Food Guide brings international meals to U

With people of many different cultures living in the Twin Cities area, there are also many types of cuisine for students to choose from if they decide to venture off the University campus.

where to go

To pick up your copy of

The International Market Guide go to:

The Office of International Programs

645 Heller Hall 271

19th Avenue South

Minneapolis, MN 55455

For more information call,

612-626-9123

Or go online,

International Market Guide (PDF Document)

The Office of International Programs hopes to make it easier for students to find these ethnic hideaways with the International Market Guide, an annual publication that lists the international specialty and ethnic markets in the Twin Cities area.

Started in 2004, the International Market Guide was originally published for international students who wanted to find markets that carried food from their home countries.

"We wanted to make their experience in Minnesota more welcoming by giving them a list of markets where they might find food that would be from their home country," said publisher Meaka Henningsen, who works in the Office of International Programs.

The guide's popularity expanded to the whole University community, Henningsen said, and has even helped returned study abroad students reconnect with their experiences by finding cuisine from the countries where they studied.

Area families with adopted children have also benefited from the guide, she said. A father used it to help his adopted daughter connect with her birth country of South Korea, Henningsen said.

"It is one of the more touching stories I have heard," Henningsen said.

In addition to the 102 markets listed, this year's guide includes indoor and farmers' markets, as well as an international events list.

With more than 3,000 international students coming to the University each fall, Henningsen said she hopes all students use the guide to explore the culinary opportunities the Twin Cities have to offer.

"It's a way for them to try different things," she said.

The Kramarczuk Sausage Company, a Ukrainian store and deli in northeast Minneapolis, is one of the markets listed in the guide.

Peering through the glass of the cafeteria-style counter Sunday, Minneapolis resident Shannon Strausser and her family seemed to order one of everything on the menu.

"The kids love it," Strausser said as her son picked out his favorite dish - Ukrainian meatballs and noodles.

"It's old-world authentic," she said.

Marzena Scott, an employee at Kramarczuk's, said customers frequent the establishment for its cabbage rolls, a Ukrainian specialty made of garlic-ground pork and beef rolled in a green cabbage blanket and covered in tomato sauce.

With the sour-yet-sweet smell of sauerkraut filling the air, it's hard not to sense the deli's authenticity. And with so many choices, it is hard not to find something to satisfy even the pickiest appetite.

As one customer struggled to choose a dish, Kramarczuk's employee Romana Vasylevych went through the entire menu, listing every ingredient for the man as he debated his options.

"We have seven different kinds of sausage," Vasylevych said as she gestured to the grill. "You want mild? We have mild."