Brooklyn Trader Joe's opens Sept. 26

Photo credit: Urbanite

There's good news for the person who left this note outside the Trader Joe's building in Brooklyn. (Photo by mtrelaun on Flickr)

Tired of lugging your Trader Joe’s groceries all the way from Union Square to your Brooklyn abode? Is the journey on the L train melting your frozen foods and reshaping your popsicles?

The end is in sight: Brooklyn’s first Trader Joe’s opens Friday, Sept. 26. The store is throwing an opening celebration that morning with a ceremonial lei cutting, live music from a Caribbean steel drum band, an appearance by Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, and giveaways to the first 100 customers on opening weekend.

The quirky, California-based grocery chain has stuck to their usual interior design of cedar-covered walls and Hawaiian-inspired elements, but this particular store has tried to stay true to its Brooklyn location. The store’s workers teamed up with the Brooklyn Historical Society to put up murals of the borough’s key sites around the store. The huge photograph-like scenes depict places like Coney Island, the Brooklyn Bridge, Ebbets Field, and Downtown Brooklyn.The new store, which used to be an Independence Bank, is at the intersection of Court Street and Atlantic Avenue. The building was erected in 1923 and stands on an important battle site from the Revolutionary War. Because of this historical significance, Trader Joe’s and the developer have tried to preserve as much of the original building as possible. The structure’s marble paneling, antique chandeliers, and a plaque commemorating George Washington’s victory over the British are some of the historical elements the company kept.

Trader Joe’s will also use hand-designed signs and chalkboards at the end of aisles to further pay homage to Brooklyn. These signs will use old fonts and lithograph techniques to celebrate Brooklyn’s past.

“Trader Joe’s wants to celebrate the rich heritage of Brooklyn,” spokeswoman Alison Mochizuki said. The company wants to be seen as a neighborhood store.

Trader Joe’s is a low-price grocery store that carries domestic and imported foods. Many of the goods sold there are under the Trader Joe’s private label, which helps customers save by buying store-brand items.

Unfortunately, fans of the Trader Joe’s popular wine Two Buck Chuck will still have to trek to Union Square to get the goods. The Brooklyn outlet doesn’t sell wine.

-- Amanda Magnus

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