Where to shop for local, fresh produce in Cairns
We're pretty lucky in Cairns to be surrounded by fertile cropping and livestock producing areas, plus some really amazing food creators.
Really, there's no need to shop in the major supermarkets - You can get all the fresh food you need, as well as your staples, at smaller, locally-owned establishments.
Here at Tropic Now, we've uncovered some of the best in the business.
BAKERIES
Le Crouton
227 Kamerunga Rd, Freshwater
If it wasn’t for the sea-of-sugarcane view from this itty-bitty bakery/café, you’d swear you were in Paris. Le Crouton bakes arguably the city’s finest brioche, baguettes and fresh crusty loaves (not to mention chocolate croissants).
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Orangerie Patisserie
Redlynch Central, 7-15 Larsen Rd, Redlynch
Pastry Chef Simon Lewis-Jones has plied his tasty trade at five-star hotels and resorts around the world, and it shows: his artisanal loaves and rolls are first class.
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Olivetree Fine Foods
Rusty's Markets, 57-89 Grafton St, Cairns
Allan Thomas’ famous (and famously healthy) rye and spelt wraps are just some of the doughy drawcards at his Rusty’s market stall. His sourdough, ciabatta, spelt dinkle brot and rye are also popular.
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Dino's Woodfire Bakery
1/18 Hollingsworth St, Portsmith
Dino’s woodfired wonders include luscious loaves (the traditional Italian ciabatta is a must-try) and pizza bases. His own shop is in Portsmith but Jonsson’s Farm Market is also a stockist, along with the Mungalli Creek Dairy shop at Rusty’s.
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Loaf
381 Mulgrave Rd, Bungalow
This Japanese-style bakery turns out some of Cairns’ most beguiling breadstuffs. From Asian milk bread to soft, thick-cut white loaves, Loaf’s incredible variety of fluffy-dough treats has attracted a cult following.
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Baked on Red Hill
Shop 4, 1 Windara St, Woree
Former chef Jeremy Mason was cooking bread as a hobby and selling it at Rusty’s Markets, before taking the leap and making it a full time job. You’ll find tantalizing sour dough breads, baguettes and ciabatta at his shop, along with cakes, slices, savoury pies, rolls and sandwiches.
More: Baked on Red Hill
Woodward Street Bakery
216 Woodward St, Whitfield
Andrew Keable and Sarah Cossa, the owners of Earlville’s Cobber’s Crust Bakery, opened their Whitfield store in 2018, with all their popular pastries plus a new focus on artisanal bread. Already, it’s proven to be immensely popular with the locals.
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Buns on the Run
Raintrees Shopping Centre, cnr Alfred & Koch Streets, Manunda
Not only do they make their breads from scratch, but we at Tropic have it on good authority that their home-made pies and sausage rolls, particularly the pepper and chili flavours, are to die for.
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Blossom Bakery
Smithfield Shopping Village, 64 O'Brien Rd, Trinity Park.
Quality, variety and great prices. This little bakery offers a range of breads, pastries and cakes. Tropic tip: give the Brioche fruit toast loaf a whirl. You won't be disappointed.
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Grant St Kitchen
Shop 4-5, Corner of Grant and Macrossan Sts, Port Douglas
A Port Douglas favourite, this bakery and café has hand-baked bread, pastries, pies, salads, gourmet sandwiches and heaps more.
More: Grant Street Kitchen
BUTCHERIES
Marsh’s Butcheries
1 Kamerunga Rd, Stratford
Family-owned and operated, the Marsh's get to know their customers' names, offer advice on how to cook their meat and even hand out recipes! They have the usual sausages, steak, chicken and pork, but also specialise in goat meat, which is halal certified.
Web: Marsh Butcheries
Clifton Beach Butchery
Clifton Village Shopping Centre, Captain Cook Highway, Clifton Beach
Mitch is known as the sausage king of the far north and was voted by Triple M listeners as the best butcher in Cairns in 2018. His team does 25 sausage flavours as well as plenty of cuts of beef, chicken, pork and lamb.
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Jonsson’s Farm Markets
31 Johnston St, Stratford & Stockland Shopping Centre, Earlville
4th generation farmers, 80% of the Jonsson's meat comes from their own farm at Wombinoo Station near Mt Garnet. Their pork comes from the Atherton Tablelands, and their chicken from Mareeba.
More: Jonsson's Farm Markets
Gourmet Market Meats
532 Mulgrave Rd, Earlville
Butcher Nicholas Dagg is truly a paddock to plate butcher, with cattle grazing and growing in his veins. The Innisfail-born lad has been ranked among the best butchers in Australia for the past four years.
More: Gourmet Market Meats
Cairns Bulk Meats
36-38 Ishmael Rd, Woree
The Edmonds family has been providing meat, poultry and small goods to far north Queensland since 1958. Their meat comes cheaper in bulk but they don’t compromise on quality and exclusively sell King Reef Beef, from Victoria, in north Queensland.
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Mighty Nice Meats
Stockland Shopping Centre, Earlville
Owner Josh is Cairns born and bred and has been butchering for 15 years. His range includes premium beef, lamb, pork and chicken products, including Bingil Bay Beef.
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Hindquarter Quality Meats
35b Norman Street, Gordonvale
Famous for their customer service (they even open the door for customers on their way out!), plus the tenderness of their meat, their marinades and their tasty bacon.
