LINCOLNVILLE CENTER – The long awaited grand opening of the Lincolville Center General Store took place on Friday, October 27. It was a perfect day for it as a steady stream of people came and went, strolling through the store in advance of the much anticipated event.

Briar Lyons, owner of the store said they have been working on it for six years, there was a break in the middle, but they kept dreaming about it.

Now, all the hard work has paid off.

"We have a little bit of everything," she said. "We have conventional and organic grocery items. The prepared food program is sort of the heart of what we have here. There is a hot bar, there are pizzas that come out of the oven. There are soups and sandwiches and a daily quiche."

Lyons said there are also breakfast sandwiches, muffins, sticky buns, tart, cookies and coffee, as well as, Kombucha on tap. Also occupying a tap line is nitro cold brewed coffee.

Kombucha is a variety of fermented, lightly effervescent sweetened black or green tea drinks commonly intended as functional beverages for their health benefits.

Lyons said they intend to be open seven to seven, seven days a week.

"We've been open since Tuesday [October 24] and we have seen a lot of folks who are really excited about the offerings," she said. "We also have a solid beer and wine program.”

Lyons said she thinks it's a good location for Lincolnville, and the folks who cross through on Rt. 52.

"I just hope it serves the community’s needs," she said. "Most of the items the store carries are general needs. Most are as locally sourced as possible, but we do have an eclectic selection of gifts and beauty care items. The bulk section is pretty neat. You can buy your items in bulk instead of in packaged bags."

General Manager Ladleah Dunn said it feels incredible to be open.

"The response from the community has been just overwhelming," she said. "It's been years to get it here. I couldn't ask for a better year and it's just fantastic."

Dunn said the fact that they truly serve the community is the one truly inspiring thing about the store.

"We're a place were people can come and feel comfortable and hang out and get good food and have conversations," she said. "Right now we have 14 employees and we'll probably be growing shortly."

A grand opening celebration featuring the beloved Maine band, The Mallett Brothers, commenced later that evening, attracting a large crowd to Lincolnville Center in the spirit of community, and welcoming back the historic general store.