Photos by Brandee Smith

By: Jen Russon

The long-awaited Trader Joe’s finally opened to an eager public, who told Coral Springs Talk they couldn’t wait to load their carts with brand name items like cookie butter and turkey corn dogs.

Coral Springs resident, Brandee Smith, said she was among the horde of masked, morning shoppers at their grand opening on Friday.

“I bought fresh flowers for four dollars, butternut and acorn squash. Everything looked so nice and delicious. Trader Joe’s does such a nice job with their displays,” said Smith.

She learned about Trader Joe’s on past visits to Arizona and liked it well enough to travel as far as Fort Lauderdale to shop at the only location closest to her.

Now, one of her favorite grocery stores is walkable distance from Smith’s neighborhood in Forest Hills.

“It’s nice to have everything still be cold when you get it home,” she said.

First glimpses of the new Trader Joe’s on University Drive make it hard to believe the vibrant market, with lines about 15 people deep, used to be a bookstore.

An hour or so into its grand opening on October 29, around 50 shoppers browsed the aisles.

“I got inside the store in about 5 minutes,” said Smith.

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