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Due to some mobility problems, I didn't want to buck the crowds and still haven't shopped there. I thought that by now, the crush might have abated, so I turned into the H-Mart lot at 12:30 yesterday (Tuesday). Good weather, and only a few available spaces at the farthest reaches of the lot. I could see a police detail directing traffic near the door....and made a U-turn. I don't know if they are still having freshness issues, but clearly business is still booming. I am not a morning person but I guess I need to make the effort to go there before mid-morning. I needed to go to Trader Joe's anyway - I should have thought to ask them if they've had a volume increase due to H-Mart overflow.
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Was there tonight (Sunday). Still a zoo. The kimchee varities were all sorts of awesome. I can't wait to try some of the marinated meats. I can't handle that kind of mob scene, though, so I'll wait a month or so before I actually shop there.
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re: Dinsdale45
We went about 5pm. Had no problems finding seats in the tiny food court, but the bakery stand, Tous Les Jours, was almost completely wiped out by then already, so we couldn't get anything from there.
The aisles and lines weren't bad at all during the hour and a half we were there, but cars were still storming into the lot as we left.
Some of the produce prices were ridiculously cheap. Green peppers for 39 cents a pound! Mushrooms, 9 oz for 50cents! That being said, I was not overly thrilled with their snack aisle--I'd rather see fewer American/standard snacks and more Asian ones.
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re: taterjane
Produce selection was pretty awesome. They had fresh baby corn in the husk!
If you get any of the Korean BBQ meats, and grill them up, make sure you get the sesame leaves (they're actual name is Shiso/Perilla). They're either on the stalk or packaged. Take one leaf, and wrap the meat around it. It's yummy.
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re: krazykid
Just a minor refinement: the leaf usually labeled "shiso" (Japanese perilla) is related to, but different from korean sesame leafs (kkaennip, a different perilla)-- be sure to look for the big green leafs with a slight reddish hint on the underside, often sold in bundles wrapped in half; not the smaller and more delicate "purely" green leafs, usually stacked flat on styrofoam. (They're both good, but the Japanese one may be a bit strong for wrapping ssam-bap style!)
If you want a really festive feast, you can serve BBQ with a variety of leafs: sesame leaf, red leaf letture, green leaf lettuce, blanched green cabbage; serve with rice, and ssamjang (pepper paste with soy paste, pine nuts, garlic, sugar, etc.)
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re: another_adam
adam thanks for your post. we were looking at the "sesame" leaves at h-mart, and thinking "that does NOT look like a leaf from a sesame plant at all, it looks like some kind of perilla", Any idea why this leaf is labeled "sesame leaf" ? I've grown both green and red perilla, but neither had leaves as large as this, and both were quite strongly flavored.
and on a similar topic, we saw something labeled "taiwanese basil" that looked a lot like "Thai Basil" (i.e. horapa), any idea if it is one and the same?
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re: pocketviking
H-Mart is primarily a Korean supermarket. Kam Man is primarily Chinese. From that point of view, one is not better than the other, no more than an apple could be better than an orange. Which one to go to all depends on what you are looking for. H-Mart is so much closer to my home that I will probably go there even for items I could get at Kam Man.
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re: pocketviking
Obviously better for anything Korean or Japanese. Also, they have the largest variety of basmati rices I've seen anywhere, including at the big Indian stores like Patel Bros. The seafood counter is similar in size and variety to Kam Man's, but at least right now, it's cleaner and they're running some killer prices like tuna for $13/lb, lobsters for $5/lb, and large shrimp for $4/lb.
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I stopped by today. Here are the pictures I took, they're on Facebook. I set it to be publically viewable.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid...
It was basically a zoo. There were people all over the place. I had to park behind the Market Basket. There was no way I was going to be able to park closer.
Here are some photos of the food stalls though (2MB file limit?!)
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Pretty crazy scene there around lunchtime today. People were parking at Market Basket and walking over, but I got lucky and found a space near the store. Tomorrow will be absolutely insane I think.
First time at a store like this for me. I was impressed with the meat selection and blown away by the fish selection. If everything stays as fresh as everything looked today, this I will be shopping there on a regular basis.
Saw some great looking noodle bowls at the food court, but lines were too long for me to stand in them. Got plenty of samples walking around the store though.
