Hong Kong Supermarket

By Tom Maicon at February 22, 2009 | 4:01 pm | Print

The newly opened Hong Kong Supermarket (5495 Jimmy Carter Boulevard, Norcross) brings with it a food court offering up interesting ethnic fare. There is absolutely nothing fancy about it — the food is served over the counter at walk-up food stalls under a multilingual karaoke stage. During a recent visit I hit 4 impressive food stalls, which combined barely put a small dent in my wallet.

Waroeng Corner Restaurant
770.354.4643

The Indonesian term Waroeng literally translates to “stall” in English. And at this tiny Indonesian and Malaysian food stall you’ll find a short, humble woman stirring a giant pan of spicy beef rendang and robust, fiery curries.
The beef rending is the standout at this stop, and probably the best dish in the whole food court. It’s a hearty, soul-soothing helping that’s a tad spicier than most versions you’ll find elsewhere in the city.

I recommend you order a Nasi Padang ($7.99) curry platter. Think Indonesian soul food — coriander-rife beef rendang, killer chicken curry, one deep-fried egg, tofu and collard greens all stuffed into a styrofoam box until it barely locks shut with food parts dangling out from all sides.

Pinoy Cuisine
404.806.9685

This is currently the only place in Atlanta’s serving Filipino cuisine, so it’s a nice addition to our burgeoning ethnic scene. What I like most about Filipino food is the beef jerky style meats and crispy pig.

At Pinoy Cuisine these are the best dishes. Beef tapa is somewhat sweet and chewy like a good homemade jerky. Lechon Kawali is oily, crispy fried pork with skin — by far the best offering at this stall. If you like chicharrones, you’ll love it.

Pork adobo, stewed in soy-vinegar sauce, was forgettable. But it’s easy to forgive here since they seem to always run a $7.99 all-you-can-eat special.

I could eat a whole bucket of that crispy pig.

Crawfish & Seafood
No number listed

The sign over this stall weirdly just says crawfish. In fact, it was so bizarre I couldn’t resist. There’s not much to the menu, really. About 6 or 7 Chinese dishes and $3.99 a pound crawfish, served in a plastic bag like cotton candy with plastic gloves — so not to dirty the fingers. I put away 2 pounds and I wasn’t even hungry after making a pig of myself at the first 2 stalls.

The crawfish here are large, spicy, and extremely fresh. There was no trace of spice on the outer shell — the spice must be from the vat they were boiled in. These are some of the best I’ve had in Atlanta.

Pho An Lac
770.807.8538

I was tempted to eat here, too. But the button on my already stretched pants was about to bust. I instead called it a day with an avocado smoothie and tapioca balls.

Tom Eats