To describe Miles Market (The Waterfront, Pitts Bay, tel. 441/295-1234, customer service fax 441/296-4537, www.miles.bm, 7:30 a.m.–7 p.m. Mon.–Sat., 1–5 p.m. Sun.) as a mere grocery store is a cruel insult. The specialty food store—owned by the Cox family, to whom the entire surrounding waterfront complex belongs, Miles has been a fixture of the gourmet scene since 1862.

Today, in a modern headquarters, it boasts highly professional staff and pretty much any foodstuff an epicurean could desire. Of course, you need a trust fund to shop here: It’s hard to escape without spending at least $100 just on sundries. Miles’s meat department is the island’s best, with melt-in-your-mouth cuts and both wet-aged and dry-aged beef selections.

Treats include cheeses from around the world; fresh croissants, muffins, and pains du chocolat; a menu of olive oils and marmalades; ethnic sections; wines from France, Napa, and Lebanon; and organic everything—dinner-party hostesses live here. Miles also has a coffee bar, Café Godiva, so you can sip a latte or cappuccino while you shop.

The store’s Miles To Go deli offers takeout feasts (salads, fish cakes, polenta, grilled vegetables), and staff pack up lunch boxes or gourmet picnics to order (smoked salmon, grilled chicken, fresh fruit platter, strawberry tartlet). Picnic menus start at $19.95; to order call tel. 441/295-1234, ext. 255.

The Garden Market (13 Serpentine Rd., tel. 441/292-7000, fax 441/295-1260, 7 a.m.–7 p.m. Mon.–Thurs., 7 a.m.–8 p.m. Fri. and Sat.) is a family business with friendly staff, vegetables from local farmers, flowers, wine, and liquor.

Arnold’s Family Market (113 St. John’s Rd., tel. 441/292-3310, 6:30 a.m.–midnight daily) is a bustling neighborhood hub that has morphed over recent years from a tiny, cramped grocery to a modern expanse. There’s a large liquor section, meats, produce, baked goods, magazines, and pharmaceuticals. The place is a zoo on Friday and Saturday nights.

With ample parking on the stretch of North Shore leading east from Hamilton, C-Mart (96 North Shore Rd., at the corner of Blackwatch Pass and Langton Hill, tel. 441/292-5332, fax 441/292-4245, 7 a.m.–6 p.m. Mon.–Thurs., 7 a.m.–7 p.m. Fri. and Sat., 8 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Sun.) makes a convenient stop for snacks, drinks, newspapers, or liquor. The tiny outlet, a favorite with Cup Match campers who set up in the seafront park opposite, also sells fresh baked goods, hot pies, sodas, and dry and frozen goods.

Point Mart (Cox’s Hill, tel. 441/292-0342, 8 a.m.–9 p.m. Mon.–Sat.) is tiny but well stocked.

Manuel Soares & Son (Old House Ln., Spanish Point, tel. 441/292-1426, 7 a.m.–8 p.m. Mon.–Sat.) is the only grocery store down in the heart of Spanish Point.

Formerly Dismont Robinson, Arnold’s Express (135 Front St. East, tel. 441/292-4301, 6:30 a.m.–midnight daily) has joined the successful island-wide grocery store chain.

Carousel Liquors (137 Front St. East, tel. 441/292-2559, 10 a.m.–9 p.m. Mon.–Sat.) sells wine, beer, and spirits.