There's a giant Korean supermarket not terribly far from where I live (the mega
Hmart in Burlington). It's enormous--big enough to have small aisles dedicated to different Asian groceries--a Thai aisle, an Indian aisle, a Japanese aisle, etc. It's far more than I'd ever be able to explore on my own. What items available in a truly excellent Asian supermarket should I seek out? This is pretty much a pan-Asian free-for-all, so if you have a favorite Indonesian mustard, or an unforgettable Cambodian pickle, please share here. Bonus points for sous-vide-able items!
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posted by Admiral Haddock
on May 20, 2013 -
52 answers
I'm a tall (6'2", or 188cm) and skinny (155 lbs, or 68 kg) guy who can't find dress shirts that fit in the States. This week I'm in Paris, where I assume I'll have better luck finding something with a much closer fit; where do I go?
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posted by VeritableSaintOfBrevity
on May 19, 2013 -
2 answers
I had my heart set on
this blazer, but it turned out to look different when I saw it in person. Any recommendations for places to get a similar-style blazer in the same price range? I'm a man in London.
posted by ersatz
on May 16, 2013 -
7 answers
My Mom used to love using bath beads, but we haven't been able to find them for ages (We used to get them at a little red shop instead of a bigger store; I think it was a body shop inside of a Sears or Bay or something like that?) Anyway, I figured I would get her some for mother's day. This is turning out to be a lot more challenging than I anticipated.
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posted by Canageek
on May 7, 2013 -
13 answers
I'd like to start composting... I think. I am lazy and I am worried about vermin. What style of composter do I need? Any special tips for buying/getting started with a system?
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posted by nkknkk
on May 6, 2013 -
15 answers
The title says it all! Last-minute day trip across the border and back, and we're finally hitting this magical place called Trader Joe's. What are your recommendations for border-crossing-approved items from TJ's?
posted by sillymama
on Apr 27, 2013 -
30 answers
Bonjour!
I am heading to Paris tomorrow, and would like to spend a little of my time there shopping. I am not a fashonista but like to look really sharp for my job. Know of any secret gems?
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posted by Calicatt
on Apr 26, 2013 -
2 answers
I am trying to avoid shopping at amazon.com because of the company's predatory business model. What are the best online alternatives for each product category?
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posted by alms
on Apr 22, 2013 -
33 answers
I am a Canadian who is going to be going down to Bangor, Maine in a couple weeks time. One task for the trip is to find shoes for the wedding. I have really difficult feet to fit and I was hoping to get some suggestions for places to try. (Suggestions for plus size clothing stores that have cute/retro/fashionable would also be helpful.)
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posted by PuppetMcSockerson
on Apr 18, 2013 -
11 answers
LondonCommerceFilter: Business trip to London (from US) coming up, and I've got a free initial jetlag day that I'd like to spend shopping-- preferably for cool, unique,
not-too-expensive, suitable-for-gifting items I'd be unlikely to find in the US. I'm specially interested in women's accessories (scarves, jewelry); toys and games; (travel-friendly) foods; tchotchkes; and used/antique books. Any must-visit shops?
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posted by gallusgallus
on Apr 15, 2013 -
23 answers
What are some of the best stores for bra shopping in Paris, France? They must have awesome bras for ladies with DD+ cup sizes. Où sont les meilleurs magasins et boutiques à Paris pour acheter des soutiens-gorge pour une femme de grande taille?
posted by matildaben
on Apr 5, 2013 -
6 answers
I have a client that has a scooter food delivery service. What I need to do is build menus for each of the restaurants, have the user be able to add items to a cart and then get a total. The actual transaction will occur at the customers home upon delivery so there's no need to deal with payments online. I'd like to use something open source and I've been looking at X-cart but I'd like to consider as many options as possible. WP/WooCommerce doesn't work because it requires a payment gateway and real time transaction (as far as I can tell) I'd love some recommendations. Thanks.
posted by humboldt32
on Apr 2, 2013 -
9 answers
Extreme long-shot filter: The lid on my favorite travel mug partially melted in the dishwasher. Help me find a replacement?
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posted by Ms. Toad
on Mar 30, 2013 -
4 answers
My wife is pregnant. I'd like to get her a gift certificate to a store that sells maternity clothing that is akin to the clothing she normally buys.
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posted by nitsuj
on Mar 29, 2013 -
9 answers
I like to shop for jewelry. I like looking at pretty sparkly things (actually, I like looking at tacky sparkly things, too!), and I love to window-shop for jewelry. But my favorite local jewelry-maker retired and my favorites on the web have mostly shifted collections over the years into things I don't like as much anymore. I want to find new jewelry-makers that I like! Specifications and examples within.
