Lotte Plaza Market Asian grocery store coming to Jacksonville

[JaxJersey-licious]

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/lotte-plaza-market-owners-buy-closed-regency-best-buy

In my opinion, an Asian-centred food retailer of this size and quality has been needed in this region for over a decade now. They should do very well here.

[pierre]

Haven’t visited one before but it sounds awesome. And only a 10-15 minute drive from my house.

[Tacachale]

Nice!

[jaxoNOLE]

It's a real shame the International Decor Outlets was a snake oil project. That, plus the planned Asian food court in the same wing, plus Lotte would have been a really cool start of a cultural theme to redefine Regency in a way that it wouldn't try to compete against SJTC or River City Marketplace.

Lotte and Aldi on the same street though--makes for an easy grocery trip, no doubt.

[ProjectMaximus]

Well that's pretty cool!! 

It's not H-Mart, 99 Ranch, Mitsuwa, Great Wall, T&T, etc...(all bomb ass asian chain groceries that I fanboy over)...but it is undeniably a step in the right direction.

[JaxJersey-licious]

It's a real shame the International Decor Outlets was a snake oil project. That, plus the planned Asian food court in the same wing, plus Lotte would have been a really cool start of a cultural theme to redefine Regency in a way that it wouldn't try to compete against SJTC or River City Marketplace.

Lotte and Aldi on the same street though--makes for an easy grocery trip, no doubt.

There were a lot of unknowns with some independent startup starting a 35,000 square feet grocery store on an old shopping mall as opposed to partnering with an established chain like Lotte and their dozens of stores. Lotte with their numerous stores and distribution network has the buying power and efficiency to have competitive prices along with a large quantity of fresh produce. And all of their larger stores have food courts of their own featuring cuisine from all over Asia. I find them very comparable to many of the other established chains like Great Wall, HK Supermarket, Seafood City, 99 Ranch, etc. (Now the Super H Mart is a notable exception)

There is a concern about this stores effect on the smaller scale existing Asian grocers but if history is any indication,  they don't have much to worry about. Groceries like these are meant to be a super regional draw with the accompanying crowds and the smaller stores serving the local neighborhood with their established reputation and quicker in and out will continue to thrive. And as the Asian community continues to grow here, there will always be an opportunity for local small Asian centered businesses to cater to underserved parts of town like, for instance,  the Northside or St Johns county.

[MusicMan]

Tangentially...... is the Efron's plan to open the Asian street food restaurant next door to Taverna on indefinite hold?

[MusicMan]

Shout out to our old friend San Marco Matt, he has informed me there will be an upscale oyster bar type of place going into the space next to Taverna.  Hopeful to open prior to years end.

[JaxJersey-licious]

Another new Asian centered grocer coming to town!

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2023/jun/13/rd-international-market-bringing-live-seafood-food-court-and-groceries-to-jacksonville/

[Dolph1975]

Looking forward to checking this place out!  Speaking of - has there been any update on the Lotte store in Jax?  Visited the Orlando location and was impressed!

[JaxJersey-licious]

Looking forward to checking this place out!  Speaking of - has there been any update on the Lotte store in Jax?  Visited the Orlando location and was impressed!

Good question but it's probably an issue of these things taking time. Hard enough converting an old grocery store and putting in food court vendors with their own kitchens, don't think it would be any easier converting an old BestBuy for that purpose along with selling fresh and frozen produce.

In Orlando, they've been waiting patiently for the coming of Super H Mart for years and they still haven't started conversion of the future location either. Once it's open, it will blow Lotte Plaza out of the water.

[JaxJersey-licious]

Good to see this back on track.

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2024/jul/22/lotte-plaza-market-expects-early-2025-opening-in-old-best-buy-in-regency-area/

Some thoughts on RD International market:

Jacksonville really deserved a place like this for a long time with a huge selection of Asian and other products with good fresh produce choices and decent prices. Too much of it is full of space consuming products like housewares and appliances and hopefully in time it could be filled with an even bigger variety of other grocery items. It is a lot of space to utilize and fill up after all.

The fresh seafood selection is the highlight of this store. Friends have told me that cleanliness was becoming an issue however they say the seafood staff was knowledgeable and adept at preparing it.

As for the food court, without getting into it too much I say it was hit or miss. When I was there it looks like they will be opening more options so there is some glimmer of hope.

I would have liked to see the emphasis on seafood apply to having a dedicated fresh meat department worth its salt. Also would be nice to see a hot bar for takeout items. Many of the shoppers, Non-Asian and Asian, may not be used to the selection of foods and a hot bar is a good way of introducing them to these foods and could encourage shoppers to buy and cook some of that stuff on their own. And I hope the people running this place would assume the average Jaxsons' Asian food palette go beyond the level of Sarku Japan and start offering more varied and adventurous dining and bakery options.

All kinds of Asian grocery stores like this thrive despite not having the advantage of being part of a large nationwide chain because of what they offer, great customer service, our strong pillars of the community, and constantly improve on what they provide. This will certainly be put to the test once Lotte Market opens up because as it stands, there will be no doubt which of these two stores Asians and non-Asians will prefer to get their Asian grocery fix.     

[thelakelander]

I would have liked to see the emphasis on seafood apply to having a dedicated fresh meat department worth its salt. Also would be nice to see a hot bar for takeout items. Many of the shoppers, Non-Asian and Asian, may not be used to the selection of foods and a hot bar is a good way of introducing them to these foods and could encourage shoppers to buy and cook some of that stuff on their own. And I hope the people running this place would assume the average Jaxsons' Asian food palette go beyond the level of Sarku Japan and start offering more varied and adventurous dining and bakery options.

I've eaten from the food court at least three times since the opening and have been fine with the experience. Each time I've been, an additional operator has opened or has made considerable progress in opening. It also appeared that a hot bar was in the process of being added. I'd say, give them time to get fully operational. Its not a high priced food hall where big expense has been spent on decor, but the options have been cool to have in one location in Jax. Overall, I'm happy to see what they've been able to do with the space, given they've asked for no public incentives and happen to be located in a random aged strip mall in a random location off Beach Blvd.