Richmond - Pacific East Mall

[rworange]

Thank you Chowhounds for all your tips … and patience ... with all these posts since I ‘discovered’ Pacific East Mall last week.

I’m not comfortable with Asian cuisine … it’s such a vast subject and intimidates me.

That might have been the reason I’ve put off going to Pacific East Mall. However, I found it very non-Asian friendly. About 99 % of everything is in both English and Chinese though not all the people who work there might speak perfect … or sometimes much … English.

But I loved it and found it a great place. Haven’t run into any aggressive Asian grannies yet. So armed with a little more knowledge I look forward to many happy days of eating and shopping in the future.

Thanks all again.

Here are all the posts in one place.

99 Ranch Market … strawberry macarons & $2 congee
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/401259

168 Restaurant, stinky tofu & Taiwanese buns
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/401148

Andaman Thai Cuisine
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400086

Asian Pearl
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400856

Candy Box
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400133

Chinese chestnut cart
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400126

Coriya Hot Pot City
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400507

Best of Daimo Chinese Restaurant
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400955

Great Szechuan / Great Szechwan
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400867

J & S Coffee & Tea House – Ham, pork ear & pork patty sandwich
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400138

Joyco Foods …soft shell crabs, alligator & frozen mochi
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400153

Macau Café
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400878

Pho Saigon II Vietnamese Restaurant
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400742

Sheng Kee Bakery … piroshki & sun cake
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/399957#comments

Ten Ren Tea Company
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/399957

Tw Bestway Foods – Saving the best for last … Taiwanese preserved fruit, pork jerky, hot jelly drinks
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400162

VH Noodle House
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400802

World Ginseng Herb Company
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/400158

I think that covers it food-wise.

Sushi & Roll is due to open in a space that has had a number of businesses ... Goldilocks ... Ay Chung ... Da Chang Jin ... could be more. Someone said it might be a landlord charging too much rather than a cursed location. Good luck Sushi & Roll.

I’m not sure if the herb shop counts as food. Wan Fung Chinese Herbal is the only store with no English except the English sign at the back of the store with shop name. Even the business card had no English Sure smelled good in there though.There is a back wall that has lots of wooden drawers, holding herbs, I assume. Lots of bagged things and a desk where they consult with customers.

I checked out Hookah Hut in the back of Stogies Smoke Shop. They don’t sell food … there’s just a hookah bar and billards there. However, anyone who wants hookahs and food … there’s certainly enough restaurants at Pacific East Mall … just not Mid-Eastern.

And what is a hookah bar doing in an Asian mall anyway?

I noticed there is parking both in back and in front of the building. Is there a back entrance or do you have to walk to the front?

[samse]

"I’m not comfortable with Asian cuisine … it’s such a vast subject and intimidates me"

Ha! When I first started logging onto CH a few months ago and read your posts, I could've sworn you WERE Chinese. Please take that as a compliment . . .

In addition to the main entrances on the west side of the mall there's one the north side and I used to use an entrance on the east side that looked more like a service entrance.

[wally]

I found the one on the South Side( that looks like a service entrance) worked only because there were kids coming out with Boba drinks.

[Scrapironchef]

I really shouldn't tell you about the entrance next the the Sichuan place, it's the only place I can find parking sometimes.

[wolfe]

Isn't the one on the east side the one next to the Sichuan place? Is there another entrance on the south, condo facing side?

[Scrapironchef]

No. ranch 99 has most of that whole wall as the back of their store.

[wolfe]

I asked because samse said east and wally said south and you said near the Sichuan place but it seems you all had the same entrance in mind, the one near the photo-machines.

[Scrapironchef]

Yup.

[wally]

yes there is one there

[wally]

I know about it. I usually can find a parking space.

[rworange]

A few updates ...

Sushi & Roll came and went. It is now a Korean restaurant again ... Korean Kitchen II

The waffle/bahn mi guy moved out of J & S Coffee & Tea House into his own space also near 168 restaurant

Hong Kong Snack House – Green waffles and fish balls
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/517889

[Robert Lauriston]

Korean Kitchen II? I wonder if it's the lady who had the Korean Kitchen on Telegraph where Casserole House just opened?

[bradluen]

It's Koreana Kitchen, a spinoff of the place in Walnut Creek.

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/476281

By my count, that's five restaurants in that space since 2004.

[Scrapironchef]

I think it's actually too large a space for all the operations that have tried it there. The rent would almost guarantee failure unless you are as mainstream as Daimo. It would take some serious backing to support you until you could build a clientele.

[augustiner]

looking at all of your posts listed under one roof, all posted over the course of a few days, all of them exhaustively researched...fills me with awe. i somehow think that any aggressive asian grannies had better steer clear of you and your quest for good food. i only wish i could've been of any help at all, but while i've been to the mall, my memories are hopelessly fuzzy. good luck.

[kc72]

there is a back entrance and you'd enter the mall right next to where the photo sticker booths are.

fyi.. Sushi & Roll was open last night eventhough they still had all of the Korean Tofu signage from the previous business.