LZH Butcher Shop
Smithfield Shopping Centre, Cnr Captain Cook and Kennedy Highways
You're likely to find something different here, with the owner encouraging the trial of new and interesting products. If you're still wondering what to buy, though - try their pickled pork.
More: LZH Butchers
SEAFOOD
ISP
1 Bramp Cl, Portsmith
Independent Seafood Producers has been around since 1984 and have their own fishing fleet, plus contractors. While they have a full range, some of the highlights are line-caught gulf mackerel, tropical rock lobster and tiger prawns.
More: ISP Seafood
Great Barrier Reef Tuna
37-39 Aumuller St, Sportsmith
Fishers Bob and Annie Lamason started this business back in the 80s and now their three children are also involved. They have 3 tuna boats working out of the Port of Cairns. The go-to for sashimi grade tuna.
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Prawn star
E Finger, Marlin Marina, Cairns
Fresh and local seafood off the trawler – you can take away or dine onboard. They have tiger prawns, mud crabs, crayfish and more. While the seafood’s top notch, this place is really all about the dining experience.
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Ocean World
379 Sheridan St, Cairns North
Mende and Peter Adams of Ocean World Seafood Market have stamped themselves as a popular seafood outlet amongst locals, specialising in locally caught fish and prawns and take away fish and chips.
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Captain Cook Seafood’s
351 Sheridan St, Cairns North
Rob, Sean and Dirk don’t sell any imported fish or prawns and operate a boat out of Cairns, catching species such as nannygai, red emperor, mangrove jack and coral trout.
More: Captain Cook Seafoods
Preston Fresh Seafoods
Lot 10 MacPeak Crescent, Smithfield
They're one of the few retail outlets to stock crocodile meat - give the spring rolls a go. Oysters are popular here but for something different, try the salmon and barramundi sausages!
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Cairns Ocean Products
99-101 Draper St, Portsmith
A seafood supermarket, Cairns Ocean Products claim to be the largest seafood retailer in Cairns. A huge range and you can even buy live mudcrabs, oysters, mussels and barramundi.
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FRUIT & VEG
Rusty’s Markets
57-89 Grafton St, Cairns
No doubt THE PLACE to get all your local, fresh, in-season fruit and veg, including plenty of exotics as well as cut tropical flowers. But you’ll have to plan your shop for Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
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Jonsson’s Farm Markets
31 Johnston St, Stratford & Stockland Shopping Centre, Earlville
The Jonsson family built their business around supporting local farmers. They’ve got a huge range and often you’ll find in-season local stuff, like mangoes and avocadoes, heavily reduced.
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FNQ Local Choice fruit and veges
DFO, 274 Mulgrave Rd, Cairns
Skip the Coles fruit and veg section and take a few steps to this little gem, right outside the supermarket giant’s entry. It has everything you need and you can also pick up dried local fruit such as bananas and mangoes.
Smithfield Local Fruit and Veg
Smithfield Shopping Centre, 75 Captain Cook Hwy, Smithfield
Again, this little shop is right outside Woolworths at Smithfield Shopping Centre and offers fresher produce, most often at cheaper prices. A must-visit for in-season exotics.
Farm gate 2 You
Shop 1/2, 64 Smithfield Village Dr, Trinity Park
Mostly local produce, all origin labelled. There are no plastic bags in this shop – paper bags are supplied for produce such as loose spinach and beans, though. Don’t leave without trying a smoothie or juice, which are served in biodegradable cups.
Where: Shop 1/2, 64 Smithfield Village Drive
More: Farm Gate 2 You
The Healthy Hub
45 Moffat St, Cairns
This is where you go to get your organic fruit and veges in Cairns, but they also sell organic, local meat and dairy products, plus plenty of other health-related products.
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Fruit Buzz
Raintrees Shopping Centre, 1 Koch St, Manunda
Almost everything is local and they tell you exactly where the produce originated, from Fishery Falls watermelon to Julatten bananas. They do fruit and vege boxes, too.
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DELICATESSENS
Stanpol Smallgoods
14 Redden St, Portsmith
A bit of a hidden gem, this is owned by Croations who offer a huge range of traditional European goods, particularly Polish. Think Polish sausages, salami, metwurst, bockwurst, kranske and leberkase.
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Providore Amore
117/113 Sheridan St, Cairns
Providore Amore stocks continental deli lines as well as cheeses from all over the world, plus baked goods. Don’t leave without tucking into a nourish bowl.
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Angelo’s Fine Foods
81 Fearnley St, Portsmith
A family business distributing the world's finest food to Far North Queensland. There’s everything from smallgoods to chocolates, sauces and antipasti. The range is huge and worth checking out.
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Victor’s Gourmet delicatessen
2/229 Sheridan St, Cairns
A deli super store with meats, cheeses, bottled products and pastas. Looking for truffle oil? Yep, they’ve got it.
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Oliveri’s Deli
41 Edith St, Innisfail
An Innisfail institution, this little deli has been around since the 1930s. They’re more than happy to let you try before you buy but pace yourself – there are around 60 cheeses as well as prosciutto, salamis, ham off the bone and delicious marinated olives. Tropic tip: Try their lunch rolls.
More: Oliveri's
