An all new construction McDonald’s opened yesterday in Penns Grove NJ, in a redevelopment property in the heart of town which features a newer Super Wawa and a small multi-unit retail building.
Penns Grove Mayor Londo and other elected officials were on hand for the 10:30am ribbon cutting ceremony which saw dozens of residents lining up to be the first customers of the Virginia Ave. McDonald’s.
While McDonald’s is still developing larger 4,500 square foot restaurants, the Penns Grove restaurant comes in about 15% smaller at 3,882 square feet… a trend which is likely to increase due to the growing demand in mobile delivery and drive-thru pickup orders reducing the need for larger dining rooms.
But the new Penns Grove location is 100% a full McDonald’s with the full menu available, as well as a variety of indoor seating options including a high-top table with the unique looped decor element reminiscent of the McDonald’s arches.
So you have the full ordering options available with a two lane ordering drive-thru configuration, and also a dining room with seating for what appears to be about 36 customers.
Another change that is taking place even within the existing McDonald’s locations is the reduced footprint of the restaurant counter, with the quiet encouragement of customers to place their own orders at the kiosk or via mobile app (for pickup).
When you enter the main entrance of the new Penns Grove McDonald’s the first thing you are directed to are the kiosk screens for ordering. That being said further down to the left is a small front cashier area.
During my visit I had a chance to meet with the Mayor as well as several members of the Planning Board who are all very excited to see this project come to town and open!
This redevelopment effort takes place in the property which previously was home to Incollingo’s Market Penns Grove. Ownership of the grocery sold the property to developers who demolished the older structures and rebuilt 3 core segments in the space.
The first aspect was a small multi-tenant retail building featuring Chinese Kitchen, Giovanni Pizza Restaurant, and Inky’s Liquors.
The next phase for the redevelopment was the Super Wawa at the corner of the property which opened last August.
With the McDonald’s restaurant now open the full redevelopment effort is completed.
While locals say online the miss having a neighborhood grocery in the community, it’s tough to overlook the significant amount of customer traffic heading to the property now with heavy-hitters Wawa, McDonald’s, Pizza, Liquor store and Chinese food all being customer favorites.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this new development and increase in customer traffic within the busy area will be the start of further business investment.
Links and Location
McDonald’s Penns Grove
1 Virginia Ave
Penns Grove, NJ
