Brighton Beachers hungry for the neighborhood’s newest supermarket — Big Bazaar — will have to wait just a little longer to check out.
Owners anticipated they would open the doors to the community back in late February or early March, but that deadline quickly came and went, said a former Brighton Beach resident.
“It’s been several months since it seemed like they were ready to open, and even put up a banner with the name of the grocery store,” said Roman Gorodetskiy, who recently drove by the still-shuttered storefront. “But since then, there has been no movement there nor progress.”
But owners promise they have made significant progress, and again hope to open in a few days. The shelves are already stocked with everything that won’t go bad, said owner Ajay Sarin’s real estate broker.
“They are planning to open very, very shortly, the supermarket is already stocked,” said Brighton Beacher Igor Libo. “All the shelves are stocked, non-perishables.”
Locals have been eager for a grocery store in Little Odessa that could again serve as a one-stop-shop for food and general household items — as an alternative to the neighborhood’s pricey Russian speciality shops — ever since the low-cost Met Foods closed more than five years ago.
But the new Brighton Beach Avenue store should be open soon. Owners have passed all necessary Department of Building’s inspections, according to an agency spokesman. Managers are just waiting for the final sign off letter to officially welcome in shoppers after the last delivery of freezers arrive, said Sarin, who is just as excited as his future customers to finally open.
“Everything is done now, only thing we are waiting for is the freezer cooler — then everything will be on track,” said Sarin, who owns more than a dozen other grocery stores around the city. “We are excited, looking forward to opening.”