Maruta Shoten

Seriously, anyone that gives this place less than 4 stars needs to be punched in crotch!!! I’ve been coming here for years and every one of the ladies here are soooooo nice. They have an authentic selection of Japanese snacks, drinks, and grocery items.
Also they have a deli section, and don’t get me started on the deli section… The Japanese food here is AUTHENTIC!!! I’ve been to Japan many times and their deli food tastes like how my Obachan’s (grandma’s) home cookin’. I LOVE THIS PLACE and I try to make it down there whenever I can!!!

It’s great to have a Japanese grocery near BH with ready parking, such friendly employees and reasonable prices. Sometimes it’s a hassle to head all the way to uwajimaya. Their prepared foods are solid from the donburi and bentos to the nigiri and sushi, you can’t go wrong. Get there after 5pm and the sushi and other deli foods are half off (limit 3 per person).

What a cool little grocery mart/​food to-​go place! I usually drop by to grab some sashimi. They have great prices here and the fish is really fresh. I unfortunately always come after work, so the hot food stations are already cleared by then, but they do have the pre-​packed left overs that look tasty. I will need to drop by and try it.
They do not have much in the way of fresh meats or anything like that, so if you’re looking for a stocked grocery store, this is not it. If you want some sauces and snacks, this is a great stop.

Such a variety of sushi bentos, hot foods, etc. it was sensory overload — so much to look at and decisions on what to try. Very similar to Uwajimiya’s but more affordable. Tuesdays are 10% discount for seniors (60+). This was our first visit but definitely not our last. We have passed this place many times and never stopped since we were usually going in the opposite direction. This will be our go-​to place to pick up something for lunch to take to the park or on road trips.

Maruta Shoten is like the Japanese version of a 7-​Eleven and a small grocery store mixed in one, but WAY better! Any place that sells my childhood favorite Japanese treats (aka — Anything with Hello Kitty on the box), multiple varieties of saki, quality sushi rolls, and hot to-​go dishes all in one place is right by me.
Besides Uwajamaya, Maruta Shoten is a great way to get a sushi fix to tie you over until you can get to the nearby sushi bar. You can also get some good deals on sushi at Maruta towards the end of the day (after 5 pm with rolls costing between $ 4 – 7).

An awesome selection! It’s a tiny location in a strange part of Georgetown but they have a wide variety of Japanese and Korean things. I am especially fond of the furikake and rice toppings selection. There are also a few cookware items. The owners speak Japanese as well!

I’m coming to buy Bento boxes and Katsu-​don. After around 5:30…50%off all left over bento boxes & daily meals and store close at 6pm. Especially bento boxes are much better taste than Uwajimaya and reasonable. Maruta shouten is a small store compare to Uwajimaya. But nice services and friendly.

This place is indeed a hidden gem. Inside, it feels like a smaller scale version of Uwajimaya.
FUN FACT: 50% off sushi at 5pm every day!

Great shop and a fun place for lunch. The sushi can be too cold, I mean ice on it 10 minutes later. As people said after 5pm things are 50% and since prices are reasonable you can get a lot. The hot dishes are really good as well. The grocery aspect of the store is like the convenience store for asian ingredients so you get get your must haves.

Probably the best and fresh Sushi in the area. My friend is from Japan says the same thing and he goes their daily.
Their Chinese food and Don bowls are very cheap and affordable Under $ 7 and really big portions. I am 6ft and 190lbs and I love food and one of these would fill me up good.
Discounted Sushi at 5PM.
Workers are friendly.
But try to get their early, parking lot is kind of crowded, the entrance is kinda small.

This place is a hidden gem in the Georgetown area. A true Japanese grocery store operated by true Japanese people!
If you are looking for Japanese dry goods, sauces, noodles or drinks, this is your place! They are definitely lacking on vegetables, fruits, meat and seafood. If that’s what you’re looking for, head down the street to Uwajimaya.
Their highlight is their FOOD! I’m not sure how this place makes money charging so little (please don’t raise your prices.) A 6 piece sushi roll or nigiri sushi set will run you anywhere from 4.75 to 6.25, which is a steal! In the mood for hot food? They got you covered. They have chicken over rice, egg over rice and other various rice bowls for about $ 6.
After 5, most of their food is 50% off! You’ll be bumping shoulders with other people taking advantage of deals, so be prepared. In addition, I’ve dropped in during lunch hours and have found marked down food items (probably from the day before) but they were still good!
Only downside of this place is that they have no seating area to eat your food. If you’re antisocial, this is your spot! You can eat in your car, take it home or go back to your office. It would be nice to sit down on a table to chat, instead of eating lunch on the trunk of your car. Oh well, their cheap food will keep me coming back for more!

You won’t find better Japanese take-​out anywhere else east of Hawaii. Incredibly affordable deals on their regular-​priced hot food items and sushi/​sashimi plates and bentos, Maruta even has a «happy-​hour» at 5pm-​closing where all rolls, hot deli, and bento combos disappear off the shelves at 50% off! It always feels like they just made the food fresh from market ingredients, and their uniquely delicious flavors pack a punch. The Japanese staff are the kindest ever and their smiles might leave as strong an impression as the quality of their food and service do. I wish they had tables to sit and enjoy and its elusive as to why they don’t already. Most likely because their private parking lot, tho ample for drivers coming and going, wouldn’t fit the entire city who would come and want to stop to enjoy this gem of a Japanese Shokuryōhin-​ten.

