Asian Supermarket Near Me: Dublin Delivery Guide

Founded: 1981 · Ireland’s Largest Asian Food Variety: Asia Market · Dublin Delivery: Same/Next Day · Top Yelp Asian Markets in Dublin: 10 listed

What to buy in the Asian supermarket?

Walking into an Asian supermarket without a list is both exciting and slightly overwhelming—the aisles are packed with products you’ve never seen before, and everything looks intriguing. The good news is that even a small selection of key ingredients can transform your home cooking in ways that feel genuinely different from what you’d get at a mainstream supermarket.

Top 10 Must-Have Ingredients

• Gochujang – Korean fermented chili paste; adds deep, complex heat to marinades, soups, and stir-fries
• Coconut milk – Essential for Thai curries, Indian-style dishes, and creamy soups; look for full-fat in the can for best results
• Rice noodles – Softer texture than wheat pasta and gluten-free; work in pho, pad thai, and spring rolls
• Fish sauce – The umami backbone of Vietnamese, Thai, and Filipino cooking; a little goes a long way
• Sesame oil – Aromatic finishing oil for noodles, marinades, and dressings; don’t cook with it at high heat
• Curry paste – Red, green, yellow, or massaman; jumpstarts Thai, Indian, or Malaysian curries in minutes
• Dried shiitake mushrooms – Rehydrate for stock or add directly to stir-fries; intensely savoury compared to fresh
• Oyster sauce – Thick, salty, slightly sweet; the secret to restaurant-style beef and broccoli
• Shaoxing rice wine – Chinese cooking wine that lifts stir-fries and braises
• Miso paste – Japanese fermented soybean paste; deepens soups, glazes, and dressings

What are some popular Asian grocery items?

Beyond the core pantry staples, Asian supermarkets carry an enormous range of fresh, frozen, and ambient products that reflect the full spectrum of cuisines across the continent—from Japanese bento ingredients to Indonesian palm oil, Filipino canned goods to Sri Lankan curry powders.

What do Asians mostly eat?

It’s worth stepping back from the specialty aisle: the cuisines most commonly grouped as “Asian” in an Irish supermarket context tend to centre on rice, noodles, vegetables, and protein prepared with bold, layered seasoning. Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, Korean, and Japanese eating patterns share a common thread of balancing sweet, salty, sour, and umami flavours in a single meal.

Fresh produce is central to most of these traditions, which is why specialists like Vegspot (fresh produce delivery specialist) have carved out a loyal following. They focus exclusively on Asian vegetables, herbs, and fruits—including Indian and South Asian produce—with free nationwide delivery (Vegspot Official Site).

Meanwhile, stores like Domomart (multi-ethnic grocery retailer) have broadened the definition by stocking Asian, Indian, African, and Filipino groceries in one place, positioning themselves as an affordable option for customers exploring multiple culinary traditions (Domomart Official Site).

What this means: you don’t need to choose a single store. Many Dublin shoppers use a combination—ordering fresh herbs and vegetables from Vegspot, pantry staples from Asia Market or Asianmart, and picking up specialty Korean or Japanese items from Hanyang when planning a hot pot night.

What is the Irish equivalent of M&S?

In Ireland, the closest parallel to Marks & Spencer’s food hall reputation would be Dunnes Stores, which has long held a mid-to-upmarket position in Irish grocery retail. Its “Simply Better” range competes directly with M&S’s “The Collection” in terms of premium prepared foods, party platters, and seasonal specials.

SuperValu holds a different position—local, community-focused, with independent store owners who adapt to local demographics. Several SuperValu locations in Dublin now carry expanded international sections, particularly in areas with larger Asian communities.

The pattern: Dunnes is the closest structural match to M&S in terms of store positioning, but the real question is what you’re buying. For everyday ingredients at mainstream prices, Irish shoppers have strong alternatives in the discount segment, which we’ll come to next.

What are the big 3 supermarkets?

The Irish grocery market is dominated by three major multiples: Tesco, Dunnes Stores, and SuperValu. Together, these three account for the majority of grocery spend in the Republic of Ireland, with Tesco leading on overall market share and SuperValu benefiting from a strong network of neighbourhood stores (Domomart Official Site).

