Huge turnout for the Grand Openings! Queue is around the block!
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Also knees for yakitori! SO GOOD. known as nankotsu
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The Westwood location is close enough to the main part of Westwood Village/the UCLA campus itself that it is within walking distance from where most of the dorms/apartments are. Or a very short bus ride back up the hill. For specialty items that Ralphs/Whole Foods/Trader Joe’s doesn’t sell, I expect that many students will consider the longer walk to be worthwhile. I’m just glad it’s finally open!
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Grabbed half a Roast Duck and half pound of BBQ pork from the deli on the second floor.
Duck was decent - very very fatty but OK taste. The CLEAVERING was just terrible. The guy doing it certainly did not look like he received any training (legs and wings were still in their entirety, not properly hacked up). He looked like he came over from Shamshiri, not SGV/SFV.
BBQ pork was hard and dry - not pleasant.
They have packets of Wasabi, Sriracha, “Duck Sauce” but none of the dark “dripping” sauce (or whatever they call it) that one usually gets at a Canto deli.
Won’t be back for that deli stuff unless I hear it is improving.
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Yeah, I found the 99 Ranch Westwood second floor steam table offerings to be not very tasty. But… I’m still there for the live seafood in their tanks and their veggies.
Don’t get me wrong - I am totally over the moon that they are on Westwood Blvd! And I think it will improve with time in many ways
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New life hack. Got this Wingtat Taiwanese breed chicken in the frozen game section. Total game changer. This is the best roast chicken I’ve ever had using a chicken from a supermarket. It was only $9 at 99 Ranch. Smaller, but substantial enough as a good roast chicken for two. Also got a guinea fowl for just $15 which I’ve never had.
Trader Joe’s Heirloom, free range/air-chilled Mary’s, organic Whole foods. Blah. Going to make Hainanese chicken with it to see if it’s even better than my go-to splurge (because it’s a 20 miles drive) chicken from H-mart. It’s also got me wondering if Canadians are eating better chicken than we are.
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I’ve been disappointed with their buffet and bbq deli section. Had it today when I was picking up another round of chickens and it was just bad. I’ve had their roast pork and duck. Duck was okay but mostly bone. Pork was really off-flavored. And yeah, the guy did not know how to cut them up. Good chinese food should be an opportunity for them to branch out, but it’s an afterthought. Do NOT get their cooked seafood on sale. I’ve had bad experiences. I suspect my local store is cooking dead or dying seafood, not just a lobster with a missing claw.
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How does it compare to Jidori? For me those have significantly more flavor than whatever flavor of Mary’s at Whole Foods. Will have to check this out.
Can’t say. I haven’t had jidori in a long time. But I like this much more than Mary’s.
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Wow, I was blown away, they did a great job with the layout and making use of the space. Kinda reminds me of a Supermarket version of Ikea in that way. They easily have the widest and deepest selection of protein in the area. From beef shanks to pork jowl to goat; stewing hens, squab, goose (a couple kinds). Tons of whole fish. Even if you don’t cook Asian food particularly but you live in the area it should be on your rotation IMO.
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Been at/around UCLA since ‘04. Go Bruins.
Eagerly awaited this for years, since we don’t have real options for Chinese grocers in west or mid-city LA.
Dry food selection is more limited, but prices are the same as if you went south to Gardena or far east to SGV. Butcher is largely limited to what they pre-cut and packaged for the shelves. Hope they can accommodate larger cut requests in the future. Fish selection is very fair. Hotbar/prepared food sucks rn.
I am gonna shop the shit out of them cause I really want them to succeed here.
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A little bummed they don’t provide the same fish prep as Van Nuys - where they’ll cook your fish any way including frying.
I find both Mary’s & Jidori to be somewhat bland. I’ve been buying Winglee fresh chickens in El Monte - which have been delicious.
Delighted to hear of another choice in the neighborhood. Thanks for the tip!
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Been back twice since my last post, and also had a chance to go to the one they opened in the Santa Anita mall earlier this year. Ignoring the food court, which is wildly ignorable, the locations are almost identical. I think this is the slick (almost cold, like it’s yelling “SUPER MARKET!”) look they’re going for with their new stores in the second-generation owners’ planned aggressive expansion.
I have the same complaints with both of these new locations. Just to reiterate–pantry aisles aren’t quite as well stocked. ** And my biggest issue is the butcher.** No display cases with huge slabs of pork belly, entire pork butts, huge cuts of beef, piles of uncut tendon, loose oxtails, etc. Weirdly, the Westwood one is selling exclusively Mary’s duck legs instead of their own packaged stuff. (I’ve saved so much money over the years buying their “generic” four packs for making confit–fuck the expensive stuff.)
Was pleasantly surprised to find caiziyou oil there, which is illegal to sell in the US. I don’t normally see it at other 99 Ranch locations, either; that’s one I normally to go Great Wall Supermarket to get.
Overall, though, this is a fantastic addition to the westside. Once Tokyo Central fully took over the last independently stocked Marukai (at Pico and Bundy) and made it the same as the rest of their stores, there’s been a vacuum for Chinese + Vietnamese groceries in West LA (please don’t @ me with Fatty Mart, that place is limited/weirdly gentrified garbage, particularly given who Kuo is…)
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I still fuck with Mary’s birds from time to time. US-trademarked Jidori is generally not worth the cost these days, though, yeah. I’m a big fan of Majestic Poultry on Ford Blvd for fresh chicken, which also sells the best frozen wontons in LA, with Peking Poultry as a backup when I don’t want to drive all the way out to SGV
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Peking’s brown chickens are from WingLee.
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can a local report back; per eater:
Westwood — Find Lima Nikkei in the fancy food court located above the new 99 Ranch Market in Westwood. The casual spot from chef Jason Yamaguchi prepares Japanese Peruvian cuisine using fresh seafood flown in from Japan and custom nori from Okinawa. 1360 Westwood Boulevard, Ste. 110C, Los Angeles, CA 90024.
Pics/Public Opinion:
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Damn that looks good
I think it’s legal if the level of erucic acid isn’t too high. Rapeseed oil = canola oil, and that stuff’s ubiquitous.
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=184.1555