Hông Phát celebrated the opening of its new Supercenter at 4200 SE 82nd Avenue on Friday, July 26th, with firecrackers, lion dancers, and speakers lauding the anticipated community contribution of this grocery store. Store staff filled the former Walmart location in Eastport Plaza’s campus with many of the fresh produce and imported brands found in the local chain’s other three locations. However, the added shelf space of this significantly larger grocery allows for a broader selection of brands often found in national stores like the one it replaced. This product diversity signals the subtle shift of the traditionally Asian food retailer into its position as a neighborhood grocery store while retaining its culturally specific roots.
Opening ceremony attendees heard from the co-owners of the new 154,000-square-foot building, Brandon Wang and Dr. Hoang Nguyen. Wang, who started Hông Phát on NE Prescott Street in 2003, kept his remarks brief while Nguyen led the event. Oregon Representative Dr. Thuy Tran of District 45 spoke to the crowd about this store’s importance to the community as it will bring jobs and food resources back into an area abandoned by a national retailer. Religious leaders were in attendance alongside business supporters to cut the ribbon and welcome people into the store, led by lion dancers and followed by firecrackers.
The Hông Phát Supercenter supports several small businesses within the large building along the front of the store, with some unopened stores under construction along the rear wall. The prepared food vendor under the “Food Court” moniker, salon Wind Hair Design, and Ngoc Vi Jewelers sit between the Supercenter’s two front entrances. Inside the grocery area, local company Trazza Foods has a dedicated section offering its assortment of prepared and packaged traditional Lebanese dishes. DAT Furnishings – Harmony Decor’s shop at the back of the store is under construction, and Nguyen said they plan to add 20,000 square feet of additional tenant space.
Shoppers unfamiliar with many of the brands stocked in the Hông Phát Supercenter will still find foods found in non-Asian-focused markets. The store has a Vegan/Vegetarian and a Hispanic food section among other categories. People will discover Tillamook dairy products and other familiar domestic brands on the shelves throughout the store. However, guests will need to search for those products and explore less-known options to fill their pantries.
Americans have imported almost every dominant food type from other countries and cultures. At points in history, Italian sauces and pasta were considered “exotic” foods. Time changes grocery store selections, and it is easy to forget that some items were not in every store until recently. Bagels are no longer the specialty of Jewish delicatessens but now found in the bread aisle of nearly every national food seller. Many shoppers think of the change as gradual mass acceptance of adopted items, but it can also occur from rapid demographic shifts. Regional chains like Hông Phát are a variation of an evolving American diet shaped by its people. Not only will they stock products to meet diverse community demands, but the community may also adapt to what food is close to home, blending ingredients less common to generations before with modified family recipes.
Hông Phát Supercenter is still developing, with new tenant spaces due to open later in the year. Some aisle signage is missing, and a busy opening weekend has left empty shelf spaces. However, there is more to view in this vast store than most will want to tackle in one trip. Shoppers should see more updates over the next few months while the new neighborhood grocery store adapts to meet customers’ tastes. They are open daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
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