Stores & Markets in Niagara Falls

Jennifer Best couldn't sleep. A bout of fibromyalgia was keeping her wide awake, and though she experimented with allopathic and naturopathic sleep remedies, it was no use. Then she tried something new: a tea blend called Sweet Dreams. The brew was so effective that not only did it give Jennifer some much-needed shut-eye, but by morning it had inspired her to change careers. She explored the local loose-leaf-tea market and was amazed to find how many good varietals were out there, varietals she thought others might appreciate the way she had appreciated Sweet Dreams.

Jennifer started small, founding Steeped and Infused in 2007 as an online store that sold 20 different teas. But her fan base blossomed, and today the website—which now sells roughly 70 varieties—gains support from two brick-and-mortar retail stores. Like the queen's childhood toy box, her inventory includes everyday black, green, and rooibos teas, but also features yerba mate and pu-erh—a centuries old Chinese blend made from high-quality large leaves. She complements these with a small selection of accessories, such as tea filters and mesh steeping balls.

Though the eponymous Johnny Tiranno no longer runs Johnny’s Meats, his legacy lives on in the specialty shop’s italian sausage recipes. Mike, Johnny’s stepson and the current owner, still makes the links and patties with his stepfather’s special blend of high-quality meat, imported cheeses, and spices, which first delighted palates in 1946. The meat supplier stocks more than sausages, however. The display cases also house juicy steaks, chicken cutlets, lamb, and seafood, mostly imported from the Midwest. For something to complement these high-quality meats, customers can browse assorted side dishes, such as twice-baked potatoes, verdant salads, and cheeses.

Green Earth Organics eliminates energy-sucking excursions to supermarkets and ups the ante on healthy and fresh fare with its organic-grocery delivery services. Green Earth Organics offers a preselected Regular Harvest Box, whose bounty of pre-selected fruit, vegetables, and fruit formerly known as vegetables changes weekly to ensure customers receive only the freshest seasonal fare, with some substitutions allowed. Recent bins have included such fresh fare as Ontario rainbow carrots, fair trade bananas, Ontario new red potatoes, red delicious apples, and Hass avocados—all nutritious, flavourful, and ideal for throwing at unfunny vaudeville acts.

Inspired by the boutique markets of New York and France, Fresh & Wild's King and Spadina and Bloor West locations buzz with activity as customers browse produce, meat, and artisan goods sourced both locally and from across the globe. Within the King and Spadina store, a high-powered media system plays rock and blues as shoppers lasso tapenades and fresh tomatoes into carts. A modern café echoes Italy as it brews fair-trade coffees, leans slightly askew, and dishes out flaky pastries from local bakeries. The Bloor West location celebrates the bounty of nature by displaying vibrant green plants within indoor and outdoor cases.

Each morning at 4 a.m., the grocery's buyer arrives at a food terminal to acquire fresh items and potatoes, which he then uses to fuel his car back home. Additionally, Fresh & Wild employs a catering team that stack gourmet sandwiches and shake up organic salads until they plead for mercy.

At 8 in the morning, early crowds arrive at Lancaster Market to browse the tables of more than 40 vendors selling locally grown produce, handmade gourmet foods, and organic meats. Some stop at Kornerstone Coffee for a steamy cup before they leisurely browse bundles of flowers, flats of vegetables, and trays of seasonal fruits. Others head directly to their favorite stands: Hens Honey Bee Farm, Chateau Buffalo winery, Hanzlian's Sausage. The smell of kettle corn and pancakes scents the air, tempting these die-hard shoppers to linger in the open-air market. Since the farmers' market is open most weekends in the summer and early fall, it serves as both a dependable drop-in shopping center and a town mingling place. Demonstrations, such as how to can strawberry-pineapple marmalade and how to butcher a raspberry, educate anyone who sticks around.