A Taste of Home

When living abroad one thing you might not right away realize you will miss are the foods you know and most likely grew up on. When I first moved to Vienna there was not very many American food (more in particular I am talking about snacks) I know this might seem like a really bizarre post but I feel like it is needed.

As of recently it seems like I have been seeing more and more food products from "home" then when I first moved here. One store that most every expat seems to know about is Bobby's food store close to Naschmarkt, and yes they have many British and American foods but it is about the size of a stop n' shop. I have go there very infrequently due to the fact that the prices for a student is a bit high. If you want a box of cake mix, syrup for pancakes, special sauces, or snacks be prepared to see how much importing such specialized food can be.  In my home town a basic box cake mix can be about 2 to 3 dollars and sometimes you can get them on a BOGO sale, but here a cake mix can cost about 5 euros. That is without the canned icing! Now for most expats they have a steady job and normally it is a better pay grade than min. wage, so this might not be a big splurge. But now, with seeing more and more of American, British food becoming more popular you can shop around for the better price and or get a larger pick of food that will make you feel like you are back at home.

So for any of you expats out there that maybe can't easily get to Bobby's or whatever reason you might have. I have found a store that you might not normally go into to grocery shop considering it is in the underground. The store is called U3 Supermarket and it is located in Westbahnhof but not in the main part where the train station is at but right next to the Wiener Linie Ticket and info desk by the U6 and U3. Now I am not saying that this one store is more cheaper than the other, but Bobby's is the one and only store I have found to date that sells ONLY British and American food. The other store has a very selected selection of British and American foods, but they have a good selection for those cravings.

Coming from South Florida I tend to also miss alot of Southeren and also Caribicfoods. So if you are craving Biscuts and Gravy with Grits for breakfast you better have a recipie to make your own or pack your suitcase with some fixings.  Things like Okra, Plantain, and Collard Greens may be found in stores like Prosi, or any ethnic food store in the area. Normally you know you are in the right spot when the language that is being spoken is neither English or German (or whatever language that is spoken in that country) most ethnic food stores are also a great place to pick up everyday produce it normally is always cheaper than the same produce at your chain supermarkets.

As a college student and all, I am on a limited budget. I know most typical college students eat pretty much the cheapest things out there and save there money up for parties, and booze. Things like Cereal, PB&J, and Mac and Cheese are normally the staple for any toddler, or college student's diet.  I had also assumed that even though I would be far from home what I knew as inexpensive food would be somewhat the same over in Europe. I was soo very wrong. Cereal is pretty easy to find, but can be somewhat expensive and not such a large selection. The first year and a half I lived in Vienna Peanut Butter was not a common food item, and now you can find it anywhere really but it is in a small container and from an American point of view pretty expensive, now I like Grape jelly for my PB&Js but Grape Jelly is not a common Jam or Jelly so Stawberry is what it has to be. Mac and Cheese you can find in the stores I have mentioned but are certainly not the cheapest.  It is certainly healthier but can be frustrating when you just want to have it and not have to travel across town.

Well that is pretty much all I have to say or ramble about on the matter. I know how it can be when you are new in Vienna and just want to feel at home and you have no clue where to go. If any of you know other places in Vienna to get British American food please leave them in the comments below.