Heart of Shanghai

A big souvenir store that is targeted at the tourists in Chinatown. It is junk but a good option if you are just looking to buy relatively inexpensive stuff for your friends back home.

You know what I find to be really weird about San Francisco shops? The store owners hardly welcome me with saying a hi or something. Out the like 5 Chinatown shops I’ve gone through, they were the first one to do that. And they turn out to be really nice people as well. They offered to hold some goodies and shirts I’d like to buy as I continue looking for stuff at the store.
Their prices are on the better side of the deals around Chinatown. So next time I’ll be in Chinatown and in need of some goodies, I’ll just go here instead of going around everywhere. But it is a bit cramped inside, but I guess that’s no different than majority of the Chinatown shops.

This store is a real find. I got back from the great American «mecca» of stones, the two-​week annual stones convention in Tucson, AZ, where people come from all over the world to buy and sell stones to sell in their stores. Back home in San Francisco, I found that the stones in Heart of Shanghai were of good quality and at surprisingly inexpensive prices. The store owners are very kind. They did discount some of the stones for me with considerable discounts. I have been studying as medicine in classes, and find them the perfect gifts of beauty that last longer than most other gifts that I give.

I agree with Christina V. Avoid this place. I live in SF and love Chinatown too and I also speak Chinese, but I still got nowhere complaining. I bought 2 plastic swords @ $ 5.99 each in this place but I walked across the street and found the same sword marked at $ 3.99. I went back and asked the lady behind the counter did she over charge me and she said no but it’s my fault that I didn’t haggle. She even said this is the price for me to paid to learn a lesson. She’s rude and greedy. The goods in this store has no price tags, every time you want to know the price of something the girl on the floor would turn and asked the woman behind the counter. I should have known better when I walked into this place and a couple complained that they were short changed and had to argue and recount the money before she (I suspected that she’s the owner) gave them the correct change.

I am born and raised in San Francisco. I love Chinatown! Most of the shops all have the same Chinese trinkets luring in tourists. When you shop, ask for prices. Some shops may bargain off a dollar to make a sale or give you a discount for cash sales. Avoid this shop. They are not helpful. They WILL overcharge you, take your cash and not give you an itemized receipt. Actually, no receipt at all. It is useless to complain if you can’t speak Chinese, and if you do bother to complain, they walk away and ignore you. Bad business.