Chinatown Market
2121 S Archer Ave
(between 21st St & Cermak Rd)
Chicago, IL 60616 (312) 881-0068
- Nearest Transit:
Cermak-Chinatown (Red)
- Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Private Lot
49 reviews
Skokie, IL
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18 Reviews for Chinatown Market
4 stars for Chinatown Market for cheap produce and convenient location. I'm comparing this to my usual gold coast grocery stores, so bear that in mind. I always try to pick up a few things when I'm in Chinatown as a result to help keep my grocery bills in check and to find items I cannot find elsewhere, or can find at Whole Foods but for three times the price. Because this store is larger than most of the grocery stores in the area, I think the selection is better and the produce is pretty fresh. It's also nice that this one is so close to the train. The Market gets pretty crowded on the weekends, and the aisles are narrow, so be prepared to bump into a few folks with your basket.
I usually go here to shop for my groceries because it's conveniently located by the Cermak El stop. I tried the smaller markets, but I think the produce here is marginally better (not by that much, though). The selection is adequate too. Prices are reasonable, but nothing compares to 99 Ranch Market or TS Emporium in SoCal.
Chinatown Market is good for the basics, though, and I usually don't have to go elsewhere for my grocery needs. Make sure you look at the expiration dates on all your stuff - I have on occasion gotten items that were questionable in quality...
Extra star because they carry my favorite brand of frozen dumplings (Wei Chuan). $10 for 3 bags, not bad! They have yummy mochi ice cream too! Also, they're typically open later than the smaller markets, which is a definite plus.
Not having a car, this is the most convenient place for all my Chinese food needs. Despite it's small size, it has the basic snacks, instant noodles, drinks and sauces that I need. It also has some good fresh produce from more commonly eaten chinese vegetables, to meats and seafood. Whenever I'm dying for a whole steamed fish, I'll get it here for always under $5. Sometimes fresh, sometimes frozen depending how I'm feeling. I also get everything here when I'm having hot pot. The food is dependable and also at affordable prices. I prefer the extra aisle space here compared to Mayflower in the plaza, but if you have a car, I would definitely visit the larger markets right off of the main part of Chinatown. Still props for giving me all my yummy goodies that I crave.
To get/try:
Nissan Instant Noodles (Pork Bone flavor)
Shrimp Chips
Vita drinks (iced tea, soy milk)
Aloe Vera Drink
Fish/vegetables/meats anything you need that you can't find at a regular supermarket.
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This place is really convenient for me as it's less than a block from the train station. They are just like all the other Chinatown markets, similar items, different brands, etc. I like them for the fruit, though. It's cheaper here than I found elsewhere and still at good quality. I bought some xiao bao zi and steamed them. They werent as good as others I've tried. The shrimp dumplings were really good, so were the sesame rice balls and the peanut rice balls. Their tea is nicely priced, stored in small tin containers and of good quality. I liked their candy selection as I found some nice childhood candy here. The place is tiny so watch your step. Overall, I'll keep this my place for groceries from now on. Here and the Hong Kong market. Between the two, I got everything I need ;-)
I went on a Saturday and I didn't find it to be ridiculously crowded at all. I don't see why I haven't been here before. They have an amazing selection of stuff. Things are cheap too. For $21 I left with two bags full of stuff.
What's amazing about that, is that I didn't just buy candy. I bought everything from dumplings, to a case of green tea. The fact that it's close to the train is an added bonus.
I honestly love this place and wish I lived nearby because I'd go almost every day.
One of the better supermarkets in Chinatown in terms of selection and price.
Just one block away from the Cermak/Chinatown Red Line stop and a mile or two away from the Loop, Chinatown Market offers a wide selection of Chinese goods from live seafood to cookies to frozen dinners. Their beverage selection is pretty decent.
However, I agree with the other yelpers in saying that this place is too small for its clientele - it gets really busy on the weekends. There is barely enough space to walk in the aisles when it is crammed with people and shopping carts and flattened boxes - so be prepared to squeeze and shout your way through the insanity of it all. The lines will actually extend all the way into the aisles as well - there are only three registers open and you can spend upwards of ten minutes in line cursing those in front of you. The checkout people are pretty calm and efficient, however. This place is also pretty notable for being one of the few grocery stores that will take credit cards.
If you're looking for some Chinese groceries, Chinatown Market should be on your list. But be prepared to bring riot gear on the weekends.
This is the sort of market I grew up knowing all too well like in Flushing, NY (AKA the 2nd Chinatown of NYC).
They carried my childhood brand of frozen green-onion pancakes (AKA Scallion Pizza Pie according to the package). My roommate has tendency to ask me to make them every Sunday morning from scratch, and hopefully these will buy me a few weeks off. I think this frozen pack of those delectable pancakes taste better than most restaurants because they cook up chewy, crispy, and flavorful.
