EE Convenient Store

Pretty hidden, it is right next IHOP and right across from the DinTaiFung and JJ Bakery plaza. It’s a little overpriced but it have a sense of these convenience store that are in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other places in China. I like their grab and go fish ball on a stick, corn on a stick, crab ball on a stick and other things (you get get the idea). Their rice ball? Not too bad! I like their snack and drink choice it’s more unique compare to other Chinese super markets such as the 99 ranch markets. They even have sit ins now it’s pretty cool! Oh their lunch bento are OKAY not as good anymore

Mostly I have come to this location for the onigiri which has been great in the past but has really gone down in quality (with an increase in price — now over $ 2 each). The most recent onigiri I’ve had here have been utter disappointments. The fillings have become rather tasteless, reduced in quantity, and the rice extremely soggy. The packaging is also hard to open and I could never open the ones from here correctly (didn’t have an issue with onigiri packaging from other places).
It’s something I’ve tolerated in the past but the store is quite run down and empty. The oden area looks unsightly and the oden itself are not things I would rave about.
It’s really sad because I do like supporting local businesses. I sincerely hope that this is just a fluke and they will return to be making good onigiris in the future, but for now, I will only be going to Tokyo Central for onigiri. The ones there are larger, cheaper, and taste much more authentic.

Every time I visit my gf in Arcadia, I always stop by this place to get the oden sticks. I get like 9 – 10 sticks and spend like 15 to 16 dollars… every time.
I just wish they can keep the oden sticks area more sanitary and clean because the last time I was there I saw a little cockroach on the table tops. It grossed me out and I didn’t get any that night and haven’t gone back since. I kind of wish I didn’t even see it cuz now I can’t help but keep thinking about it every time I want oden sticks there. Store owner, if you’re reading this please kill all the cockroaches and keep the hot lids clean! I still want to eat more oden sticks.

EE is the only place in America I have found that comes close to comparing with the amazing convenience stores in Taiwan. American convenience stores are a joke compared to the ones in Asia. :(
Anyways, EE has pretty much most of the benefits of a traditional Taiwanese 7 – 11 or Family Mart. You’ve got onigiri, tea eggs, an assortment of both plain and spicy oden, and a mighty plethora of chips, cookies, crackers, instant ramen, and drinks. Sometimes if you come a little later at night they will have discounts on their hot bentos, which are also very tasty. The hot bentos include things like braised pork belly, katsu curry, or pork chops. They have also very recently added a yakitori section, where you can select different skewers that will be grilled for you, street-​market style. Everything here is significantly more expensive than what you’d find in Asia, of course, but it’s still relatively reasonably priced considering EE is pretty much the only store of its kind around here. I will continue to come back here and will be very very sad if this place ever goes out of business.

Having been to Japan multiple times, this place in no way resembles Japanese convenience stores. It’s poorly lit, not super clean, the hot food looks scary at best, and there are no prices on anything so you don’t know how much anything is until your at the register.
Oh, and if you just want a drink or quick snack bring cash, cards are a 10 $ minimum.
I’ve never been to Taiwan, but if the other reviews say it’s like convenience stores there, then that’s sad.
If you ever have the chance to go to Japan, and have been to this place you will completely understand what I’m talking about.
Just because they have some Japanese snacks and drinks dos not make it a Japanese convenience store.
If you want a place closer to a Japanese store go to Daiso, it’s literally down the street. It has all the same snacks and drinks and is well lit, and more friendly staff.

EE my favorite place to stand outside while drinking calpico and having a cigarette. Very asian style convenient store, and I love every bit of it. It feels like a store directly out of an animé (since I have never been to Asia.) All of their food products (are seemed to be made daily) and are delicious. I can literally survive off this store alone. I would eat the different flavored rice balls and snacks, daily and religiously!
Don’t forget about the 2 for 1 meal — late night special!
EE is the perfect meeting spot to chill with your friends or a nice break from pwning at dl all day.
Only negative thing is, the price isn’t sticker price it is register price. So some times its cheaper sometimes it’s not (for the drinks specifically.) It’s probably how they stock… something I do not care about at all…
Any place with oolong tea is good with me.

Like the place for a quick grab and go. Good place for midnight craving. There is many varieties and options of snacks.