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posted by Eyebrows McGee
on Mar 28, 2013 -
25 answers
In a week I'll be attending a big family event all the way down in Houston, Texas. The main family hotel is the Hilton and most events will be happening in the Galleria mall. I know I'm going to need an escape from all the intense family time, but I won't have a car and I'm low on non-family-time funds. I haven't been back to Houston almost at all as an adult. Is there anywhere nearby or in the mall that I can visit to regain a little calm or find a little funky charm to distract myself?
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posted by Mizu
on Mar 28, 2013 -
9 answers
So I need a new bike. Or a new-to-me bike. But I'm paralyzed by indecision - new or used? What kind do I want? How do I know which local shop to trust when they all have super-mixed reviews?
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posted by Rallon
on Mar 26, 2013 -
9 answers
I ordered a 2-piece sectional sofa 15 weeks ago, and it was supposed to be delivered in 8-10 weeks. Half of it was delivered at 8 weeks, the other half is still missing. How much should I ask for in compensation as the delivery gets later and later, and what's the best way to handle asking for such compensation?
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posted by vytae
on Mar 24, 2013 -
15 answers
I wanna do some online clothes shopping - please recommend your favorite quirky, trendy, CHEAP places to buy women's clothes online.
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posted by catatethebird
on Mar 22, 2013 -
21 answers
I'm going to be in NYC soon. I buy a lot of import (read: straight from Shenzen) photography junk (stands, lens hoods, macro rails, Benro tripods/heads, LED lights, etc). All cheap and low-ish quality.
I buy this stuff on eBay and it is almost always coming from Shenzen or NYC/Jersey. If I wanted to see stores or kiosks full of it, where should I look?
posted by fake
on Mar 20, 2013 -
3 answers
Now that the TSA is allowing Swiss Army knives on flights, I'd like to get my boyfriend a replacement for the one he lost a while back. But, searching on Amazon, there seem to be a million options.
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posted by rainbowbrite
on Mar 12, 2013 -
15 answers
I'm moving house next weekend and new place does not have WiFi. It's a six month lease and I'll probably be moving out of the country after that. I use a lot of internet (streaming music, downloading podcasts, films, sending large files, using cloud services, etc.) and so I need something unlimited or pretty near it. Everything I'm seeing online so far is either too much £ for too little internet (£20 for 2GB per month, seriously??) or too much commitment (12-18 month contracts for phone, broadband and TV). I only need internet. What are my options, if any? Thanks!
posted by iamkimiam
on Mar 9, 2013 -
11 answers
We are moving into our first flat! Hooray! However, it is unfurnished, so we need to buy us some furniture - specifically, a good sofa and a good dining/gaming table. If we go Ikea, what's the sweet spot between price and durability?
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posted by mippy
on Mar 8, 2013 -
39 answers
After wasting two different off-days trying to get my damnable modem+router working, I want to return them both and get something entirely new. Any good recommendations for a solid, reliable DSL modem and wireless router set-up with decent NAS support?
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posted by Rhaomi
on Mar 3, 2013 -
5 answers
I'm trying to find a messenger bag that looks good and is vegan (no leather). Zappos has a vegan filter for shoes but not bags. Are there any sites that are pleasurable to use, have nice-looking stuff, and sell vegan products like messenger bags? Would be great to have for future shopping of all kinds.
posted by malhouse
on Mar 1, 2013 -
21 answers
I was born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, and am flying back from New York for a short visit for the first time in a while. I've recently become really interested in Southern housewares and goods, like
Jack Rudy Cocktail Co., and I was wondering - what things can I
only get in the South that I should bring back North?
posted by 235w103
on Feb 28, 2013 -
37 answers
I'm looking for a bag that may or may not exist: a stylish hip bag that won't make me look either like I'm wearing a waiter's apron or like I'm on my way to a Renaissance Faire.
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posted by tomorrow
on Feb 19, 2013 -
21 answers
I'm looking for replacements for my starting to wear out knee-high boots, and having no luck.
I would love to find something like
these or
these.
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posted by dotgirl
on Feb 18, 2013 -
8 answers
Being without children myself and not that well versed on what they need/want or the big trends right now, i need suggestions for the following gifts i need to buy in the next month or so:
gift for a premature baby boy (or his mum);
gift for a 2yr old girl;
gift for my soon to be arriving nephew
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posted by moreteaplease
on Feb 8, 2013 -
10 answers
I need to buy a used car. I hate the process, am afraid of dealerships, and am easily talked into things — so I hired a "car concierge" buying service to do this for me. But it didn't work out like I thought and I felt pressured to spend more than I wanted. Should I give up? If so, how do I deal with buying a used car, when it completely freaks me out?