Love this place!
Good selection of snacks and seasonings and lunch boxes and sushi! So glad to have this Japanese store in this area!

I’ve been going to this place since I started working in Seattle for the past 6 years.
Good food and very affordable.
But I noticed that the portion has gotten a lot smaller. I’m not sure if it was the lady serving me or if this is standard now. I opened up my to go meal and it looked like somebody already ate them. At first I thought my food spilled but this was not so.
It’s too bad because I always liked this place but I’m giving it 2 stars based on the food I just got 20 minutes ago. But I will go to this place again. Maybe it was just the lady.
If it’s the same, well, there are other businesses out there.

For a quick inexpensive Asian combo lunch this is a good place to go. The portions are more than enough for lunch and the price is right. The selection is typical for take out and tastes very good. There is much more in the market but I have not explored that yet.

Love love love this market for everything they have! The deli is the best! HH after 5p! 50% off all of their deli foods

It saddens me to write such a review but I wasted my time here twice, waiting for something that I did not end up getting.
My favorite thing here is the Salmon Musubi, they are generous with the amount of salmon they put in it and the price is a lot better than Uwajimaya. Everytime I go by Maruta, that is what I get. The sad thing is they only make 6 per day, and usually I only passed by during late afternoons, and they are usually sold out.
2 weeks ago, I was there around 11pm, so I stopped by hoping that I will get lucky. I asked the lady behind the counter if they had already made salmon musubis, she went back and check and said they will be ready in 15 minutes. I asked her to confirm if they were the triangle shaped sushi filled with salmon and she said yes. I was overjoyed, so I stood there for 15 minutes and waited. And guess what came out??? Tempura Musubis! I was shocked, disappointed, and with sadness I told her again, I wanted the SALMON one. And she answered with «oh i am sorry. We sold out of that»
We were going to pass by Maruta again today, this time it was 10am. Not wanting to waste time again, I called ahead of time to inquire about my beloved musubis. The lady on the phone repeated after me, «salmon musubis?» I said «yes SALMON musubis.» She answered after inquiring in the kitchen that it will be 10 minutes. And again, I was so excited. Went in, the same lady from last time was behind the counter, i asked her if my order of salmon musubis were ready, she asked if I had called earlier and I said yes. She told me they were making them right now, and it will be about 10 minutes. Sounds kinda familiar? Well 10 minutes later, the results was 1 spam musubi.
I was shocked, disappointed, upset and in disbelief. I understand miscommunication once, but twice? Everytime, after me repeating myself and emphasizing «salmon», they gave me in return, the 2 other musubis that is not salmon. I love them and will still return but my love for this place has strongly diminish after two failed attempts.

After hearing about their 50% off bentos/​sushi at 5pm, my boyfriend and I decided to hit this place up for dinner! When we arrived the lot was almost entirely full of folks waiting for the clock to strike 5 so they already had their bottom shelf bentos in hand. We grabbed chirashi, spicy salmon sushi, and oyako donburi and brought it home to eat. Pretty good especially at that half off price!
At the store we also grabbed some dashi no moto, natto, and karashi (hot mustard paste). Although their overall selection is by far less than that of Uwajimaya or H-​Mart, they did have what we need and at low prices too!

O M G. O M G. O M G. Thank Buddha for Maruta Shoten! Ok, so if you’ve read my past reviews or even know me, you’ll know that I’m part Japanese – like my mom is from Japan, not 2^nd or 3^rd generation – and I grew up and lived in Hawaii for most of my life. So Japanese food is crazy important to my well being, and with that being said I know the difference between Japanese food and the blanket term «Asian» food.
So when we first moved out here I was like, Uwajimaya is a must. We found it, and while it satisfied my Asian-​ness, it left my Japanese-​self kind of sad. Like it was Japanese but not really, and the food court is not Japanese at all. Nothing against all the other Asian cultures out there but with a store named Uwajimaya, you kind of expect more of a Japanese feel. I wanted it to be like Little Tokyo in LA (old school Little Tokyo when they still had Yaohan, then Mistuken).
So the librarian at UW turned me on to Maruta Shoten. She’s part Japanese too and said she loved this store because it was *all* Japanese. A lot smaller, but nonetheless Japanese. And it is! I walked in and was like, yup this is it. My future go to place for all foods Japanese. The workers are Japanese and speak Japanese, the sushi, bentos and donburi’s are affordable and delicious. It’s a small store but it has everything, in my opinion. It just smells good. So thank you librarian. Thank you Maruta Shoten, for existing. I’m happy.

So many bento plates to choose from. And spam musubi, which is primarily the reason I come here.
There is also a grocery section where you can get Asian cooking foodstuffs and necessities.
There is so much to try and I’ve haven’t been here enough to have a well developed opinion. But the spam musubi is great!