Vallarta Supermarkets, the family-owned Latin grocery chain operating in California and Arizona, has opened its first Duarte, California, location. The store opened Oct. 21 at 1470 Mountain Avenue. It is the Santa Clarita, California-based company’s 66th location.
The 45,839-square-foot store added 200 new jobs to the community, from department staff to store leadership roles. The grand opening celebration featured live entertainment and giveaways; the first 300 customers through the doors received a complimentary reusable grocery bag filled with groceries. Five local schools and charitable organizations received a combined $10,000 in donations from Vallarta.
In a Facebook post following the grand opening, the grocer said: “Duarte, you brought the love! Our grand opening was filled with excitement, smiles and so much community spirit. Thank you for making us feel right at home!
“We’re excited to open our doors in Duarte and become part of this community,” said Allie Garcia, VP of marketing at Vallarta Supermarkets, in a press release prior to the grand opening. “With every new store, our goal is to create a welcoming destination where families can find fresh, high-quality ingredients that reflect the cultures and traditions they love.”
SushiOro debuts along with signature departments
The Duarte store introduced SushiOro, Vallarta’s new in-store sushi concept featuring hand-rolled sushi with flavors developed by the grocer’s in-house chefs. SushiOro offers six signature sauces, with select sauces paired with core Vallarta rolls.
The store also features all of Vallarta’s signature departments, including in-house corn and flour tortillas, hand-decorated cakes and pan dulce in the Panadería, and fresh ceviches. The Carnicería – which Vallarta calls the Home of the Original Carne Asada – offers premium cuts of meat marinated in signature spices, while the Cremería showcases traditional cheeses like queso fresco and cotija, and the Pescadería and in-house Cevichería deliver seafood and aguachiles.
For prepared foods, La Cocina serves hot, ready-to-eat meals inspired by Mexico and Central America, alongside aguas frescas from traditional vitroleros at the Juice Bar, a made-to-order guacamole station and refrigerated heat-at-home meals. The Dulcería offers candies, piñatas and celebration essentials, and the Florería rounds out the store with flower arrangements and potted plants.
Vallarta offers delivery through DoorDash, Uber Eats and Instacart.
Founded in 1985, Vallarta Supermarkets operates stores in California and Arizona, employing more than 9,000 team members.
