What It’s Like to Visit the New T&T Asian Supermarket Near Seattle | Eater Seattle
"Announced as part of the chain’s U.S. expansion in June 2023 and with a grand opening last December that sent lines crawling around the block and spawned TikTok videos, the 76,000-square-foot space — which took over a former Walmart — feels immense; CEO Tina Lee told Eater Seattle in December that this store is larger than any of the chain’s 36 Canadian locations. On an average weekday morning it can feel roomy but maintains a steady stream of shoppers and lunchtime lines around the hot-food stations, crepe stand, and other hotspots. A huge wine-and-spirits section greets customers on the left, with big sake drums atop rows of bottles; roughly a third of the store on the right is devoted to hot food and an expansive in-store food operation that includes barbecue cuts (hanging duck, pig, and other options with combos starting at $14), buffet-style stations selling by the pound, a make-your-own congee stand, and a crepe station where charming and chatty staff crack out Chinese-style savory pancakes that can be custom-made via a little screen (standard $8.50, beef $10). There’s an in-house bakery with sausage buns and Japanese roll cakes, daily saran-wrapped hot items such as siu mai and gyoza, and a fairly spacious dining area for people who want to stay. The live seafood selection is vast — eels sold by the kilo and crabs clawing in tanks — a reminder of markets before the freezer aisle. Snacks are a major draw: under-$30 boxes of individual small-bag potato snacks, wacky chip varieties (including a Korean hot-pot flavor featuring Street Fighter’s mohawked Russian wrestler Zangief) with notes of star anise popping in each bite, and novelty items; specialty purchases include an $80 Red Sea cucumber and a large library of chile oils. The review concludes that the place is “absolutely as cool as your in-the-know friend would have you believe,” worth the drive for serious pan-Asian shoppers, and big enough that one could eat something new there every day for months without exhausting the hot-food, pastry, and snack options." - Paolo Bicchieri
