Strangest Supermarket Items

Not as good as cephalopod I'm sure, but I enjoyed the Bratwurst flavored potato chips I got in Ireland...

" ...Bimbo-brand bread (Mexico)...." Bimbo is also now the leading US bread maker. They own Arnold, Boboli, Brownberry, Entenmann's, Freihofer's, Stroehmann, and Thomas' English Muffins. Here in the northeast they do have their own "Bimbo" branded bread on supermarket shelves: Philadelphia Union But back to Europe, at Fortrum & Mason in London I've spotted canned bumble bee, and canned alligator (meat).

Not Europe, but I bought Coffee Gum (made by Wrigley) in China. Also "icy mint Sprite", which was what it said - lemon-lime with a mint aftertaste.

Mohren brand beer seems racially insensitive. http://www.mohrenbrauerei.at/ Their logo, which looks something like a tree, is the artist's conception of the profile of a Moor.

Not in Europe, but South America - we had Bimbo bread with Horniman herbal tea!

Pauline - off topic but you can also visit the Horniman Museum in south London. http://www.horniman.ac.uk/index.php edit - set up by Frederick Horniman a Victorian tea trader.

Here in Vienna you can find Titts brand chickens at the Sparr supermarket. Always gets a giggle.

Not too weird of "titt"ilating but what about those huge jars of Nutellas that are as big as basketballs!

different languages have words that mean different things. worst marketing ever might be chevy trying to sell a car named "Nova" in south america, In English it is a star, in Spanish it literally means "doesn't go"

Toilet paper brand sold in Germany called, "Happy End".

Not Europe, but cookies /biscuits in Saudi Arabia that said in the ingredient list: "This product contains no pork."

Reminds me of a story I once read about a Pepsi marketing campaign somewhere in the Middle East. The executive in charge of the campaign didn't know any Arabic so he did it with pictures. The first picture showed a guy looking all sweaty and thirsty, the second showed him drinking a Pepsi and the third showed him looking happy and refreshed. The problem with the idea was that I guess most Arabs read right to left so to the locals it looked like a happy, refreshed guy drinking Pepsi and then getting thirsty.

Slightly off topic but in Idar Oberstein there is a bath, (in german 'Bad'), design firm calling itself 'The Bad Design Company'. Pales into insignificance next to the 'Fucker Tours' holiday company (with umlaut, which I can't do). Bright pink coaches too, so you can't miss them.

I know it was Elizabeth Schwarzkopf's name, but I always thought she should change her surname for the marketing of makeup items, who wants a foundation cream made by someone called blackhead?

Right here in Northamerica you can find a clothing brand called "Spanner". I can never look at their adds without thinking of the meaning of the word in the German language - Peeping Tom

James, how dare you call my beloved Dickmanns "nastinesses"?!?!?!? Since I was in Germany all by myself last week I got a box all to myself without having to share them with my kids. Heaven!!! As to those not very pc names I tend to agree with you. I grew up with them but taught my kids to call them "Schokokuss" (chocolate kiss).

"with umlaut, which I can't do" ue is a perfectly suitable substitute for ü. (There is actually some historic validity.)

Yes I know I could substitute 'ue' for an umlaut, but what is its historical validity?

Wow! James' and Shoni's replies made me ponder that a trip to the local European supermarket might actually be more of a turn-on than an educational adventure for some Americans. And I thought parents might have a very hard time explaining some peculiarities to their kids while vacationing in Europe (like the porno posters right outside of a family Chinese restaurant in Vienna – right next to an adult theater). Who would have guessed a trip to the store might cause a parent to have to explain phallic-shaped candy bars..."Mom, why is this candy bar shaped like a Schlange?"

I always get a little creeped out in the meat department in Holland. Instead of pork being called pork, the dutch word for pork translates to pig flesh. There's also horse flesh, and ox/beef flesh. Hmm delicious.... I've always noticed that I eat less meat when I travel over there....

pig flesh, horse flesh, ox/beef flesh But that what they are. There have been several TV shows here to bring Brits closer to understanding where the food comes from, with the idea if you will eat meat to understand it doesn't just grow in those plastic trays in the supermarket....

Jeff that reminded me of our trip to Boston staying with friends. My husband was out of cigarettes and asked our hosts 'Is there anywhere around here where I can get some fags for the weekend?'. We had no idea what it meant in the States, we do now. Funny how many misunderstandings there are between two peoples who essentially speak the same language.

^^^ England and America are two countries separated by a common language.
--George Bernard Shaw

Spotted Dick is a proper pudding - only in a tin from Heinz or others if in desperate dire straits. Much better home made with proper (not packet) hot custard. mmmmmm

"England and America are two countries separated by a common language. --George Bernard Shaw" Figures an Irishman would be the one to point that out.

A local radio station recently did a taste testing of hamburger in a can from Germany. The consensus was - disgusting!

Chips in Istanbuhl with Burger King flavoring....disgusting

Not grocery store items, but oddly named shops: In Krakow there's a shop called FART; always made me giggle. In a small town outside Krakow there's a clothing store aimed at the many young people who love rap music called "Gangsta In Da". I always thought, "In the what???" Since English articles are a tricky proposition in Polish, I guess the shop owner thought "Da" was a place.

I'm on vacation in the Philippines right now and yesterday I bought seaweed flavored Pringles. They're actually very good.

"Many of us have mused before about unique items or racist labeling...." You don't need to go to Europe to find this kind of thing. Just turn on your TV on a Sunday in the fall. http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2009/09/16/indians-ask-court-to-revoke-washington-redskins-trademark/

In amsterdam we saw many stores called, "Sissy boy". I emailed my bro who is a sissy boy, a picture of the store front with the quote,'this store was meant for you", he was so offended, that I had no rebuttal, except, well yes you are. And to this day, he still is, but I won't tell him cause' his daughter, my niece is such a cool person/pure cuty, that there is no way she came from a sissy boy.

he was so offended If he was so offended why are you perpetuating the offence by posting it here?

A very popular candy here is chocolate-covered wafers (something like Kit-Kats) in all shapes and flavors. A few years ago Elite (the Nestle's of Israel) came out with a new wafer bar with 4 small mounds of chocolate on top, in connection with the basketball team they sponsor, called 4-Play. On a visit to the US, I brought some for the rabbi and cantor of my old synagogue. How many people can say they gave their clergy 4-Play? 8 years on and it's still on the market.

While in a Tesco in London in April, my wife found a package of "Pork Faggots".