Always Full Asian Market will open a second location by mid-December at the rear of 80 Church Street. The entry will be at 179 Bank Street, as it was when Dobrá Tea operated there before moving last year to 125 South Winooski Avenue. The storefront has been redone with full glass windows and doors.
Married couple Wen Dong and Mei Yu opened their original Always Full market at 1128 Williston Road in South Burlington in July 2019. They named it after a phrase inscribed on rice storage barrels found in many Chinese homes.
The couple's new location will offer a similar mix of pan-Asian fresh, frozen and shelf-stable products but with more of an emphasis on sweet and savory snacks. It will also carry a wide range of instant ramen, including the Samyang Buldak brand, which Dong described as very popular right now.
Dong said the couple aim to reach a new customer base of walk-in shoppers and downtown workers and residents with the Burlington store. He hopes to work with local restaurants to offer grab-and-go lunch foods such as bánh mì sandwiches and sushi.
A small café counter in the corner of the roughly 1,500-square-foot store will be up and running within two or three months of the store's opening, Dong said. It will serve Asian-style drinks, such as bubble and milk teas and chilled jackfruit and pineapple juices.