About this place

Chain Convenience Stores

There are a few different convenience store chains in Nanjing. There is no real noticeable difference between them in terms of the products they carry. Here’s a list of some basic categories of items found at these convenience stores.

-Edibles such as beverages, treats, chips, etc.
-Some drug-store items such as pads and tampons.
-Beer, wine and baijiu. There are even some fairly expensive bottles of liquor there at times. Note that the beer is usually not kept cold.
-Some hot food such as meat balls on a stick and tea eggs.

Su Guo is the largest chain of convenience stores in Nanjing. They have stores that range from convenience store size to grocery store size.

A little known fact about Su Guo is that they will rent umbrellas for free! Give Su Guo a 10 yuan deposit to borrow the umbrella and they return to you the 10 yuan when you bring it back.

Holes in the Wall

Little “holes in the wall” sell beverages, alcohol, and assorted snacks and treats. A "hole in the wall’ is the often the smallest shop imaginable and are found everywhere. Most of these holes in the wall are not very busy, because Chinese people don’t trust them. However the ones next to the Nanjing University foreign students dormitory (Xiyuan) are always busy thanks to the reliable foreign customers.

There are other types of “holes in the wall” including ones that specialize in cigarettes and liquor.