By: Sarah Sarway
After months of anticipation, troves of eager New Yorkers headed to the Brooklyn Navy Yard on Sunday morning to give a warm welcome to the city’s first-ever Wegmans supermarket.
Pouring rain didn’t put a damper on the 7 a.m. opening, which attracted thousands who lined up as early as 4 o’clock in the morning. Senator Chuck Schumer, AG Letitia James and Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul all attended the debut, the former of which confessed his own love for the family-owned market chain. “It’s an amazing supermarket, it’s clean, it’s beautiful, it’s moderately priced and they treat the workers very nicely so I’m looking forward to it being in Brooklyn,” said Schumer, according to The Seattle Times. Many echoed his sentiments, as a reported 3,000 shoppers made a visit on opening day before 12 p.m., a rep for the supermarket told the New York Post.
The long-anticipated Brooklyn supermarket offers a sprawling 74,000 square-feet of shopping and dining, featuring 60,000 products, fresh prepared-foods department, robust organic products section and hundreds of fresh produce items. There’s also a full bar and restaurant on the location’s mezzanine level. Another offering that the supermarket brings to the borough? Jobs! Wegmans hired 540 employees, bringing a nice boost to the local jobs economy.
The supermarket’s opening drummed up tons of excitement from New York City residents well beyond the borough of Brooklyn. One Upper Bronx resident told the New York Post that she slept over at her Brooklynite sister’s home in anticipation of the opening, but would never hesitate in making the hour-long trek from her apartment in the future for her regular grocery shopping. “The quality of produce and food here is the best,” she told the Post.
While this is the first Wegmans location in the city of New York, the supermarket chain has long held a cult-like status along the East Coast. The family-owned chain has 99 locations in New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland and Massachusetts. Based on the response of today’s opening–and the excitement and anticipation over the last several months since the opening date was announced in May–it’s clear that Wegmans is going to be a new favorite for New Yorkers looking for an enjoyable shopping experience.
