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Originally Posted by London Free Press
Old East Village Grocer an oasis of fresh meats and produce
by Dale Carruthers
The food desert that has plagued London’s Old East Village for years has finally come to an end.
Opening its doors on Dundas Street near Adelaide Street, the Old East Village Grocer brings fresh produce, meats and baked goods to an area long starved of a traditional grocery store.
But the 14,000-square-foot space isn’t just another supermarket. In addition to selling all the foods and many other items found in a traditional grocery store, the building also houses a cafe, Nepalese restaurant and handful of other food-related businesses.
Outside, there’s a 50-seat patio where customers can eat lunch, sip coffee or drink a craft beer.
Inside, natural light floods the space, giving it the feel of a boutique grocery store.
“I’m 100 per cent certain it’s going to be successful,” said project developer Dave Cook, who also owns Fire Roasted Coffee.
Nearly $500,000 was spent converting the former equipment storage building, owned by London businessperson Mike Meddaoui, into the city’s first food incubator. The Old East Village Grocer is owned and run by ATN Access, a non-profit that teaches job skills to people with disabilities.
“We train people with barriers to employment to acquire job skills so they’ll be able to find employment elsewhere,” said store manager Paul Seal.
The seven-day grocer partnered with local businesses to get its meats and baked goods, he said.
An area behind the store houses several other food businesses.
Urban Oven owner Kim Banma said she jumped at the opportunity to set up shop in the food hub.
Banma previously rented kitchen space and sold her gluten-free bread doughs at the Western Fair Farmers’ and Artisans’ Market.
Though she’ll continue to operate her market booth, the new space allows customers to see how her doughs are made, Banma said.
John Herb, who lives in one of the 32 units above the grocery store, is no longer forced to bus more than two kilometres to the closest supermarket.
“It really brought a buzz to a street that was really kind of on the ropes,” Herb said of the new grocer. “I’ve seen (the area) coming back over the years. More and more storefronts are opening up.”
A 2008 Western University study declared parts of east London a food desert because the area had few grocery stores within an easy commute, forcing some residents to shop at corner stores.
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