I want to compare the taste of a Gros Michel or perhaps the new apple-flavored banana varieties (i.e. Goldfinger or Sweetheart). Assuming I was highly motivated and not short of resources to throw at the problem, how would I obtain a non-Cavendish banana?
Go to Kerala or Tamil Nadu in South India, and eat bananas bananas bananas bananas. Little pink apricot-flavored ones, big yellow ones, all kinds of bananas. Mmmmm Indian bananas.
Or you could find some specialty imported bananas from vendors such as Baldor Specialty Foods, but I don’t know how obtainable they are for individual retail purchasing.
Bioversity.com: all about banana cultivars and cultivation.
Red bananas belong to the Cavendish group but are quite different in appearance and flavor from the standard Cavendish banana. Wiki sez they’re available at large supermarkets and specialty food stores in the US.
And finally, even Chiquita carries some exotic banana varieties.
Any good hippie or yuppie grocery store (Whole Foods comes to mind) will carry at least a couple different flavors of banana. Your profile says you’re in Austin-- you should be able to find a few.
The Whole Foods in downtown Austin is their corporate headquarters so I can’t imagine them having less than a dozen different kinds of bananas. 
And more than a few hippies. 
You cannot get your hands on bananas, because bananas were not made to fit human hands. The alternative is ugly - God wants you to eat bananas only.
For readers unfamiliar with various evolution/creationism discussions on this board and thinking “wtf??” about Isamu’s post, here’s the relevant Ray Comfort banana argument reference.
Now I want little pink apricot flavored bananas. I weary of chowing down daily on the boring old yellow Cavendish. I’ve seen little red bananas next to the big yellows but have assumed they taste the same.
I’ll have to keep an eye out for red and Manzano varieties next time I go shopping…
Gaaah. Now I suffer from Upscale Exotic Banana Envy.
Screw Whole Paycheck… go to a Fiesta supermarket (IIRC, there’s one off 35 not too far from downtown). They usually have 2-3 varieties for cheap. I’ve got Manzano, Burro, and several other varieties beyond the usual Cavendish at the one by work here in Dallas.
No they don’t. I like those little red jobs, and I don’t see them often enough. The flesh is yellowish, and creamier in texture, and they’re sweeter.
Even cheaper - go to any Mexican grocery and find little bananas. Not sure the variety, but they are cheap and tasty.
The Cavendish is the Red Delicious of the banana world - mediocre, but it looks good and ships well.
Then I’m going to live it up next shopping trip and buy red ones!
I swear the ‘organic’ bananas taste MUCH better than the ordinary yellow bananas. They’re about 20 cents more a pound. Is it just me, or are they actually better tasting?
It’s funny, because at our local supermarket the organic bananas are usually 89 cents a pound. Now, how much do you suppose the regular bananas are? 89 cents a pound.
One thing - be sure they’re really ripe before you eat them. They’re meant to be squishier than the Cavendish. If about the firmness of the yellow ones, they may still be unripe, and they’re often put out pretty green. I generally like them, but I’ve gotten them sometimes where they are starchy and awful.
ETA:
The red banana:
Back when I lived in Regina (a small city in the middle of nowhere) my grandmother used to get red bananas. I have no idea where she found them. Now I live in London, one of the largest and most ethnically diverse cities in the world, and despite scouring the supermarkets and ethnic markets, I still can’t find any non-Cavendish bananas. So if anyone knows where to get any in London, let me know.
Or just go to a mainstream grocery store in a heavily Hispanic area of town. I see at least three different kinds of bananas in my local groceries.
I’m weirdly proud of you all for dissing Big Banana. You know there’s a giant banana conspiracy at work, right? I bet most of you do, but here’s the short version:
Big banana vendors are training Americans to eat unripe, yucky Cavendish bananas. The bananas in your supermarket are picked green, and gassed with ethylene to artificially colour them. They aren’t truly, deliciously ripe until the skin is brown. I am slowly training my American husband out of screaming “rotten spot!” whenever he encounters bruised flesh. The poor lambkin.
If you’re really keen, bananas grow pretty well in the home garden. I grew up in northern Australia, and nearly everyone had a clump, or even a few different varieties. The wee Lady Fingers were always my favourite.
Sorry to continue the hijack, but this is hilarious. One of his arguments is that the banana is perfectly shaped for our mouths. Well, guess what else is? (I’m thinking of a certain male body part.) So does that mean that Jehovah approves of (or mandates!) fellatio? 