Construction for the new Seafood City begins at the old OfficeMax location on Bouquet Canyon Rd in Santa Clarita. (Photo by Allen Cuevas)

A supermarket chain called Seafood City, which is Filipino owned, recently signed a lease at 26579 Bouquet Canyon Rd, Santa Clarita, CA 91350. The property previously owned by OfficeMax is roughly 24,000 feet and is in a hotspot plaza next to BestBuy, Trader Joe’s, and Petco.

Seafood City is known for offering an abundant variety of Filipino products and food including imported Asian goods from other Asian Countries so it is not limited to only the Philippines. 

This Filipino owned chain has been opening up stores California-wide since 1989 and has expanded their stores further reaching over 20 stores now including Santa Clarita. They plan to continue developing Seafood City so that more people can encounter these markets and gain a great experience.

Shoppers inside the store checking out the fresh produce section on March 27, 2022. (Photo by Allen Cuevas)

As the Santa Clarita Valley expands to open more cultural markets, there is now more representation for residents to go and explore ethnic cultures. These markets are not only closed off to just that specific culture but are open for many more individuals to experience and appreciate the culture that is being partaken.

A Filipino market is important to a lot of Santa Clarita Residents such as Concorde Nursing student Cato Torres as she shares how the opening of Seafood City will be more convenient because she will no longer have to make the commute out of SCV considering the rising gas prices.

“The majority of the customers will end up being Filipinos/Asians but I know a lot of people in SCV who’ll be interested in expanding their scope of food they enjoy.” Torres said. “This is great and it gives some relief to the Filipino community.”

Filipino restaurants and stores inside of the Seafood City in North Hills, CA. (Photo by Allen Cuevas)

This market does not only offer Asian groceries but is an outlet for many other Filipino restaurants and stores such as Jollibee, Chowking, Valerios, etc. Many people who have not had the chance to try Asian cultural foods more specifically Filipino foods are now able to learn more of the history behind it as well.

College of the Canyons nursing student and Filipina resident of Santa Clarita, Ninna Tamisen has been going to Seafood City ever since she could remember.  

“This place just reminds me so much of home and my family. I love how I can finally see representation in SCV and how I can see more people who are Filipino feel a sense of nationalism.” Tamisen said. “I will definitely be attending the grand opening and will be purchasing a lot of groceries for me and my family.” 

Sign posted on the storefront of the property where Seafood City will soon be located. Many openings are available for job seekers. (Photo by Allen Cuevas)

Seafood City is now hiring for potential candidates to fulfill roles such as Department Supervisors, Assistant Supervisor, Crew Members in the Meat, Produce, and Grocery Department, and Cashiers. For anyone who is interested in any of these positions, you can check out www.seafoodcity.com/careers or email your resume to hrdepartment@seafoodcity.com.

More ethnic stores create more cultural spaces and engagement in communities. It also creates more reason to contest one’s comfort zone especially if they are not familiar with the culture and if it falls out of the range that they typically do not see on a daily basis. 

As the months progress and when Seafood City opens, Santa Clarita will have more to offer to the Filipino/Asian community. Cultivating more diverse and ethnic markets in the Santa Clarita Valley will give the recognition of many different cultures and hope to see how it develops in the future. 

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