The Morton Williams at 155 West 68th Street will be opening on January 26.
The latest branch of the family-run supermarket has been under construction since 2022 (it was originally expected to open during the fall of 2023). It’s unclear if there were multiple reasons for the delay, but when asked about a concrete opening date back in 2022, owner Avi Kaner told us “The issue is that we have ordered all the equipment, but due to supply shortages, we do not know exactly when everything will arrive.”
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Kaner tells us the store held a test opening in late December that went very well, saying “Everyone really enjoyed it.”
This Morton Williams joins 14 other stores in Manhattan, two of which are in the area: 917 Ninth Ave (between 58th and 59th streets) and 15 West End Avenue (between 59th and 60th streets).
The new store is located across the street from a site that once held another supermarket, the Food Emporium, which closed back in 2013. That Food Emporium was eventually replaced by a Loews which vacated the premises in 2018. That prompted a petition created by Assemblywoman Linda B. Rosenthal advocating for a new supermarket in the empty space.
While that space still remains vacant, Upper West Siders still got their supermarket, and it’s a large one, taking up the entire side of the street.
But according to Kaner, that doesn’t mean customers will have a hard time finding their way around.He tells us “The store is laid out in a very easy-to-shop manner that will be a pleasure for customers.”
Which is good, he added, because Morton Williams offers a ton of variety.
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“We have a wide array of specialty and international items,” he said, specifically noting, “We are proud to have a significant amount of space dedicated to products imported from Israel. That’s very important to us and the community we serve.”
It may have been a two-year wait, but now that it’s over, the new Morton Williams is here to stay.
“We signed a long-term lease of at least thirty years and we look forward to becoming part of the fabric of the Upper West Community that we love so much.”
The New Morton Williams at 155 West 68th Street will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
I have been to the Morton Williams store on West End. Major good differences, compared to nearby Trader Joes and Fairway. Really looking forward to shopping at the new MW which is very near where I live. I have written about the U.S. supermarket industry for a retail trade publication/website and visited many supermarkets in different areas of the U.S. Many of them make NYC supermarkets look like delis regard to in size and food/beverage selections. .
One can only assume you are wealthy beyond most of our means, because MW’s prices are not for the faint of heart. They once tried to charge me $10 for a pint of blueberries. TEN DOLLARS!!! They had the audacity, when I asked why it was so expensive, to tell me they were ORGANIC berries. As if!!
Why is the Morton Williams across from Columbia University’s campus so poorly thought of?From what I gather it’s related to the fact that MW charges ridiculous prices, presents unsavory offerings and prepared foods both hot and cold (i.e. salads, vegetables, et al.) that look days old and wilted. Not the best indication of what we all can expect 47 blocks south.
Too bad Wegmans takes so long to assess the viability of new store locations…..the latest one in Manhattan on Astor Place took over 7 years of site review, commercial and retail assessment studies, market research and focus groups, etc. It’s a shame that Stew Leonard’s never thought of Manhattan….this would have been a great location and a great store for the UWS now that Fairway is a ShopRite owned and operated venue and lost its edge.
So happy to shop in this new Morton Williams but
does anyone know when HMart will open?
there is one on W110 and Broadway
Wished it was ten blocks north. I have to pass Fairway to get there; seems much farthest.
Please bring back West Side Market, now that its former space (where Harmon used to be at the Hotel Belleclaire) is vacant again. Or, bring Wegmans to high 70s or 80s. The options around here are not much to be desired.
Or they can respect the neighborhood and the civil code we all live by — remember, thou shalt not steal — and prosecute all theft to the fullest extent of the law. If people are hungry, as we know some are, the neighborhood supports at least 3 different “free meal handouts” at lunch and dinner and that’s the ones I know about. It’s a lot more than soup so don’t call them soup kitchens. That’s what you do if you’re hungry….you don’t need to steal. And we should all stop this blind acceptance of it’s OK to steal, rob, loot, rape, murder, mug, set fires, turn over cars, etc. etc. because hey, mob mentality begets anarchy and chaos and “Gee, look how much they’ve suffered…” Enough already. Life can be beautiful and fulfilling, but it can also come with hard knocks and unfair circumstances…..but you know what you do?
You soldier on, you develop a plan, you stick to that plan and you make an honest effort to be the best person you can be. You vow, yes, you vow to treat everyone as you would want to be treated. You don’t cheat, you don’t plagiarize, you stop yourself from being careless and lazy and taking the easy way out every time. That’s what you do. And you don’t steal and take things that aren’t yours. Ever….EVER. That’s how you earn and keep respect alive. Not by pandering, and accepting someone’s worst efforts and not expecting them to know the difference and pay a price for acting that way. Period. End of story. Probably an example of one of those Russian bots that mass produce billions of these controversial statements. And then we react like Chicken Little and swear the sky is falling and they just made the whole thing up to instigate trouble, discontent and mayhem along the way. They
get everyone stirred up and none of it is even real.