The selection of produce is small, but hardcore Chinese (if I could be allowed to describe it that way) from 3 sizes of bok choy and all for $2.00/pound or lychees.
They also have a wide selection of teas from China from gunpowder green tea to jasmine in ounce tins for $2.99 (about the size of a peanut butter jar).
Also from my childhood are the single-serving juice boxes of Vitasoy. It's juice sweetened with cane sugar rather than corn syrup. I've always liked this style of juice better than something like Welsh's or Juicy Juice as a kid.
The only thing missing is elbow room.
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I bought this "diet" tea I nick named "Poo Poo" tea from here. It worked. I lost 5 pounds!!
I like the live creatures they have in buckets. It's great if you know what you're looking for - in my case TEA. Poo poo tea!
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Only decent place in the city I know of to get good live blue crab. I wish the cashiers didn't look at me like I stole something every time I buy something tho.
Cheap prices!
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If you don't mind Guangzhou-train-station-type shoving, this place is great. Fresh wonton noodles, hard-to-find seafood, Thai rice, even frozen duck tongues -- it's all here. The only complaint of course, is that someone's armpit will probably be up your nostrils in the vegetable section. If you're a stickler for personal space don't think of visiting -- the violation of physics, i.e. 'where you are I can be also' prevails. The rest of us just grit our teeth and sally forth to buy yard-long beans at non-Whole Foods prices.
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This place has a great variety of foods. Many spices and seasoning. On bonus is fresh fish. Not just fresh, but swimming around waiting for you to eat them. Some really great prices.
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Small grocery store, but it has a good selection of products. The prices are decent and who can complain about 69c tofu! The veggies are always fresh and I always get what I need here. Only drawback is that is it always crowded since it's so small.
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This store has a nice selection considering its small size and has some good deals. It is mostly Chinese food, but there are some Japanese as well. I found cashews for $4 a pound.
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All I can say is, good stuff if you're into the Chinese thing. Really.
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The store gets crazy busy on weekends and the aisles are small....if you're a little chubby you'll be getting in the way of a lot of people.
There are some good deals and great selection. Fresh vegetables and seafood. Tons of snacks and hong kong specialties.
Don't try to park there and go across the street to pick up some bubble tea from Joy Yee's. I did it once and the parking guy yelled at me for five minutes.
My favorite chinese grocery store in Chicago for sure and I live 2 Redline stops from the Argyle stores.
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This market has decently priced and fresh Chinese leafy greens, although sometimes it's a crap-shoot whether you get a better deal here or at the Chinese market across the street in New Chinatown. I like to buy yee-mein, shabu-shabu/hot pot supplies (ie: cuttlefish balls, shrimp balls and dried flat mung bean vermicelli), dumpling wrappers and fresh veges here. They have a meat/poultry section and seafood dept (with live bass, tilapia, soft-shell turtles, frogs, shrimp, lobsters, dungeness crabs, clams, freshwater eels and your occasional odds & ends - I swear I saw a styrofoam cooler filled with tankwater and small hand-sized live monkfish). Their seafood & meat dept is less "stinky" than the market across the street (the name eludes me right now). Bought a variety of different types of tofu (noodle, regular white, 5-spice, tofu puffs & fried tofu) from here, but after my experiences I still recommend buying the white tofu from Chicago Foods. Unfortunately the Korean market doesn't sell the other specialty types of tofu; You'll just have to gamble in not getting sour of "bad" tofu. On another note, I find it odd that the Chinatown markets don't sell better-looking pre-cut fresh flat rice noodles. This market also sells a variety of "health" rice (ie: mixed grains, mixed brown rices). Kudos to this market for utilizing a modern cash register which prints up detailed receipts.
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The place is always crowded. I personally dont like going here. Not only is there always a long line, but the place can smell pretty bad!!! I think it is from the fresh fish they carry!
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I would never return to this market again! Given that it has never really offered anything spectacular to begin with and a poor selection of snacks with some coming close to the expiration date, I have only gone there out of convinience. But during my recent shopping, a customer had given the cashier a $20 dollar bill and the cashier treated as if it was a $10. As the customer brought it to her attention, the cashier began to rudely ignore the complaint. As I was standing in the near proximity, I witnessed the cash exchange clearly and agreed with the customer to only be rudely ignored by the cashier likewise. $10 is not much, but the attitude is enough for me to place this grocery store on my blacklist. The whole matter of the fact is that this could have been handled better by the employees of this establishment. Chinatown has never been boasted for its customer service, but this puts it over the line for me...
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