Hong Kong Food Market

After doing more than two dozen restaurant reviews, this is my first review for something else. I went to check out Hong Kong Market this past Sunday afternoon, and was very surprised by the place. Had heard about it from a Korean friend, and had checked out Unilocal reviews some time ago, and knew they were very mixed — the usual «worst ever» versus «best ever». To balance a couple of the complaints you read here, I did not smell any kind of nasty odor when entering the store. Frequently at local Kroger stores the first thing I can smell on entering is «bad fish». When I got to the back of the store and saw the fish market I was flabbergasted. Several varieties of fish/​seafood, the whole fish displayed in ice, everything looked fresh to me, there were no flies on the fish or anywhere else in the store that I saw. The prices astounded me, so I presumed you had to pay extra if the fish-​guys cleaned it for you, but NO — service is included in the posted price. The first thing I noticed when I walked up to the counter was that I did not smell «fishy odor» at all. That’s the way it should be. However, as I meandered down the display counters, at one point I did pick up a very faint whiff. Again, compared to other regular grocery stores such as Kroger or Randall, this was nothing. So far I’m not into exotic or unusual vegetables and fruits, but everything looked fresh and intriguing. One greenery I do like is Chrysanthemum leaves (shungiku in Japanese), and they did have very fresh bunches, so I bought one, though it seemed a little pricey. As far as the middle isles are concerned, there is a lot of stuff I have no idea what the items are. I looked for specific things that I do enjoy cooking with, but couldn’t find a couple of things (like bags of katsuo-​bushi for making dashi). Overall I liked Hong Kong Market, but will also check out their Vietnamese competitor a little further down the road.

It smells like you’re in a new country but the selection is really mediocre. Nothing special… I really did like the sweets aisle bc it had a lot of the sweets and jellies I was looking for. The potatoes were 2 days away from rotting so I was disappointed to see that. The lobsters were HUGE! And so was the tilapia. Couldn’t pass that up at all. The crabs were not that big. The Asian market down the road seemed to have a better fresh meat and seafood selection but I was quite impressed with the frozen food section. Won ton wraps, soups, noodles and sticky buns galore! It made me miss the Bay Area china town even more… Next stop has to be the Hong Kong super mall…

I came here hoping to find fresh sardines or mackerel for my doggies and maybe some other foreign goodies but what I found instead was a total disappointment. As soon as you walk in, the stench slaps you across the face. It’s a combination of stinky fish, and pungent spices with a side of decomposing meat. I glanced quickly through the produce section and none of it seemed fresh and it was overpriced. All the meat seemed under temperature and there were flies everywhere. The fish was equally disgusting. It did not appear fresh, the selection was pretty poor and again, there were flies resting on top of the fish. I have no clue why this place hadn’t gotten inspected and shut down for health violations. Be sure to bring a fly swatter if you plan to shop here. Better yet, they should hand you one as you walk in.

I prefer the other Asian market down the road. Hong Kong’s deli has less stuff, and I feel they have less selection in their groceries too. For example I was trying to get some sunflower seeds and they didn’t have any. That’s like sacrilege for an Asian market.

Seafood counter sucks the fish is not fresh. All the signs say fresh but it’s all frozen. The icing on the pieces is obvious. Besides the gills are pink they’re not red as you would find in fresh fish I think the health department needs to come here because this place is really nasty.
PS.
I went down to Thang Hung Asian supermarket waited less time and the fish was really fresh. ADIOS HONG HONG Grocery. Thanks for making me expand my horizons.

Recently, I went to visit my grandmother and every time I go to see her, her only request is to be taken to the market. She no longer drives and my mother who lives with her can get quite busy. Due to this fact, often times my grandmother is left without fresh food. She does keep many things frozen, so she is never left hungry, but it’s nice just to get some fresh items from time to time.
I looked up and this seemed to be the largest vietnamese supermarket in the area. And it is tiny! The veggies are not that fresh and their baked goods were blah. I have to keep searching the area because I was saddened for my grandma. Next time, if we can’t find something else near by I’ll just have to take her to bellaire to grab what she needs.

