Johnvince Foods

THIS IS THE BEST PLACE IN THE WORLD!!!
Seriously if you love bulk barn, sugar mountain any of that fun stuff and think they’re the best, they’re not! (sorry) Jonvince takes the cake :) It’s like if sugar mountain and bulkbarn had a baby– a very oversized magical fantastic amazing baby
This place is basically the size of a grocery store! My mom has been taking me here since I was very young and literally my eyes pop every time!
Anything you can think of, they have. I’m not kidding– ANYTHING!
Last time I went I was pleased to discover they had GIANT dark chocolate covered pretzels and icy squares the key to my heart aka the best chocolate ever. SOLD!
They have every gummy you can name, from far and wide, you think you’ve seen it all but you haven’t.
I know that at Bulk Barn every single container says no sampling– well at Jonvince there’s no signs so I totally do but I have no idea if you’re supposed to! But realistically, some of the things they sell come in like 10 different flavours so it only really makes sense to try one before committing to a whole bag and then being stuck with it if you hate it!
They’re not only great for bulk food, Jonvince has a whole array of awesome stuff like a freshly made peanut butter machine that you can dispense into a container. They also sell every flavour of Arizona cans you can think of. Want a chocolate bar or bag of chips? They got you covered and for a very reduced rate!
I could go on for days but I’ll spare you my wackiness and leave this review off with my encouragement for you to check it out if you haven’t already. I promise you’ll walk out with at least one thing and will not be disappointed!

My husband discovered this place and now we shop there every month. I typically buy all nuts, dry fruits, and sweets there, the prices are at least 20−30% lower than in supermarkets (we usually shop at Longos or Sobeys, so I can compare with these). I also like the variety, you just cannot find so much choice in the supermarket. For example, they sell whole cranberries that are much tastier and less sugary than your typical Ocean Spray crushed ones. You have to be careful though, first time shopping there I was lured by low prices and bought too much of macadamia nuts and pine nuts — those acquired bitter taste after 4 weeks. Same goes for cashews and walnuts so don’t be greedy and buy only a month supply.
One big problem with this place is chocolates, they have great variety and our whole family are chocolate lovers. Regardless how much we buy it never lasts for more than 2 weeks — I now have to portion the sweets and hide excess in places that my husband and kids cannot find :-)

This place reminds me of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with the huge selection of candy available. This store is like bulk barn, but with a greater selection of candy and other items required in bulk, like various flours and spices. Also, bulk barn doesn’t carry almond flour, but this place does. It’a also never busy, no long line-​ups. The prices are fantastic — for example, theres this one honey that’s 9.99 at Yummy Market, 5.99 here (regular price).

This is huge! I popped in the big blue tent before entering the store, and my buggy was already loaded in just a few minutes. It was so much fun shopping here. I bought lot of snacks and drinks. They even carry CVS’ products; reminded me of my last DC’s trip :) Don’t know why I couldn’t find this in Red Flag Deals. Come here and make your paycheck go further!

This place is probably only good for the nuts, which are sold like bulk barn in large open bins. Everything else I have tried here tasted stale or was expired. I am not even sure if the nuts are cheapest. I would rather drive up Dufferin to Highland Farms or Canadian Superstore where freshness and product selection are much better. I have not tested their return policy, but this place gives me the vibe that they would hassle you.

John Vince is such a fun bulk store. And not only a bulk store, a planters peanut factory! How great is that?
I trekked up to John Vince for my wedding’s candy bar. I wanted lots of fun candy in huge amounts — this was the place. It was so inexpensive, the candy was fresh and there was a massive selection. I’m not sure who this John Vince is, but I’d like to shake his hand.

This place is located near my work so I come by on my lunch hour once a week and ogle the candy bins. Basically, I can guarantee you’ve never seen a bulk store quite like this one. The selection is second-​to-​none, and the food generally appears fresh. There is a small produce section, which is handy when I need to pick up a last-​minute ingredient for dinner, and there is also a small cafeteria at the back, which looks like it specializes in meat sandwiches (not sure, I never bought anything from there). Additionally, there are countless shelves FULL of other stock; canned goods, special dietary products (gluten-​free items), and that sauce you had that one time that you’ve been looking for ever since!
That being said, I’m a bit wary of any open bins or uncovered food like dried fruit and such. I regularly see customers snacking from the bins (in spite of multiple signs forbidding this behavior, along with numerous video cameras). I’ve never seen mice, rats, or any other «critters» in the store, but I have my doubts that they can really cover all the food safely each night. Then again, I’m kind of squeamish when it comes to food being handled; I guess I have higher standards than some. When it comes to the open bins, I stick to the wrapped candy or chocolate.
Anyhow, I still shop here (from the covered/​sealed bins) because the selection is just amazing and the prices really aren’t bad either. There are all kinds of specialty products to be had, but don’t bother asking anyone where stuff is because most of the staff can’t speak English and the some that do aren’t particularly eager to help. I’ve tried asking staff where things are on 3 separate occasions and finally struck gold on my search for Tahini with an English-​speaking manager. You are best to take some time and learn the layout of the store for future visits — I’m still finding new items I didn’t know they had.

You really need to go here to discover the awesomeness yourself. Basically this is a HUGE warehouse-​sized space with bulk food. But it’s so much cooler than that. The bulk food is sold by weight so it’s all in containers where you scoop what you want into a bag. (Definitely check out the pictures I posted!)
The foods include:
–Candy including candy bars (which I’ve never seen in bulk) and unusual gummy items (like fried eggs and belly buttons).
–Chocolate
–Snacks and nuts
–Dried spices
And REALLY random stuff like:
–Powdered cheese sauce
–Powdered beef broth
And YUMMY looking stuff like:
–Giant pieces of peanut brittle (it’s weird to see something so big that is still bought by weight)
Remember those places called «Sweet Factory» that were in every mall in the early 90s where they had all sorts of candy in every color and you just turned the crank for the amount you wanted and then were overcharged by weight? It’s like that — but with ridiculously random things like powdered chicken gravy.
I’m still really not doing this place justice — you better look at the photos. Imagine hundreds upon hundreds of random foods sold by weight.
I’ve never actually bought anything here. I just like to run around and see what they have. Their prices seem reasonable, and they have some items that are so good my mother-​in-​law always comes here when she’s in town. They also have a deli in the back and a few food products sold the «regular way» (a.k.a. not weighed at the counter).
But one other can’t miss thing is the giant statue of Mr. Peanut behind plexiglass when you first come in.
I know it doesn’t sound like it but it’s really awesome — trust me.