Best Market is converting into a Lidl

Bad news for Astoria families; it looks like another neighborhood supermarket is on its way out.

According to reports, Best Market, located across the street from Woodtree Playground and the popular SingleCut Beersmiths on 37th Street and 20th Avenue, is closing to be converted into a Lidl supermarket.

It’s expected to close before the summer is over, and the new Lidl will open early next year.

For Astoria residents, Best Market is known as a go-to grocery store with a large parking lot. It’s convenient and has a wide selection of produce, meats and other foods.

Compounding its loss is the expected closure of the Astoria Key Food on 31st Street near Ditmars Boulevard, a neighborhood institution that’s been around for five decades.

Key Food is slated to close at the end of October after the landlords did not reach a new lease agreement with the supermarket.

That means some Astoria residents will left without a nearby supermarket for miles in the middle of a pandemic. That’s not good.

Here’s what Councilman Costa Constantinides has to say about that:

The imminent closure of these two stores will deal a serious blow to northern Astoria, which already doesn’t have access to enough quality, nutritious food. A second wave of COVID-19 is a constant worry, especially the closer we get to the Fall. The long lines to get into grocery stores during the peak this spring might only get longer with the loss of Key Food and temporary closure of Best Market. That’s why I joined with State Senator Jessica Ramos and Assembly Member Aravella Simotas last week to once again ask Key Food’s landlord to offer the grocery store a short-term lease. More than ever Astoria residents deserve close access to food, especially as the demands for more meals at home remains.