This store packs a surprising variety of products for its size! Some prices can feel a bit high, though. They don't provide bags, so come prepared. The private parking lot is convenient, but the place is easy to miss while driving--look for the Dairy Queen across the street as your landmark. Definitely try the wasabi hot peas and the fresh Thai peppers--they're awesome! read more

Kim's Asian Market - International Grocery Near Me - Albany, New York

I am (= we are) blessed with two legit Korean grocery stores in the capital region, and Kim's earns extra two points just for that, in my book. When I first discovered Kim's, comparison to Jang Teo was inevitable and, as a result, I quickly decided I preferred Jang Teo. Some years later, I revisited Kim's to realise that their pricing for the most part is comparable to Jang Teo, and they tend to stock some unusual items that are hit and miss. Take the frozen bibim kit recent for, for example. I wasn't interested especially with the $5.99 price tag, but I picked it up after seeing it discounted to $3.99 albeit with reservations. It turns out I had reasons to be hesitant. The rice is too sticky for bibim and there's not nearly enough toppings. On the other hand, the frozen kimbap rolls still impress me and are clearly a hit. All in all, I'm appreciative that they're with us and I can source goodies without needing to travel hundreds of miles. Long live Kim's. read more

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Wow! Totally unexpected... out in the burbs! Visiting Albany and found this hidden gem, for any students missing their Korean eats - this is the spot! It's not HMart but they carry enough stock for you to make Jigae, jeon,japchae, and ramen! And many more cooking stuff. They also carry some pre-made banchans! Located at the back fridge. Snacks and drinks, so be sure to stock up. I think they close early tho, so make a grocery run on your weekends. If you have questions just ask the owner and he will show you the variation and which is what. read more

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It doesn't look like much from the outside, but I was impressed with the variety of dried, refrigerated, and frozen products you could buy here, plus some cooking equipment too. The aisles are well organized and clean. The prices are reasonable, and you can buy many items in larger, bulk quantities. The products here complement things you can buy in other local markets, making it someplace you should definitely visit for Asian food supplies. read more

Visited this Korean Asian market for the first time today. My mother said that she would take us there as kids, probably in the early 80s. Because that was the only Asian market around! Glad to see it still there. This place is huge on the inside! Wondering why there aren't more pictures or reviews, I think the plain exterior may deter people. But do it! Stop in! On a Saturday afternoon, it was very clean inside with lots of products, 2 aisles for kitchen ware & home goods, 10 different large bagged rice options, TONS of refrigerators and freezers. There were maybe 8 other customers, half non-Asian actually. Some running in to pick up vegetables or a freezer item. The owners seemed very friendly greeting you hi & bye. Plexi shield at the register. The pricing is a little high compared to the Chinese Markets in Albany, but similar pricing to the Korean Market in Latham. There's SO much there to describe! I don't think I can do it justice: - getting some things out of the way: a back wall of Japanese items, Curry sauce, Frozen Tuna/fish cakes. Chinese bottled sauces *Big palette sized Areas of: various seaweeds for soup stock, Gim (roasted Korean seaweed for rice), Area in front with overstock Turtle Chips, Chocopies., Rice puffed base Snacks *2 Floor Freezers of Ice Cream pops & bars. *Smallish Fresh Vegetable Section: Japanese yams, Napa Cabbage, Mandarins, LARGE Scallions *Large Instant Ramen Aisle, with a few varieties I've never seen before *Varieties Large packs of Spices, Sesame Seeds, also roasted, smashed ones, a brown version, Dried Chilies & powders *LOTS of frozen Seafood items *To-Go Kimchi in back Fridge: cabbage, radish, perilla leaves You can find Pretty much ANY Ingredient to make all of Maangchi's Recipes (including veg/meat components- some are frozen) at this Market OR easy Instant or pre-made Sauces for those same Dishes. It's a Win Win. *Smallish (Korean/Asian) candy Aisle & To-go (Asian) Drinks/Sodas Fridge FYI read more

