At the opening of Lidl on the Lower East Side

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Lidl opened its long-anticipated Lower East Side location on Friday, drawing lines as early as 6:30 a.m. for the official 8 a.m. opening. 

The ribbon-cutting ceremony, held at 7:40 a.m., marked the German supermarket chain's continued expansion into Manhattan (there's an outpost in Harlem that opened in 2022 with one planned for Chelsea), bringing its global store count to over 12,000, with more than 185 in the eastern part of the U.S.

The 23,000-square-foot space — formerly a Rite Aid — is located at the corner of Grand and Clinton streets, in a building owned by the affordable housing nonprofit Grand Street Guild. Lidl signed a lease for the property last summer. 

Opening day was as busy as you'd expect, with long lines at the entrance, free coffee and donuts for departing shoppers, and a DJ playing music near a union protest with an array of large inflatable rats outside the store. 

A union representative said the demonstration — limited to the morning hours — was meant to raise awareness about labor concerns, stating, "We don't want [people] to go without food, but we do want them to think about fair labor practices."

Inside, the store offered wide aisles, a mix of self-checkout stations and staffed registers, and a particularly PACKED bakery section, which included Lidl's well-known 49-cent butter croissants, flown in from Europe and baked in-store.

Lidl introduced two limited-time baked goods for the LES launch — a cinnamon raisin New York-style bagel and a banana nut muffin — as part of a rotating "Special Guest" bakery feature. 

Other offerings include a private-label meat line under the "Butcher's Specialty" brand, with items such as USDA Choice beef, organic and grass-fed options, and antibiotic-free chicken. The seafood section looked solid as well.

The eggs and dairy aisle drew a crowd as well. Eggs start at $3.75 a dozen, while a gallon of milk is $2.97.

Here are a few more scenes from opening day...

Lidl is open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.