A local classic has a new lease on life.
The old Wegert’s grocery and liquor stores have been completely remodeled and reopened by a new owner.
Mualla Ergulec, a longtime North Fork summer resident, has opened the Sound Avenue Grocery Store and Sound Avenue Liquor Store in Northville.
The grocery store carries all basic provisions and will soon have a deli counter offering Boar’s Head cold cuts, Ergulec said. She plans to open a full kitchen in time for the summer season, she said.
The new liquor store has a full complement of local wines and spirits. Ergulec said she is offering local wines at discounted prices.
Community feedback has been great, Ergulec said. “People have told me they love the place and need something like this,” she said.
The new proprietor said she hopes to be able to keep the iconic 50s-era “Wegert’s Grocery” sign out front, because it’s a piece of local history. People in the community have been asking her if she’s going to keep it there, she said.
Ergulec, 60, who lived in Manhattan for more than 25 years, said she decided to make the North Fork her year-round home after she retired as an office manager at a New York City graphic arts firm. She was bored being retired, she said, and running a store like this is something she always wanted to do.
“It’s the beginning of my new life,” joked Ergulec.
The grocery store will be open from 6 a.m. till 10 p.m. The liquor store will be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. initially, with expanded hours during the summer.
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