Food City's opening kicks off new era at Gadsden Mall
It took a little longer than planned, but Food City opened for business Wednesday at the Gadsden Mall, following a sneak preview Tuesday that drew a huge crowd and featured a fireworks display.
The roughly 54,000-square-foot store is freestanding, but occupies the space once filled by Sears at the mall, which entered a new era in its 50-year history.
It's the second Alabama location for Virginia-based Food City, which Steven C. Smith, president and chief executive officer, described last year as offering “an upscale store without the upscale prices.” The first opened in Albertville in 2021, and the chain has broken ground at sites in Fort Payne and Huntsville.
Gadsden's City Council last year approved a sales tax abatement for its parent company, K-V-A-T Food Stores, for 2% of its sales tax revenue for 15 years or $6.7 million, whichever comes first.
The store was slated to open last fall, but that was delayed because of supply chain issues in obtaining switchgear, which is basically the electrical nerve center of a building.
“We had a few parts issues, but everything all worked out,” said Keith Scott, the Gadsden store's manager. “We're a couple of months behind schedule, but everything is working out really well.”
Scott said customers will see some unique offerings at the store, compared to other local grocers, “from the Starbucks to a lot of the things we do in the deli/bakery, with a lot of homemade products that we do in-house.”
Food City will serve three meals a day — breakfast, lunch and dinner — from its hot bar.
“Pretty much everything we do in deli/bakery is made from scratch, for the most part,” Scott said.
The store has an indoor hickory wood smoker for a variety of meats — “Boston butts, ribs and things like that,” Scott said — a brick pizza oven and an Asian wok to prepare stir-fry favorites, and also offers fresh sushi.
Diners can grab doughnuts, muffins and bagels from a self-service case, and previously prepared sandwiches from a “grab and go” case. They can then relax and enjoy their food in a café area, featuring a TV set and a fireplace.
There's a deli case with multiple salad offerings and Dietz & Watson meats.
The store has butchers on duty to hand cut fresh meat to a customer's order, as well as a full-service seafood counter. The grocery aisle, frozen food cases and produce areas have a wide selection of items.
“We'll have cut fruits and vegetables every day,” Scott said. “That's a big win for us.”
A floral department will be open and staffed seven days a week to provide fresh-cut arrangements and bouquets.
There's also a full-service pharmacy, accessible from a walk-up window outside so that customers won't have to go inside the store to drop off or pick up a prescription. “That's a big deal for us,” Scott said.
Outside there's a gas station offering gasoline and diesel fuel.
Scott said the store has 221 employees, which he described as “a pretty good number, we feel like, to get going.”
He said the group is “ready to go, ready to get this thing going,” adding, “The delay in opening gave us a little bit longer to make sure that everybody was up to speed. We had already hired a lot of people leading up to our original opening.”
The regular store hours will be 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week.
Gadsden Mayor Craig Ford said the Food City opening demonstrates the strength of the local economy.
"It's a great day for Gadsden to have the doors opening at Food City," Ford said. "It's a reminder that businesses of all types are continuing to choose Gadsden.
"I appreciate the previous administration for getting this ball rolling, and I am honored to witness it coming to fruition. It is clear Food City plans to be a strong community partner, investing in local schools and more. That's the type of business leadership that will help Gadsden thrive for the long run," he said.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Food City's opening kicks off new era at Gadsden Mall
