I’ve long thought, felt that grocery stores were the best places to go to while you’re travelling.
I don’t think I could’ve put it better in words myself than this article I’ve stumbled upon. Grocery stores tell stories that formal museums cannot, it shows the intersection of people’s lives, and what they eat and a cross-section of life in that particular town or city you’re visiting.
The best spot I’ve found is to load up on the potato chips. Finding the local potato chips (even if you don’t know the local language) is just so satisfying the range and interest that the local CPG companies are concocting for their local residences. In Canada, Ketchup is the exclusive flavour.
Foods tend to tell stories and the stories are written in the local grocery store that locals shop at. Live like a local.