Broward Meat and Fish Co. taking over Penn Dutch’s former site in Margate
The new occupants of the former Penn Dutch Meat and Seafood in Margate might feel familiar to the iconic retailer’s former customers.
Broward Meat and Fish Co., whose owners regarded Penn Dutch as their closest competition, has bought the site for $ 11.9 million.
Like Penn Dutch, Broward Meat and Fish offers a wide variety of meat and seafood sliced and packaged on site and sold at discount prices. The chain, which has locations in Pembroke Pines, Lauderdale Lakes and North Lauderdale, also features a variety of imported packaged brands popular among Broward County’s Caribbean and Latin American consumers.
Hot food available for takeout typically includes tamales, empanadas, chicharron, jerk pork, sausage and peppers, rice and beans, beef short ribs and fried fish and chicken.
Shoppers will have to wait awhile before doors open at the new Margate store, however. A complete reconstruction of the store’s interior will take at least 10 months and possibly as long as a year, said Athalia Lujo, daughter of owners Ruben and Denise Lujo and the company’s general counsel.
Penn Dutch folded in September 2019 after state health inspectors discovered listeria contamination at its locations in Margate and Hollywood. Nearly all of the fixtures and equipment in the Margate store were sold during the dissolution process that followed, Lujo said.
“It’s basically an empty shell,” she said. “Other than the walk- in coolers, there’s no equipment.”
Starting from scratch, the new owners plan to convert much of Penn Dutch’s former back- house production space into additional retail space, doubling the amount of space allotted for shoppers while still leaving room for onsite packaging of meat and seafood sold onsite, Lujo said.
The additional space will enable expansion of the store’s inventory of packaged groceries and beverages, plus more hot food, deli and bakery options.
The company expects to hire about 100 employees beginning in the summer. They’ll be trained at the company’s existing locations prior to the new store opening, Lujo said.
The 70,000 square- foot location at 3201 N. State Road 7 had been available for lease since shortly after Penn Dutch closed. In June, representatives of owners Ross Realty Investments and SunCap Real Estate Investments approached Broward Meat and Fish’s owners and urged them to take a look.
“We didn’t have plans for a fourth store, but after seeing the space and the community, we thought it would be a great location to bring one of our stores further north,” Lujo said.
Broward Meat and Fish’s owners were well aware of Penn Dutch. “We respected [ Penn Dutch], as they were king for a long time,” said Ruben Lujo Jr., son of the owners, in a comment on the company’s Facebook page in March. “It hurt us to hear that news [ of its closure] too, as we were competitors, not enemies. They were an institution.” After Penn Dutch closed, Broward Meat and Fish experienced a modest i ncrease i n sales f rom customers seeking comparable offerings, Athalia Lujo said.
While the Lujos could have leased the space, “the store will require such a heavy investment, it was only worth it to Ruben and Denise to own it,” she said, adding it will cost “well over $ 1 million” to get it in shape to open.
The Lujos will become l andlords to numerous stores in what’s currently called “Penn Dutch Plaza.” Ross Realty Investments and SunCap Real Estate Investments will retain ownership of the plaza’s northern portion, currently home to Florida Career College and a preschool, said Bob Sherman, senior vice president at Ross Realty Investments.