Hawaii Supermarket

Its my first time coming here, and its really huge asian store. If you are just come from your asia hometown (Chinese) You can find anything in here. You’ll be surprised with what they’ve in there. Highly recommended to come here. They have a little bit from here and there.

This is a down and mildly dirty Chinese supermarket. However, they have a ridiculous selection of fine wines in a glass display case just past the main entrance – vintage Bordeaux, Burgundy, and new world alike that I can only dream of drinking someday. Crazy!

I’ve been shopping at Hawaii Supermarket for many years.
The clientele is almost all Asian, over ninety five percent Asian, Chinese in particular.
But there are always a few Latino customers at every Asian market.
The security guards here are also Latino.
As others have noted the parking is notorious! Cars waiting for another car to pull out.
I don’t find the market dirty like some people have mentioned, but it isn’t a high end market with expensive fixtures either.
I think the layout at Shun Fat supermarket on Atlantic in Monterey Park is a bit more high end, and the parking less hectic.
Hawaii Supermarket is on the corner of Del Mar and Valley.
There’s been ongoing street construction on Del Mar for years! It does seem to be nearing completion.
Police do ticket you if you enter, or exit the parking lot incorrectly on Del Mar, so watch out for patrol cars.
I was surprised by the name Hawaii Supermarket at first.
But then I realized that the point of entry for many, perhaps most Asians into the US is thru Hawaii.
So it makes sense. Hawaii means friendly territory for many Asians. The name doesn’t mean the products on sale are Hawaiian.
I’ve never been treated rudely, I’m sure the clerks are more accustomed to customers who speak Chinese, so I go out of my way to greet them with a smile, and they always return my smile and give me their best effort at English.

This is a very good Chinese supermarket with a huge collection of goods at reasonable price.
Pros:
(1) A huge collection of goods. If you had spent a lot of time in looking for some rare or unpopular Chinese stuff, but could not elsewhere, then you shall try Hawaii. They have a hug collection, with a lot of diversity, and beyond your imagination. I had been looking for a special spice from my hometown for a while, and eventually I found it in Hawaii after many failures elsewhere. I felt so good that afternoon.
(2) Reasonable price. They do not over price, and their price usually is usually very good. In Chinese, you can say this is «Liang Xin Jia» (Honest-​hearted price).
It should take them great effort to manage such a huge collection of goods, from batch-​ordering to retailing. If you had been a manager, you shall understood how difficult it is. They surely could cut off those unpopular or low profit stuff, but they do not. They still sell some $ 1 or $ 2 stuff. They still have some very unpopular items. They may look unwise, but their existence serves the local Chinese community. This is why I am prompted to write this review.
(3) Organized. Though they carrier a huge collection of goods, the stock are organized. You can find items without much time.
Cons:
(1) Parking is not very easy, because they have a lot of customers.
(2) The building is a bit old.
In a word, it is a very impressive Chinese supermarket. it is always a fun to exploring its stacks.

Don’t be fooled! This isn’t a supermarket that sells Hawaiian groceries, foods, or items! (not that I thought so but I realize people who aren’t unfamiliar might be under this impression)
I used to shop here all of the time with my family when I was younger and I had family who worked here too. This store is a pretty decent size but not as big compared to the San Gabriel Superstore. Like any other Asian grocery store, produce is very cheap and affordable here! There isn’t as wide of a selection of seafood though that I’ve seen at other stores.
Parking is pretty small and in a neighborhood full of bad drivers, it could be risky to park sometimes. Folks don’t know how to roll carts back and it’s just always a hot mess in the parking lot!
This isn’t my go-​to grocery store but if I’m in the area and need something, then I would just grab it from here.

Kind of a random tip but if you’re looking for a pet they sell Turtles and Frogs here

Inexpensive Asian fruits and veggies and fresh seafood!!! I love coming here for my groceries. If possible, come during the week as it is very crowded during the weekends!

I bought a bottle of pepper oil on December 5^th. Opened it when I got home and it smelled weird. I checked the expiration date and found out it was 06, 2015. Today my husband went back to the market to return it. The manager told him he couldn’t get the refund without the receipt but he can get another bottle as replacement. Here it is the funny thing, my husband found all the bottles on the rack had expired. Having no choices, he grabbed some other different bottle with less value.
I should have taken a picture of the product to show everyone here. I wish I could remember the manufacture and call them if they would be ok to have the market selling their expired FOOD. Be careful!

This is one of my most favorite grocery markets in the San Gabriel Valley. Great selection of food products and other items at competitive prices. Their produce is fresh and comes in so many varieties. Their liquor selections are also impressive although it’s a grocery store. They have many types of wines, cognacs and other alcohols at prices that beat BevMo easily.

