Ask the Importer

Behind the Scenes at European Deli

Welcome! We thought it would be fun to answer some of the questions we hear most often—and a few that nobody ever asks, but probably should.

This isn’t written by a marketing team. These are our honest thoughts after more than 46 years of importing European products and one very busy year growing European Deli.

Where do your products come from?

The majority of our products come from Germany and Austria because that’s where our roots are. As Austrian importers, we’ve spent decades building relationships with producers throughout Europe. Those relationships allow us to source products directly from the people who actually make them—not just from distributors.

As we continue to grow, we’re expanding throughout Europe, but we’ll always stay true to the regions and producers we know best.

Why does importing directly matter?

For us, it’s about much more than price.

Buying directly means access to products that many importers never bring into the United States. It means better freshness, better availability, and a closer relationship with the people making the food.

When you buy through multiple middlemen, you lose control. You don’t always know how long a product has been sitting in warehouses or what kind of inventory you’re receiving.

When we import directly, we know exactly where it came from, who made it, and when it was produced.

How do you choose the producers you work with?

Honestly, it starts with the people.

We’ve learned over the years that good people usually make great products.

Beautiful packaging and famous brands are nice, but they don’t necessarily mean exceptional quality. We look for producers who care deeply about their craft, their families, their communities, and the products they make.

Those relationships matter far more than flashy marketing.

What’s your favorite hidden gem?

Wine grape juice.

Most Americans think of grape juice as Concord grape juice. In Austria and Germany, it’s completely different.

Our favorites are made from Grüner Veltliner, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, and Zweigelt grapes by real wineries.

One producer we love is Stefan Meyer from a tiny German village. His grape juice is clean, refreshing, and incredibly expressive of the grape itself.

It’s one of the most underrated categories in Europe and one we’re excited to introduce to more families.

If someone is placing their first order, what should they buy?

That’s always a difficult question, but three products immediately come to mind:

• Seasonal Lebkuchen and specialty Kekse from small European producers.
• Staud’s fruit spreads and compotes from Vienna.
• Authentic German Haribo imported directly from Germany.

Those three products tell the story of European food better than almost anything else.

What’s the biggest misconception Americans have about European food?

Many people assume imported food is simply more expensive.

What they don’t always realize is how different the ingredients are.

European food regulations are generally much stricter regarding colors, additives, and unnecessary ingredients. You can often compare two similar products side by side and immediately notice the difference.

Beyond that, many European products simply taste better because they’re still made with traditional recipes and higher-quality ingredients.

Sometimes even something as simple as a European Coca-Cola feels like discovering the drink all over again.

Tell us about a producer you’ll never forget.

My aunt and uncle, Herbert and Karen Groiss, own a winery in Austria where I learned how to make wine.

My wife and I were married there.

During harvest, we’d work from early morning until late evening, bottling wine and grape juice before sitting on top of an old Range Rover overlooking the vineyards.

It was some of the hardest work I’ve ever done.

That experience completely changed how I think about family producers.

People don’t always see the years of physical labor, dedication, and love that go into making a single bottle or jar.

That’s exactly why we love supporting family businesses.

What categories are you most excited to expand?

Gingerbread.

Kekse and holiday cookies.

Fruit spreads.

Compotes.

Vegetables.

These are products that deserve far more attention than they receive in the United States.

Many have become dominated by large manufacturers, but Europe is still full of incredible family producers creating products that most Americans have never experienced.

That’s where we’re focusing our energy.

How do customers react when they receive their first order?

For many of our customers, it’s actually relief.

They’re finally able to find products they grew up with—or products they’ve spent years searching for.

For first-time customers, there’s often excitement and surprise.

We see people discover something new, then immediately share it with friends and family.

There is often this sense of urgency: “I have to share this.”

That’s one of our favorite parts of what we do.

What’s your mission for European Deli?

It may sound funny, but we’re a little selfish.

We’re bringing in the foods we want on our own tables.

The foods we grew up with.

The foods our friends and families miss.

As we continue to improve, we’ll keep expanding our direct relationships and building what we hope becomes the greatest collection of authentic European specialty foods in America.

