Foreign Buyers’ Club (FBC)
You can buy almost anything from this store: salsa, olives, blueberry pie filling, lentil soup, cheese, contact lens supplies, condoms, cold medicines, vegemite…and so on. They have-mail order catalogues, and a good on-line site from which you can order, or you can journey out and visit their store on Rokko Island in Kobe. Also, they give JETs a discount.
Phone: 078-857-9001
Fax: 078-857-9005
E-mail: mail@fbcusa.com
URL: www.fbcusa.com
9:30am – 5:30pm, Monday – Thursday
9:30am – 7:30pm, Friday & Saturday
CLOSED: Sunday
Kobe Grocers
Kobe Grocers is just a short walk north of Sannomiya station. They have a good stock of halal food and they are a good place to find turkeys for Thanksgiving (for all the Americans).
Phone: 078-221-2838
Fax: 078-242-0138
E-mail: info@kobe-grocers.com
URL: http://kobegrocers.com
Hours: 10:00 am – 7:30pm, daily
Access: 10 minute walk from JR Sannomiya. Parking available.
Zest Foods
Zest offers a wide range of foreign foods, specializing mostly in organic groceries, imported foreign snacks, fruit smoothies, and Indian cuisine. They also offer a small selection of Western desserts and breads at the counter.
Phone: 078-231-4444
Fax: 078-271-6373
E-mail: info@zest-foods.com
URL: http://zest-foods.com
9:00am – 8:00pm, Monday to Saturday
9:00am – 7:00pm, Sunday
Access: 15 minute walk from Shin-Kobe Station, down the street from the India Club (Indian community centre).
Costco
Costco is a large wholesale store located in Amagasaki and Kobe. You need to buy a membership card to shop there (about 4,000 yen a person), but if you buy enough you soon get your money’s worth. Two non-members can accompany you into the store. They can ship your stuff home, and it’s very cheap (only a few hundred yen per BIG box). Plus they can do refrigerated and freezer shipping. Their website is www.costco.com/Warehouse/LocationTemplate.aspx?Warehouse=861
Tengu Natural Foods
Organic food home delivery service. They sell natural goodies such as bagels, herbal teas, vegetarian chili beans, whole-wheat bread, granola, tortillas, etc. Most orders are received within a week. Call the number below to receive a free catalog.
Phone: 0429-82-4811
Fax: 0429-82-4813
E-mail: tengu@gol.com
Price Club
Price Club Online delivers products from around the world for residents in Japan.
URL: http://www.price-club.co.jp/e/information/information2.html
Motomachi shopping arcade
There are several small but well-stocked foreign food stores in the Motomachi shopping arcade in central Kobe, if you just want to browse.