What a nice hidden gem on Baldwin! My friends and I came here for some delicious Asian snacks. First off, there’s a big aisle of cold drinks that you can choose from, but for some reason there weren’t any price tags…
But other than that, I got the shrimp salad, salmon, spicy scallops onigiri and the fish sausage. The shrimp salad is the best! The salmon was okay; it was kind of dry. The spicy scallops were good too, but shrimp salad is my favorite out of them all. The fish sausage was decent. My bf and I tried a much more delicious type of fish sausage in the past, but I guess it was a different brand. And thus continues our quest for that delicious fish sausage snack!
Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to try the oden bar. But apparently you can pick any you want and place it in a cup, choose the type of sauce (curry, satay, spicy, etc) and just pay at the register. There’s free samples of different cold dishes near the register where you buy the sandwiches and cold appetizers.
Regarding price — the fish sausage was kind of expensive, but we thought the onigiri was reasonably priced. Will definitely come here again for those onigiri and I’ll try the oden bar too!

The boyfriend introduced me to this place a few years ago. They sell Asian chips, candy, chocolates, drinks, rice balls, bento boxes, and other snacks. They also have a small selection of cosmetics that I question if anyone really buys. I’ve been coming back mainly for their triangular onigiri (rice balls).
PARKING
They have a small parking lot shared with other businesses. Never really had a problem parking. They also have a few spots designated for their customers specifically, which is nice.
INTERIOR
Small and clean shop. I don’t know if they renovated or freshen up the shop a bit but during my most recent visit, it was brighter and cleaner than I remembered. It’s a good thing!
ITEMS
One thing is consistent — I always get their rice balls. My family enjoys the taste and the convenience of the packaging. The shrimp salad, spicy tuna, or crab cake are popular. We’ve tried several of the others but they weren’t up for comparison. Sadly, sometimes their chips are a little stale close to the expiration date — I would recommend checking and double checking before you buy! While they have a large selection for customers, their prices are a little steep compared to supermarkets and they don’t always carry the freshest products.
But you know for the convenience and unique variety of flavors and products, it might be worth it. I like this place, despite the flaws.
SERVICE
Most of the workers I’ve encountered are quiet. Some are friendly, others just get the job done! Not sure about now, but they used to have a minimum purchase of $ 10 for credit but no minimum for debit.

My GF is from Taiwan and she was really excited to find this establishment on Unilocal.She says this is similar to the convinience stores in Taiwan where they sell not only snacks and drinks but also fish balls and other food on sticks. We got a few fish balls and tofu and filled our container with their broth. The fish balls and tofu were average but the broth was pretty tasty. 4 stars because its unique and very clean!

I only come here whenever I’m craving oden! I usually get their fish balls since I’m not a huge fan of their beef balls. Actually I don’t even know what I get, I just grab the ones that are golden yellow or white. Their broth is amazing though! I always mix the spicy one with the plain broth.
I came here once and spotted a little cockroach scattering around the table tops near the oden … not something you wanna see. I left oden-​less that day and cried myself to sleep (not really but you get the idea).
As a former microbiology student, the method they use to store their soup ladles and tongs make my heart ache. It’s a bit unsanitary to leave it out in the open and allow customers to dig right back into the oden containers after letting them sit there for a while.
ANYWAY! They have lots of fancy shmancy asian snacks. I love their corn pottage chips and riceballs! My personal faves are the pork sung and spicy tuna ones. I’ve also tried their curry chicken togo bentos, which was alright.

Great place for Asian snacks, if you don’t want to drive, park, and wander a large supermarket. Downside… more expensive than a supermarket.
I usually come here for the things I CAN’T get at a supermarket — Onigiri rice balls (shaped into triangles), the cooked and ready-​to-​eat fish balls, the prepared meals (pork chop rice, beef tendon noodle, chicken curry, etc), and the hard to find drinks.
Onigiri — the BEST BEST one is the shrimp salad! And I think everyone found out about this delicious phenomenon, because it is allllways out of stock nowadays. Next best — spicy scallops! Next best — spicy tuna, then it kinda all goes downhill from there (do NOT like their bacon and egg).
Hot steaming braised area — I only get the fishballs (3 per stick, $ 1.69 each stick), and make sure to ladle in some of that spicy soup! Sooo yummy… buttt please do be careful when you’re trying to drink that soup and drive… it could go down the wrong pipe and cause your face and lungs to feel as if it’s burning from the inside out. I learned this the hard way.
I got this cuuuutte bottle of carbonated beverage there — I literally bought it because i wanted to empty the bottle, and use it as a small vase for my office. «Fukumaneki Soda»

CURRY FISH BALLS. Come here when your sober, come here when your drunk, whatever, just come here and try their food on a stick section. You can also have them deep fried if you call ahead of time about 30 mins would do, per the clerk.
Love the candy section, pricey but it’s open late!

