Jet and Cha Khiev are the main operators in the family run operation that took over the former Heng Heng Supermarket in White Center on March 1.
CLICK ON THE PHOTO ABOVE TO SEE MORE
A key location in White Center is under new ownership in a family run business. The store at 9841 16th s.w is now named Phnom Khiev which means "Blue Mountain" in english and is now owned by the Khiev family including Jet (or Vichet), his brother Cha, and his grandmother, sister and uncle. The family took over the space in mid February, spent two weeks cleaning and stocking the shelves and opened on March 1. Their grandmother, who is helping out used to own the Maly Market in Tacoma in the 1980's and 90's. It's a whole family run operation, even the new sign is hand made by their uncle.
They named it Blue Mountain because "Seattle has a lot of mountains."
Khiev said that the money to start the business was raised from friends from, "all over the world, even New York."
One issue for the family at the moment is the time it takes to get a food stamp machine in store. They applied but were told it takes 45 days minimum to get one. "The food stamp machine is very important to the grocery business," Khaiev said.
Back in the 1960's the building was home to Rexall Thrifty Drugs. Then for a couple of decades it was Floorcovering by Jayme, run by the Trautman family and later It was the Heng Heng supermarket for fourteen years.
The new market carries a tremendous variety in the 10,000 square feet it occupies. The range includes Cambodian food, Vietnamese food, many Hispanic products, a full meat department, full seafood and produce departments and hundreds of sauces, beverages, desserts and snacks. They carry some unusual items such as octopus, eel and even frozen frog and whole frozen rabbit if you like.
Coming up in the next couple of months they will have live crab and Tilapia in the tanks next to their seafood department and by this summer will have a food service in the store offering egg rolls, chow mien and even some hispanic food.
Jet and his brother Cha are only 21 and 20 years old, and are so busy they don't even have girlfriends yet, "but we're looking," said Cha.
"I just want to make a life and make a living," said Jet.
