Eugene has a number of businesses with "sunrise" in their names, including Sunrise Colonics. I've never been to Sunrise Colonics, so I can't speak to their colon-cleaning skills. But I have been to Sunrise Oriental Market, and it's a godsend. When I moved to Eugene from Portland (after a few months of traveling in Southeast Asia), I was worried I wouldn't be able to find a good, authentic Asian market like I had been used to in Portland, Tacoma, and Seattle. Sunrise can't really compete with those larger cities with their , but it has its own strengths and charms. Its focus is more on Korean and Japanese foods (its owners are Korean) than Southeast Asian foods, which means I've had the chance to learn more about Korean food than I would have if I'd continued shopping only at Vietnamese-owned grocers. Sunrise makes a number of its own kim chis and other pickles, and they're consistently terrific. The owners are sweet as can be, too, and really proud of their business and eager to help. One of the store's weaknesses, though, is that since there's not a huge, vibrant Asian community in Eugene, some of Sunrise's produce isn't always very fresh. Rau ram, Thai basil, mint, birdseye chiles, bitter melon, amaranth, etc., are sometimes past their prime, since the store doesn't do a high enough volume in these products to merit restocking every day. Also, I wish there were more fresh noodles, fresh tofu, and the like available -- but again, that's a volume problem, and has more to do with Eugene's demographics than Sunrise itself. Still, I'm very grateful to have found this store. And I'm glad to see more and more Eugeneans discovering it.
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