We passed by this store the other day, and I just had to return and go inside. The name of this supermarket is just too amusing!
This is a typical Asian market with fresh produce, frozen meats, live seafood, household goods, canned goods, toiletries and personal care items, house slippers, preserved foods, candies, cookies, luggage, Western and Eastern medicine, etc. The only thing missing might be clothing.
It’s located on the corner of Del Mar Avenue and Valley Boulevard. There’s a free parking lot right in the front.
It didn’t seem too «Hawaiian» to me, but ake a look and check it out.. The air conditioning is working well!

Cheapest groceries in the SGV! Unfortunately, that comes with a price right? Be prepared to encounter rude elders, workers, all kinds of people! But hey what can you do, we came here for cheap groceries.
Parking is a mess! Keep an eye out for the drivers! I speak on the behalf of the Asian community here in the SGV, they do not CARE what a stop sign means!
What’s gross is Hawaii supermarket sells frozen armadillos, frozen rattle snakes, snapper turtles, is that ethical?

I came here many time, The goods price are reasonable cost. Every thing always perfect, but this evening I went buy just a bottle of sauce pour Sukiyaki (sauce for hotpot) .
Then I headed to category of sauce but they close around 3 section for clean so I asked some body who was cleaning «I need just that sauce .» He told me «No, he had to clean 3 hour .Then I talked with manger that I need just a bottle of sauce can some body take it out for me. He told me «it out of stock right now, it will come again next week ! He is good but another gay stand beside of him very very rude !!! He talked with me like a impolite guy, he said ‘nobody can’t get in, we need to clean right now !! You can’t you can’t !!! He spoke loud sound look like complain me, like I made him mad, like I did big problem. I known I just a small custumer who want to buy some grocery but you should have service mild with another person .I did bring your money to buy some food. I just need some help that one custumer ask for the stuff. If youguys don’t want to meet any people please stay with home don’t come to work because you would make another person felt bad and sympathy with you .
Finally, if you have to clean you market should clean after market close please !!! Um, I got my sauce at 99 ranch later -))

This is the best place to get high quality liquor. They have a big selection of all the good stuff. Congacs, Whiskys, Etc. And for a better price than anywhere in town. This supermarket is like the WALMART of Liquors. This is a Asian Supermarket but they’re liquor selection is better than BevMo. If you are looking for High premium Champagne, or a very exclusive Cognac, or a Pricey bottle of whisky, that has a better price than maybe the local liquor stores, this is definately the place to go. I bought a Cognac as a gift for my dad, it’s a limited edition bottle, and I could not find it anywhere, not even costco. and for a good affordable price. They even have $ 1000 cognac bottles and a big selection for the ballers. People I know come miles to get the liquor here. I will be back most definately

Who cares about the terrible parking, un-​smiley faces. Obviously if you judge your groceries based on these things you should just go across the street to 99 Ranch and get ripped off for the same sh*t.
For the 10+ years I’ve been here never had I experienced really bad parking. There are a lot of people here and they get in and out quick. So just camp somewhere for a few minutes someone will leave. I’ve had many times over worst parking experience in Santa Anita mall. You need to be in Asian mode here and be willing to break some etiquette with parking, yes that means signaling for a spot from the opposite direction as they have slanted parking here.
The liquor selection here is just ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE with seriously the best prices, better than any purveyor. Their high traffic of people also means many of there stuff gets cycled out quickly and new inventory in. I spent quite some time in the aisle with all the little gizmos and dollar-​store stuff. The impression people who first come may be «dirty-​asian market’ but this is actually quite organized if you can see past the initial reaction.

This is a review of my experience in the parking lot of this store yesterday around 3:00 PM. The lot was so crowded there were no places to park. I was ready to bail on this place right then, we had passed 168 Market on the way here and it had Acres of parking. Anyhow, we thought we had found a place and was waiting for a Honda minivan to vacate a spot, then all of the sudden the minivan comes out fast, in a trajectory that would take the front in off of our car. My friend backed up abruptly to avoid this minivan,
and bumped the car behind us. The old lady in the car behind us got very angry and beating on the window of our car furious. Mind you there is NO dent, just a small thumbnail sized piece of white paint chipped off the bumper of a 15 to 18 year old Lexus. Well, my girlfriend gets out of her (our) car to talk with the lady she hit. There is loud screaming pissed off people, this lady wants $ 200 or shes gonna call the cops the insurance companies, Governor Brown, OBAMA, you name it. She is intent on extorting money from my hard working girlfriend. They lady was making such a big deal out of it. A crowd gathered around. We talked the extortionist down to $ 100 to settle down and go home and WHOA, here comes the security guard. All 4 foot six inches and 125 pound of him, to regulate the situation. He started ordering us around telling us to move these cars. I told him to give us five minutes, and we would be out of the way. He insisted we move now, but that was not gonna happen. So he and I got into it, and I cussed him out and told him to mind his own business. He assured me that this was his business. I asked him to please just do one of two things 1) mind his own business long enough for us to pay the lady and leave, or 2) Jump up my ass and eat his way out. Everybody in the crownd of bystanders laughed, and I did too. I never did make it in the store. After all this drama we ended up at 168 after all. And that was my first visit to this market.
I will update if I ever actually shop.

