Off the Beaten Path: Abalone Pastries at Chung Fat Supermarket
When I saw the new Chung Fat Supermarket I could hardly believe my eyes. The sprawling grocery that just opened on Main Street in Flushing takes up more than three storefronts. Since I was unable to find someone to translate what the name means, I can only guess that it's Chinese for "gargantuan supermarket with tons of fresh meat, seafood and vegetables." That, or it’s a tribute to the Chinese film producer. Either way there’s quite the variety of seafood, including abalone. I’ve never been able to overcome the price barrier of ordering this mollusk in a Chinese restaurant. Nor do I know how to prepare it, so I had put it out of my mind until I entered the snack aisle. There amidst a myriad of dried fruit and chicken biscuits was a box of one dozen abalone pastries, for a mere $3.49. That’s quite the price break compared to a restaurant. Japanese abalone has been known to fetch $108 an order at Ping’s Seafood. And that was eight years ago!
