In New York City’s Manhattan, where prices continue to soar, dining out frequently can quickly rack up food expenses. For long-term residents, international students, and locals alike, ‘Asian supermarkets’ are truly a lifeline.
Their uses are diverse: when you miss the taste of Japan, when you want to buy fresh, affordable vegetables or thinly sliced meat, or when you simply want a quick and delicious lunch from a hot deli. Each supermarket has its unique strengths, and knowing how to utilize them effectively is key to a rich culinary life in New York.
This time, we’ve carefully selected five truly useful Asian supermarkets in Manhattan from the many available – based on their product selection, deli quality, and strong local appeal. Beyond just listing products, we’ll delve deeper into how locals use these spots, share shopping tips, and reveal must-try menu items.
Hashi Market
📍 Address: 330 5th Ave, New York, NY 10001 USA
Located on 5th Avenue, not far from the Empire State Building, this is the flagship store of ‘Hashi Market,’ a large Japanese supermarket that just opened in late 2024. The store is incredibly spacious and clean, boasting an extensive selection that’s hard to believe for being right in the heart of Manhattan.
Its greatest feature is the restaurant-quality seafood and trendy Japanese products. They handle fresh seafood air-shipped from Japan, and if you’re lucky, you might even witness an impressive ‘bluefin tuna filleting show.’ The freshly cut lean and fatty tuna are immediately available in-store. Their ‘Salmon Ikura Don’ (salmon and salmon roe bowl) and ‘Sashimi and Sushi Assortment Bento’ in the bento section are renowned among Japanese residents and foodies for their thick-cut fish and quality comparable to dining out.
Furthermore, venturing to the basement floor reveals a space akin to a mini-department store. In addition to Japanese beauty products and household goods, they even carry blind boxes (randomly enclosed figures) popular with younger generations. While prices are slightly higher than typical American supermarkets due to imports, it’s undoubtedly a satisfying shopping spot for when you ‘want to indulge in some delicious Japanese food today’ or ‘try the trending matcha sweets.’
Katagiri Japanese Grocery
📍 Address: 370 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10017 USA
Founded in 1907, ‘Katagiri’ is New York’s oldest Japanese supermarket. This particular branch near Grand Central Station has long supported the appetites of local expatriates, international students, and New Yorkers who love the taste of Japan.
Despite its prime location in Midtown Manhattan, its very reasonable pricing is a major draw. For instance, Japanese bottled beverages (like corn tea) and classic snack foods are surprisingly cheaper here compared to other Japanese supermarkets or drugstores. The store layout is similar to a Japanese supermarket, providing a comforting sense of finding what you need quickly.
They also offer a rich lineup of bento boxes and prepared foods, making it bustling with business people during lunchtime. The popular ‘Onigiri Gonbei’ is integrated into the store, and their generously filled mentaiko (spicy cod roe) and spam onigiri are a must-try. Moreover, in the back eat-in space, you can slurp authentic ramen, serving as a ‘refreshing Japanese oasis’ away from the hustle and bustle of Manhattan.
H Mart
📍 Address: 38 W 32nd St 2nd floor, New York, NY 10001 USA
Located in the heart of Koreatown (K-Town) on 32nd Street, ‘H Mart’ is an incredibly popular supermarket specializing in Korean ingredients and a wide range of other Asian foods. At first glance, it might appear to be a small, narrow store, but venturing further inside reveals shelves packed with products, constantly bustling with young people and students.
For home cooks, it’s a treasure trove of items hard to find in typical American supermarkets, such as ‘thinly sliced frozen pork belly (easy to cut and convenient for storage),’ authentic, exquisite kimchi, and a wide variety of Asian seasonings. While not entirely cheap, large packs of prepared foods offer good value, and smart choices can significantly contribute to saving on food expenses.
And the hidden gem of this store is its ‘second-floor area.’ The second floor houses K-Beauty shops, household goods, and a small food court. Here, you can find sushi, gyudon (beef bowls), Korean-style corn dogs, and tteokbokki, allowing you to enjoy hot Asian meals at a much lower price than at nearby street-level restaurants.
