The commercial heart of Chinatown revolves around its markets and food shops. Noodle factories, pastry shops and produce stalls line the narrow sidewalks, always crowded with cart-pushing grandmothers and errand-running families. An institution since 1904, the Oʻahu Market sells everything a Chinese cook needs: ginger root, fresh octopus, quail eggs, jasmine rice, slabs of tuna, long beans and salted jellyfish. You owe yourself a bubble tea if you spot a pig’s head among the stalls.
At the start of the nearby pedestrian mall is the newer, but equally vibrant, Kekaulike Market. At the top end of the pedestrian mall is Maunakea Marketplace, with its popular food court.