Listen to this articleThe first recreational cannabis store in the Town of Riverhead is slated to open next week.
The 14,400-square-foot dispensary at 1871 Old Country Road will be the second for Strain Stars, which opened Long Island’s first adult-use cannabis dispensary, a 3,500-square-foot store at 1815 Broadhollow Road in Farmingdale in July 2023.
The new Strain Stars dispensary, which will open on Friday, Nov. 29, will offer nearly 2,000 products, including flower, concentrates, edibles, topicals, vaporizers and accessories, according to a company statement.
“It’s been an incredible whirlwind ride since we first opened on that hot summer day in 2023,” Jasmin Kaur, CFO of Strain Stars, said in the statement. “That morning, our family never imagined we were launching America’s #1 legal cannabis dispensary, we just wanted to do right by our neighbors and customers on Long Island.”
To celebrate the Strain Stars grand opening in Riverhead, the first 100 to 300 customers will get gift bags with free merchandise and sample products from New York State cannabis brands. The store will also have a DJ and local food trucks at the opening event.
Riverhead 123 LLC, an affiliate of the owners of Strain Stars, purchased the vacant 14,400-square-foot building on 1.49 acres at 1871 Old Country Road for $9 million in June, according to public records. Located just east of Tanger Outlets, the property, on the corner of Route 58 and Kroemer Avenue has parking for 75 cars.
“Opening a second location, the first dispensary in Riverhead, will make it easier for many customers to get their favorite cannabis products,” Kaur said in the statement. “But this isn’t just about selling cannabis, it’s about building community, giving back to our community.”
Last month, Strain Stars announced it has given Farmingdale State College $100,000 for a new scholarship called the Strain Stars New Hour Endowed Scholarship. Designed to provide financial assistance to current and prospective Farmingdale State students of incarcerated parents, Brentwood-based New Hour for Women and Children Long Island, a nonprofit that supports incarcerated women and their children and families, partnered with the cannabis retailer to assist in the scholarship’s administration.
The Strain Stars dispensary in Riverhead will be the fifth recreational cannabis store to open on Long Island, following three that have opened in Farmingdale, including Strain Stars first location, Happy Days and Planet Nugg. The Shinnecock Nation also has the Little Beach Harvest Dispensary on Montauk Highway in Southampton.