I love coming here because it reminds me of the 7 – 11 stores in Taiwan. My favorite thing to get here is their Fried Chicken Steak. There is different spices you can get on top of the chicken steak. My favorite is the plum sauce which makes the chicken a little sweet. Call ahead and place your order so you chicken steak will be hot upon your arrival. The lunch boxes here are just average but there’s definitely a lot of little snacks and drinks to buy.

I like this place. The cashier guy is always pretty friendly and nice. And this convenience store essentially carries every Asian junk food you’re looking for from chips to instant ramen to Asian drinks and hot meals. It’s equivalent to 7 Eleven in Taiwan except much pricier. That’s what the minus one star is for actually. The prices here are a lot higher than buying your Asian junk food fix from the normal Asian grocery stores. But if you’re looking for Asian junk food at 11 or 12am when the grocery stores are closed or just simply looking for a get in and out quick kind of a place, this is the only place to go in Arcadia!
P. S. They don’t carry American junk food like lays, Doritos, etc. For those you’ll have to go to your local gas station if you’re looking for them at night.

It’s good and all but DO NOT buy their red bean mochi, I’ve bought them three times and each time they’re over frozen and makes the whole mochi inedible. Don’t know why but it’s just with the red bean. So I just stick to green tea when I go. Which sucks because red beans my favorite flavor.
EDIT: just realized why the red bean mochi has been so inedible when I buy it, IT’S 5 MONTHS EXPIRED. I feel pretty dumb for not checking it. But also pissed that they still have them to sell. So, 2 stars instead of 3

Do you miss those convenience stores in Asia where they were all clean and sold a bunch of random snacks and food? And then you wonder, why can’t we have convenience stores like that here? Well look no further because this convenience store is probably the closest you’re going to get.
They sell a bunch of Asian products here, from make-​up to snacks and drinks, and other random Asian shenanigans. PLUS they have those fish balls on a stick. And it’s warm because it’s covered and sitting in hot water or something. You can get a skewer for ~$ 1.50 w/​tax. And they have sauces on the side :) It might be a little expensive for what you get, but you can’t find this at any other convenience store. They also sell onigiris, bentos, and. other stuff I can’t remember off the top of my head. The drinks may be a little overpriced, but it’s a convenience store, when is it not? But I actually really like this convenience store because it reminds me of Asia. And I can get my Asian fix of snacks if I don’t want to walk into a full on supermarket.

Nostalgic about Taiwan? Looking for a specific Taiwanese snack/​drink you can’t seem to find at the Asian grocery store? Drop by this convenience store to satisfy your food cravings. Lots of Taiwanese snacks & drinks, bento boxes, sandwiches, and a hot foods section at the back (tea egg, oden, baos, etc). It’s almost like a smaller version of a 7 – 11 in Taiwan.
*$ 10 minimum for credit card use.

The stuff at this place is pretty overpriced! They have lots of snacks and drinks. They also offer some meatballs and bento box type meals.

If you are craving some type of strange snack that is typically found in Taiwan or even Hong Kong, there are pretty high chances you can find it at EE Convenient Store. They’ve been here for quite awhile, and I have been coming here to get my rice balls and fish ball fixes since I was in high school. Now, I just feel like the prices of every single item is so expensive that it really isn’t worth it to purchase from this store anymore. Unless they have sales, you’re better off finding the snacks at a different and cheaper place than here. (Prices are increased by more than double the price that you would find overseas… it’s crazy)
However, the food is quite tasty and if you’re willing to splurge on some curry fish balls or bento boxes … then you have to come here and try it. I think it gets crowded around the night time as well as the high school lunch hours. They only accept card on purchases of $ 10 or more … which isn’t too hard considering you only have to buy two or three things to reach that limit.