Asian Food Center

Reviews 8

JO

Jon Conley

One Of The Cleanest Asian Grocery Stores Around AFC isnt perfect, but it has a great cooking supply section (mostly Korean hardware, but a nice selection of tools), tons of snacks from most SE Asian countries, a huge variety of chili condiments (hi, Lau Ganma Crispy Chili), coconut milks, soy sauces, et cetera. Their prices are pretty much in line with 99 Ranch (please only go to the ones up North if you ever go to those stores). The first time here, I joked "this place is like the Asian Whole Foods" because of how clean and perfectly presented the store appeared to be. Subsequent visits have lead to a few disappointments in stocking habits, but overall, its quite nice. I still prefer the quality of Uwajimaya over anything, but, AFC is fairly clean and affordable while still being cheap, with only a few exceptions; mainly, some of the produce is clearly rotted (mostly the melons), and the refrigerated noodle section is not at all cold enough and can be poorly rotated (Ive found moldy noodles there). Meat has been properly chilled and cycled, whenever I buy it. The prices arent as good as the bulk Costco prices, but theyre decent. And theres less sad, grey meat than the QFCs and Safeways youre probably used to. Definitely visit this place if cleanliness is a factor. Some of the vegetables are unwashed (cheaper), but youll get a weeks worth of groceries for ~$60-80 versus the ~$200 youd spend at a traditional American grocery store. Just dont ever buy noodles or dumpling wrappers from stores without doors for their refrigerated sections. If you can afford Uwajimaya, stick to that. If you primarily need SE Asian ingredients, Seafood City in Tukwila is also great. But AFC is the next best thing in terms of quality and its totally affordable.

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DA

Dave Stone

It is nice to have a large Asian grocery store in my neighborhood; we no longer have to go to HT Oak Tree Market down south, nor to the ID or Lynwood in order to get a nice selection of produce and Chinese condiments etc. That being said, this place is really not much better than the other popular Asian grocery stores in North Seattle and further up north. As with HT Oak Tree Market, Ranch 99, and the various inexpensive groceries in the ID, you have to chose your produce carefully. Stuff is cheaper here, but quality is also more suspect, and you might find that the veggies or fruit you thought looked good when you bought them are a bit moldy after 24 hours in the fridge. Also, we purchased beef short ribs here, and they were exceptionally tough, which ruined a grilling experience for me... I have never had issues like this with meat around here at a big chain American-style supermarket. I am not saying that everything here is bad quality, simply that you have to inspect produce and meat carefully and still worry about getting something less than great, which makes shopping just a little bit more stressful than it should be. I will still go here at least once every couple of weeks, they have lots of stuff that we use, good priced, and the location is good for us. Also, the place is very clean and well laid-out and the staff are helpful and friendly. However I wont implicitly trust the quality of meat and produce, and probably will give a piece of my business to the Albertsons that shares their parking lot.

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BI

bill lan

Food selections are good, however quality is a suspect. I purchase food for a family of 5 and I have purchased meat/poultry/fish/veggies from this store for about 10 times in the past month (May 2015). Last time it was the last draw as the meat I have purchased is again not fresh and has to be thrown away. I suspect this establish does not follow the proper procedure in food handling and/or deliberately sell past expiration meat to keep their cost down. Here are the four times I had issues: 1) Pack of Beef flank steak, the meat was sour after 1 day of leaving in the fridge (my brand new GE fridge has a 32F meat section) 2) Pack of Pork butt steak, opened right after I got home, it was rotten stink at the back, brought it back right away and got a refund 3) Pork bellies over the counter for approximately $9, cooked the day after storing in the fridge, meat was noticeably sour, we did not eat and throw it away 4) Over the counter ground pork, again, left in the fridge overnight, and it was very sour foul smell again Other than these issues with meat section, I have tried to return a package of rotten chives (opened 30 min after purchase), it was completely rotten in the back of the package. I have also purchased bass fish from this place, only 2 out of 3 times the fish were absolutely fresh. P.S. Never had any problem with Uwajimaya

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RO

Robin Varni

Nothing bad can come of more access to international foods - except maybe an addiction to an obscure Taiwanese sesame candy. I love exploring the aisles. They have a nice selection of Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese, etc., mixed with primarily Chinese products. (If you have feelings about Chinese manufacture standards, you will have to stay alert.) I got Korean soju and 3-in-1 coffee, Taiwanese shao bing you tiao, Japanese mochi snacks, nonfried vegetarian ramen from Singapore, and some hilarious Chinese prepared noodles in spicy sauce with an illustration of a brokenhearted woman with tears pouring down her face - apparently youre supposed to eat these noodles after a break up. Shelves are nicely stocked and super organized. Relaxing lighting and I like that they are filling the entry hall with vendors for a more indoor mall feeling. One criticism: The produce section is pretty much an afterthought. They need to focus their concept. Either they choose to have a wide variety of the usual, freshest, Asian produce - or they have select portions of hard to find, hellishly pricy, tropical imports. Right now its a mishmash of those and everything is a little wilted and pricy.

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SE

Seungsook Park

종류가 아주 많아요. 김치도 큰 통을 팔고 한국무, 콩나물, 청경채 등 나물 거리도 많아 좋아요. 상품은 같은 종류여도 중국 일본 한국 브랜드들을 전부 갖다 놓았네요. 이름처럼 아시아 푸드 센터 답습니다. 하지만 값이 많이 저렴한 것 같지는 않습니다. 상추들도 관리 소홀인지 늘 좀 시들하고요. 가장 큰 문제는 여러번 방문해도 여전히 진열 배치가 효과적이지 않아 물건들을 찾기가 쉽지 않고 분류도 한 눈에 안 들어오고 늘 빙빙 돌다 지친다는 겁니다.

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PE

Peter Schulte

Its pricey, but they will have what you are looking for. My wife grew up in the Philippines, where we visit frequently. she also lived in Hong Kong for 20 years and she cooks every week. So we buy a lot of Asian grocery market items here that I never heard of and she knows how to prepare. They will clean a fish for you. We bought some delicious pompano here. There are a number of good Asian eateries in the same building, including the gourmet Kiki Bakery, one of our favorites. Although this Asian Food Center is not in our neighborhood, we find ourselves going there almost every month, if not more often. Its good.

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RO

Rossy Li

Just moved to North Seattle from downtown area and I found a jewel! The facility is really new and clean and well maintained. The cashiers are always friendly. My shopping experience at AFC has been great. Most importantly, the selection of Chinese grocery is just unbeatable. Forget about Uwajimaya or even 99 Ranch. This is your store if you need authentic Chinese grocery. On the other side though, there is not much Japanese snack.

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MA

Maia Hammy

Wide selection but the few frozen items we bought tasted very old and had to be tossed. Also disappointed in the deli, which is way in the back and tiny--no fresh bbq pork, and the hot items looked meager and stewed. Right now this is a grocery store only, with a small selection of gift items. Looking forward to front part of store to be finished -- theyre planning a mall-like area with multiple restaurants or shops.

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