Tribune-Review: Long-awaited Downtown grocery nears completion

With a little luck from St. Patrick, a much-anticipated Downtown grocery store might open its doors March 17 after months of delays.

Construction and design issues twice postponed the opening of Rosebud Fine Food Market and Deli on the ground floor of the Encore on 7th apartment building at the foot of the Seventh Street Bridge.

 

"We want to do it right," said owner Robin Fernandez. "There''s so much interest in it, we don''t want to mess it up."

Rosebud would be the first Downtown grocery store in 14 years. The last, Market on the Square, closed in 1994.

Fernandez wanted to open Rosebud in October, then in December, before unanticipated problems caused delays.

The store''s layout was altered to include two handicapped-accessible restrooms, said Hollie Plevyak, spokeswoman for the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. Stores that sell prepared take-out food are required to have separate facilities, she said.

Fernandez said he chose to take his time redesigning the layout of the 3,000-square-foot space after consulting with an expert in the grocery industry.

Despite the delays, Fernandez said crews have finished putting up drywall and will begin painting in a few days. Refrigerators, meat cutters and shelving will be installed next week.

"It''s definitely going to open," Plevyak said.

Rosebud will stock organic and natural foods, fresh produce and deli meats, as well as everyday household items.

Local suppliers will be used when possible, Fernandez said. The store will stock cleaning supplies from the Butler County-based James Austin Company and Italian foods from the Pennsylvania Macaroni Company in the Strip District.

Rosebud was the name of the nightclub and live music venue Fernandez owned in the Strip District before it closed in 2004.

Fernandez said he doesn''t anticipate much competition from vendors in the Strip and Whole Foods Market in East Liberty.

"We feel that we will have our own little niche," he said. "There''s nowhere else Downtown to buy a fresh tomato."

A Whole Foods official focused on the expected benefits for Pittsburghers, rather than how Rosebud might affect its store''s bottom line.

"We don''t view it geographically as competition," said Sarah Kenney, a Whole Foods spokeswoman. "Not to be laissez-faire about it, because that''s not to say we won''t be studying and watching."