Halal grocery store set to open soon in Wayne
WAYNE – A new grocery store specializing in halal meats and Mediterranean food will open soon near the Little Falls border.
Anatolia Market will sell fresh fruits and vegetables and more than 6,000 other products in a standalone building at 29 Route 23 south. A countdown timer on its website is ticking away each second to opening day, which may come as early as next week, according to recent posts on its Instagram account.
Halal, by definition, is meat permitted to be eaten under Islamic law.
Pork is an example of a non-halal meat. But the term also refers to the way in which an animal is slaughtered.
The market will carry more than 100 international brands, such as Halwani Brothers Co., Sadaf Foods and Zwanenberg Food Group, a Dutch company that exports canned luncheon meats.
The market, steps away from a former Hooters bar and restaurant, is set back more than 300 feet from the highway.
The 2.2-acre property was purchased for $1.5 million by a West Milford-based limited liability company in March 2021.
In February of the following year, the new owner opened a health food store called Green Life Market. While the township location shut down, it still has locations in Andover Township and Butler. It is also affiliated with Healthy Thymes Market on Route 94 west in Vernon Township.
The 13,500-square-foot building dates to September 1982, when it was built for Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza Time Theatre.
The premises has seen considerable turnover in the decades since. No fewer than four restaurants have opened there to serve Chinese or Japanese food.