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Shopping in Panama City

Grocery Shopping in Panama City, Panama Guide

When you move to Panama, you still need to eat, despite the cost of living crisis. So where’s best for grocery shopping in Panama City? Lee Elliott gives you the basics on all your Panama City shopping needs.

When I first moved to Panama there was one cost of living I didn’t find cheaper at all. In fact, it seemed more expensive. It became immediately clear I was going to have to adapt my weekly grocery shopping habits.

With paramilitary guards on the doors, entering my first supermarket in Panama City was interesting. Sometimes other gun-toting men would relieve me of my book bag, or sign my drink bottle to show I didn’t steal it.

Leaving the place was as strange. Used to the friendliness of American checkout assistants, the aloof nature of the Panamanian cajero was awkward. There’s a lot of competition for these coveted positions, someone once told me. And when they get the job they seem to spend all their time on their makeup and none on customer service. Or even looking at you.

And no, that metal plate where they swipe the barcodes is not a scale. You need to weigh your produce before lining up – and then do so using the metric system. So get used to converting from Imperial measures. That alone can be confusing after a few drinks.

Yes, that’s another difference, free booze tastings! And sometimes lots of them with several stands all giving out full glasses. Some of the things I’ve ended up buying! Lucky I’ve given up driving.

In Panama, we have three main supermarket chains. Many are open 24/7 and carry imported products alongside local brands. You’ll also often find health foods and kosher.

Riba Smith

Established in 1946, Riba Smith is the expat favorite and my go-to supermarket.

They carry many familiar foods from home and a great selection of alternatives. The layout of Riba Smith is also the most like the supermarkets I’m used to. It has a great butchers and fruit ‘n’ veggies section. You’ll also find a deli selection of cold cuts, salmon, caviar, French cheeses, and great bread to put them on.

Supermercados Rey

Rey is my second choice, and I alternate between here and Riba Smith.

It has a respectable wine selection, good rotisserie chickens, and a nice choice of baked goods and hot food to go. It carries many imported brands but not as many as Riba Smith.

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Super 99

Owned by a former Panamanian president, Super 99 is more about local brands. The vegetable section is excellent. They have a good frozen food section and it is the best for cheap, ready-cooked hot food to take out. Super 99 has more locations than Riba Smith or Rey.

Buying in bulk

If you miss Costco and Sam’s Club, there’s PriceSmart, an American warehouse chain. PriceSmart focuses on the international market. It’s the largest chain of its type in Central America with five stores in Panama alone.

With the same types of goods as Costco (the founders of PriceSmart merged their U.S. brand, Price Club with CostCo in 1997), members can bulk-shop for imported and local produce at a discount.

Online grocery shopping in Panama City

Online grocery shopping in Panama City is now quite a common practice. Uber Eats and other delivery platforms offer shopping options as well as restaurants. Riba Smith has an online presence and will deliver. PriceSmart has its own English-language website to make things even simpler.

Durning the pandemic and Panama City’s lockdowns, online grocery shopping and delivery services was a vital mainstay of life in the city.

Hacks to get your budget down when grocery shopping in Panama City

But all this makes it easier for us to shop the way we did back home. Considering the markup on your favorite imported foods is up to 30 percent, you’re doing your budget no favors. Especially during these hard times we’re seeing right now in Panama.

Switching imported products for local alternatives is one way to save money. But shopping like a Panamanian will save more. They shop how our great-grandparents did before the supermarkets came.

You need to get used to shopping in more than one place. By using local butchers, fishmongers, and markets, your diet can be cheaper and more varied.

The roadside papayas and bananas are fresh and cheap, and the ceviche at the fish market is delicious on a hot balmy day. The fish market (Mercado de Mariscos – Seafood Market) is, in fact, a definite must-visit for anyone coming to Panama City.

Local coffee is a no-brainer, it’s all good. Local beer – also good! Balboa and Atlas are so cheap.

Get used to making your cocktails in a different way. Use the national drink Seco Herrerano at a fraction of the price of imported gin or vodka.

Rather than looking for Maggie when you need chicken stock, buy caldo de pollo at less than a buck for five packets. On a lazy family weekend, I heat up frozen tamales rather than wings or corn dogs. The kids actually prefer them.

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Specialist stores

For more discerning needs, there’s the Deli K Supermarket in Punta Paitilla, in the basement of MultiCentro. This has a great butchers section and also sells dairy. There’s also Organica for health foods (with five branches in the city) and the excellent Grand Deli Gourmets in Albrook Mall and various other points around town.

If you want a huge selection of Asian foods, the new Chinatown is in the El Dorado area. Maps may still say that Chinatown is alongside Casco Viejo, and it once was. But there’s nothing left there but the name, and a good restaurant. They all moved out to El Dorado long ago. Here you can find anything from White Rabbit candy to Kimchi.

The “chinitos”

An honorable mention must go to the mini supers or corner stores you’ll find everywhere in Panama City. They are often run by Chinese immigrants, and referred to as “chinitos“. Here you can buy almost anything in small quantity. Two eggs, one trash bag, or a single cigarette. They are open all hours. This is where you’ll also be filling your propane gas canisters so you can cook in the first place.

So I’ve now got used to using new products and my taste has adapted. My pantry has evolved and looks very different now, but best of all I’ve cut down on my grocery bill big time.

Lee Elliott spends his time homeschooling his youngest children with his Chinese-American wife in Panama City, Panama.

Lee Elliott

Lee Elliott

Lee Elliott was born in Kingston-Upon-Thames, England. He is a father to six children, and a lifelong educator and writer. He holds a Bachelor of Education, full Montessori teaching credentials, and post-graduate studies in journalism and film. He has lived internationally his entire adult life, teaching in France, Sweden, New Zealand, The British Virgin Islands, South Korea, the UK, and the USA. He now spends his time homeschooling his youngest children with his Chinese-American wife in Panama while lying around in bed trying to get published to retain his international press card. Lee’s hobbies include cooking meals so nice that he is getting fat and being grumpy on Monday mornings due to fine wines. He enjoys feedback on his writing and is available for translating, copywriting, and content. He can be contacted at leliot@gmail.com.