Hong Kong Supermarket
📍 Address: 157 Hester St, New York, NY 10013 USA
Locals and long-term residents who ‘want to stock up on ingredients cheaply and in large quantities!’ flock to ‘Hong Kong Supermarket,’ the largest of its kind in Chinatown. Stepping inside, you’re immediately overwhelmed by the vibrant, chaotic energy, as if you’ve been transported to a local market in Hong Kong.
The sprawling two-floor store (ground and basement) is packed not only with Chinese ingredients but also with Japanese, Korean, and Southeast Asian seasonings, snacks, and instant noodles. The price of vegetables (like daikon radish and napa cabbage) is particularly unmatched in Manhattan. You’ll also find unusual cuts of meat not seen in American supermarkets and a lively fresh fish counter, making it essential for anyone wanting to cook authentic Asian dishes.
Many of the staff communicate in Chinese rather than English, and you might even experience a ‘local baptism’ of being gently pushed by a cart if you stand still in an aisle. But that’s all part of enjoying the ‘real vibrancy of Chinatown’ in this deep-dive spot.
Tashkent Supermarket Halal Food
📍 Address: 378 6th Ave, New York, NY 10011 USA
‘Tashkent,’ an Uzbek-Halal supermarket that boasts immense popularity in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, has finally expanded into Manhattan’s West Village (right by the W 4th St station). Since its opening, it has become a hot spot, with local foodies and multinational students raving about it as their ‘favorite after Whole Foods.’
The biggest highlight is the overwhelmingly massive ‘hot deli & salad bar’ that occupies a significant portion of the store. A wide array of dishes from the former Soviet bloc, Central Asia, and the Middle East are laid out, allowing you to easily take away by-the-pound salads made with beets and cabbage, freshly roasted shawarma, Uzbek-style pilaf called ‘plov,’ and exquisite ‘dumplings’ and ‘samosas.’
The store is always bustling with activity, as numerous staff members busily replace trays of food. While there’s no eat-in space, a popular new local New Yorker way to spend a weekend is to buy hot deli items and fresh fruits here and take them to nearby Washington Square Park for a picnic lunch.
Local Tips for Maximizing Your Manhattan Asian Supermarket Experience
If you’re going to make Asian supermarkets a regular part of your life in Manhattan, knowing a few ‘strategies’ can help you enjoy an even richer culinary experience.
1. Strategic ‘Supermarket Hopping’ is Key for Home Cooking
Instead of doing all your shopping at one place, ‘supermarket hopping’ according to your needs is a fundamental local trick. For example, for bulk buying vegetables and seasonings, head to the overwhelmingly affordable ‘Hong Kong Supermarket’ in Chinatown. For quality thinly sliced meat and kimchi, go to ‘H Mart’. And on days you crave delicious ready-to-eat bento boxes or sashimi, utilize ‘Hashi Market’ or ‘Katagiri’. By strategically differentiating your shopping, you can keep food expenses down while enriching your dining table.
2. Target ‘Evening Time Sales’ and Utilize ‘Eat-in’ Options
Many Japanese supermarkets offer evening time sales, discounting bento boxes, onigiri, and other prepared foods after 8 PM. Many students practice this money-saving trick, aiming to grab lunch for the next day or a late-night snack on their way home from work or school. Furthermore, in expensive Manhattan, the 2nd-floor food court at H Mart and Katagiri’s ramen counter are valuable, affordable spots where you can sit and eat without tipping, dramatically cutting down on dining-out expenses.
3. Local Rules: Weighing Stations and Package Checks
At hot delis with weighing stations, like Tashkent, it’s a great opportunity to try dishes you’ve never seen before. We recommend packing small portions of multiple varieties to create your own multinational lunchbox. However, in some local supermarkets, it’s rare but possible to find items close to their expiration date or with discrepancies in package weight. Always check the dates before purchasing and verify the freshness of perishable goods with your own eyes – don’t forget these ‘shopping basics’.
