Shelves might be thinner, but I have suffered no ill effects shopping (and eating) at Mitsuwa these days so let's keep things in perspective. And the food court has improved dramatically if you ask me - the new yakisoba/donburi spot, two new tempura options and now a waffle/bubble tea spot.

Mitsuwa periodically has shipments of fresh fish from Tsukiji fish market.
After viewing a YouTube video on HalfBeak preparation, found them fresh at Mitsuwa at $10 a fish.
Watched two other YouTube videos on preparation for sashimi and had at it with my trusty Takeda 30cm sashimi knife.
Most intricate sashimi work I have done to date.
Quality was excellent.
Last Saturday picked up bonito nicely prepped from the Tsukiji selection, best we ever had.
Mitsuwa has an on-line flyer and details when they fly in fish from Tsukiji.
I have two mackerel in the freezer waiting to be grilled.
Thier regular selection of fish for Sashimi/sushi is the best I have found in this area.
Only place I can purchase liter cans of Asahi 'SuperDry' still made in Japan.-Richard

I would echo BR's comments on the food court, my wife and I were there a few weeks ago on a Saturday afternoon and it was hopping. After reading Mike Sula's article on the new options, we ended up trying Hannosuke for tempura and Mugimari for udon. Both were excellent, the tempura from Hannosuke was light and crispy and the noodles at Hannosuke are made fresh daily at the storefront. Two more great options to eat there, we will be back for both.

Stopped in for lunch last week and I usually can't pass up a short line at Santouka, but decided to try the udon at Sanuki Seimen Mugimaru.

And it was delicious! Had one of the bukkake bowls (I know...), which was a cold noodle served in a concentrated broth. I could be wrong but the udon seemed like it was freshly made vs the frozen/refrigerated stuff in stores.

What a nice surprise! I've been craving freshly made udon since my trip to Tokyo a couple years back, and this definitely scratched that itch.

Mitsuwa is having it’s Gourmet Food Fair.
Highlights for me are the Snow Crab Bento Boxes and Fish Cakes of various types.
The lady making the Bento Boxes is here from Japan for the Food Fair.
She can only work so fast and supplies seem to be limited by her output.
Throughout the store are other Gourmet Japanese food items highlighted.
The Snow Crab is quite delicate but delicious and the Fish Cake with edamame was the best of the Fish Cakes.
Mitsuwa is back to normal after the redo and new vendors have been added.
-Richard

If this is off-topic, sorry.

If you really like the Mitsuwa Marketplace in the Chicagoland area, you will really like the ones in Southern California. They generally have better selection of groceries and a better variety of prepared foods. Ditto for H-Mart. In general, we find ourselves eating from these grocery stores when in the area than restaurants.

jlawrence01 wrote: If this is off-topic, sorry.
If you really like the Mitsuwa Marketplace in the Chicagoland area, you will really like the ones in Southern California. They generally have better selection of groceries and a better variety of prepared foods. Ditto for H-Mart. In general, we find ourselves eating from these grocery stores when in the area than restaurants.

It is not off-topic.
From my visits to the west coast of the U.S.A., this is generally accepted as such. Seattle, Portland (OR.), the Bay Area, and much of southern California all get a higher array of items from across the Pacific.
There is a reason it is called 'the Pacific Rim'.