Bazaar Observation

An Observational Analysis of Kohinoor Foods in Toronto

The Gerrard India Bazaar in Toronto provides an array of Indian restaurants and grocery shopping locations along Gerrard Street. I noticed an Indian grocery store called, Kohinoor Foods, which seemed to be a popular place for Indian people to shop for foods. Before I entered, I saw many stands with large crates full of vegetables and fruits being sold. In this manner, I got the “feel” of being at an Indian Bazaar due to many of the items being sold on the street, much like they do in urban areas in India. The red banner above the store’s entrance seemed pretty large, so I decided to enter and explore the various food items and the people that shopped within the establishment. After entering,
He appeared to be the owner of the store, but I did not want to make assumptions. I witnessed a Anglo-Saxon woman in her early 40s talking with the man about various spices for Indian food. The man was very informative about what spices would be appropriate for certain Indian dishes, which signaled a feeling of positive multicultural interaction. The woman acknowledged that she had been at the store before, which defined a pre-existing relationship in the purchasing of these food products. I felt that these types of social interactions gave the impression that many different types of people were encouraged to try Indian food and to explore the different types of food being sold at the store. In this manner, Kohinoor Foods was simply a place in which Indian immigrants and Indian-Canadian citizens could shop, but a place in which Anglophone people could also shop for making their own Indian
Kohinoor Foods is situated in a large Indian area in Toronto, which implies a “bazaar” style of shopping as part of the mystique of Indian food making and preparation. This grocery store was pretty small, yet it gave off the vie of a “mom and pop” shop that was devoid of any corporate shopping experience I normally encounter in the Toronto area. Perhaps the premise of Kohinoor Foods is to replicate the feeling of Indian Bazaar culture in Toronto for immigrants and citizens alike, yet the store also provides a way for non-Indian peoples to interact and learn about Indian food. I found this little store to be a very interesting way to understand how Indian food plays a part in the socialization process of Indian and non-Indian people in the Gerrard Bazaar area of the