Discount chains Aldi and Lidl have steadily gained ground by undercutting the major players on staple items. Their model is straightforward: fewer product lines, lower overhead, and pass-through savings to the consumer.

The catch: discount chains typically lack the international ingredient range that drives people to Asian supermarkets in the first place. If you’re shopping for gochujang, fresh lemongrass, or Japanese short-grain rice, the big 3 and the discounters won’t help you. That’s exactly where the specialist Asian retailers come in.

What is the overall cheapest supermarket?

Price competitiveness varies by product category and location, but recent Irish consumer research consistently places Aldi as the lowest-priced option for a standard weekly shop. Lidl runs very close, and both are significantly cheaper than Tesco, Dunnes, or SuperValu on comparable items.

Who is cheaper, Tesco or Aldi?

Aldi wins consistently on the overall basket. Consumer Ireland’s price monitoring shows Aldi as the cheapest of the main retailers for the past several quarters, with Lidl within a few percentage points. Tesco prices tend to run 15–25% higher on comparable own-brand and branded goods.

What is the least expensive supermarket?

For everyday pantry staples—rice, cooking oil, flour, canned tomatoes—Aldi and Lidl are the clear leaders. For Asian specialty ingredients, prices at dedicated Asian supermarkets like Domomart (affordable multi-ethnic grocery retailer) often undercut mainstream retailers on identical or comparable products, even after delivery costs are factored in for smaller orders.

What this means: cheapest overall is Aldi; cheapest for Asian-specific ingredients is usually a specialist retailer. Know which battle you’re fighting before you start shopping.

Delivery comparison for Dublin

Eight retailers compete in the Dublin Asian grocery delivery space, with meaningfully different terms that can save—or cost—you several euros depending on your order size.

The pattern: for orders under €50, Deliveroo’s Asian Grocery offers the lowest entry point (€9 minimum, €2.99 fee). For larger shops, Hanyang and Asianmart eliminate delivery fees entirely if you hit their thresholds, while Asian Food Co offers the only same-day service that includes chilled and frozen products.

How to order from an Asian supermarket in Dublin

Most Dublin Asian supermarkets operate primarily through their own websites or third-party platforms. Here’s the practical sequence:

1. Choose your store — Based on your location, order size, and whether you need perishables. Asian Food Co is the only option for same-day chilled and frozen goods; Vegspot for fresh produce only; Deliveroo for smallest orders.
2. Check minimum order and delivery fee — Review the comparison table above to avoid an unexpected surcharge. Asian Food Co’s tiered structure (€80 / €120 / €180 depending on distance from city centre) is the most complex.
3. Browse the range — Asia Market offers the broadest single-brand variety, including Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Thai, Indian, Filipino, and African ingredients. Hanyang focuses on Korean, Chinese, and Japanese products with BBQ and hot pot kits.
4. Add items to your basket — Note that Asianmart applies restrictions on bulk rice orders for free delivery eligibility. If you’re buying 20kg+ of rice, factor in a delivery charge or mix it with other items.
5. Complete checkout — All listed retailers accept card payments online. Some (like Hanyang) also offer contact via WhatsApp, KakaoTalk, or WeChat for customers who prefer direct messaging.
6. Track and receive — Same-day orders from Asian Food Co or Deliveroo typically arrive within hours; next-day delivery from Asia Market; standard delivery from other retailers within 24–48 hours.

The implication: delivery savings can evaporate if you fall below a threshold or trigger a surcharge on a bulk rice order. Run the numbers on your specific basket before assuming one store is universally cheapest.

“Founded in 1981, Asia Market is the ultimate one-stop destination for the complete Asian Food variety in Ireland.”

— Asia Market Official Site

“At Domomart.ie, our aim is to bring the best flavours to your doorstep… at Ireland’s most affordable prices.”

— Domomart Official Site

Related reading: Nice Restaurants Near Me

Dublin’s Asia Market excels in variety and same-day delivery, much like the Asian grocery store near me that profiles top chains, hours, and nationwide options.

Frequently asked questions