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re: LStaff
They should have made the seating area bigger. I stood in a long line to get food at the Korean place. We had to put our trays on the stacks of sushi rice and eat standing up. I hope once the furor dies down it will be adequate seating, but I doubt it. Wouldn't surprise me if the town restricted the amount of seating they could have. Fortunately, I live in town, so I can go back during the week when it's (in theory) less busy.
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re: Dinsdale45
The Korean stand (the one at the left end of the line of stands) does do take out. It is probably fair to assume that the others do, too. What you can order depends on the stand; for example the Indian stand has combo plates but the stand where I bought my meal you get one thing in an order (with rice and kimchi on the side, as appropriate).
It probably makes sense to remember that even though all the stands are inside the H-Mart, they are all operated separately.
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Last four. Note that they were starting to tow the cars parked to the left (along the road). If you go - I suggest:
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re: robhagopian
Wow that is crazy! I know that area very well, lived nearby in Woburn for a few years. I was thinking I could always park behind the Market Basket and just walk if I needed. I plan on going tomorrow morning. It's a good thing I know a few back roads as I can imagine tomorrow will be just as bad.
Thank you so much for sharing your pics. Looks awesome and I can't wait to go! :)
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re: robhagopian
We went last night and parked behind Market Basket. It's best if you take a left before the Bugaboo Creek or whatever restaurant that is and drive behind the building to avoid the traffic in front. I hope MB puts up with people parking there. The H Mart lot is big, but it may not be big enough to handle capacity.
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re: litchick
I called them this morning to see what the hours will be today and this weekend -- the dude didn't sound totally sure, but he told me that they'd open today (9/25) around 10a, and close around either 8p or 9p. This weekend, they'll likely open around 8am, and he didn't know what time they'd close.
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re: Dinsdale45
The website says 8AM to 9PM. Today the Grand Opening is supposed to be at 10.
More generally, here is the H-Mart website page for the Burlington store: http://www.hmart.com/company_new/shop...
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re: justbeingpolite
I was there. I survived. Where's my "I Survived the H-Mart Grand Opening" T-shirt?
More seriously, here's the scoop. I arrived a few minutes after 10. The H-Mart parking lot was full, as was the areas next to and in front of Market Basket. I ended up parking in front of the old Expo Design Center. This turned out to be a Good Thing. Why? When I left H-Mart so were a lot of cars, and they were going nowhere. There had been a fender-bender in the little access road that gets you to H-Mart once you turn off of Middlesex Turnpike. What a mess... More generally, the H-Mart lot may be too small even when things settle down.
Okay, on to the shopping. The produce section covers American and Korean items competently. One of the few negative things I have to say in this report is that there was some produce that did not seem as fresh as one might hope for or expect; Russo's is still the clear choice for me in terms of freshness and variety when it comes to non-Korean Asian produce. However what I found at H-Mart was good enough for things that you need and you happen to be at H-Mart. (To do: on a less hectic day, do a price comparison with the close-by Market Basket on a few everyday produce items.)
Staple items: If you like to buy rice in 20-pound bags (or larger), you will find a nice variety here. Tucked away in a short aisle are some smaller bags of rice, including some Tamaki Gold. But back to the big bags; as one would expect, there are some Korean brands as well as brands you would expect to find in Japanese and Chinese markets. In addition, there were a number of brands of basmati rice and even (very large) bags of atta flour on display. (Rotis, anyone?) White rice, brown rice, black rice, rice/grain mixtures, organic rice, you-name-it rice, it's here.
The other grocery aisles carry Korean items, of course, but significant love is devoted to southeast Asian, Indian, and Japanese ingredients. If what you need is a common, basic ingredient used in one of those parts of the world, H-Mart probably has it.
Prepared foods. I admit I know much less about Korean food than any of the major east Asian cuisines. So, I do not know how to describe the variety of prepared foods. Was it good? Was anything left out? i don't know. But there was what seemed to me a TREMENDOUS variety of prepared items, kimchi aside. And there were more types of kimchi than I can remember without having taken notes.
Meat and poultry. Primarily cuts of pork, beef, and chicken used in Korean cookery. Lots of beef and pork that had been pre-sliced. I was surprised (remember I am new at Korean shopping) to find a significant proportion of the items were frozen. There is a great sale on boneless chicken breast, btw. $1.48/pound.
