Fortune Supermarket

Afetr finding this place was so close to where I live I spent about 3 months addicted to the many different varieties of Miso Soup and various steamed goods. It’s not necessarily cheap, but for ease of putting a meal together it’s top drawer as with much of the frozen stuff all you have to do is pop it in the steamer and you have something tasty fast. They have a good selection of fresh Chinese vegetables which are impossible to find anywhere else, for some aisles you need a good idea of what you want before you go in but if you have any questions the staff are super friendly and helpful.

Quite unsurprisingly this Preston Street is filled with both Chinese restaurants and Chinese supermarkets, making this part of town a self-​contained Mecca of oriental goodness. Of all the oriental supermarkets on this road, Fortune is by far the biggest and best stocked. Nearby places may offer some more obscure products but Fortune has pretty much everything you could need for doing authentic Chinese cooking. And because of its large size you’re more likely to be able to buy in bulk and thus save a lot of money. I have a Chinese friend whose cooking skills are unbelievable. He regularly goes on a mad sweep of Fortune Supermarket so if it’s good enough for him it should be good enough for anyone.

Fortune Supermarket was as close to being back in Korea as I’ve experienced in an Asian import store: the set up, the cramped aisles, the smell of spices and, of course, the stock. They had bags of kimchi! Only in bulk, and a bit pricey, but yay. Also: dried cuttle fish (and other meats), mango-​flavoured desserts, cakes made from gooey rice paste, seaweed, tonnes of curries, soup mixes and tofus.
Fruits and vegetables were available fresh and in cans; and beans in cans or dried and in bags. The shop also sells kitchenware and crockery: bamboo steamers, rice spoons and mats for rolling sushi (or kimbap.)
It was the most authentic shop I’ve been in here, a vast selection of all the Asian specialties.

Stepping through the door of Fortune Supermarket might not guarantee you a winning lottery ticket but it does give you access to a whole world of Chinese goodies!
Halfway up one of Brighton’s most densely populated streets of restaurants, it’s a one-​stop shop for everything you might need for a Chinese feast. There’s a fridge stacked with fresh pak choi, oyster mushrooms, babycorn and other fresh veggies, a freezer packed with spring rolls, dumplings, fish and meat and shelves of sauces, oils, rice, noodles and candies. I’d give it an extra star if it occupied a smaller space. As it is, there’s too much empty space — which could be used to stock more treats. If some of it’s occupied next time I visit, I’ll give it a fourth star.