Pal-Do World Market Korean Grocery — Attraction in Lakewood

Pal-Do World Market is exceptional! I’m very much saddened that we found this store during the Pandemic since it seems like the last two times we have been in there the whole food court area and the shops near the registers are all currently not in business/closed for shop, for now at least? The most exciting factor for me is that this store houses a wide variety of “PopinCookin” Japanese Candy kits, which I have not found locally in any other popular Asian food mart!! I even spent hours scouring the Internet to see where I might be able to find some locally and came up with nothing but Walmart and Walmart only sells ONE PopinCookin kit and it’s not even the best one. Pal-Do had a very decent handful to pick from and they’re also sold at a price point that is wonderful and also fair. If I were to have been forced to shop online for this item even on Amazon, even on eBay, even on the manufacturers website or other Japanese Candy retailers online it would have cost me at least twice what I pay here for one kit alone and/or I would have to purchase these in packs of five or more kits (also at twice the cost per kit), so this is really a special feature for me! As for everything else, you’ll find it here if you’re looking for it elsewhere with no luck, of that I am sure. This market is large and has so many isles packed full of pretty much everything you probably like to buy at Asian style markets and then some things you haven’t found anywhere else too. The expansive varieties of products here has made this Asian market my primary go-to market because of the things I’ve found here that I have never seen before, and because of the large inventory. Funnily enough I spied even a small American refrigerated section with some American brand butter, milk, coffees, and the like. There’s something here for everybody! However, I am not surprised we didn’t know about this marketplace a long time ago only because when we found it online and took a day trip out to go see what they sold we found that the parking lot was tucked away in the back of some other businesses...you wouldn’t even know it was there at all if you didn’t already know what you were looking for I feel like. But I’m so happy we checked it out on a whim because it’s our favorite place to shop. There’s no doubt they will get plenty of business from us in the future. And the security guard is super...

It’s our first time going to Pal-Do but definitely not the last! I can’t help but to compare it with H-mart. With regards to variety of choices in the produce and groceries, I think both Pal-Do and H mart has about the same level of variety, maybe a little bit of an edge on H-mart BUT the upside on Pal-Do is the prices on the produce which is the cheapest we have seen so far. This place is definitely great for wholesalers and or restaurants since they sell the biggest canisters of soy bean paste I’ve seen so far 🤣 among others. They have bigger aisles so it is easier to go around compared to H-mart.

They also sell a lot of Filipino goodies/products which we haven’t seen in other stores, so it was definitely worth our 30min drive from where we live.

If you like seafood, this is also a great place to go, although the live seafood is limited to tilapia and crab (forgot the species there today). Having your fish cleaned/cut is a breeze.

The Korean pancake corner by the seafood section is a treat! They have a proper bakery by the entrance of the market which sells a variety of Korean pastries and cakes that looks delicious but didn’t try some today. A plus for us where the food stalls inside the mart, which offered Japanese, Chinese and of course Korean food. We dined at the Nak Won Korean stall and the food was delicious, price is reasonable and the servings were generous but what made it extra enjoyable to dine there was the Korean food attendant at Nak Won. She was very attentive and extra pleasant!

Till...

I love this store! I felt like a kid in a Korean candy shop when I walked inside! I enjoy the total emersion experience of shopping here, not only are you surrounded by Korean (and other Asian countries) groceries, adverts, and language on the products...they're also playing what I believe to be K-Pop on the radio (I have not started learning Korean yet, sorry! I am trying to master Japanese first!) The prices are very reasonable and there is a ton of selection. I absolutely loved the little corner with all the mushrooms!!!! So many exotic mushrooms you can't find at other stores and the ones you can find you'll pay a premium price for! Lots of clear labels in English so those of us who can't read Korean (yet) can determine what the product is and what is inside--this is especially important for me as I am on a medical diet and am a vegetarian. I could read all the labels and the contents without hesitation! Wonderful selection of dumplings, pot stickers, and more! Rice, rice, and more rice, want some gochujang? They have that too! You can find anything your heart desires in this store. I'm dumping Walmart, happy to drive all the way from Port Orchard to make this my regular grocery store!

PS: there is a beautiful bakery inside with the most extraordinary cakes. There is a food court tucked int he back which can be hard to see, and a few other shops that sell clothing and certain designer "other" products if you know...