H-Mart (wikipedia, website, map, 200 – 550 Robson Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada) is a Korean-American grocery store chain with many locations throughout North America. In Vancouver they are on the second floor at the corner of Robson and Seymour – a prime spot in the downtown shopping district.
As you enter the store, your eyes are greeted with a foyer full of small electrics, including rice steamers and griddles. From there, you enter a world of household necessities including ‘Joy Gloves.’ Which brings up a point. Some product names just don’t come through translation to have the same impact in English as they did in their native country’s language.
[…] The prepared foods are tasty as well. The kim-chee from the refrigerator case is top notch, as are the fried beef and sesame chicken. In the freezers are everything from squid and octopus to red bean ice cream. Try some of the gyoza or steamed dumplings for a treat. There are also frozen ducks in the case labeled ‘duck, parts missing.’ It’s best to not think too hard about which parts are absent.
I really like their gyoza and kim-chee, as well as their prepackaged sushi which becomes discounted near the end of the day.
But a little-known feature of this grocery store is the food court that is at the north side facing Robson street. Here you can get a variety of popular Korean dishes such as the spicy tofu soup, spicy beef broth, seafood pancake, and many more (menu shown below).
I tried the Item #5 which is described as “Mixed Vegetables and Rice in a Stone Hot Pot” ($8.50, pictured below) – it is called Bibimbap in Korean.
The ingredients are arranged artfully on rice in a super-hot stone bowl, and it’s up to you to mix them up and wait a couple minutes for everything to cook.
In the photos below I’ve shown what the dish looks like before and after mixing the ingredients. It tasted fabulous – the combination of rice, egg, vegetables, and meat was quite filling and satisfying but also was non-greasy and seemed healthy.
The stone bowl remains piping hot for a long time; after resting my chopsticks on it for a minute the wood became almost too hot to touch. The dish is served with some kim-chee (spicy Korean pickled cabbage) and a warm soup broth with green onions.
After enjoying Item #5 for a second time, I’ve decided to make the H-Mart Korean Supermarket one of my regular dining spots. Visiting the food fair is like taking a mini vacation to Korea – most of the other patrons seem to be talking in Korean, and many of the signs are in both Korean and English.
Bibimbap Korean food ($8.50) from H-Mart Market in Vancouver BC Canada - before mixing the ingredients.
Korean Bibimbap dish after mixing the ingredients in the hot stone bowl.
H-Mart Korean Food Fair Menu, located on Robson Street in downtown Vancouver.
Pacific Centre Mall in Vancouver (map, web site, 700 W Georgia St Vancouver, BC, Canada, phone 604-688-7236) is an upscale shopping destination in Vancouver’s trendy downtown core. Close to the Vancouver Cruise Ship Terminals (Canada Place), the business district, Vancouver Art Gallery, and a short walk from Robson Street, Pacific Centre is a place to browse the latest fashions and then indulge in some good eats at the food court.
The mall closes at 9pm most weekdays, and if you head down to the food court at around 7:30pm or 8pm you can fill up on some really cheap food, such as the “buy one get one free sushi” (pictured below) or a heaping plate of Chinese fast food for $5. The sushi pictured in the video below was $10 for everything, including all-you-can-drink Miso Soup.
The food court has sleek, modern decor with cool lighting and funky chairs.
Ebi (shrimp) sushi, salmon, tuna, and unagi (BBQ eel) from Pacific Centre mall food court.
The food court has sleek, modern decor with cool lighting and neat chairs.
California Roll from Pacific Centre food court in Vancouver, BC, Canada.
The Scotiabank Theatre in Vancouver (map, 900 Burrard St., Vancouver, BC, Canada, phone 604-630-1407) is a large movie theatre located in downtown Vancouver at the corner of Burrard and Smithe. Formerly named the Paramount, this movie theater has 9 screens and shows all the latest new releases. Inside the Scotia Theatre you’ll find stylish, modern decor, big screens with comfortable reclining seats, and several fast food restaurants including Taco Bell, Burger King, and KFC.
View the theatre’s website for the latest showtimes. Below are some photos of the Scotia Theater taken from Vancouver’s Burrard Street (which is accessible by the Burrard Skytrain station (subway).
If you’re actually looking for a Scotiabank Banking Branch with ATM, there is a full service branch just up the street at the corner of Burrard and Nelson (map).
