On March 4, Food City officials broke ground on a new store at 1388 Tesla Boulevard, in Alcoa, Tenn. The more than 54,000-square-foot supermarket, which will serve as a replacement for the existing location, is expected to open in early fall.  

The location includes an in-store bakery/deli, complete with a hot food bar, large 40-plus café seating area, fresh sushi, fireplace, wok/Asian hot food bar, hickory smoker, pizza oven, fresh food bar, and full-service catering and event planning. Full-service meat and seafood departments offer pre-marinated and seasoned oven-ready products, with in-house meat cutters available to cut steaks and fresh meat by hand. The Food City Floral Boutique will be staffed with a designer seven days a week, offering an assortment of fresh-cut floral arrangements, bouquets, gift items and more.  For added convenience, the location includes a Starbucks café, a Food City Pharmacy, a Food City Gas n’ Go with a large five-pump station, and GoCart curbside pickup and home delivery. Energy-saving concepts at the store range from energy-efficient glass cooler doors, parking lot lights and refrigeration systems to motion sensors and 100% LED lighting, as well as an open-rafter ceiling design.  

Abingdon, Va.-based K-VA-T Food Stores, Food City’s parent company, operates 138 retail outlets throughout southeast Kentucky, southwest Virginia, east Tennessee, north Georgia and Alabama. K-VA-T is No. 70 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2021 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.