Strawberry Garden: Rochdale’s favourite fruit and veg store back in action

Tariq Parvez and Shamim Akhtar welcome you to Strawberry Gardens

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They have been Rochdale’s favourite fresh fruit and veg family for over 30 years – and now they are back by popular demand in the heart of the town centre.

Strawberry Garden is a brand new shop opening up on Yorkshire Street, although the friendly faces you see inside may not be as new.

In fact, owners Tariq Parvez and Shamim Akhtar are widely recognised to shoppers across the borough as the market stall owners from the old Rochdale market, after trading there between 1985 and 2015.

Despite a small break from the business, they have come back with a bang, and are already dealing with huge demand from customers who missed their services.

The store, which takes up the old Bon Marche building at the front of the Wheatsheaf Centre on Yorkshire Street, is packed with locally grown vegetables and exotic fruits and spices imported from across the globe.

Whether its fresh pumpkins from Pakistan, bags of turmeric or freshly cut coriander and basil, the Strawberry Garden has it all and is already proving to be a hit in the high street.

Tariq Parvez said he is proud of the store’s achievements past and present.

He said: “We have always been popular because we have always provided what you can’t get anywhere else in Rochdale.

“We are proud of the food we sell here. It’s all direct from the farm. If it’s picked on Tuesday, it will generally be on sale on Tuesday. Even the fresh stuff which is from other countries gets here within the fastest time possible and is always delivered fresh.

“I think people appreciate the pride we put into this. It’s always been a family business and we enjoy what we do.”

A large section of the new store is dedicated to fresh herbs and spices which are only sold in the very best condition.

Tariq continued: “We pride ourselves on being miles better than the supermarket because we are not pre-packaging, and we are not mass producing.

“We just have pure, fresh food which people enjoy, and that’s why they always came back to us again and again.”

Strawberry Garden will be open six days a week from Wednesday 30 March.

Strawberry Garden
68 Yorkshire Street (at the front of the Wheatsheaf Centre)
Town Centre
Rochdale
OL16 1BZ