Buffet Gone Bust - Former Hong Kong Super Buffet (former O'Charley's, Ponderosa Steakhouse) - West Melbourne, FL

 Buffets are never the cleanliest places.

I mean I think it kind of comes with the territory. You let the general public serve their own food, and there's just some implicit risk involved. Now, for many Americans, that's a risk they're willing to take for cheap food, and, I'm a little ashamed to admit, a risk I've happily taken a few times.

Situated along W New Haven Avenue, not far from the successful Melbourne Square Mall, sits this dire looking former buffet. A location of Hong Kong Super Buffet, which some research revealed is at least a small chain, was built as a Ponderosa Steakhouse in 1984, a tenant it would quickly lose, with O'Charley's opening in 1988, and lasting until 1996. Another steakhouse, this time the seemingly independent Remington Steakhouse, would take over the space for 1997, before disappearing in favor of Hong Kong Super Buffet, which would open in 1999.

Despite not lasting even 5 years as a Ponderosa, it still retains the very distinctive exterior architecture!

It would last, shockingly, until early 2019, before finally closing. There's a chance it may have closed in late 2018- one review notes it was "closed for Christmas" and then closed for good by February, so they may have never reopened. Either way, with the state the building is in, I'd have guessed it'd been vacant since some time in the 2000s.

However, it's external state does reflect something else- the seeming state of it's kitchen during it's entire lifetime.

Shortly after opening in 2000, we see the first health inspector's report I can get my hands on- May 2000. Flies in the kitchen, a missing business license, missing sanitizer, and a badly sealing door among other issues. October 2001, roaches in the dish room, sanitizer in wash clothes at "toxic levels", a malfunctioning walk-in freezer. August 2002, food stored on the floor, a leaking sink, loose, unbagged trash piled up behind the building.

While the reports would usually say the issues were corrected upon re-inspection, there seemed to be a trend growing here. A 2009 Florida Today column would espouse it's sushi bar and food options, all at amazing prices, but things would fall south again. 2010 would see it slapped with the 2nd-biggest fine issued by the health department that year- a cool 5 grand for repeat offenses including a lack of hair nets on kitchen staff, unsealed raw pork stored next to ice cream, and a filthy can opener (they use the word "crusted"). 

2011 would see the restaurant make headlines again, as a report penned by Florida's Fish & Wildlife Commission indicted employees from it and several other Brevard & Indian River County Chinese restaurants in the black-market buying of fish.

Contemporary reviews remark that the restaurant was in an increasingly dire state. The exterior was beginning to become run down and dirty, and already mediocre food would be served cold if the buffet was stocked to start with. One of the two last reviews called it's closure "merciful".

Photos of the interior or this place are hard to get, due to the blinds covering the majority of dining room windows. AFB, who dared to dine here before it's closure, says that the interior still had dividers throughout the dining room with western themed glass panels- either a long lived remnant from Ponderosa, or more likely from Remington. This photo shows some kind of counter area, they did have a decent selection of teas, so maybe that cup there was for that.

The side of the building, showing more Ponderosa architecture.

The back of the building has become home to a pile of dumped garbage, and a few shopping carts. I guess they never did truly remedy those problems about trash piled up behind the back door.

If there was an awning over the back, it's long gone now.

As one could guess, from the building's overall look, it's not in great condition. Near the side entrance, you can find this pile of tiling that has broken away from the facade.

I have a feeling if anyone moves into this property, they will likely demolish the building, and put a sad end to this long living Ponderosa building, which may be the only one remaining in the county.

Anyways, this has been Cape Kennedy Retail. Until next time!

Omens of Down Down - Winn-Dixie #2230 - Palm Bay West - Palm Bay, FL

I refer to decor packages a lot in this post, a guide to which can be found here. I have substituted "Post-Bankruptcy" for a recently unearthed semi-official name, "A Fresh Experience".

One day in June I noticed that my favorite local Winn-Dixie had gotten a new coat of paint. Time constraints meant I couldn't go inside, but the glimpse of the outside filled me with dread. My favorite decor packages are A Fresh Experience and Transformational, expensive and premium feeling packages rolled out post-bankruptcy but pre-SE Grocers acquisition. The Palm Bay West Winn-Dixie was one of the latter, being a rare Transformational store. But the paint put a bad feeling in my gut. It carried omens of Down Down. A month later I'd make my way out to this store again, and...

Oh no.

Winn-Dixie has a bad habit, at least in my opinion. By this point, it seems most of the remaining Marketplace decor stores are going to stay that way, until either more competition comes to town, or the lease runs out. So, most of those sit, while Winn-Dixie takes the initiative to remodel their newer stores, already equipped with the perfectly modern A Fresh Experience, Transformational, and Green Interior decors, and remodels them to the Down Down package, which I've always felt came off as a little cheap. It's grown on me, but I still prefer A Fresh Experience.

