I love this store; if you're a foodie, you should know about it and love it too. I first went there…read morein search of one of those mammoth rolls of clear plastic wrap they use in restaurant kitchens, and ended up outfitting half my kitchen, over the course of a few visits. This is a dual-business, with HM Store Fixtures being on the right, as you look at the shop-front; the restaurant supply half is on the left.
As you walk in the front door, you find yourself in the dishware/flatware/silverware/barware section. It's geared heavily towards the Asian restaurant market, but there's a little bit of everything there. If you're a budding home Asian cook, you'll find cups, plates, tea sets, sushi sets to your heart's content. If you're simply looking for good, solid white dinner plates that stand up to heavy use, and that you don't have to cry if you break one, you can buy 'em by the piece or the set here. Restaurant-grade barware is also a great score for the home kitchen, and you'll find all the jiggers, strainers, wine keys, tumblers & shakers in this front part of the store as well, and for prices that won't break your budget.
Then, you amble into the back, and angels sing out, I swear; they did for me. Have you always wanted to cook in your own chef's jacket? Good selection of uniform supplies on the front wall, by the door. Knives are in the counters & on the wall to the right. There aren't going to be any Messermeisters or Forschtners there, but good, solid restaurant-grade knives that'll stand up to being rolled over by a Mack truck for great prices. There are aisles chock-full of all the stuff that you always wanted in your kitchen but could never find, and stuff you never thought about before. Those stainless-steel pans they drop into buffet counters & salad bars? Got 'em, with lids; this is Tupperware on steroids, folks. Try reheating something in plastic containers in a conventional oven.
I ended up finding pizza screens, a 4" pizza wheel, pizza platters & a wooden paddle, all for under 25 bucks. I completed my setup with some unglazed Saltillo tile from a flooring shop (trick I learned from Alton Brown), and now some of the best pizza in town is made at my place. I also ended up finding that mammoth roll of plastic wrap, and don't have to worry about buying that for quite some time. I found 500-count boxes of the foodservice plastic disposable gloves for 4 and a half bucks, and they make handling raw meats so much easier & safer at home; look for those at the very back of the store. Get some, you'll thank me. I scored a dozen of the stainless steel sauce cups and a towering stack of 4" mise en place bowls - also stainless - for a miniscule price as well; nothing like being able to serve guests sauces on the side.
The selection is too big to list here, obviously, but you get the idea, this place has got it all. If you're a local restaurant owner reading this, you should check this place out; chances are good that, when you need something, you need it now, not on the next truck. This place has the stuff you need at great prices, and you can have it in your kitchen making you money today. If you're a home cook, breeze right on past those retail superstores, because you'll have a kitchen that can crank out anything, and on a budget, after a visit or two here.
