Guide to Locally Owned Groceries with Fresh Produce in Tucson

Located next door to the Mediterranean restaurant Caravan Grill, Caravan Mideastern Foods sells fresh vegetables, dried spices, olives, dried dates, East European cheeses, and various other food items from throughout Europe and the Middle East.

This Mexican butcher shop also offers fresh veggies, salsas, tortillas, charcoal, or other snacks.

For a convenient weeknight birria a home, grab their birria bomb to-go. Drop it in a pot with meat to braise into convenient birria.

Food Conspiracy Co-op remains Tucson’s only full-service consumer cooperative while focusing on natural and organic offerings. They also offer prepared foods with a hot bar, salad bar, soups, and sandwiches.

While their Fourth Avenue location may be intimidating for parking, they recently opened a parking lot in the back and now offer curbside pickup.

While G & L offers a wide brand of Asian groceries and goods, it leans more towards the Vietnamese and Chinese spots. This includes Vietnamese herbs that you might not be able to find elsewhere in Tucson on a regular basis — think different types of mustard greens, mints, basils, and watercress.

Visit Nick’s for Filipino essentials such as coconut vinegar and banana ketchup. They carry a limited amount of fresh produce that runs out, so call before visiting if you need something specific just to be safe. Visit Nick’s Sari-Sari Store on Facebook to view the daily specials available in their restaurant.

Walk into Rancheros Carnicería at 3301 E. Grant Rd. and they immediately greet you like a regular. The cashier offers samples of their house-made chicharrones, carnitas, and shrimp ceviche. From the entrance, you can see the entire layout: an open kitchen, Mexican pantry staples and snacks, produce and salsas, a meat freezer, a meat dry-aging case, a hot bar stocked with tamales, and seating for dining in.

The menu features burros, breakfast burritos, tacos, birria, and soups. They will also cook any meat you choose from the butcher counter upon request, such as carne asada.

In the deep southeastern outskirts of Tucson, Rocking K offers a tidy selection of essentials, liquor, bananas, bread, banana bread, and local beef from Vera Earl Ranch. The restaurant side offers items ranging from beef bulgogi mandu and carne asada nachos to chicken cordon bleu.

This Korean grocery also carries Japanese and Chinese goodies. Check the chest freezer in the corner for sliced premium meats, perfect for Korean barbecue or hot pot at home. The small produce selection carries the essentials for making kimchi and cozy Korean soups. They also sell bottles of sake and soju.