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It has been a couple of years since I have been here, but upon entering I remembered why I liked it more than the other, larger store that is further east on Central Avenue. It isn't as large or crowded or loud as the other place. Sure, that means it doesn't carry everything... their produce selection is smaller, their dry canned goods section pales in comparison, and they don't have a fresh seafood section. On the positive side of the ledger, I don't miss having to narrowly push past people trying to find a specific sauce I need, I don't need to wander down aisle after aisle of things I don't care about to find just what I want, and there isn't a pervasive small of fish or seafood (or whatever it is) in half the store. It is more manageable. It is mostly a Korean market, not an All-of-Asia market. Their prices seemed reasonable, and it was easy to get in and out. I am glad I rediscovered it. read more

I went here today for the first time. It's a nice little clean grocery store. They didn't have much variety of fruits/veggies-but it is winter so not much is growing. I still got persimmons and oyster mushrooms though. I'll have to go back a little later on in the year to see what else they have. I like their big selection of Korean foods-I got my tteokbokki fix, can't wait to make it at home. And some fun new (to me) snacks, teas, drinks, and ramen. read more

Amazing service, food was surprisingly pretty cheap, good atmosphere felt very welcome there!

My go to for Korean, produce and items I can't get anywhere else! I've been to others, they're helpful, and have a wide selection!

Kim's was closed and has now reopened as "New Kim's". The square footage is reduced by about 1/3 and they no longer make their own kimchee or kalbi. The kimchee they had smelled pretty good though so I got a bulk 1/2 gallon to try it out. There's a sign on the cash register, "Visa and Mastercard only, don't insist." I absentmindedly gave the checker an Amex but when it was refused, I did not insist. New Kim's needs our support. read more

I've been at this store multiple times. A great source for Asian, and especially Korean foods and brands.

Well Lai Yee, the thing about Kim's is that if you're Korean, it's the only game in town. So I go there to stock up regularly on the Korean things. The good news is that there actually IS a Korean grocery in Albany. You can get all the usual Korean stuff there. They have a really good brand of kimchee that you can buy in a bucket. OK, most of you won't be buying a bucket of kim chee. They have pan chan items in the back in the refrigerator case too but you have to get them when they are fresh. A few times I was lucky enough to go there and get a fresh package of bi bim bop ingredients which I fried up, made my own sauce, fried an egg and put it on top. YUM! Sometimes I think I'm the only person buying these items. I brought back some Korean cookies for my aunt and she ate them all and I didn't even get to have one! The cookies were in the freezer section. They were not freshly baked, don't even dream about that! The kim, korean roasted seaweed, prices are a little expensive but i am totally addicted so I must get it anyway. I'm thinking of buying a case online. This is like nori you use for sushi, but it's brushed with sesame oil, roasted over a fire or in the oven until crispy, and sprinkled with salt. So the ones you buy come already prepared like this. So you just have to shake the silica gel packet to the side of the package, then cut it, bag and all, with scissors into 4 quarters. Then you eat by wrapping it around Korean rice. It MUST be Korean/Japanese short grain rice, don't even think about using Chinese or Indian or Jasmine or anything else like that. This rice is the sticky kind, but it's not "sticky" rice. It's just the short grain rice Koreans eat every day. It's also the kind of rice you would use for sushi. I just had a horrifying thought!!! I hope none of you are making sushi with other kinds of rice! Egad! read more

Cute Korean market on Central not too far from the Chinese market. The prices are amazing for things such as rice, vegetables, snacks, spices, sauces, etc. but not so food for the frozen food. It's healthier to cook fresh anyways so I'd rather pick up my ingredients. Even though I don't know Korean, all of the staff are very warm and will help translate anything I can't figure out. I like that there's a little bit of everything. The store is just the right size and is never packed. read more

I think this is the biggest korean market in the capital region area, but they also have a decent selection of other Asian foods as well. Considering that they pretty much have a monopoly on the korean grocery market in this area of NY, I think their prices are VERY reasonable. Also, there is a video section in the back if you need your kpop fix like me =) read more

