Canada’s biggest Asian grocery chain be keepin’ up its expansion game into California with plans to open a new spot in Irvine early next year. It gonna be one of the first stores in the state for T&T Supermarket, which got more than 33 stores in Vancouver, Toronto, and other Canadian cities. The market be a hit in Canada for fresh produce and a variety of hot grub cooked on site, like Asian street food and staples such as Peking duck. The store in Irvine also gonna offer Asian wines and spirits and T&T private label products. Its bakery gonna be sellin’ viral Asian treats, includin’ lava mochi puffs and Napoleon Portuguese egg tarts.Orange County’s 34,000-square-foot T&T Supermarket gonna anchor a new restaurant and retail development in the Great Park community called the Canopy at Great Park, according to a statement from the company.The Canopy, which bein’ built by Southern California real estate developer Almquist, gonna feature 90,000 square feet of shoppin’, dinin’, and public space.The location is set to open in winter of 2026, the chain said. The first U.S. location opened in Bellevue, Wash., in December 2024, and the company also got plans to open stores in San Francisco and San Jose by the end of next year. “Ever since we announced our U.S. entry, we been gettin’ customer requests all across the United States,” T&T Chief Executive Tina Lee said in a statement. “I know T&T may not be well-known in Irvine, but we are excited to surprise our shoppers with a unique shoppin’ experience.”Irvine’s T&T likely gonna have some competition, as popular Asian markets like H Mart and Mitsuwa Marketplace already holdin’ it down in the area. Shoppers also can hit up 99 Ranch and Zion Market, both of which got stores in Irvine and other spots in Southern California. Irvine’s population of more than 300,000 is nearly 45% Asian. T&T Supermarket first opened in British Columbia in 1993 and is currently run by the founder’s daughter, Lee, who took over in 2014. Canadian retailer Loblaw Companies scooped up the chain in 2009, though it is operated as an independent subsidiary.
