Fine Fruit On James

Love this place. Everything is fresh and impeccably presented. It is also the ONLY place I have been able to source NZ yams, and I have been searching for going on 15 years now!
It can get busy on a weekend but I have never had a problem with parking, and the staff are all lovely.
Definitely recommend.

I am far from being an expert of food. I like the idea of maturing into a ‘foodie’ who have incredibly high expectations and a palette only the finest of food experts would acquire. This comes with food education and a keen interest on what it means to know good food.
I first got my real education at fine groceries, here at Fine Fruit On James. As the name suggested it was fine fruit, I was a little taken back at all the variety of gorgeous deli foods occupying its space. Not that I was complaining about its somewhat misleading name, far from it. I was enthralled with the interesting collection of fine foods they had.
This place is definitely worth a visit if you want to graduate from the big supermarket chains.

I was here the other day (in case you weren’t aware this is the fruit shop section of the James St markets) and I’ve had to revise one of my long held notions — that of price. I always thought I was paying a premium for amazingly fresh fruit and veg, but it turns out they’re actually quite reasonable!
For example, I bought amazingly ripe roma tomatoes at $ 2.50 per kilo (cheaper than supermarkets), the grape tomatoes were also $ 2.50 per punnet, incredibly ripe, large and delicious avocados were 2 for $ 5 and corn was $ 1.99 per tray.
This is pretty much bang on with the prices at the chain supermarket I was at the other day!
They still don’t stock normal butter (an old gripe of mine, it means I generally have to go to the chain store anyway as I can’t bring myself to cook with l’escure), but since Josephine’s has stopped making ash covered chevre they are my best source (and they have 2 options including the well priced Meredith Dairy one at $ 8.99).

If you’re willing to pay far-​above-​average prices for your groceries, then it’s worth checking out Fine Fruit on James. What is more of a deli rather than fruit shop (don’t get me wrong, there’s an orchard full of fruit in here), you can pick up an array of fruit-​infused Greek yoghurt, wonderfully smelly cheeses and preserves. Definitely one to keep an eye on if you’re a gourmet foodie with a keen appetite for high-​quality produce.

Despite its namesake, the drawing card for Fine Fruit On James is actually its cheeses. Yes, yes they also have fresh fruit and vegetables but in general, I find Brisbane has such an excellent range of fresh fruit and vegies anyway, especially if you shop for seasonal produce.
You can usually pick up a few unusual mushroom types at Fine Fruit On James — enokis, King Oysters, wood-​ear mushrooms but Asian supermarkets usually cover the same range.
I repeat, it is their cheeses which stand out against their competitors. They have everything from camembert in the Adelaide Hills to Spanish manchengo. I became a goats’ cheese convert after sampling their ‘Lingot Chevre De Pelussin’.
They also stock a decent range of gourmet deli products such as ice creams, pates, dips, oils, sauces and vinaigrettes.
For an indulgent grocery shopping experience, Fine Fruit On James is the place to go.