Souk & Food Shopping

Try the fresh markets behind the Lulu centre.

Lindochka, could you specify which LuLu supermarket? I've noticed there are few of them  . Thanks!

Go for Lulu Hyper (y) it will give u good service and good quality...& better prize

Lulu Centre is a mall in Manama. Not to be confused with the LuLu hypermarket chain.

Behind the Lulu centre is the Central Market. Fresh vegetables and meats available here. Lindochka is referring to this place. Map directions below:

https://maps.google.co.uk/maps/place?ci … =maps_mini

But as suggested by jastilk you could also go to the LuLu hypermarkets or even to Geant and Carrefour. They all stock fresh local vegies at reasonable prices.

Oh, I see. I did confuse it with the chain.  Thank you, Farhaz! 

Carrefour isn't very good for fresh fruit - lulu, geant and alosra are fresh.

Consider going to your local veg man on the side of the road, ours is really good. You need to try a few before you find a really good one but once you find him you are sorted

Carrefour isn't very good for fresh fruit - lulu, geant and alosra are fresh.

You're not wrong there Jo. The fruit and veg in some supermarkets have seen better days! The problem is, some of the dudes who work in the fruit and ved dept, dont seem to rotate the stock on the shelf, they just seem to 'top up' - Ive seen this on numerous occasions. 

@Kristina_P  - the potatoes you saw seem very pricey - are they gold potatoes   
Potatoes are normally a quarter of the price (or less) per kg. 

Supermarkets in Juffair are limited and i think its only Al Jazeera, Mega Mart & Alosra. As for the ones in town, [ City Centre mall -Carrefour ], [Bahrain Mall - Geant] and [Dana Mall - Lulu Hypermarket] tend to be the popular ones and have a large variety. You also have ample parking there in all of the malls.   
Tip - Go friday mornings, the malls are empty. Afternoon, they start to get busy. Evening - jam packed and parking is hard to find especially in City Centre mall.

Central Market does give you a wide variety of fruits and you can buy in bulk!
I have found in Bahrain, that veg in particular doesn't have a long shelf life, unlike the UK. This is just my observation.

Happy shopping 

Thanks Jazzy, We are saving those potatoes for a special occasion!!! 

We went to some of the locations that were recommended. What can I say:

the market behind LuLu Center was ok, but we got soaking wet because there is no air conditioning in there! I can't say that the quality was outstanding (because of the heat herbs and fruits didn't look attractive at all) or that the choice was large, but I got a box (appx 1.5 kg) of kiwi fruit for BD1 and 3 kg of potatoes for BD1 which is very cheap, I think. I hope it will be much better when the temperature cools down 

Carrefour in City Center was much more pleasant, and the variety of choice was better. It was more expensive, of course.

I found out that apparently a great place for buying proper spices is Lulu Hypermarket (very good quality and price), so next weekend we are going to check it ourselves!

Thanks everyone for recommendations! 

Thanks Jazzy, We are saving those potatoes for a special occasion!!! 

Well its good your're exploring these places as you get to learn which places will suite your needs. If you dont go out and learn, you may turn into a couch potato (as we say in the uk    )

Carrefour in City Center was much more pleasant, and the variety of choice was better. It was more expensive, of course.

- this is true - but you will find this in other countries too. In UK outdoor markets were cheaper than the supermarkets.
Also here in Bahrain, you may pay extra for fruit and veg compared to other places in Europe as alot of the foods are imported here. So i guess theres is a markup for this.

I'm sure you will like Lulu Hypermarket and indeed it has a wide range of spices too - prices are favorable here too 
Ground Floor all food stuff while 1st floor Electricals, clothing, shoes and household stuff.

If it helps, Carrefour, Geant and Lulu hypermarket all have news letters that get posted when offers arrive.

Geant Newletter
Carrefour
Lulu Hypermarket


Enjoy your shopping experience. 

Try again with Central Market when the weather cools down.

It's a great way to meet the locals and they are up for a bit of haggling too.  Get one of the guys with the trolleys for about 1bd and he will load everything in your car at the end.  A group of my friends got together and we would bulk buy and then split it between us - really cheap and lots of fun.  And the selection tends to be a bit more seasonal which is always good