sample of their authentic Taiwanese Stewed Pork on Rice. It tasted good but nothing too out of the ordinary.

Now for some non-hot food related things! At this Weigh Station conveniently stationed at the Produce department, you can weigh fruits and vegetables yourself, print out the sticker with the exact cost of your product, and just scan the barcode at checkout! This eliminates the need to punch in the produce numbers at checkout which I’m sure everyone can agree is always a hassle.

Yes! This flagship location will have self checkout counters!

This T&T location has one of the largest assortment of home slippers, and I LOVE that. Why? I wear indoor slippers at home and I am not joking when I say, I tried finding good and comfortable indoor slippers a while ago and I searched for many weeks with no luck! I was shocked at the limited variety in many Asian markets.

Apparently these brands of Japanese diapers are incredibly popular and very exclusive to this T&T location. They are so ‘authentic’ if you will, that you really can’t find these anywhere else.

The bakery is a staple at any T&T and all of their items are baked in-house and fresh daily. They will never have overnight stock.

Their selection of Japanese sushi and sashimi is second to none. It goes on and on forever!

Last but not least, this flagship location will have a variety of new products that are not available in any other T&T locations. Items like… these vintage Vitasoy in glass bottles! I so wanted to buy some right then and there… :'(

More Japanese food products that are super unique and exclusive.

I found this sign inside the supermarket and thought it was really interesting! If you find any expired product in their store, they encourage you to show them at the customer service counter and they will give you one identical item for free. I appreciate them being up front with their safety policies as well as encouraging customers to hold them accountable. Not too many supermarkets would dare to do that.

Launched in 1993 in Vancouver, today T&T Supermarkets operates 26 stores in British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario. Will you be visiting this flagship location? Let me know!

Happy Eating!