The fish counter was amazing in its variety. There were a few varieties swimming in tanks; a large array out on ice, and a good number of fish packaged up whole and pre-chopped (into pieces suitable for soup or stew) on styrofoam trays. There were even a few varieties of fish heads (most of which did not look roly-poly). It struck me that anyone wanting to make some fish stock could get fixed up at this one display case.
The housewares section had what you would expect at an Asian supermarket, with a Korean twist. One thing that intrigued me was a display of some very light-weight fry pans that another shopper told me were all the rage in Korea. They are very light-weight and supposedly non-stick due to a ceramic coating.
The food court was packed. I got some #3 soup (seafood, beef, tofu) from the Korean stall to go; there were way fewer places to sit and eat than diners. The other stalls were Chinese, Japanese, and Indian. The Tous Les Jours was open and packed too; to a large extent it seems to be a self-serve place where you pick what you want from little displays and bring your tray/basket thingy to the checkout. Maybe it will work fine when the place is not so crowded, but i did not want to even try to negotiate my way around that little area.
All in all, I am impressed in a good way. No doubt H-Mart will be part of my regular rotation, especially given that TJ's is so close. Now, where did that Korean cook book go? (And why were there none for sale at H-Mart?)
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re: StriperGuy
Hahaha, StriperGuy, I am pretty sure you were complimenting me, so thanks.... but you also made me realize that my choice of pseudonym may not have been the best!
(And upon re-reading my post, I see it could have benefited by some more careful editing. Ah well, I still hope it is helpful to our fellow Hounds.)
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re: litchick
Unfortunately the link above wouldnt' play the video for me. If you have trouble, try this one. Love the rows of Sriracha chili sauce and packaged octopus!
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More from the H-Mart website. http://company.hmart.com/ad_press_vie...
Alas, the page only shows up on the Korean version of the website. When I run it through the Google translator, the results are rather intriguing, but difficult to fathom completely. There is a snippet that may be a reference to a feed tasting at 4PM (but which day???) and some other text that sounds like a discussion of the impact H-Mart may have on smaller Korean grocery stores.
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re: pga123
Yes indeed! Here is the announcement on the HMart website
http://www.hmart.com/company_new/shop...
Unfortunately I do not read Korean and don't know what else the announcement says. (The date and time are on the first line.... ) In particular, I am intrigued by what the H-Mart guy might be saying through his megaphone. Give-aways? Special sales? .....???
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This morning, Saturday Sept 19th, on the way to MB, I stopped by the Hmart location and there were a lot of activity going on, but the sign said that the Grand Opening is on Sept 25!
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re: peregrine
No, the store doesn't seem to be open at all. I swung by this afternoon. There were a bunch of cars in the lot but they probably belonged to the swarm of 20-something guys wearing H-Mart uniform tops and sitting on the curb out front. As neposter reported, there is a huge banner saying that the grand opening is September 25; there are also signs in the windows that say the same thing (more than were up last week). There were lots and lots of cartons stacked up inside. So, definitely not open, but real real soon now.
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Drove by last night; opening day is today! I am planning on checking it out this weekend.
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I drove by today, and the signs posted on the doors said "Opening September 25". Many shelves were stocked too - a few weeks ago they were all bare. So, it seems to me that Sept 25 (Fri) is realistic...
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re: doctor_mama
Awesome! Regarding what kinds of foods a store will stock.... they are going to (eventually) have to stock what the clientele want. So if people get in there and there is an overrepresentation of certain area and underrepresentation of others, shoppers will complain and eventually go elsewhere.
That being said, I think the store will make back it's opening costs within a week of it opening.
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re: Stellar D
Yeah, in general, supermarkets tend to fine-tune their inventory to the local customer base. Hence, the MB in Chelsea has more Latino-oriented products than the one in Burlington... however.... The flexibility has limits. H-Mart gets pricing from its suppliers based on the volume of business it does with them. If the people in the Boston area were to demand some products that would require H-Mart to use different suppliers, there might not be enough margin available to H-Mart (consistent with their brand) to make it worth-while.
My take on H-Mart is they really try hard to address the needs of the Korean community, and if other people are customers, that's fine but not a high priority for H-Mart. Just try this experiment. Go to the H-Mart website, click the button in the upper-right that says "English" then click the text (right under the main bar across the top of the page) that says "Sign Up Now! You can get FREE SHIPPING coupon - see details". You MUST be able to read Korean to make any sense of the "details" on the page that takes you to.
