Article by
Tim Lai , Vancouver Sun
Published: Monday, August 11, 2008

Richmond's Night Market a top seasonal attraction
The most popular draw is the food court with its many delicious smells and tastes


Every few steps, the battle of deliciousness floating in the air changes thanks to the light breeze this evening that pushes smoke, steam and smells in all directions.

On one side of the aisle in this converted parking lot in Richmond adjacent to the Fraser River, the smell rising off exceptionally large siu mai dumplings sifts towards the centre, as if it's going full steam towards the smoke of the barbecue skewers grilling across the way.

Walk a few steps ahead and the roasted corn fights for access to the taste buds. The screaming blenders have stopped momentarily, so that the fresh strawberry smoothie can be poured out. Meanwhile, a middle-aged woman yells out into the growing, and hungry, crowd that the curry fish balls she's stirring are a great bargain.
Crowds at the Richmond Night Market are treated to a wide selection of ethnically diverse cuisine. On a clear and dry weekend more than 50,000 people from all over the Lower Mainland will visit the market. View Larger Image View Larger Image
Crowds at the Richmond Night Market are treated to a wide selection of ethnically diverse cuisine. On a clear and dry weekend more than 50,000 people from all over the Lower Mainland will visit the market.

The line up to get takoyaki -- fried octopus dumplings -- seems to be growing even though many foodies looking for their next savoury snack already have a bundle in their hands.

"The balls are so good," says Lori Tamkee, 33, referring to the takoyaki. On her second trip to the Summer Night Market in a week, she and two friends, who mainly come for the tasty munchies, take a break from the buzzing food court to take in the acoustic set of local singer-songwriter.

Richmond's Summer Night Market, under new management with a new name, has grown into the city's main attraction of the season, evolving along the way.

On a clear and dry weekend, more than 50,000 people from all over the Lower Mainland will wander up and down behind the Cathay Importers warehouse in north Richmond.

There's something for everyone. You can find an old lady selling bras and thongs next to the stand with heavily discounted down parkas. Bonzai trees sit in the bright lights next to a booth selling stationery. Meanwhile, a sign for $2 t-shirts suddenly appears from behind a crowd of bargain hunters.

The night market wasn't buzzing like this earlier in the summer when a plumbing problem delayed the opening of its biggest, and most delicious, draw -- the food court.

"It's true that a big part of the groups didn't come down until the food court was open. For sure, we didn't have as many people as we do now," says Paul Cheung, director of operations for the Summer Night Market.

It took three weeks, but the curries, bubble teas and mini egg waffles returned on June 21 once organizers installed the necessary plumbing for the food vendors.

James Chen, a chef at the Fairmont Waterfront wipes away some sweat as he and his 17-year-old son flip and dust hundreds of skewers with several spices as a line grows.

They decline to reveal how many meat-on-a-stick they can sell, but a lady who introduced herself as Mrs. Tam says her Treasure Cafe dim sum stand can sell about 3,000 siu mai dumpling a night.

She attributes the bigger crowds this year to cheaper ($4) and more organized parking.

Cheung says the City of Richmond had concerns about the parking lot adjacent to the market, but the high turnover has helped the flow of traffic become steadier this year.

When Cheung took over the summer event earlier this year, he says he made it goal to make it a more mainstream event instead of a Asian fair.

"If you look in the crowd, it's more that just black hair," says Cheung. "I wanted to drive up the entertainment and make it more of a festival."

On this night, Vancouver-based Mike Weterings sings on stage with his guitar as two teens from North Vancouver and Port Moody dance.

So far this summer, '60s and 70s-themed nights have rocked out on stage, while Cheung is hoping to get a Superdogs-type show organized before the market closes for next year. In the future, he'd also like to start up a lantern show inside the adjoining warehouse or an exotic car show.

"I look around and it's not an Asian night market. It certainly feels like the whole spectrum of the city," says Suren Shanmugasunderam, who carries a bag of dragon beard candy for his three young daughters as they curiously look at the shiny toys in the marketplace. "They like the taste, but they like to string it out and stick it on their chins and play with it."

Shanmugasunderam says he likes the family-oriented nature of the night market, which is why he comes back every year.

Scanning the grounds, the amount of strollers and young children walking hand-in-hand with their parents can rival the flirty teenagers trying on "Kanye" shutter-style sunglasses.

If the Summer Night Market can continue to attract people throughout the Lower Mainland, it could possibly rival the PNE one day. Several food vendors who have been with the night market for the past five years said it's been growing each year.

"We're half the size of the PNE and don't have the amusement park side either. If you were to walk through the market area of the PNE and you compare our market area, there's really no empty space, all you see are people and bodies," says Cheung.

"At the PNE, there's a lot of bodies, but also a lot of space."