Our story
From Basra to Lighthouse Avenue
Every market has a reason it exists. Ours started with a simple observation: Monterey is full of people from somewhere else — language instructors and students at the Defense Language Institute, military families, visiting scholars, immigrants who settled here — and most of them couldn't find the food they grew up with.
A market with history
Iskander Keremian opened International Market & Deli in New Monterey in 1992 — a small grocery and deli carrying Middle Eastern products. For more than two decades it was the place locals went for specialty ingredients before the internet made them a click away. International Market & Deli — Serving Monterey Since 1992.
2015: Adil and Gloria
Around September 2015, Adil Altamimi and Gloria Altamimi became the market's owners. Adil was born in Basra, in southern Iraq — a port city known for its date palms and its river-and-sea trade — and brought a cook's knowledge of Middle Eastern food. Gloria is from Guam and became the store's researcher, chasing down brands customers asked for and vetting every supplier.
“It's my customers who tell me, ‘bring this brand and that brand.’ And I'll find a distributor out there who will carry it for me.”
How we stock the shelves
Distributors heading up Highway 101 and I-5 rarely detour to the Central Coast, so for years Adil has driven to San Jose each week to collect what the trucks won't deliver. We research where products come from and who makes them before they go on our shelves, and we try to buy from long-standing family-owned producers and importers.
Why “Basra Bay”
Basra is where Adil's story begins; the bay is where it continues. The Basra Bay name, created in 2026, gives a market that has served Monterey since 1992 an identity of its own without changing what it is: a place to find familiar essentials, discover something new, and get an honest recommendation. You'll still see “International Market & Deli” on our door for a while — same family, same phone number, same shelves.
The neighborhood
We're part of the Lighthouse District in New Monterey, a few blocks uphill from Cannery Row and the Aquarium, on what Edible Monterey Bay called one of the best single blocks for food in the region. In 2020 we stayed open through the shutdown and delivered groceries free to seniors and families who couldn't come in. We host cooking demos, a Youth Day for kids, holiday gift-wrapping days, and Ramadan date tastings.
International Cafe
In May 2024 the family opened International Cafe at 296 Lighthouse Ave, Unit C — a sit-down café with vegan and gluten-free options, onsite parking, and room for gatherings of 20–25. It's where our catering is prepared today.
On the shelves
One of the most diverse international selections in Monterey.
Olive oils, spices, tea, coffee, dates, bread and pantry staples from the Middle East, the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe.