This store was previously what was known as a "Transformational" store, and that package can be seen in an old Albertsons Florida Blog post, from way back in 2015, just under 3 years after the decor was installed. Transformational was never a common decor package- Transformational remodels were expensive, something a cash-strapped, freshly non-bankrupt Winn-Dixie couldn't really deal with. A few failed attempts at cheapening the decor package would give way to it's retirement in 2014

 A remodeling spree in recent years, combined with Winn-Dixie's aforementioned bad habit, have reduced it's numbers greatly. It now nests with Purple & Maroon, on the verge of extinction within a few more remodeling waves.

Now, as much as I whine and complain, I don't hate Down Down. I used to, quite passionately. But that has long passed.

If anything, I think this is the most well-executed Down Down remodel I've seen. The high, open ceilings work well with it.

I always thought this store's soda aisle was a little odd. It's situated against a wall, on the other side of which is the Kitchen/Bakery.

No longer The Beef People, now they just sell MEAT.

The darkly colored beer & wine section.

A remodeled front end even features enhanced signage in the checkout coolers! New self-checkouts were also installed, but I didn't get a good shot of those.

As we exit the store, we're given a glimpse of the old logo, hanging on through a likely home-made sign board. This display of beer is blocking off what used to be a cafe/coffee area, which I thought was originally just closed for Covid safety reasons, but I now believe to have been removed in the remodel.

That rounds off our look at a newly (well, few months ago. My backlog is terrifyingly long for how short of a time I've been photographing retail) remodeled Winn-Dixie.

Until next time, this was Cape Kennedy Retail.

From Winn-Dixie to Lucky's and Back Again - Winn-Dixie #2568 (former Lucky's Market, nee-Winn-Dixie) - West Melbourne, FL

 Welcome to your new Winn-Dixie!

Yesterday, December 9th, 2020, marked the re-opening of Winn-Dixie at this spot, five years after it was kicked out for Lucky's Market. The old store was oft-described as dingy, run-down, cramped- an old store, untouched by time, and desperately in need of a renovation. Lucky's Market was taken as a breath of fresh air, and their total renovation made the store a place people actually loved to shop again.

But early 2020 brought a rollercoaster of emotions. Kroger would abruptly pull their funding, sending the suddenly cash-strapped chain spiraling. Plans initially called for the West Melbourne store to remain open, but, in what some may call an underhanded move, they were bid out of their own home by none other than the previous tenant- Winn-Dixie. Now with the full might of a leaner, meaner Southeast Grocers behind them, Winn-Dixie wanted to do it again, but properly this time.

As documented in this post on my personal site, work would begin in August with a basic interior strip-out, followed by serious demolition in October, and a quick turnaround and polish during November. All in the lead up to the big day-

Grand opening! The store would open to the public on a crisp, cold-front morning with giveaways and confetti. I didn't make it there that early, other commitments made me wait until the afternoon. But the store was still abuzz with activity!

A packed- and most importantly- repaved! Parking lot. It had not faired well over the years, and was a sunken, pothole ridden mess. Winn-Dixie's bright new exterior is also a welcome change- Lucky's was premium, but understated, and the original Winn-Dixie color scheme was just dingy. This facade is bright and eye-catching.

The liquor store was added in space that was unused by Lucky's, but originally part of the full Winn-Dixie, which originally lacked a liquor store.

Front and center when you enter the store is "WD's Taproom", located roughly where Lucky's ramen bar lived. The space provides coffee, beer, snacks, and sushi, and is the only food service area in the store.

Lucky's original cafe area, seen here, has been quietly converted into sales floor. To my left would have been the "apothecary", or health & beauty, section of Lucky's.

Dairy products live along the back wall, with some fun smaller signage about Milk of all kinds, Your favorite cream cheese, etc. Speaking of- this is a new decor! The tentative name being "Made in Florida", based on it's emphasis on local products.

This coffee section is a small reminder of the bulk goods section that used to be a trademark of Lucky's, taking up an entire aisle.

 

The more normal aisles here, starting with soda. Made In Florida aisle signs are flat with raised plates, as opposed to the otherwise standard triangle design.

Unlike many stores that collate soda and other water/sparkling water/kool aid/etc into one aisle, they're two separate aisles here at Winn-Dixie.

Our first look at the front end shows the self-checkouts, a fixture of any newly opened store these days.

Winn-Dixie's Cheese-Deli-Kitchen and Butcher & Seafood sections roughly follow Lucky's pattern- the Deli & Kitchen are located where Lucky's "The Kitchen" section was, however Winn-Dixie shifts the hot bar into the counter and out of the middle of the aisle. The Butcher & Seafood section can be seen in the back, lining up exactly with Lucky's Meat & Seafood counter, and off to the right, the "beer corner" can be seen.

While Winn-Dixie added their own full liquor store, they also re-built a beer & wine corner in the same place Lucky's had it. While it would make sense for this to connect around the back to the liquor store, I don't think Florida law would allow such.

