Coming Soon...Really!

For many years, "Coming Soon" was the motto of South Orange. I am so pleased to see that after so many years, the opening of Eden Gourmet has become a reality and with it, a tremendous sense of pride has been brought to South Orange. It's hard to explain all the excitement over a "market" to people who don't live here, but the eyesore of the former Shop Rite, coupled with the endless delays and simply the lack of good grocery options has been a sore subject for all Villagers for a long time. It is so refreshing to visit this gourmet market for a truly special and pleasant shopping experience. The owners have thought of virtually everything to please customers and if there is anything that they overlooked, they are more than willing to listen to customers to try to accommodate their needs.

The other amazing facet of this store is what a sense of community it has fostered. It is virtually impossible to visit the store and not run into someone that you know. In addition, it has attracted countless people from surrounding towns and other local merchants have commented on the increased pedestrian traffic this has brought to their businesses.

Also, recently in the old "Gio Tech" space, Robyn Fields and her husband Ross have opened Robyn Ross, an upscale women's clothing and fine jewelry store. The couple, Glen Ridge residents, came to South Orange for dinner one night and decided to locate their business here because of the transformation they saw happening in South Orange.

They are not the only ones, because soon there will be even more additional businesses to visit, as well. Coming in June (hopefully), Kitchen ala Mode will be opening in the old "Yeva Hair Salon" space. This store, owned by resident Ben Salmon, will carry unique merchandise for the kitchen and is a perfect compliment for Eden Gourmet.

Coming in July (hopefully), Sparkhouse: Creative Kid’s Stuff will be opening in the old "We've Got Movies" space. The store also owned by a Village resident will carry a variety of merchandise for kids to help them explore their creativity. This store certainly will be a welcome relief for those always scrambling for a last minute birthday present.

Also coming in June or July (hopefully), Village Trattoria of South Orange will be opening in the old "Dancing Goat" space. The restaurant is the latest expansion from the owners of the Village Trattoria that already exists in Maplewood and is well known for their fantastic Italian food at reasonable prices for the whole family.

I wish all of these merchants tremendous success and am very excited that they are all "Coming Soon" (really!)