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Imagine this but packed with shoppers and fresh produce and you've got the Sunday opening, and probably every other day in this Wegmans' future.(Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Inside The Pub, you'll find booths, local beer on tap, seasonal events and more. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Wegmans' meat section also ages its own beef because of course it does. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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In addition to the aisles and aisles of wine, the new grocery store also boasts a climate-controlled wine cellar for its more expensive and rare bottles. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Everything the light touches is your kingdom. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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The open seating area beside Th Pub. Shoppers and diners can find additional seating on a patio outside. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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You want bulk foods? You got some bulk foods. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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All of the yogurt, and then some. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
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Welcome to the Wegmans beverage center. (Photo by: Stephanie Breijo)
Stepping into the new Wegmans in Midlothian is a lot like that scene in "The Lion King" when Mufasa imparts to Simba, "Everything the light touches is our kingdom." There is promise and majesty and you can leap happily and gazelle-like through this domain because it now belongs to all of us, or at least it will when it opens its doors this Sunday at 7 a.m. Also, there are no Shadowlands; everyone seems bubbly and kind and wants to help explain the hundreds of varieties of cookies available from the bakery daily, or the exclusive Hardywood session IPA, Evelyn, made for the full-service restaurant The Pub, or Wegmans' partnerships with local farms, or the climate-controlled and humidified cheese case.
There's yogurt as far as the eye can see — three large cases of it — and that's not including all of the dairy-free varieties. Rows and rows of colorful containers line the shelves here, which is a reoccurring theme in Midlothian's gargantuan new grocery store at 12501 Stone Village Way. Ringing in at 115,000 square feet, it's the latest in the family owned super market's cabal of 89 expansive, nearly-awe-inspiring grocery stores that boast aisles of specialty items, pantry staples, house-brand food stuffs (with many available in both organic and non- formats), a formidable cheese selection, an impressive seafood station (which will, by the way, steam your seafood purchase for you at no additional charge), an organized cluster of ready-made meals, a sushi bar, a full espresso bar, a pharmacy, a wine cellar, a salad bar, an olive bar, a floral shop, a case for dry-aging beef, an international section, and, at least in its newest store, more than 60,000 products with more than 3,000 of those organic. Whew.
On a personal note, as an occasional patron of Fredericksburg's Wegmans, I'm excited to see this chain — recently named America's Favorite Supermarket in a study of more than 10,000 shoppers — throw its name into the ring for Richmond's ever-expanding race to become the city's best grocery store. If you hear someone whistling "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" up and down its aisles, it's probably me because I certainly do.
Wegmans in Midlothian is located at 12501 Stone Village Way and opens this Sunday, May 22, at 7 a.m. Find it open all other days from 6 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week.
