Poly Ave Polynesian Store
★★★★☆ 4.3 (29) • $
"Fun Adventure! Hidden in an older, quiet neighborhood near historic downtown Riverside is a mom and pop gem. This is where the joyful Polynesian heart and soul resides: Poly Market, located on tiny Park Ave. Do not be intimidated to venture in. This unremarkable, rather cluttered, but very friendly, ethnic market drew us in because we had heard about its unique, small, hot food deli. Not to confuse you, but at one point it was known as Park Ave Polynesian Market. It is the same place, renamed and refocused. Disregard any reference to Mexican food that may appear on Yelp. That part of the menu has been discontinued.The owner, Lilo, brought to you directly from Samoa, made some changes a few years ago and is focusing only on his beloved foods from the South Pacific. His wife does the cooking/baking. They have been in business for about 8 years now.Not unlike Filipino turo-turo style food service, he offers a small selection of hot food items in steam trays. You point, he dishes it up into styrofoam to-go containers and provides plastic ware. There are only two small tables set up inside the market, so don't plan on fancy dining and bringing big parties. This is mostly take out.I am not sure exactly how he determines what to charge, because he simply asked, "How much do you want?" Uh...one serving, I guess. Whatever that is. He dished out some food, then said, "Is this enough?"I came for the Turkey Tails. I ended up with 5 plump ones in a its own juices. If you are unfamiliar with this elusive delicacy, also cleverly known as The Pope's Nose, these are the little triangular stumps of tailbone, with fat and meat attached, from the turkey's hiney. Yes! And when cooked right, they are gems of flavor. This was a braised version and very tender. Add to that what was called "Chop Suey" (aka Sapa Sui). This is unlike the Chinese version with egg noodle, more similar to a Filipino pancit bihon, made with a clear, glass noodle and stir fried meat and vegetables. Delicious.Braised lamb ribs. They are not easy to find. His are meaty, simple and tender. These were slow cooked in their own juices and seasoned simply to let the lamb flavor shine. His lamb products are from New Zealand.Curry. This is a very delicate, creamy, curry gravy with meat (lamb) chunks and a few vegetables. Very tasty, not at all hot/spicy. Meat pie. This was my absolute favorite! They are big, round, 4" diameter hand pies filled with meat filling. Today's were filled with beef and vegetable. The outer pastry was incredibly delicate and flaky; it simply melted in my mouth. I do not need to look elsewhere for better. This is it! They make them in-house and bake daily. They are served warm.Pineapple pie. This is another hand pie, bigger than your hand, shaped like a huge half moon, but with a thickened, crushed pineapple filling. Freshly baked and served warm, the pastry crust tastes more cookie-like. They are not overly sweet. We were not as excited by these, too much dough, very little pineapple.Sodas and other beverages are retrieved by you, the customer, from commercial refrigerators. If you look closely, you will find one shelf containing cold bottles of Guava sparkling beverage and Ginger Beer (both are Bundaberg brand imported from Australia). A must try!And if we get lucky, Lilo mentioned that he sometimes cooks outside in front. He was referring to bbq'ing Huli huli chicken and roast pig... but not until the weather cools down. It's a lot of work, but he said, when he has done that in the past, the lines of people ran down the street. We can only hope he considers doing that again! His future plans also include adding a few more tables inside so he can start serving an American-style breakfast.For now, the remainder of the store is full of metal racks. The shelves are filled with canned meats, dry noodles, and other imported ingredients that are typical for Polynesian cuisine. You will also discover small racks of Polynesian jewelry, plumeria and hibiscus hair ornaments, and other trinkets. In a small, back room slightly larger than a closet, there is more. Colorful Polynesian style clothing, more imported products, and two large freezers filled with bulk bags of frozen meats and fish. Yes, even bulky bags full of those elusive turkey tails! I really enjoyed listening to his background music, such as Hawaiian favorites sung by Iz and Don Ho. Very nostalgic.I look forward to returning!Note: Days open on their Yelp page are incorrect at the time of this writing. They are closed on Sunday and Monday."
"I'm definitely a novice when it comes to Hawaiian food, so I have no sense as to how "authentic" it is, but I really do like what I've ordered. That would include chicken katsu, macaroni salad and spam musubi, because my body is a temple and it's important that I only ingest the healthiest foods. Ok, that was a huge ass lie.The staff her is ridiculously nice."
"First time coming in and I'm glad I stopped by. Poke was fresh and delicious. Staff were friendly and welcoming. I will definitely be back when I'm in the area."