Alright, first things first; This is a Chinese supermarket. What does that mean? It’s just not clean. If you have experience with many Chinese grocery stores, then you know. Yeah, it’s just not going to be clean.
Anyway, I’ve been coming to this store with my mom for more than a decade. I can’t even remember how far back it goes. It’s almost always impossible to find parking. That’s a pain.
The market is organized and has a butcher/​fish market in the back. You can find a lot of things you need here. There’s even a Filipino aisle! I am never without wants after leaving here.
Is this my favorite grocery store? Nope. My mom seems to like it a lot though. I think I’d prefer the 99 Ranch Market across the street.

Typical dirty Asian market but they pretty much have anything you might want from an Asian market at fairly reasonable prices. I like the Vietnamese drinks they have pre packaged in back refrigerator. I couldn’t even look at their meat/​fish dept because it smelled so bad.

This place is a mess… from parking to store. It’s right on the corner of Valley and Del Mar, with one of the main entrances on Valley. This entrance is very narrow, and the parking lot is always busy, not quite sure why! (I even 99 Ranch Market’s parking lot more.)
I came here one night at 9:50pm since it was one of the few around my area that closes at 10pm and I needed to beat the clock. At 9:50pm, about 97% of all the lights were off and continuing to shut off… with 10 minutes left! Workers were sitting and staring at the clock waiting for 10 minutes to pass so they could rush out. Yikes!
The products here aren’t bad, and they have a normal price range (not too expensive), and they have more exotic animals than I’ve seen at a lot of other markets. But… since I don’t usually go to markets to get exotic animals, and many times things seem out of place… PLUS the horrible parking lot and the «let’s shut off all our lights before closing so customers will not want to come in…» attitude, will keep this place at a A-​OK rating for me.

I’m going 4 stars, because I had a BLAST in here, but let me be totally forthcoming to let you know I did not spend as much time here as I really wanted to. The place is huge, and is begging for a more in-​depth investigation. As it was, I rushed in and did not thoroughly check out the meat, fish, condiment or snack aisles. I will save that for an Updated review.
I immediately headed to the produce department, where I make my judgements about an ethnic market, always. I rate it by: 1. Selection (is it very different from a Von’s?) 2. Freshness (is it one step away from garbage, complete with flies? Or is it pristine and fresh?) 3. Layout (is it organized well, so that even a newbie can navigate? are there produce bags readily available?)
Well, Hawaii won on #1 and #2. My Von’s does NOT carry fresh Durian, fresh water chestnuts (and those nut-​things that look like batman’s mask– what the heck are those??) Asian long-​beans, Chinese broccoli, fresh tofu, and Chinese eggplant for 29 CENTS a pound! I am NOT kidding! There were fresh (pre-​bagged) longans and lychees, but the ones that were 1.99 a pound did not look too fresh. The others that looked good at 7.99/# but cost a fortune.
I did end up splurging on a DURIAN. I haven’t braved up to try it yet, but it was the smallest one and it ended up costing over 20.00. I know, I am crazy and my kids are threatening to throw me out of the house (with the durian, which is, right at this moment incidentally, stinking up my backyard)
Yes, its challenging for a suburban housewife like me to navigate, I guess, people aren’t really outwardly friendly and don’t practice much eye contact. But I don’t care. I’m there for the food!
I practiced, as always, «You Get What You Give» credo and got a SMILE out of the cashier. The bagging service kid was very kind, warning me about the spikey beast (durian) and double bagging it in paper and plastic. The parking lot, at 10:30 am, was fine, I scored a very good spot with plenty of space. Of course, this was in my jalopy-​er, Van, so I park where I want without worry. If you drive a Cayenne, maybe you want to rethink that.
I’d say first visit a success, I’ll be back.

Ridiculously tight parking, fresh rock shrimp
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So they ran out of rock shrimp at 168. We came here instead, and made out like a bandit. The shrimp was so fresh, it jumped out of the net. The meat was succulent, and tasted like slightly sweet lobster meat. It beats crawfish, hands down!
The only down side was the ridiculously tight parking lot. But that’s probably because of the NYE rush on groceries.
They sell various items including housewares and various alcoholic beverages. Check out the Opus One in the front of the store, behind a locked glass case and guarded by a? plainclothes owner. It’s over a hundred bucks a bottle.