Dalbrent Spice Rack

A modestly sized South Asian grocery store, it has a standard selection of dry and frozen foods, but I must note that the family that runs it was super helpful and steered me towards at three ingredients I have not been able to find easily elsewhere in Calgary yet: citric acid (cheap!), fresh curry leaves, and Palm sugar (labelled as Sri Lankan jaggery). A valuable place to know if you live in the Northwest and want to cook authentic South Asian food at home.

I love shopping in ethnic food stores. Dalbrent Spice Rack is located off 52 Ave NW, across from Sir Winston Churchill High School. This is a great little place to visit to familiarize yourself with East Indian Spices and food. It is one of the smaller places in town but you do not feel overwhelmed by the selection and the lady who owns it is friendly and very helpful. I got a quick education on the difference between Pakistani, Sri Lankan and Indian Biriyani and cuisine in general.
Although it is a small store, they still carry a great variety of merchandise, all neatly stacked and priced. They seemed to have everything from spices to henna. I gave in to curiosity and bought a bag of Lay’s Chips — Special Indian Masala flavour. There is a good assortment of frozen meals as well as the various breads and naans. The prices seemed reasonable and on-​par with other East Indian stores I have wandered through before. The store is nice and clean and there is ample parking.

Although they had the product I was looking for, I don’t think I would venture that far into the NE again. Not what I was expecting.

Neat little store — tons of roti, parathas — fresh and frozen. Lots of Indian products — like coconut milk, curries of all kinds. Bought a Roti Paratha — frozen made in Malaysia.

My family and I have been going to Dalbrent Spice Rack for as long as I can remember. And when I say as long as I can remember, I’m talking AT LEAST two full decades.
Spice Rack is a family run business and they carry Indian groceries, spices, lentils, produce, movies, and the list goes on and on. They have a very impressive assortment of merchandise; Everything from henna and coconut hair oil, to masalas and supari. The family that works there is incredibly helpful and friendly and the daughter actually owns and runs the restaurant right next door (Saffron Restaurant).
The woman who runs Spice Rack speaks a multitude of languages so if you have any questions and English isn’t your mother tongue, trust me, she’ll help you out.
And let’s not forget about their samosas. On the weekends, Spice Rack sells homemade samosas and THEY ARE TO DIE FOR. Even though I’m now a vegetarian, I often dream of their beef samosas. SOOOOOO good. They have veggies ones too though, so don’t worry!
Spice Rack is a little pricier than the ‘Ethnic Food’ Aisle in Superstore, but let’s be honest: The Ethnic Food aisle in Superstore doesn’t always carry what you need.
The chances of Spice Rack having the specific Indian ingredient that you need are VERY high, and no matter what, you’re always greeted with a smile on your way in and on your way out. What could be better???