They are back in business and their prices have been lowered. We must not let it close again! Keep Kim's alive! read more

Been here a few times. With my son and I having celiac and requiring a gluten-free diet, many of our homemade recipes call for white rice flour and other such ingredients as brown rice flour, sweet rice flour, potato starch, and tapioca starch, among others. Since we can get the other ingredients a little bit closer to home, we usually just purchase the white rice flour in 5-pound bags. The price seems decent and the product quality is good. It was in the 40s outside when we stopped in on Saturday and it seemed chilly inside so dress appropriately. I'm sure the heat was on but it didn't seemed to be set very high. The English of the person at the register, whom I'm presuming is the owner, is passable. The extent of our conversations have been "hello" and "thank you". Central Avenue is busy so it is quite often difficult making a left hand turn out of the parking lot so be careful! I posted a couple of years ago that the phone number in the Yelp listing was wrong and it still hasn't been corrected. read more

I have always passed this market every week and seeing how I love the culture I decided to take a look inside. Now I'm going to admit that when I walked in I felt a strong sense of eagerness to explore the items of this shop. I was greeted by the kind woman behind the counter, It was nice to feel welcomed. There was so many items that caught my undeniable interest. From the fresh produce to the colorful snack's, I was in awe. I ran towards the Yakisoba (Fried Noodles) and the other various instant meals they had, seeing as I basically live off of them. I was very pleased to how much variety they have in the items they carry. All and all it was a great experience and I enjoyed the items as well as the people. The layout of the shop was simple and easy to navigate and I found the prices to be extremely reasonable. I will definitely do more of my shopping there for now on. All and all this store is a well stocked with many Korean, Japanese and other eastern items. I found this market to be a very enjoyable place. I would recommend Kim's Oriental Shoppe to anyone who has even the slightest interest in going there. The culture and people made this store a complete gem in my eyes. read more

Long story, but you'll see why I have an even greater appreciation of Kim's... So Santa brought me the Momofuku cookbook for Christmas. (It's written by the celebrated chef Korean-American David Chang, who has several restaurants in the East Village in NYC.) The Momofuku Noodle Bar, by the way, is named in honor of the inventor of instant ramen. My son and I have become fond of a specific brand of very spicy Korean ramen (Shin ramyun). Of course, it's very good, very spicy, but not all that healthy. The Momofuku cookbook has a recipe for their own homemade ramen. I love to cook, and so of course I decided I want to make homemade ramen. The first obstacle however was being able to get ramen noodles. I didn't want to buy instant ramen and throw away the soup base. I wanted the real thing. But if you live in upstate NY, you're not going to find it. So I figured I'd make my own noodles. But I soon discovered that Ramen noodles are not made the same way as other types of noodles. They are made to have a certain amount of "toothiness" and stretch that you don't find in other flour or flour & egg noodles. The secret ingredient is Kansui - a combination of Potassium Carbonate and Sodium Carbonate that makes the dough slightly alkaline and creates that tooth-y, stretchy feel of real ramen. (Some cooks also use a similar solution of Potassium Carbonate and Sodium Bi-Carbonate (baking soda)). Anyway, I assumed that I'd never find these ingredients in this area. I spent many hours on-line, looking for a source and concluding that the only store where I could buy this was in NYC. I then visited Asian Supermarket. (They're so big, maybe they would have it?) Nothing. I talked to a manager and they'd never heard of it. Earlier this week, my husband stopped into Kim's. On a lark, he walked around and looked on the shelves. And you know what he found...A nice little bottle of Koon Chun Sauce Factory Potassium Carbonate/Sodium Bicarbonate solution. The people at Kim's weren't sure what you did with it, but bless them, they had it. Shame on me for thinking that would be the last place I found it. The moral of the story is that although Kim's is small, they shouldn't be underestimated. They have a very good Korean selection, and it's getting better as they are now offering more and more pan chan and other take out (including Kim Bap!) And they do have a decent assortment of Indian, Filipino and other Asian ingredients. read more