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re: mikmum
I don't know how representative this is, but at the H-Mart I visited in Annandale VA there wasn't a food court, per se. Instead, they had a section of the store that was devoted to prepared hot foods, made in-house (reasonably priced and delicious). The selections were largely Korean, with a little Japanese thrown in. That said, the Annandale H-Mart was located in a heavily Korean area with lots of Korean restaurants, so it makes sense that the majority of what H-Mart offered would cater to this base.
I am looking forward to the possibility that the Burlington H-Mart will have prepared rice cakes in spicy sauce that's as good as those I found in Annandale.
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re: mikmum
The one in NJ had mostly Korean stalls. It's been a while since I've been there so my memory may be faulty. There was a asian slush/boba stand too. I think there may have been a Vietnamese stand too. But I'm Korean and when I was a the NJ food court I was mostly concerned with the Korean food. But based on my experiences with these types of food courts, with the exception of the Super 88 in Brighton, they tend to be the same ethnicity as the main store.
Sorry if that's a little vague. I am psyched for the bakery.
There were a lot of cars in the parking lot this morning. Here are some picts I took of the place when I was there a week or so ago.
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So, will H-Mart provide one-stop shopping for all our Asian food needs? Will it be like a huge Reliable Market in Somerville (few Chinese/SE Asian products) or will it carry a good supply of non-Korean/Japanese items?
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re: PinchOfSalt
There's an English button? Thanks for the info.
Looks 100% Korean/Japanese. The fresh food and Food Court will be well worthwhile, though. There will be a need to trek into one of the new Hong Kong markets for Chinese stuff and there's the nearby Battambang for SE Asian.
No one stop shopping.
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re: Dinsdale45
Yeah, there is a Korean/English button pair in the upper right. But even when you click for English, there is still an awful lot of Korean on your screen. So, H-Mart must really be concentrating on the Korean community, with other folks (Asian or not) being icing on the sales cake.
I have looked at their advertisements for the New York area (almost certainly very similar to what we will see here) and am very much looking forward to the fresh foods (vegetables and otherwise).
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re: Dinsdale45
The H-Mart in manhattan is pretty heavily Korean, with a bit of Japanese stuff-- not much southeast asian, for example, and not even really that much Japanese stuff if it's not also used in Korea. I've never been to the big stores, though, just the cramped little one on 32nd, where there's already barely any room for the Korean stuff, and it wouldn't make sense to compete for other markets!
Southeast asian flavors in general are not very popular in Korea (except for a recent mini-craze for Korean-ified pho, but that was basically just relabelled guksu!) It would be cool if they stock other things, but I'm not sure I'd expect it...
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re: mikmum
Yes, didn't mean to imply all, of course-- just that it's also very common to find Koreans who don't like things with cilantro, lemongrass, tamarind, etc. :) As far as I can it, these are still things like cheese was a generation ago in Korea- new flavors that many still find off-putting, and haven't had time to be transformed with Korean sensibilities about flavor profiles. (And I'm also sure it doesn't help that vietnamese-korean places in seoul, and also in LA, are often quite mediocre! dunno about thai...)
Anyway, as with many things (Korean food in the US being a case in point!) I'm sure it's something that will take off with increased exposure, if someone can just find the right way to market it!
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This is too funny - was up that way this a.m. and seriously considered doing a drive by, but didn't. Those of you who live closeby, please keep us posted! We're 20 min. away (same w/traffic from Allston Super 88) and if this place is as good as it's hyped to be, we will become regulars.
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Another Burlington-specific addition to the H-Mart website.
http://www.hmart.com/hboard/down/boar...
I don't read Korean, but from the looks of it, it looks like they are hiring people.
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Here is something I just found on the H-Mart website:
http://www.hmart.com/company_new/shop...
The picture shows the Burlington store. The little maps at the bottom confirm - this is about Burlington. And, in the upper left hand there are two balloons that say "Grand Opening". But when? Oh how I wish I could read Korean!
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We peeked in the windows but weren't bold enough to take pictures! The food court looks incredible - nice lighting, spacious... It can't open soon enough!