Swung by to pick up some jicamas! Gonna make us a salad this weekend! If it weren’t for that, 90% sure would not go into the store.
Good selection of produce, but the seafood and butcher department smell is hard to deal with. Wish they had better ventilation and/​or a separate department so the whole store wouldn’t smell like that.
Fiesta at 1960 and 249 is fairly decent but prices are higher on the produce.

This used to be a great supermarket. Now they do not carry the usual weekend prepared foods and desserts like a good Asian store should!
I used to go here when I was a kid and now it is not what I remember it as. I rather go to Thang Hung or Hung Dong where the prices are better and the produce fresher than HK3.
The only good thing is that there is plentiful parking.

I like this place! They have some of the freshest seafood. You pick out what you want and they clean & filet or cut the fish however you want it. They had live Talpia, lobster, crawfish, crab. That’s my main reason for going. Am I buy fresh fruits NO! They look horrible. They have a good variety of Asian groceries.
I will definitely return for fresh seafood.

I have been remiss in writing this review. This market is the Asian market closest to me. I’ve been going here for YEARS. While in an old strip center and kind of worn around the edges, you can always find your Asian food needs here. Crazy shrimp flavored paste, got it. Strange fungus that tastes wonderful, got it. Cool wine in a monkey shaped bottle, got it. The best thing is that it’s not really one Asian cuisine represented here. There is stuff from many different cultures, including central Asia. I like perusing the veggies and talking to the ladies there to see what they recommend and getting recipes. The canned and dried goods have huge selection and I have never left without my ingredients for a recipe, no matter how adventurous. I have found really good prices on the meats here and this is where I prefer to get get my pork loin.
The down sides I have for this place is A) the fishy smell in their fish market. Sorry, it is stinky in here and shouldn’t be B) Veggies are not as fresh as I have found in other markets. They are cheap, but I like fresh more than cheap. C) Some areas of the store could stand to be cleaned, in particular the kitchen wares.

Vegetables wasn’t as fresh as I’m used to being that I’m a vegetarian. But had to have them. Super sick and my daughter. So had to go somewhere quick.

This market has some really fresh veggies for cheap. I live in The Woodlands area and used to go to Viet Hoa to stock up on my Asian food staples. This place is a lot closer to me so I decided to stop by since several of my coworkers had recommended this place. I stocked on everything such as fruits, veggies, meat, and frozen products (siopao, lumpia, ube ice cream). I gave this place 3 stars because I bought a frozen cured seasoned meat («Tapa») and the sell by date on it is 6÷12÷12. Um I don’t think that’s a typo. I was really looking fwd to having it for dinner tonight. I know you can freeze meat for up to 3mos and it’d still be good. But over a year? This place needs to rotate their stock when restocking. Other than that, this place has everything you need for ethnic cooking.

Ok, I’ve decided to upgrade these bastards from 1 to 2 stars. Mainly because they now carry breadfruit that I can’t seem to find anywhere else in Houston. Otherwise I still prefer to make the extra drive to Super H-​Mart instead for a cleaner and fresher experience.

Went there for lumpia wrappers. Store made me feel like I was walking in downtown Hong Kong (not that I’d ever been but what I image it to be like). They have fresh seafood and I mean fresh! Fish tanks and you choose your fish and they de-​scale it for you. Good prices as well! I’ll be back! Only thing that sucks is that it’s a 45 minute drive!!!

cheap fishs and vegitables,
otherwise not much interesting.

Out of all of the Asian specialty grocery stores I have visited, this one seems to be the cleanest one hands down. The parking lot does not do it justice but when you walk in here expecting to scringe at the stink factor that usually hits you in the face is absent! Wow, they must have a really good air filter system or something working in this store, it is not until you make it to the back meat and seafood market where things get a little… fishy. It’s expected though, you can smell the fresh cutting of the seafood that is constantly being sliced, gutted, washed as well as the meats too.
The isles: Clean, unclutered, only maybe 2 out of 10 isles had a few stuff in the path but these were maybe 1 or 2 boxes.
There is this security guard up front that is commissioned (has a gun) and could almost beat Chuck Norris in a stoic stare down contest. There surrounding neighborhood really isn’t that bad but you can’t be too careful.
You will find this market a tad hidden behind a Metro Bank, a bank of restaurants like Ha’s Kitchen, a newly opened Crawfish place, Phở Danh #3 and other variety of stores that support each other here.
Be careful when you leave, the people here don’t seem to partake to the driving lanes like they should.