Winn-Dixie's new Butcher & Seafood counter is definitely more seafood-focused, but that's a good thing to see. And prepackaged meats still line the back wall.

A photo of the fully *ahem* fleshed out seafood counter.

(I'll be here all week)

Sitting on two crates outside the counter are full fish, on ice. I think this is the first time I've seen this in a conventional supermarket (as opposed to something focused on Hispanic foods, or a wholesale/business supply grocer).

This shot shows the end of the International Foods aisle, showing the "World Flavors" signage that also pops ups briefly elsewhere in the store.

A back view of WD's Taproom- but what's that, along the wall?

Some WD's Taproom decorative jugs! I wonder where they got those from?

I really, really do wonder....

Anyway, going back to the store, we get an overlook of the produce section, again in the same place as Lucky's had it.

A feature new to Winn-Dixie is this calendar near the front, which is a nice touch. The whole front end is a little bit jumbled, but very nice overall.

This photo shows the crowded checkouts- pretty well designed and sharp looking. Better than the badly refurbished Marketplace-era units in many other stores.

Unlike many stores, the name of the local community is emblazoned along the right wall, instead of near the front of the store. This area, under Lucky's, would have had a large Lucky's "L" logo on the wall, with "Frozen Foods" signage mounted on the coolers. We also have the large "Made In Florida" emblem, which gives this decor package it's name. 

We'll end off with my favorite photo- the front end is always the hardest part of the store to photograph, because of the abundance of employees milling about to keep a watch over and staffing the checkouts. But this time, an employee (I presume the manager) saw me taking photos, but instead posed to photobomb! It's nice to get noticed taking photos, and get a positive response, not a negative one. This was a good way to top off the visit, which was overall very positive. This may actually be the first grand opening I've ever been to, and even though I arrived around 4 PM, everyone was still very cheerful and the mood was great.

Overall, I have high hopes for this store. I loved Lucky's, and I found the last minute bid a tad underhanded, but Winn-Dixie has done a great job with this store, and in the end, I have to question how well and for how long Lucky's could have kept it afloat, as an out of the way Floridian satellite from their now Colorado-based operations. Is Winn-Dixie's decor as flashy as Lucky's? No, and I still like Lucky's decor more. But Winn-Dixie's decor has grown on me greatly since I saw it in the opening photos of the first converted Lucky's/Earth Fare stores, and it's a pleasing evolution from the very in your face "Down Down" decor.

In the end, this has been Cape Kennedy Retail. Until next time!

The Tiniest Publix You Ever Did See - Melbourne Shopping Center - Melbourne, FL

This Publix would open in 1959, along with the Melbourne Shopping Center- at the time, the biggest and brightest shopping center south Brevard could boast! The store opened with the then-standard "wing" style facade, but would remodel many times over the years. The current facade was installed earlier this year, and while it fits Publix's newest Evergreen decor very well, this store still sports Classy Market 3.0

(EDIT May 2021 to correct information, thanks to AFB)
While this store is quite small, it's actually a relatively modern 28M format Publix. This plaza's original Publix was closed in 1999, when Publix demolished the former Woolworth to build this store. The original Publix space has long been subdivided, and is roughly where Cato Fashions and Bealls Outlet are now.

The entryway of this store was hard to get a photograph of, due to the loitering, cart-disinfecting employee you can see behind the glass. It's very small, and turns towards the right to enter the store.

One of the more modern amenities this store has gained is a Grab-n-Go cooler, wedged next to the bakery and deli.

You heard that right, despite it's tiny size, this store does feature a deli and bakery, though they're smaller than normal. When this store was built, I don't believe Publix was installing bakeries in their stores, so this must have been bodged in at a later date.

Even with only a handful of checkout lanes, you get the option of Express or normal.

Another assuredly bodged-in addition is this pharmacy counter, located in the front of the store near the entrance, and is more of a boxed-in island, as compared to Publix's more common, more traditional pharmacy counters. This one actually reminds me Albertsons' pharmacy islands, a bit.

Looking towards the back of the store, showing the produce section to the left with chips on my right.

While this is just a standard CM3.0 aisle sign, there is one thing to note- This is the last aisle. Yep.  The entire store only has 9 aisles. It's a small one!

Looking down from Aisle 7 to the other end of the store. The cooler to my right, it seems to be a standard install in every Publix I've seen. I have to wonder how old they are.

I can't remember if this was the only frozen aisle, or maybe one of two. Still impressed they got a decently sized frozen section in here at all.

 The store also managed to cram in both a seasonal display of pumpkins and fall decor, and a table of BOGO sales. This store really, despite it's size, does it's absolute best to be a fully featured Publix. And it's doing an admirable job! especially for it's age, with it's opening date making it the oldest operating Publix in Brevard County.

Until next time, this was Cape Kennedy Retail.