We want to be the destination for the real Europe—the small towns, the wooden tables, the family recipes, and farm-to-table food in the truest sense.

Not because it’s the biggest.

Because it’s the best.

What’s one product every American should try?

A simple fresh salad with Austrian pumpkin seed oil.

It’s rich, earthy, nutty, and completely transforms a dish without overpowering it.

And if you haven’t tried an Austrian raspberry fruit spread yet, you’re missing out.

It might just make the best peanut butter and jelly sandwich you’ve ever had.

What’s something people don’t realize about importing?

Patience.

A tremendous amount of patience.

Some purchase orders are placed in March and don’t arrive until the holiday season.

Every product requires FDA compliance, registrations, logistics, exchange-rate planning, freight coordination, and constant communication with our producers.

There’s an enormous amount of work behind every item on our shelves.

Our logistics operation is led by Tina, who somehow keeps all of those moving pieces together. She is nothing short of a miracle.

What do you hope customers feel when they open a box from European Deli?

That another person packed it.

Sometimes my dad pulls the order.

Sometimes I pack it.

We’re a small enough team that we can hear each other talking across the warehouse.

Sure, the tape might not be perfectly machine straight.

But a machine didn’t pack your order.

A real person did.

We want you to feel excitement and joy when the box arrives, but we also want you to feel the human effort behind it.

What role does your Austrian background play in your business?

It helps us build trust.

We speak the language.

We understand the culture.

We negotiate directly with producers, communicate clearly, and build relationships that simply wouldn’t be possible otherwise.

That ultimately helps us bring better products to our customers at better prices.

If someone only remembers one thing about European Deli, what do you hope it is?

That every single year we’ll be better than the year before.

We’re still building.

We’re still learning.

We’re constantly improving.

There is no chance that we will stop getting better, more dynamic, and more customer-friendly.

We’re committed to becoming the very best at what we do.

Describe European Deli in one sentence.

A place where you can unpack memories.

Is there anything you wish customers asked more often?

Absolutely.

Tell us what you’re looking for.

Tell us what products you miss.

Tell us about the brands and producers you grew up with.

European Deli isn’t just our business—it’s a community.

Many of our best discoveries begin with a customer asking, “Can you find this?”

What’s one small detail you obsess over?

Product photography.

Shopping online means customers can’t pick up the product.

The photo is their first impression.

We spend a tremendous amount of time making sure our images accurately represent exactly what will arrive at your door.

We want the experience to feel as close as possible to seeing the product on the table in front of you.

What’s the first thing you look for when you walk into the warehouse?

The little things.

Expiration dates.

Product sizes.

Picking accuracy.

The details are easy to miss—but they’re often the things that matter most.

A small mistake can affect the entire experience, so we put a tremendous amount of energy into getting those details right.

What do you hope your children take from this journey?

To be proud of where they come from.

To represent their heritage with pride.

To keep searching for what is true to them.

And to share it with others.

What’s one place in Europe you’ll never forget?

Portugal’s Douro Valley.

There’s a place in the heart of the Cima Corgo where time seems to stand still.

You sit, drink wine, eat good food, and forget about your phone and every responsibility waiting for you.

It’s one of those rare places that completely captures you.

Have you found the perfect product yet?

I think we’re still looking for it.

Sourcing is an endless search.

You keep chasing the unicorn that may not exist, because the moment you become completely content is the moment you stop pushing.

That search is one of the pillars of what we do.

It means we’ll never stop looking for something better, more exciting, more honest, or more meaningful to bring to our customers.

What’s been your proudest moment so far?

For me, it wasn’t reaching a sales milestone or importing a new product.

It was sitting with my two-year-old daughter while we were tasting different fruits and products together.

One of them was Heidelbeere—the German word for blueberry.

I asked her, “Which one do you want to try again?”

Without missing a beat, she looked at me and said, “Heidelbeere.”

Hearing her say that perfectly in German was one of the proudest moments I’ve had.

It reminded me that this business isn’t just about importing food.

It’s about passing along language, traditions, memories, and culture to the next generation.

If our products can help families create moments like that around their own tables—teaching a child a new word, sharing a favorite recipe, or reconnecting with a piece of home—then we’re doing exactly what we set out to do.