According to a report from the Puget Sound Business Journal, Asian grocery store Uwajimaya will open a new location where the old Larry’s Market store once stood at 120th & 8th streets in Bellevue in the Spring of 2011.
Currently Uwajimaya is located on Bel-Red Road in Bellevue and will close this store to open at their new location, which will be 35,000 square feet, making it the chain’s 2nd largest location.
Uwajimaya and other Asian grocery stores have been long-time rumored to be taking over this space. Larry’s Market had 1st occupied the space, GI Joe’s then took it over, and it has since been recently vacant.
I’m not sure how often I’d actually shop at an Uwajimaya, but it’ll be nice to get rid of that long-term vacancy. Downtown could use some more grocery stores too.
This is a great addition to the Downtown Bellevue ‘area.’ I think it will do very well. It’s been a long time coming.
Can’t wait for this location to open-Uwajimays’s Seafood & Produce is the freshest and most reasonably priced around-and has the most exotic selection. Now we need Trader Joe’s downtown.
The store layout is being designed by a local Eastside company, Phillips Enterprises, Inc. This marks the second Eastside location for the growing grocery store design company, the first being the new Metropolitan Market in Houghton.
Coincidentally, the lead store planner at Phillips Enterprises, Inc., Tom Phillips, designed the Larry’s Market that was previously in this location years ago.
I love this!
I frequently go to the one in Seattle to shop. I hope they have a larger selection than the Redmond location.
Cool. I had heard about this rumor a while ago. Glad to see it came turned out to be true.
Now if only the city could extend NE 4th St over 116th Ave to reach this site!
Did you mean the existing Bellevue location? Or Renton?
@PE, what are you referring to?
Kevin mentioned that he hopes there is a larger selection than the Redmond store, where there is no store. So I was asking if he meant Renton or the current location in East Bellevue.
I was referring to the one in Overlake (Bellevue).
I always have a hard time in telling which exact road separates Bellevue and Redmond around the Overlake area lol.
Now, if only the large retail space where K-Mart used to be could be rented. Seems like, with the plans for Bel-Red development and expansion in the next few years, a smart retailer could snap this up on a long term lease… Might be a sort of “anchor” to future development in the Main St./148th area.
IMHO, Uwajimaya is overpriced. Bellevue needs more authentic asian grocery stores like the one on Northup.
We saw some construction workers on site and asked when they would be done. “We were scheduled to be done in May but we are running ahead of schedule” looks to be opening in Mid March now. Food court is going to be great for food!