Have a hankering for Dragon fruit? Can't find a Starfruit? How about some live Dungeness Crab?
The only place in the San Fernando Valley to find some of the unique 4,000 Asian products is at the 99 Ranch Market in Van Nuys.
The store is part of a chain of 30 Asian markets and this one will turn 20 next January.
Inside, there are two rows of just different sorts of Ramen noodles. There are live lobsters, crabs for $3.99 a pound. There are bamboo shoots for eating and growing, Langon fruit, cheremoya and all sorts of unique fruits and vegetables that people can't find at the local Ralphs.
You can get steamed bean bun for $3.99 for four, and fresh sushi. Grass jelly drink is 79 cents a can.
The large 99 Ranch Market Van Nuys is just off I-405 and Victory Boulevard, on Sepulveda Boulevard. The manager is Martin Wu and the assistant manager is Lex Shi. Many of the employees have worked at the market for more than a decade and live in the area. The shop is opened 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week
99 Ranch Market
6450 N. Sepulveda Blvd.,
Van Nuys, CA 91411
(818) 988-7899
Editorial staff: how do stories/info-sharing like this get posted to more than the geographically-nearest Patch?