Zion Market

Think of this market, located on the ground floor of Koreatown’s City Center, as a city market. The aisles are more compact, there’s less room to meander, but it’s an efficient way to stock up on essentials once you’ve finished perusing the cosmetics, clothing stores and shoe stores located on the second and third floor of this mall. The best time to come is in the afternoon, when you’ll head straight for the bunggoppang (carp bread) stand located on the 6^th street side of the market. Vendors in white aprons hawk these fish-shaped desserts filled with custard or red bean —made popular in Korea during the Japanese occupation—with astonishing speed. Next to the bunggoppang vendor, there’s a table piled high with pre-made, quick-to-eat proteins like fried chicken drums glazed in a sweet and spicy sauce, garbanzo bean fritters that just need a quick fry to re-heat, and hunks of pollock that have been covered in egg and pan-fried. Parking is on the Mariposa Avenue side of the market and easy to miss, so drive slowly to turn into the small driveway that leads underground. You will be validated for two hours, but it gets crowded on the weekends so opt for off-hours like weeknights.