T&T Supermarket Harvest Hills Store — Attraction in Calgary

I find this to be a good place to go for exotic Asian items you can't get anywhere else. Other than that, there's not much to go here for.

It IS sooo crowded on weekends! Everyone is so obnoxious and pushy, especially at the buffet counter. It is not uncommon to see 6 people crowded together on one side, trying to pick at one item. No morals/rules/manners, just an absolute free-for-all.

The last time I was here, I ordered something from the bubble tea counter. I got a honeydew, green milk tea and it had some undissolved powder that looked like sytrofoam and tasted like paint, YUCK! I also ordered the black sesame milk tea and it was slightly better in taste and quality.

But one thing I took issue with, is how they took advantage of the penny rounding system. I'm sure it goes without saying that most people would know that 0.19 rounds up to 0.20, but the savages decided to round down to 0.15 instead. That seemed very UNPROFESSIONAL!

Just to clarify, I am not losing me mind over $0.05... I am stating that the bubble tea shop cashier was a level 208 savage.

But especially considering it was my FIRST TIME ordering from the bubble tea stand, I'm sure we can agree what kind of 1st impression it left on me?

This is a general complaint to the head office. Whenever you email the customer service line, they only reply to the original message once and you don't hear back from them. It is quite obvious that they clearly lack in principals and proper work ethics.

Now, I watched Undercover Boss. But that has no influence on my opinion or review. In the episode, they said they want to expand the business, to try and reach a more diverse audience than just Asian customers. It is kind of hard to do that when you don't even know who the potential audience is and don't even take constructive criticism seriously.

ONE MAJOR COMPLAINT is the excessive use of bamboo/water chestnut in the DIM SUM dishes. The last time I got dim sum from the hot food counter, it was seafood and it had water chestnuts. I don't consider water chestnuts to be edible, so that was very traumatizing!

I can tell you right now, that those are unconventional and fringe ingredients. When compared with dim sum I've had in actual restaurants, the use of these ingredients are definitely very few and far in between.

Dim sum is exclusive to Asian culture and it's not widely carried by most retailers and if it is, there's only 1 choice. I can't even get it here either because 8/10 times, it contains bamboo/water chestnut. I am talking about the T&T STORE BRAND dim sum, not the name brands...

My mother used to be an employee about a decade ago. She forwarded that feedback over, they need to cut down on the excessive use of bamboo/water chestnut in the dim sum dishes. What kind of response did she get? Was told that bamboo is a staple in Taiwanese diets. So if they removed the bamboo, they would lose their Taiwanese customers AND that it is expected to have some vegetables in dim sum, to make it "healthier." So the fact WE ARE complaining about it, makes US in the WRONG?

So how exactly are you planning to expand out and reach a wider audience than just Asians if you respond like that? That is the MOST unprofessional statement EVER. It doesn't seem like you're taking that endeavor seriously.

I don't know why this place was bought out by Loblaws? They don't seem to be accomplishing much.

If Loblaws had a brain, they would completely remove all of the basic, day-to-day items from T&T and stock only Asian exclusives and foreign imports you really CAN'T get anywhere else. That way, you can charge any price you want. If the item is available at Superstore for cheaper, it makes it pointless for T&T to carry it since there's not going to be much of a competition... Except for those who live nearby, can't drive, are immobilized and have no choice but just ONE PLACE to go for groceries?

I think there's great potential for T&T to IMPROVE and become a BETTER company. But I don't see it happening at this point, not with the TERRIBLE way it is...

One of the best asian markets in the city hands down. Dim sum that is steamed in a timely manner so you never get soggy food alongside a full service stuffed rice bar.

Fresh meal entrees that caters to the busy person trying to feed their family or the person just looking for a lunch or dinner combo to whet their appetite.

Noodle bar that offers custom tailored bowls to go or to eat in their cafeteria.

Bubble tea made to order that can be enjoyed while you shop or sealed for enjoyment later at home without any worry of transportation issues.

A full service asian bakery that offers a HUGE variety of specialty buns and cakes along with the ability fo custom order any size cake with a plethora of filling and styles for any occasion. Forget that safeway cake covered with sugar paste, if you want a great birthday you need to experience a birthday with a TNT cake.

Fresh fish market with every thing under the sea, live and ready for you to take home. Don't like the fishy taste of most seafood? You need to treat yourself to a fresh fish meal and forget that slab of saran wrapped fish that was killed days ago.

Outstanding butcher that offers traditional cuts of meat and all varieties offal for the full range of options when preparing your dinner.

Did i mention they also have a full service bbq meat department where you can even get your own whole roasted duck? Peking duck at home sounds pretty awesome to me.

Phenomenal produce selection that offers quality produce in the local and exotic asian variety, you may even convert to a vegetarian after visiting their produce wing.

Further in the store is a large selection of asian products, cooking wares and specialty electronics like top end rice cookers and water boilers. Forget that rice cooker you bought at walmart with the flimsy rattling kid, treat yourself to a rice cooker made by people who actually know their rice :p

To top it all off, CANDY!! They offer a large selection of japanese and imported candies that will tantalize your taste buds and in some cases are fun to make! You ever eat a candy and think "this tastes like purple, not grape" then you need to experience japanese candy perfection.

Why are you reading this and not...

If you're early enough, there's often times great deals on fresh fish like salmon tail, fillets of cod, rock fish, salmon, and a lot of other fish. I don't recommend getting the cooked food though, simply because they have reduced the portions even more and increased the price. That said, lately the ginger beef and daikon and beef stew have been pretty good. The char siu is usually hit or miss. If you love fatty char siu, then the place misses the Mark as lately it's usually been extremely lean. Flavor wise it's still fine though. I personally love lean meat and don't like fatty meat but everyone I know is the opposite of me. The roast pork and duck are also fine. Personally, I find the bakery of t and t pretty disappointing and low quality in comparison to real Asian bakeries. But for people that don't go to those types of places, then it will suffice. But I still think they are extremely expensive for the quality you get. Lately though, I will give them credit for the fact that this steamed fresh char siu bao has been filled really generously. Oh and I will also say that for an Asian market, a lot of TandT products are extremely expensive in comparison to some products that you can get at Superstore and they are the exact same brand and the exact same thing. Because it's an Asian market, a lot of people think that they're getting the best deals on things however I highly recommend that you check Superstore as well because often times they are carrying the same things exactly and for the Asian things specifically a lot of times it's cheaper...