Looks like Kim's has closed !! :(( I went to no less than 3 Asian markets, couldn't find Korean radish for my kimchi at any of them. Plenty of daikon, no Korean ! The daikon is just too spicy for kaktugi. What a loss to korean food lovers ! read more

This is no H-Mart, but it gets the job done. There are lots of Korean products and there's a good selection of shelf-stable items. Produce, on the other hand, is questionable quality. There is no fresh meat at this market. Prices are pretty much on par/slightly higher than Asian Market on Central, but it's a lot more organized. I come back every so often to get random Korean things like gochujang, ramyun, or seaweed sheets. read more

Great selection of all different kinds of asian groceries!! They just created a Facebook page which includes store hours and pictures of inside. Check it out: http://www.facebook.com/KimsOrientalGrocery read more

They've got your basics. Shop here for Korean foodstuffs.

When I can't go to the Asian supermarket down the road I come here, alot smaller, but clean, and always fresh stuff.

This Korean food market has all the essentials and fresh produce too. Finding Korean cucumbers and sesame leaves made me so happy. They also have a vast selection of frozen and refrigerated items. I never enjoyed super mega grocery stores, and love that we found this small and personal grocery store that reminds me of childhood. The sweet, gentle man told us to choose a ice cream treat to beat the heat as a gift. Gamsahamnida~ Goodbye Hmart, Hello Mr. Kim! read more

As a Korean-American I grew up on my parents daily cooking of Korean food staples and unfortunately, not always appreciating the epicurean diversity I was experiencing as a child and teenager. Forty plus years later, my attitude has shifted and I'm even acquainting myself with cooking these Korean dishes through various recipes acquired through YouTube and cookbooks. This is where Kim's Asian Market comes to the rescue! I've visited this store on several occasions and it has yet to disappoint me in my personal quest to find those unique Korean ingredients necessary to acquire that delicious savory taste. While the store may seem small in square footage space it is packed with just about every possible item you could desire; especially in regards to Korean-specific items. The owner/staff are very helpful and can translate any labels you are curious about and can't read hangul (Korean alphabet). I often shop here to pick-up extra soft tofu (the variety that is packaged in the plastic tubes), potato noodle ramyen, kimchee and banchan side dishes. The kimchee is seasonal which makes waiting for certain types (white cabbage and radish kimchee or stuffed cucumber kimchee) a challenge but no less delicious. I highly recommend trying the store's kimchee selection if you are new to kimchee or have only previously eaten only the commercial varieties available in conventional American supermarkets. The American supermarket varieties are usually always soft, too salty and lack the necessary crunch of the genuine Korean kimchee. The prices for the products are great and I've discovered that most items tend to save you about fifty cents each on average in comparison to other Asian markets in New York state. If I had a complaint, it would be based on the lack of freshly made Korean banchan and side dishes that I can find in other markets; Jap Chae or Kimbap, for example. Overall, this is an excellent store and I will continue to patronize this business and highly encourage every Asian cuisine foodie to do the same. read more

four words....I LOVE THIS STORE! They have the best- candy, potstickers, produce

I'm happy to be back in the area and back shopping at Kim's. It's been about 6 years and the kimchee is still as great as I remember it. They put in brighter lights which are incredibly helpful and they have great bargins. I walked out with liters of sesame oil and soy sauce and a big bag of rice. I'll be back next time to pick up some fairly priced produce and of course, some more kimchee. I also saw some more freshly made items in with the kimchee; some radish salad, seaweed salad...yum. read more

I can't believe the Kim Store is gone!! i had gone there since i was a little girl.....i was hoping they relocated?

I just called up original number and they said the estimated date of the reopening would be 05/06/11. Hours are 10am -9pm.

There is a good variety of korean items but be aware that some of the korean items are produced in the USA and they priced it like it was imported from Korea. read more