Avanza Food Stores

I went to Lowe’s Mercado (formerly Avanza) on the hunt for pandebono mix. Pandebonos are succulent tapioca-​based cheese rolls, which I have been so far unsuccessful at making from scratch. The mix, however, never fails even at altitude. Not surprisingly I struck out. Even in LA the mix is a bit hard to find. They did, however, carry frozen loroco (for pupusas), much more inspiring than the pickled variety. They also carry a small selection of Asian veggies in addition to the usual fare. There’s also a full service meat and cheese counter. Azteca Ranch Market in Aurora seems like it’s a little bit cheaper, but it’s a haul to get there.
Plus one star for great customer service. The cashier ran back to the aisle thinking I may have been looking for masa harina when I said that I didn’t find the mix.
Additional perk: I was there on Saturday night and there was a mini outdoor market with a dessert stall, a taco/​torta stand and a guy selling knock-​off purses and spangly Virgin of Guadalupe baseball hats from his van (so tempting… if only I wore baseball hats). I will have to go back to see if the size of the market expands during daylight hours.

If you need any special ingredients for any kind of Mexican food, this place will have them, and the best part is is that it’s usually cheaper than King Soopers or Safeway, especially the produce.
Need some guava nectar, cactus leaves, tripe and maybe a piñata? Well, that’s lucky for you, because they have all that.