North Burnaby’s Best Food Shops

The Valley Bakery
Neighbourhood icon for over 50 years: friendly ladies in aprons, glass counters filled with over 25 kinds of cookies (go for the shortbread), and buns on help-yourself shelves. At the end of the shop, a vast selection of tarts, old-fashioned squares, and cakes, including excellent petits fours.
4058 Hastings St., 604-291-0674. Valleybakery.com

Rocky’s Meats
This classic butcher shop has all the standards, plus non-meat protein sources like eggs and basic cheeses. The signature item is steak, aged in-house for 21 days, minimum.
4342 E. Hastings St., 604-298-8943

Red Apple
Just a no-frills produce market with basic groceries—but the deals! In summer, the sidewalk carts are crammed with two-for-one pints of fresh B.C. raspberries and blueberries; in winter it’s all about the excellent selection of apples. Inside, basics like Lavazza coffees, Cortina cheeses, and Barilla pastas are priced to move, too.
4170 E. Hastings St., 604-299-6544

Cioffi’s Meat Market, Gourmet Kitchen, and Delicatessen
Brothers Rino and Sergio Cioffi have supplied fine meats to the city’s top restaurants, including Cioppino’s and La Buca. Last year, they acquired a second storefront two shops down. The original space is a fully stocked Italian deli and grocery with products from all the major Italian brands, a selection of very well-priced cheeses, breads from Calabria Bakery, and a freezer section of lasagnas and pastas. The second store is devoted to the butcher side of their business: they dry-age anything at customer’s requests, and there are cuts of triple-A prime beef and 15 different types of house-made sausages. This winter, they’ll open a café and sandwich shop at the back of the deli.
4156 and 4142 E. Hastings St., 604-291-9373