The 10 greatest hits at Pacific Mall in Markham
Pacific Mall is one of the biggest Chinese indoor malls in North America. This massive Markham institution has remained largely unchanged since it first opened in 1997, meaning the corridors are still overwhelming for first-timers. Skip the confusion and head to a few staples so you have more time to peruse all those DVDs.
These are some of my favourite places at Pacific Mall.
The Best Shop
Sure, the name is pretty self-congratulatory, but not going to lie, it is pretty great. Head upstairs and explore aisles upon aisles of cheap housewares, fancy rice cookers, four-foot-tall washing machines, and smiling Buddhas.
Sun’s Kitchen
You’ll hear it before you see it: this stall in the second-floor Heritage Town food court specializes in hand-pulled noodles made fresh to order. The dan dan noodles are some of the best around, plus they’re ridiculously cheap, and you get a free show when you order them.
Ding Dong Grocery
Prepare yourself for one of the most impressive collections of Asian candy, ever. Love Kit Kat? They stock the green tea version here, along with other quintessential Japanese snacks like UHA Grape Candy. Your sweet tooth will be more than happy you came here. There’s a location in Kensington now but this one’s the original.
Coffee Dak Lak
Their location by College and Spadina might be more popular now, but this Vietnamese cafe gots it start from its tiny stall on the second floor. Their iced condensed milk coffee is unreal, as always, as are their sweet tofu puddings served with coconut sauce.
Uncle Tetsu
These Japanese cheesecakes have already taken the city by storm, with locations at Union Station and Dundas, but none got as big a sign as the one at Pacific Mall. You’ll find these light fluffy cheesecakes located right at the main entrance of the mall.
Potato Noodle Soup of Bai
As its name implies, this food court staple specializes in xi’anese potato noodles, which are delicious in soup but equally delicious in cold sesame sauce. It also serves jia mo, a kind of northwestern Chinese burger.
Tung Tung Dan Quen King
Head upstairs toward the lacquered Heritage Town entrance and you’ll immediately smell the scent of sweet, sweet bubble waffles. Grab a piping bag fresh from the grill for just $2 a pop. They’ve even started doing different flavours.
Fish Ball Place
The interior of Pacific Mall is designed after the streets of Hong Kong, so it makes sense that Hong Kong street food is everywhere here. This itty bitty stall all the way at the back of the Heritage Town section sells skewers of fish and beef balls covered in curry on styrofoam.
Papa Chang’s
To the delight of most, one of the best restaurants for skewered Taiwanese snacks finally landed on the second floor of PMall and has consistently been a favourite pitstop for pork belly buns, popcorn chicken and sticky rice cake.
Axia
AYCE pork bone soup—enough said. This upper-floor restaurant has been in Pacific Mall since its inception more than 20 years ago, and offers a mix of Korean comfort food, Japanese dishes, and Northern Chinese BBQ.
Hector Vasquez of The Best Shop
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