Christine Sahadi Whelan and I have spoken about her family’s legendary Middle Eastern grocery chain. Born on Atlantic Avenue, Sahadi’s has been a staple for dried fruits, nuts, cheeses, olives, Middle Eastern delicacies and pantry items for four generations. Its newer iteration in Industry City feels different in its expansiveness and its — for lack of a better word — industriousness. Sprawling and modern, Industry City offers a new way to experience Sahadi’s, and Christine, who oversees this new location, has a lot to say about it. 

What are the main differences between the Sahadi’s on Atlantic Avenue and the one in Industry City?

Product-wise, they’re very similar, but vibe-wise, they’re completely different. People come to Industry City for the day. They come, hang out and wander around. It’s less about grocery shopping and going home, which is what Atlantic Ave. is. On the weekends, Atlantic Ave. is busy for takeaway. On the weekends, Industry City is very busy for sitting in the cafe. 

We have one commissary kitchen, so we’re sharing items between the two locations. Kids can run around in Industry City. People come and linger. They wander through the other courtyards and have brunch. It’s a more relaxed, hospitable environment, as opposed to grocery-focused. 

We have a basement at the Atlantic Ave. location. At Industry City, what you see is what’s available. Our storage room is tiny. We have slightly different ordering patterns because of that. The floor space and architectural challenges at Atlantic make the building feel smaller because it’s one giant building connected by a hallway and the original building at 187. Because they had load-bearing walls, we couldn’t cut the walls away. Industry City was built with huge beams going up the middle, so the sightlines are much less obstructed, which makes it look a lot larger, and we also spill into the courtyard as opposed to spilling into a busy street. 

Are there differences in your customer base between the two locations?

It’s different Monday through Friday. Again, it’s that weird dichotomy with the weekend. The Monday through Friday crowd at Industry City is mostly people who work in the building. It’s off the beaten track. You’re not wandering off the street the way you are at Atlantic. At Atlantic, we have our regular shoppers. Industry City is developing a loyal customer base, but a lot of them are single people who work upstairs or creative types who have their studios in the building. They don’t buy for a family. The basket size at Atlantic Avenue is probably 40% larger than at Industry City. 

The weekend crowd is different. On the weekends, we get families at Industry City who buy groceries. Atlantic does a pretty consistent grocery business throughout the week. Thursday and Friday are salsa nights at Industry City. We do a lot of programming, which brings a slightly different crowd. We get a good mix of neighborhood people (which is what we’re aiming for) and traditional shoppers in both stores. People live near Atlantic Ave. Industry City isn’t zoned for residential, so you have to come. It’s a destination, so we have to bring people in. 

Tell me more about your programming. What else is offered besides salsa night?

Salsa Fridays came about during COVID-19, when everybody wanted to get out of the house, and we had this huge heated tent. We started doing salsa because people weren’t traveling during the pandemic, and the neighborhood was very Hispanic. It’s become this huge thing. In the summers, we can fit 150 people dancing in the courtyard. 

We program live music on the weekends, sometimes in the evening, sometimes during brunch. In the summer, we go later because it stays lighter later. In the winter, when it’s dark earlier, we’ll sometimes bring music inside. Sundays will usually be jazz or Afro-jazz for brunch. They’re working on Thursday night being Middle Eastern night, but it takes a while to develop programming. You find someone new, figure out its vibe and see if it resonates with your customer. The rest of the week, we do private programming. Last week, we hosted a wedding under the tent. 

What does the support look like as part of the Industry City community?

Industry City is like a college campus. It has all the amenities you could need (except a nail salon, which I’m working on). I don’t have to leave to do anything. It’s one of the reasons we have more of a one-stop shop at Industry City, where we sell detergents and things like that. Atlantic Ave. has a bit, but it’s on the same street as Walgreens. There’s nothing around Industry City, so it’s insular. The businesses in Industry City are curated to fill a specific need for the campus. 

There are food and beverage retail meetings, where they talk about what’s coming. They do a good job protecting who’s already here. They wouldn’t put a falafel vendor here, because that’s what I do. Every vendor has a chance to be successful. 

This was the first time we did anything where we didn’t own the space. It’s very different being part of a community, as opposed to my other building, where it’s mine, and I can do whatever I want. They’ll tell us what days they want us open. It’s a negotiation. We’re part of the campus, so we support them, and they support us. If Industry City sees that a business is doing much less business on Mondays and Tuesdays, they’re not going to make it stay open. They try to be sensitive to the needs of each business. 

It’s nice if, for example, there’s a leak on a Sunday, I don’t have to run around looking for an emergency plumber. Someone will come. It’s a challenge, but it’s way better to be part of a campus in those situations. Security is there to keep us safe if we ever need them. My managers are friendly with everyone on campus. So, there are positives and negatives, but we’re happy to be here. 

Are there any food products that are more popular at Industry City or vice versa?

We do cook-to-order at Industry City, which is probably our biggest thing. The dishes are the same, but Atlantic Ave. doesn’t have a hot menu. At Industry City, we do more natural and Middle Eastern wines because we have a full bar. At Atlantic Ave, they’ll pour you a glass of wine, but here, we’re set up with everything. We do a lot of Middle Eastern wines on the weekends, and we switch them up every month or two so people can try different things from Morocco, Greece, Turkey and beyond. 

What are you excited about at IC in the future?

I just did a full hand inventory at the wine store where I looked at every bottle, and we have some beautiful wines that we will feature at the cafe and the wine store. We sourced some small-batch wines from underrepresented regions. It’s a lot of fun to pair them with food, so I always hope that a customer will come in and ask some questions and enjoy them appropriately paired with a great meal.