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posted by amoeba
on Feb 5, 2013 -
10 answers
I once wandered into a store selling vintage steel road frames converted into fixed-gear bikes. I think I was in the Silverlake area, but it could have been Los Feliz or Echo Park (I had been exploring LA all that day with a free TAP Card and wasn't 100% oriented). Does anyone know what store this might have been, or where I could find a similar store in the LA area?
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posted by mnemonic
on Jan 31, 2013 -
6 answers
In April I'll be attending a weeklong conference in Alexandria, VA and will likely be traveling alone. I've never been to DC. What can I do (safely and cheaply) by myself?
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posted by almostmanda
on Jan 30, 2013 -
23 answers
This snowflake is woefully under-hoodied: I cannot locate a hoodie which meets my specific nitpicky criteria. Can YOU?
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posted by julthumbscrew
on Jan 30, 2013 -
15 answers
I would like to save up for a new laptop. My current laptop is an original (2006) black MacBook. Should I save up for a new/refurb MacBook [Pro/Air], or are there less expensive but high-quality PC laptops out there?
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posted by WasabiFlux
on Jan 26, 2013 -
13 answers
I'll be in Dallas in a few weeks for a conference and I'd like to go record shopping. Specifically, I'd like to buy 60s garage records from the Dallas/Fort Worth scene. Where should I go?
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posted by kendrak
on Jan 24, 2013 -
4 answers
Looking for a recommendation for an upholsterer who serves the upper west side? Used to use Patterson Silks, but they closed. Need couches recovered, cushions, repairs and so on, lots to do!! Around 72 nd street specifically, but quality is the watch word.
posted by Great Swell
on Jan 22, 2013 -
3 answers
I have had my eye on
these shoes for months and despite the price tag, I'm tempted to bite the bullet. Can you help me find some comparable shoes at a lower price point?
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posted by kat518
on Jan 22, 2013 -
15 answers
My husband and I are taking my nearly 2 year old on her first trip to New York. We're going to be there to buy books and fabric, but this will take less than a day out of our three day trip. We've been to New York dozens of times, but never with a kid in tow. We'd like some suggestions for toddler-friendly shops, sites, and restaurants that we can use to break up our errands.
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posted by Alison
on Jan 21, 2013 -
19 answers
Inspired by all these threads (
1,
2,
3) I was wondering which products are much cheaper than other products in the same class, but offer comparable, or exceptional performance. Generally, I would suppose these would mainly come from
Chinese companies that aren't very well-established internationally.
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posted by titantoppler
on Jan 20, 2013 -
17 answers
All my life I've bought cheap-ass vaguely-leather-ish belts (like, the $20 ones from that rack next to the cash register at the el-cheapo big box shoe store) and they've always started to warp within three months and started falling to pieces within six. I don't
think I'm unusually hard on my belts. I think the ones I'm buying just suck balls and I should bite the bullet and buy nicer ones. So: How much more would I have to spend to get one that
didn't suck? What would it cost me to get a leather belt that would last two years without warping or splitting? Five years? Ten?
Infinity?
posted by and so but then, we
on Jan 10, 2013 -
39 answers
I've noticed that mineral oil marketed to those who will use the oil on butcher blocks is much more expensive than food grade mineral oil that is marketed to those who will use the oil as a laxative. I buy the cheaper version, thank you very much. Are there other items out there where one can save a buck or two by purchasing the more cheaply marketed version of an item?
posted by starkraven
on Jan 9, 2013 -
56 answers
Help my girlfriend find the perfect pair of high quality, full-grain leather boots! Looking for stores in the San Francisco Bay area, as well as online retailers.
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posted by Afroblanco
on Jan 4, 2013 -
19 answers
I'm getting a start making jewelry and am looking for suppliers for inexpensive beads and pendants. Most of what I've been using has been cheap stuff from Fire Mountain and I've been really happy with the stuff I've gotten for them in the 75 cents to 2 dollar range but am looking for more variety. I'm more interested in pendants and other focals than beads, but I'm addicted enough to the bead part that I'll look at sites that focus on those too :)
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posted by NoraReed
on Jan 3, 2013 -
8 answers
I've got a modern coffee table which consists of a metal base with a large rectangular piece of glass resting on top of it. It works OK and is stable and level etc. (the glass is actually a little larger than needed--it originally went with a different piece) but I worry when guests are over and don't know to be careful with it. Especially children. Essentially, I want to place something (some type of non-slip material, something similar to a foam adhesive or caulk-like substance?) between the metal and the glass to keep it from sliding if someone pushes the glass with their feet. Don't need it permanently affixed, just something to help keep things in place. What do I search for on general shopping sites like Amazon, or elsewhere?
posted by lovingkindness
on Jan 2, 2013 -
12 answers
