Crystal Lake’s newest grocery store, KD Market, opens this week, with dine-in restaurant on the way

KD Market grocery store will open its doors Thursday, Sept. 12, in Crystal Lake at a location that has been vacant for six years.

The grand opening will start at 10 a.m. Thursday at 29 Crystal Lake Plaza, where Joesph’s Marketplace used to be before it closed in February 2018, leaving the space vacant for more than six years.

KD Market will celebrate its first day with in-house food demos, vendor stations, samplings of homemade foods and a live broadcast by radio station Star 105.5. Special savings will be available until Sunday, KD Market Marketing Director Beata Bek said.

The grocery store offers traditional Polish foods and other international foods, including a variety of traditional European products such as smoked meats, fresh breads and pastries. Bek describes the homemade foods like soups and bakery items as “the heart of the store.”

“We have meals and bread all made from scratch,” she said.

Crystal Lake will be KD Market’s fifth and largest location at about 41,000 square feet, with other stores in Schaumburg, Wheeling, Mount Prospect and Schiller Park. With the extra space, the grocery store aims to have an expanded section of fresh produce, Bek said. The location will provide more than 100 jobs, KD Market owner Robert Wojciak said.

KD’s most popular items are baked sweet rolls and paczki, Bek said. Paczki come in a variety of fillings such as plum, raspberry, mixed fruit, custard, black currant and Nutella – and not only during Fat Tuesday, when they “take the spotlight,” she said.

The grocery store also will have a dine-in restaurant called Bigos. This is the first location of Polish-American bistro, owned by Wojciak. An expected opening date for the restaurant is not yet announced, but Wojciak said he hopes to have it open in the next couple of months.

Other food shopping options within a few miles of the grocery include Aldi, Jewel, Mariano’s, The Fresh Market, Fresh Thyme Market and Walmart. KD Market aims to have the best produce options in the area, Bek and Wojciak said.

Despite the steep competition, Crystal Lake Economic Development Manager Heather Maieritsch said she sees KD Market as a “good fit” to complement what already is offered.

“There’s still room in the market for a niche grocery store that would offer a wide variety of international foods,” she said.

After the grand opening, the grocer’s hours will be from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day. For information, visit KD’s Facebook page at facebook.com/KrystynasDeli.