Hmart Best Lunch Buys

At noon from Monday to Friday, the H Mart in Main Street Marketplace becomes noticeably busier as the restaurant becomes teeming with a different kind of customer: hungry high schoolers. H Mart is almost BHS’s designated lunch spot. H Mart offers a globally diverse and cheap selection and is within walking distance of the school. However, with such a large selection, choosing what to buy becomes a surprisingly difficult task. But be indecisive no further! Try some of these items the next time you stop for a visit.

This discussion evaluates two qualities of an item: taste and cost. Items that score well in both categories are the true unicorn finds of H Mart. Having personally recommended my finds to friends to great success, here is my list of the must-buy items at H Mart to satisfy both the stomach and the wallet, along with a popular buy to avoid:

1. Spicy Rice Cakes: H Mart’s take on tteokbokki

Tucked away at the far-right end of H Mart’s food court, this easy-to-overlook gastronomic masterpiece lies neatly stacked up. While unassuming reddish orange plastic containers are less appealing than the other beautifully presented selections, just one look at the price already justifies its ranking on the list. For just $3.99, you get a stuffed container filled with rice cakes and Korean fish cakes coated in a thick sweet and spicy broth. H Mart also offers a version with a hard-boiled egg for an extra dollar and a larger version with a taller container. However, the cheapest $3.99 version is always my go-to for cost and amount of food.

2. Vietnamese spring roll: an underrated filler

Vietnamese cuisine is one of my all-time favorites, so I was immediately excited to spot these spring rolls offered. If you’ve ever been to a Vietnamese place, you’ve probably seen these iconic uncooked spring rolls filled with fresh vegetables, herbs, rice vermicelli, and wrapped in translucent sticky rice paper. H Mart’s take on these spring rolls, however, is likely different from what you’ll get at your local pho restaurant, but that’s okay! These spring rolls are larger than typical and filled with more vegetables and herbs than typically and the sauce is more diluted.

3. Bibimbap Triangles: the best grab & go snack

These seaweed-covered, rice-filled triangles stuffed with different fillings are all yours for just $3.99. Out of the different offerings of filling including beef, tuna, and kimchi, my undisputed top pick is the crab. Although the crab is a substitute, the sweet strands of imitation crab adds immense flavor to the surrounding rice in a way that doesn’t make the combination taste dry, a problem that occurs with the other bibimbap triangles. These are easily carried in hand and can be easily eaten on a walk or standing up.

4. Korean-style Fried Chicken: a classic reimagined

This box of Korean-style fried chicken is not what you’ll get at your local fried chicken joint. This chicken is light, airy and crunchy, and I commonly find myself walking out with a box between my hands. H Mart recently raised their prices on this item by around a dollar to $7.99, but this large container of fried chicken is still a worthwhile buy for anyone seeking a delicious treat.

5. Rice bowls are overpriced

H Mart’s signature bowls of rice, usually accompanied with some selection of protein are always presented neatly stacked in their black packaging and put on display under the lights of the hot foods display. While they seem enticing, I’ve come to learn that the entire bowl quickly becomes stale and loses its appeal near the end. Besides, they consistently hover around the $12 to $15, a steep price to be paying compared to the other items on this list.