Supermercado LomaBonita ‘Crystal’s Best Kept Secret’
Supermercado y Panaderia LomaBonita has been a community staple in Crystal for more than 10 years. Located in the Crystal Shopping Center, the supermarket and bakery caters to the growing Hispanic and Latino populations in the northwest suburbs. But the store is meant for everyone.
“When you come here, we want to make you feel at home,” said owner Porfirio Castillo.
Castillo’s father started the specialty market as a small bakery and quickly grew it into a 10,000-square-foot store.
“It’s a Mexican store because that’s how it started. But I don’t want to call it a Mexican store. We want to call it a store for Hispanic people,” explained Castillo.
Supermercado y Panaderia LomaBonita in Crystal
The market sells foods and products popular in Mexico and other Latin American countries. Some call it “Crystal’s best-kept secret.”
The Crystal store has become popular known for its bakery with Mexican bread and cakes made daily. There’s also a full-service butcher where everything is cut by hand. And there’s a taqueria or restaurant inside the grocery store serving up hot, authentic Mexican and South American dishes.
Another popular item at the store is its agua fresca, a non-alcoholic light fruit drink popular in Mexico and Central America.
Census figures show Brooklyn Center and Crystal have the largest Hispanic populations in the Twin Cities northwest metro. Some customers say the store is crucial in Crystal, where the Hispanic population has increased by more than 40 percent in the last 10 years.
“You want a taste that takes you back to where you grew up, and the flavors, the smells,” said customer Fredy Morales.
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