Park To Shop
In the center of Asia Plaza, this all-encompassing grocery store has the supply, selection and bargains to become your weekly market. Still, a meat and seafood section with oxtail ($5.79 per pound) and live frogs ($5.99 each), a prepared foods section with options such as rice bowls ($4.89) and spring rolls ($1.59 for four) and a 10-aisle home goods section selling rice cookers ($41) and more will remind you where you are. Try this: Options such as durian ($2.99) — a green, spiky, smelly fruit — and dragon fruit ($5.69 a pound) highlight a large, affordable produce section. 1580 E. 30th St., 216-781-3388, parktoshopmarket.com
Good Harvest Foods Market
This chaotic market is your one-stop for hot pot night with broths, Sichuan stock seasoning ($2.09) and a small specialty produce section. It also offers a frozen, prepackaged hot pot combo ($4.99) with sliced meat and fish balls — if you don’t want to brave the fresh fish and meat counter. The kitchen section, with restaurant-grade equipment such as an 18-inch Peking pan ($18.99) is as big as the rest of the store. Try This: Found in the wall-length noodle section, rice vermicelli noodles ($2.69) put a Vietnamese spin on your homemade soups and stir-fries. 3038 Payne Ave., 216-861-8018
Asian Food Co.
A bit disheveled, Asian Food Co. has diamonds in its rough, such as house-made kimchi ($3.95), a prepared food section with baked goods, regional herbs such as lemongrass ($1.29 per pound) and a large cosmetics section. But the highlight is the snack section with hundreds of candies, mochi ice cream and bags of chips, such as the spicy tempura seaweed ($1.99) from Thailand. Try This: For the Japanese Green Tea Kit Kat ($5.99), Nestle partnered with Kyoto, a specialty green tea distributor, to pump the treat full of powerful matcha and blow our minds. 1579 E. 38th St., 216-621-1681
Kim’s Oriental Food
A wall-to-wall cooler section filled with bags of frozen dumplings and pot stickers, plus shelves of instant noodles and single-serving ramen dominate this Korean convenience store. From rice and roasted seaweed ($21.99) for gimbap to radish and cabbage kimchi flavors ($17 per quart), this specialty store with just five aisles has exactly what you need for your next Korean recipe. Try This: Top off the college-style convenience of a frozen dinner with a 40-ounce Cass ($3.99), “Korea’s No. 1 Beer,” a mild Pilsner like Bud Light. 3700 Superior Ave. E, 216-391-5485
Tink Holl
Don’t let the strong smell scare you. It’s a symptom of a well-stocked meat and seafood section, complete with live lobster ($10.99 per pound), king crab ($39.99 per pound) and less-common proteins such as chicken feet ($1.99 per pound) and whole marinated duck ($19.99 per pound). Organized by region, the aisles are as stocked as any in AsiaTown. Try This: For that famous Filipino kick, pick up a bottle of Mama Sita’s Pure Labuyo Red Hot Pepper sauce ($3.39) from the store’s sizable sauce section. 1735 E. 36th St., 216-881-6996
