WEST PARIS – Five months after closing for renovations, the convenience store Rusty Lantern at the corner of routes 26 and 219 in West Paris reopened this week with a whole new building that contains many customer upgrades.
Jennie Dykens, Rusty Lantern’s director of brand and marketing, participated in a Q&A session with the Advertiser Democrat about what people can expect from the new store.
The Rusty Lantern in West Paris has reopened with an expanded kitchen and outdoor seating with fire pits. Supplied photo
What will the Rusty Lantern’s store hours be in West Paris? We will be open 24 hours daily. The kitchen is open daily between 5:00 a.m. and 8:30 p.m.
What are some of the new menu items? We’re offering a seasonal selection of fresh salads, bowls, artisan wedges, specialty subs/sandwiches and dinner items. People will find roasted veggie, beets & greens, butternut squash and turkey salads; harvest and southwest shrimp bowls; pot roast with roasted vegetables dinner, and much more.
What should ATVers and snowmobilers expect? This will be a great stopping place right along the trail. We now have indoor/outdoor lodge-like seating complete with fireplace and fire pits. Outdoor recreators will be able to fuel up, grab something satisfying meals and drink, and kick back for a bit to enjoy themselves.
We have a great selection of fresh made-to-order food, coffee and specialty beverages, as well as fresh grab-n-go items to choose from.
Plus, we carry items that cater to their travel needs, like 2-cycle injection oil.
What are dine-in/take-out options? In addition to our outdoor seating and an indoor-outdoor fireplace, inside we have two tables and a counter that seats five. Outside there are four tables—two with outside firepits.
The new store is about 5,400 square feet square feet. We’ve grown that from roughly 3,800 square feet to accommodate the larger kitchen, larger seating area inside and out, and larger touch free restrooms.
We have added new conveniences too, such as online pickup/delivery and self-service checkout.
Will customers still find grocery and convenience goods? In addition to the retail merchandise people have come to expect from Rusty Lantern Markets, we’ve work especially hard to include more local and craft merchandise for customer enjoyment.
Are you hiring? In both West Paris and in Bethel we are currently looking for cashiers, kitchen staff and facilities support.
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