Love Asian Food!!! Really glad Hong Kong Market is on the north side of town also. Have happily shopped here over 10+ years.
Went here yesterday to stock up on my favorites. Was in big time need of beef eye round and they sliced it SUPER THIN and layered in perfectly in like 2 minutes so I could use it to make PHO at home (so many regular grocery stores can’t or won’t do this). 5 star for that.
Anyway they have a good selection of meats (lean looking hamburger meat only 1.59lb!) and fish and our always willing to help whether it be cutting up your fish or any special requests you have.
Also got my favorite frozen Vietnamese Saigon Eggrolls-​Pork w/​Shrimp 50pcs $ 18.99.
These are high quality and Yummy. I live in Montgomery County so I’m deprived of many Vietnamese Restaurants.
Some of the produce has gone up in price from their very low prices. Still overall less expensive than Kroger’s. Plus the diversity of vegetables is very good. Bummer– out of fresh basil yesterday. Out of a few of my other favorites also but still got $ 120.00 of well priced Asian groceries. My suv was packed.
Also the cashier guy bagged all my stuff perfectly according to caregories. An unexpected plus which made stocking my fridge and pantry easy.

I usually go here for the seafood and produce.
When they weigh the meat/​seafood make sure you check the scale before they print the ticket, ½ lb to them is like 1 lb.
One thing I really dislike is how some of the male workers stare at the customers, ehhemm cute young women. ugh
Sadly, HK Food Market’s quality has steadily declined. The store has gotten dirtier and the produce– limper. There’s still a wide variety of seafood, thank goodness. It’s sad because this is the anchor store in the shopping center and if this fails then all the shops around will be affected.

It is strange that the two markets can be so different while supposedly being twins. This one has a cleaner, more efficient feel to it than the Bellaire location and the produce is often much better. I was reminded of fresh water chestnuts, and that the Hong Kong markets are the only place I have found them with any regularity and usually enough turnover to keep their inventory fresh. Some great varieties of greens that are difficult or impossible to find anywhere else in Houston.
I do not seem to have the problems that other people do, possibly because I am over six foot tall and a round-​eye who prefers to cut up his own duck and fish, even the bad cart drivers seem to make way for me.

I’ve been coming here since I was a kid. Now, that I’m older… I only come here when I’m taking my G-​ma (grandma) or if I’m getting groceries with the family. I rather go to this store than go to the one at Bellaire because it’s closer to me and I can always find parking unlike at Bellaire.
It’s fairly large and has all the essentials of an Asian market. The produce is alright but the only produce I will buy here are the veggies. The fruit I don’t trust and it’s usually already too ripe or moldy. I also think the fruit is a tad overpriced.
The meat selection is pretty good and usually has what you need to make whatever it is that you’re making. The fish is fresh but… the guys who work there will eye-​rape you. Seriously. When I come here… I tell them what fish I want then hide in the aisle while waiting. [Shivers]
During certain hours and days, you can buy cooked ducked, pork, or whatever they sell BUT do not buy it here. Why? Well, when you pick out the duck that you want, the lady will go behind the counter, chop it up, and place it in a container. Nothing wrong so far, right? Well, when you get home and are prepared to eat some duck, you go «WTF? Where’s all the meat?» This is where the problem comes in, the lady often keeps all the meaty parts of the duck while giving you only the bones of the duck with barely any meat on it. Seriously, don’t waste your money on here. You’ll get ripped off. If somehow, you’re craving for duck, get it and stare at the lady chopping it up so she’ll know you’re onto her. Therefore, she’ll give you all the goodness of the duck.