Latin America isn’t one place, and it isn’t one flavor. That’s something we think about every time we decide what goes on our shelves. At La Casa Latina, our authentic goods section brings together imported products from Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and South America, because our customers in Ypsilanti and across Washtenaw County come from all over, not just one country or one region.

A lot of grocery stores treat Latin products as one small aisle with a handful of Mexican brands and call it done. We built our store differently. Whether you’re looking for something specific from Guatemala, a Caribbean brand you grew up with, or a South American product you can’t find anywhere else in Ann Arbor, we try to carry it, or we’ll do our best to source it if enough customers ask. Our goal is for someone from any Latin American country to walk in and find at least a few products that feel like home.

These aren’t generic international foods either. Many of the brands we carry are the exact ones families trust back home, sourced through distributors who specialize in importing Latin American products into Michigan. That takes more effort than stocking whatever’s easiest to order, but it’s the difference between a store that sells Latin food and a store that actually serves the Latin community.

We also know that what counts as authentic changes from household to household and country to country. If you’ve been searching for a product from your home country and haven’t found it locally, tell us. We regularly add new items based on direct requests, and a lot of what’s on our shelves today started as a customer asking if we could carry it. That’s part of what it means to be a family-owned store built for this community rather than a chain trying to guess what it wants.

Stop by 308 E Michigan Ave in Ypsilanti, open every day from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and see the full range of what we carry from across Latin America.