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re: Eatin in Woostah
I drove by about a week ago and saw a large banner advertising for in-store tenants. Apparently not all the spaces are rented out yet. Here is a website that hints at what we will find when the Big Day finally comes and H-Mart's door open... http://www.clarapaik.com/hmart-forms....
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Stopped by HMART today. No food yet but the shelves, registers and signs are in place. SEE PHOTOS!!!!
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re: robertlf
*eeeee* the most highly anticipated supermarket ever!
in the meantime I have been shopping at battambang in lowell. They have the greatest selection of Southeast asian greens, veggies, a hot bar and prepared food (and plenty of chicken and duck in the egg). We were really impressed to find a lot of things we haven't seen since we lived in Toronto. They have Asian shaved ice too! Husband had condensed milk w/ beans. Great prices on meat and seafood. Way cheaper than Kam Man.-
re: noodlely
If you like Battambang, and if Lowell is convenient for you, Hong Kong Market on Westford St, Lowell is also an excellent option, imho, their veggies, fresh herbs and Cambodian prepared foods are better than Battambang, although Battambang is still my first choice for South Asian condiments.
It is true the Cambodian groceries in Lowell are less expensive than Kam Man, but for a full range of Chinese (not so true for South Asian ) ingredients, Kam Man wins hands down in the Boston area.
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re: qianning
on a vietnamese kick this week so Battambang fit the bill. I will have to revisit HK market I went before and didn't think much of it. Battambang is always fresher on the weekend.
So far this week we made banh xeo (all really fresh greens from B.), sesame fried shrimp (its sold in packets in the vietnamese aisle), cilantro and garlic BBQ shrimp and today we are having bo kho soup. Its hard to find lots of vietnamese products at kam man (they do have a large selection but once in a while its nice to load up on the hard to find stuff).-
re: noodlely
Totally agree that for Viet Namese, Cambodian, Lao, or Burmese ingredients Battambang is a better choice than Kam Man. Since we cook both Southeast Asian and North Asian (Chinese and Korea) a lot, and since both Lowell and Quincy are on well trod paths for us, we shop at either depending on schedule and menu. AS for HK Market in Lowell, I particularly like the fact that most of their herbs are not pre-packed, by being able to select and sort my own, the produce seems to keep much better.
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In this other H-mart thread, someone who contacted customer service was told they would open sometime in September: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/593523
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re: Dinsdale45
I saw the floor plan and there was a food court area with eight or ten stalls at the right-hand entrance.
There was also a strip of small retail spaces between the two outer doorways.
From floor plans to reality, however, could take a while, at the rate this place is(n't) going.
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I drove by today. Not much new to report in addition to what peregrine posted, except that there were 3 cars parked in the lot and no activity inside or out to be seen.
Edited to add: Forgot to mention the sign by the road says "H-Mart" and "Food Court" and also "Tous Les Jours" which kind of threw me for a loop, until I got closer. It says in small letters that it's a fresh bakery, baked everyday. I think this is the website for that company. http://www.touslesjoursusa.com/
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re: taterjane
ooooo.... its sad that we are all this excited for a decent asian market to open! great news on the bakery if its true! It sounds like this will be a great place to have lunch and get my grocery shopping done. Maybe this will throw some business to the other asian businesses in that area like China pearl for dim sum in woburn and New Jang su in Burlington. Perhaps some other Asian restaurants will pop up in the area (like when the Kam Man center went in).
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Thank gawd-amighty that things look like we're moving towards an opening sometime this century! I had a chance to visit an H-Mart in Virginia last week and it was like walking into some kind of nirvana. Then, yesterday, I went to the Super 88 by BU and was depressed (again) at how measly and depressing their selection is. If H-Mart is only 1/10 better than Super 88, it will such a vast improvement that I will willingly dance a jig.
I hope this H-Mart has a prepared Korean foods section like the one I visited last week.
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re: StriperGuy
They have one in Toronto. It is super clean and caters to a more asian-american clientele. Lots of pre-made food, packaged meats, clean produce areas and they sell a lot of american groceries too. It was set up a lot like whole foods with little stands around the edges a bakery, sushi counter, bbq meats, prepared foods etc...
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I have to say they have been really mum about everything considering all the buzz..... I am breaking down and heading to Kamman this weekend. We are out of everything and super 88 in Malden doesn't look like it is stepping up any time soon.
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