The Price Rite at 3104 Queens Chapel Road has closed, but plans are in the works to open a new affordable grocery store in the same location: Lidl plans to move into the now vacant site.

Lidl is a discount grocery store chain which opened its first store, in Germany, in 1973. Lidl established its U.S. headquarters in Arlington, Va., in 2015, and opened its first U.S. store in 2017. There are now over 150 Lidl stores on the East Coast, including one that opened in 2019 along Route 1 in College Park.

Like Aldi, which also originated in Germany, Lidl sells primarily private label products, with only a few brand options for most foods. Unlike Aldi, though, Lidl has an in-house bakery, and shoppers don’t need to deposit a quarter to unlock a shopping cart. Lidl stores also tend to be larger than Aldi stores.

Jessica Shangle, a public relations specialist for Lidl, confirmed the plans for a Hyattsville store in a Feb. 10 email. “We are still in the early planning phases for this site and do not yet have a timeline or an opening date to share at this time,” she wrote.

When Giant Foods opened in the storefront in the mid-1950s, it was the first modern grocery store in the area. In October 1957, Queen Elizabeth II, who had come to College Park to watch a football game, surprised Giant shoppers by taking a spontaneous tour of the store. According to The Washington Post, she was particularly interested in the frozen chicken pot pies and the racks of nonfood items, like clothing and school supplies. In 2013, Giant closed the store, but it reopened a year later as Price Rite.

Now, shoppers will have even more nonfood items to choose from; Lidl, like Aldi, stocks a variety of seasonal nonfood items in the center aisles. Queen Elizabeth would be delighted.