LA (Super)Market Thread

Wanted to know where your favorite markets in LA (yes, the valley too) are to buy specialty/hard to find ingredients or places that just have great prices/service. I’m always looking for the next hidden gem.

Here are a couple of mine off the top of my head:

Handy Market in Burbank is a great little butcher. Best kept secret is that they are the only place in town, that I know of, that sells whole beef rib racks and at $5/lb to boot!

Monte Carlo Deli in Burbank is another great one that I frequent often. Great selection of meats and cheeses along with hard to find dried pastas and canned goods at prices that don’t make your jaw hit the floor. They even get Gioia cheeses in fresh twice weekly. Their burrata is killer. Also, the straciatella cheese at the counter is mind-blowing.

Cambridge Farms in Valley Village is a kosher supermarket that has awesome middle-eastern stuff along with a selection of more Ashkenazi foods too. If you happen to stop in there I highly recommend going across the street after to a kosher restaurant called Tel-Aviv. Not fancy at all but killer shawarma and a giant array of great salads that they heap on your plate among other things.

99 Ranch Market…'nuff said

Guido Marcello in Santa Monica is an awesome importer of all kinds of Italian goods. Love their cheese selection and olives.

European Deluxe Sausage Kitchen on Olympic and Doheny has great South African and German stuff. They make their own biltong which is the best I’ve had outside of South Africa and their sausages are top notch.

What are some of your favorites around town?

Love Monte Carlo and usually only go to Handy when they are cooking ribs out in the parking lot

Hardy’s meat market in Studio City, Romeo and his family has run the place for 30 + years and will cut you anything you want, he makes all his own sausages. Not always the cheapest but I swear he is cutting up a whole cow every time I go in there. He will make you a brisket/tri-tip or sausage sandwich that will make you weak in the knees

It’s inside an old rundown market called M&M at Coldwater and Riverside.

Ha! I’ve eaten BBQ at Hardy’s on Saturday many times. Love it when I’m too lazy to make my own.

What is this “valley” place you guys are talking about?

I will see if I can arrange a passport for you

That and a sherpa. You wouldn’t want to get lost out here

And after they build that wall around us it will be really tough to get in

Monte Carlo is also one of the only places in town where you can buy fresh yeast cakes, which are great for making pizza or bread.

I have yet to visit Epicurus Gourmet in North Hollywood, owned by board member Kevin Jones. I peruse the inventory list often - great butter, cheeses, truffles, oils, etc.

I’ll also add India Sweets & Spices. I go to the Canoga Park location and haven’t visited the other locations in many years. Lots of great Indian groceries and the best little restaurant.

Never would have found Epicurus Gourmet, Poppy. Now that’s a gem of a place! Definitely going to stop in there to take a peak around the warehouse.

I love Marukai in Gardena, though I am of Japanese decent. You do need membership to shop.

Marukai is exactly what I was going to post, but you beat me to it. Of great importance: go to the Gardena location. I’ve also been to the Santa Monica location, and it is a mere shell of what Gardena has to offer. Also, membership no longer required to shop there.

now that you stole my #1 idea, I’ll offer up my #2:
La Vendadita Carniceria in Carson. Hands down, the best marinated chicken I have ever had. It is absolutely incredible, and pretty cheap (~$2.30/lb, iirc). Their asada is pretty good, too, but the chicken is a must.

Kevin has a really nice selection of gourmet foods, often at extremely reasonable prices. Esp. for cheeses!

Bruce

HMart in Torrance is a Korean based market with excellent seafood and meats. Excellent produce and a wonderful selection of Asian goods as well. Heading over later in the day.

Cheers!
Marshall

Do you know if there is any difference between the one in Torrance and the one in K-Town? The K-Town location is semi-convenient for me.

Just made a trip to Epicurus Gourmet and loaded up. Great place! Also love that they had a ton of samples out and were tasting a nice '11 Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Auslese. Definitely going to be going back soon!

Yeah the k town one is better.

Marshall, what seafood have you enjoyed from HMart? I love shopping their produce, but have never bought any seafood, as much of it is foreign to me, and I’m honestly put-off by the strong fishy smell emanating from the seafood section of the store. Particular endorsements would certainly give me the confidence/comfort to give those particular items a shot.

Brian: When they first opened, they had about 6 varieties of fresh shrimp available. They also had some terrific clams. Unfortunately, when we went this past Saturday, they only had one variety of shrimp (Ecuador) and we passed on them.
Hope things improve and maybe it is a seasonal thing.


Cheers!
Marshall

Thanks for the response, Marshall. That HMart is literally in my neighborhood, so I frequently do produce shopping there; will keep my eyes open.

They have live abalone at Hmart. Shrimp are hit or miss. I went today and there were only two types neither good qpr. The Ktown store can be kind of expensive on things. I’d rather pay a little more and get great quality at L.A. Fish. Seafood City has better shrimp IMO. But Seafood City and 99 Ranch aren’t your place if you don’t like fishy smell.