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Tosi Italian Food Import Company
Category: Food Specialty Food Specialty Food [Edit]
624 Main StVancouver, BC V6A 2V3
Neighbourhoods: Chinatown, Strathcona
(604) 681-5740
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
7 reviews for Tosi Italian Food Import Company
7 reviews in English
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Review from Larry L.
6/13/2010 2 photos
Why a 5 star for this little place that seems like it's been here forever?
Like my kids asked me one time when I thought it was time to introduce them to this place.
-Why are we going here? They'd ask.
-Because.
-Because why Dad?
-Well, It's a long story, but I would come here as a little boy with Grandpa and he's been coming here since he was very young.
-Wow. This place is very old. It's dusty and smells funny.
-It's character and it's the cheese you smell.
-Look! They have the herbs like in Grandpa's house.
-Yes and more. You see that guy over by the counter? He used to be Grandpa's patient when Grandpa was alive. Grandpa loved to come here and buy his tomato sauces and juice and pasta's. He'd buy cases of them. He'd come by after work and they'd talk and talk.
They were both quite the characters you know.
And now that Grandpa is gone, we come here now and then when we can.
It's a place full of memories for me and the kids and a reminder of what life used to be like in Chinatown, back in the old days. When things were simpler, before internet, before the "Walkman" and the cassette deck, before colour TV's. It was another era, a generation come and gone.
When I do come, I have to reintroduce myself every time. He tells me his memory is not very good, but when I do say hi, a flood of memories erupts and chatter about the old days is reignited.
The kids used to like hearing him tell us stories about their Grandfather like it was a portal into him that they never knew about.
That's what the shopping experience is all about. Memories, stories, strangers becoming friends. Neighbourhood connections.
The dried herbs, the pasta's, the chacouterie and the cheeses all in this old rustic building. In the middle of where you expect to find a place like this the least, in Chinatown.
It does take you back to an era long gone and yeah, I guess it's not for everyone. Some people just wouldn't understand a need for a place like this, but maybe they haven't sparked the imagination that others have, or care for the romantic notion of the past.
Presently, it's always something that I live for. I'm going to have to come back again soon and get my herbs and a taste of some really stinky cheese. I'm glad that other Yelpers are finding this gem, hidden from all that commercialism that the world is inundated with these days.
Shopping should be more than the pristine environment that everything has become. It's got to be more. For me, this offers me something that is missing and a piece of me always yearns to come back, for old memories sake and the fact that they do have some really cool stuff. Even the olive oil seems better here than anywhere else.Listed in: Mojofoodies -Chinatown
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Review from Mercedes G.
Vancouver, BC
11/28/2008 1 photo
I had no idea that this Italian market was even here, and how could I have suspected that an Italian store would be nestled in the hustle and bustle of...Chinatown?
Ms.Templeton of Erin Templeton fame was kind enough to tell me about a 'great little Italian market with the best Parmesan around' and I was quickly on my way to check it out. Tosi's is one of Vancouver's oldest establishments, currently being run by second generation owner Angelo Tosi. 75 years young, Tosi is a force in the store, always encouraging you to try the goods and suggesting new things.
Now the store is not your typical market, it looks more like a warehouse and you may not even know where you are when you stand out front. You have to push a buzzer at the front door in order to be let in, I suspect this is because of security reasons but it is definitely unconventional. The store is a mish mash of all sorts of Italian imports alongside local cheeses and yes, the BEST organic Parmesan around! Fresh olives in buckets and fresh meats are there for you to create your next Italian feast. Note that Tosi's accepts cash-only. -
Review from Thu N.
North York, ON
3/8/2010
Ok, I've walked past this store at least 10 times - sometimes not noticing it, sometimes wondering if its open or run down. I finally looked it up on Yelp and realized that I have to ring the door bell!
So I rang the door bell today! AMAZING!!!!! I never expected to find an Italian grocery store in China town. I was transported into a land of olive oil, olives, pastas, dried herbs...and cheese!
I opted for the Organic Parmesan cheese - although tempted by the tomato sauces and herbs. I ran home and grated the cheese for my salad and it was soooooo gooooood.
Now when i have Italian recipes to try, I know where to go to get my ingredients!!! -
Review from pete d.
Vancouver, BC
6/1/2010
A real gem.
Tosi's is a final vestige of the Italian community that operated on Main St (née Westminster Avenue) in the early days of the city. A bit incongruous to find an Italian import store in the heart of Chinatown - don't be put off by the darkened storefront that you need to buzz to enter. Old man Tosi has a limited stock sequestered away on this dusty old storefront - but each item he stocks is superlative and of excellent value. If you ask him, Mr Tosi will always advise you how best to use his products. he also has a good selection of raddiccio, rocket kale and assorted seed for the Italian garden. -
Review from Max M.
6/8/2009
This place is legitimate. Tasty cheeses and olive-oil-soaked-olives, bulk pastas. It can be pricey for some items, such as pesto, but you should really be making your own pesto anyway I guess
Weirdly, you have to get buzzed in, as the door is locked even during normal business hours as if Angelo doesn't want business? -
Review from marc m.
Vancouver, BC
7/2/2009
Great olive oil, cheeses, pastas. Quirky, the decor probably hasn't changed much in the 103 years (you heard me!) it's been open. If I didn't go by it everyday on my way to school I would have assumed it was closed. You ring a bell to be let in, and inside you find dried herbs, tasty imported tomatoes and culinary curiosities. A word of advice, if the owner recommends something, its usually REALLY good. The Fontini is tangy and affordable. The dried basil is very sweet (not like a lot of dried basil which just tastes like it was harvested after it bolted). We got the Sagra olive oil for salads, hummus, etc and like it alot! This placed has filled in the gaps, it has those little things that bring out the best in your cooking, and we can afford it on a student budget.
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Review from dan k.
Vancouver, BC
2/3/2011
the store itself is fine but he guy who works (worked there not sure as i boycott the place) is a rude jackass who accused me of tampering with a bottle of olive oil that i needed to return as it smelled rank
