"I came across Pearl River while looking for some things for my husband, who is from China. We have several Chinese markets in my area, but Pearl River still had many items that they don't. They seemed to have fixed the slow shipping times because I got my items within a week and in good condition (they were kitchen items). I love their New Year decorations so I will definitely order in the future."

"pearlriver.com is the online portal for its brick-and-mortar store in Chinatown in New York City.

Their wares consist of low-priced, imported, Asian goods, ranging from silly toy trinkets to home furnishings, cooking ware, clothing, personal health goods, musical instruments, etc. I use this site to order scented soaps ("Bee and Flower" brand).

Their web site is not the best, but if you're willing to put up with its quirky design, you can generally find what you want, accompanied by brief descriptions and some photos. (The descriptions and photos, by the way, are usually token in nature, so you might need to know what you're ordering from some other source in some cases.)

Their prices are extraordinarily low in most instances. The soap I order costs about $1.00/bar everywhere else on the web, but is half that at Pearl River ($2.00/4 bars).

Their shipping charges are slightly on the high side but not unrealistic.

New York residents are charged sales tax, but the amount is not shown on the order total or on the invoice they email to you (it shows up as "TBD") and I found this to be a significant shortcoming on their part.

After completion of an order, Pearl River immediately sends a confirmation email (an invoice).

Another shortcoming is that they're slow to ship; one order took 10 days to ship, and another took 6 days. On the bright side, they do not charge your credit card until they ship, and they send useful tracking information once the order does ship.

In summary:

Negatives:
- kludgy website
- slow shipping
- NY resident sales tax amount not stated

Positives:
- extremely low prices
- interesting and extensive array of Asian goods
- good communication

HERE IS A 2010 UPDATE TO THE ABOVE REVIEW FROM 2006:

Pearl River has sped up their shipping somewhat, and this is a plus. However, two issues have come to my attention regarding their tax policies, and both are negatives:

1. Pearl River charges NYC tax (8.75%) to all New York state residents, REGARDLESS of the tax rate at the receiving end. In my case, it should have been 7.25% but they refused to adjust the tax.

2. Pearl River calculates and charges that NYC tax on the invoice's grand total, INCLUDING shipping. Shipping charges are NOT supposed to be subject to NYC tax.

Both of these policies are violations of N.Y. State tax law and should be changed."