How to go:

Catch 54C and get off at Liberty Ave either at 17th St or 21st St. Also catch 54C on the opposite side of the Liberty Ave when you want to come back to CMU.

All stores are located in the walking distance (click here for bus schedule)

Lotus:

A big Asian food store. It has many kinds of instant foods (instant noodles, dim sum packages, etc), dry foods (noodles, woon sen (glass noodles), snacks, seaweed, etc) and fresh food (vegetables, meats, etc). The store is clean and the price is fair. You can use a credit card here.

Wholey:

This is not an Asian store. It sells all kinds of fresh food like meats, seafoods, vegetables, deli and fruits at the low price. It is a big store, and their foods are fresh everyday. A credit card can be used here.

Japanese store:

There is a tiny sushi bar inside the store. You will find ingredients to cook Japanese foods including sushi and Japanese noodles here. The store is small, and the price is relatively fair to high.

Vietnam store:

Here you can find many authentic Thai food ingredients that other stores might not have. The trade-off is that you have to watch out for the expiration date on the food, and the store is not very impressively clean. Though the price of foods is relatively high, I still have to drop by to check it out for some real Thai ingredients and seasonings. You have to use cash here. (There are a couple ATM machines nearby.)

Oriental Market:

Seems to be the most favorite store of Thai students (Am I right?). It is clean and, I think, it is the cheapest Asian store in the area, despite its small size. You can find most of the things you want for your kitchen here. I normally shop at this store before checking out other stores. You can use a credit card here.

Commentary: Namtarn

Note: Other people's opinion might differ.