Publix #356 Revisited - Lakeland, FL

(Post first updated on September 1, 2024 with additional information courtesy of the Albertsons Florida Blog and again on October 17, 2025)

Food World #715/Publix #356/Future Publix #2043

4730 S. Florida Ave, Lakeland, FL - Lake Miriam Square

Originally opened on November 15, 1977 as Publix's discount grocery store called Food World, not to be confused with the former Alabama-based Bruno's chain of the same name. This store was Publix's largest at 58,880 square feet upon opening and was also their first store to feature barcode scanning at the checkouts. In 1988, Publix retired the Food World name, and this location became Publix #356. A pharmacy was added during a late 2004/early 2005 remodel to the Kiwi Environment Package, and then received a deluxe remodel to the Sienna Enviroment Package in 2012 along with the addition of a cooking school (closed on August 31, 2023), followed by a Sienna Lite refresh in 2018.

This store closed on July 6, 2024 and will be replaced by Publix #2043, according to this article posted by The Ledger from Yahoo News. It will be a slightly smaller 55M model at 55,701 square feet (originally intended as a 63,830 square foot 62U model) that opens on November 13, 2025. If you do not know on what the 55M is, it combines features from their former GreenWise Market locations into mainstream Publix's, such as expanded hot food (deli) offerings and a popcorn station along with POURS on-site bars. There is also a partial second level with employee's offices, seating, and secondary restrooms that is a feature taken from the 48M (since July 2019) and future 50M models. An example can be found at Publix #1808 in Tampa with that particular location being their first 55M.

Across the street from Lake Miriam Square is Publix #1659 at the Shoppes of Lake Miriam Crossing, which was converted in early 2024 from a GreenWise Market that opened on December 12, 2019.

For my original post on this store, click here.

This store had a rather unique Sienna welcome sign since it features a background of grapes, normally found in the wine department.

The welcome sign at Publix #356 is from 2019, replacing the asparagus background from the 2018 Sienna Lite refresh, and before that, the green beans background from the Kiwi to Sienna remodel in 2012.

Added in the 2012 remodel is the Publix Catering desk and the now-former Aprons Cooking School. This is a photo that I took on my first visit to the store in 2017.

This Publix is the only store that I've seen with two sets of restrooms, which was found next to the catering desk or after the seating area.

Aisle 1 has dairy products and cold cuts, but only the dairy coolers are shown here.

What is currently home to health and beauty products used to be the pharmacy prior to Sienna Lite, since the locations switched places. At the same time, a walk-in-clinic was added.

The meat department is found after you pass the health and beauty section.

Aisle 9 is part of the store's frozen foods section, which can also be found on aisles 8 and 10.

Similar to the 1980s and 1990s stores as well as in various early-2010s store models, most of the grocery aisles have a lighter-colored ceiling.

Another change that this store got in the Sienna Lite refresh involved replacing the aisle markers. The design went from the prototype version with larger numerals and Invigorate/Bamboo-style placards to the regular version with green-colored placards and full Avenir fonts.

Signage for aisle 15 as well as the bakery and floral departments. The wooden trim surrounding the sides of the bakery sign were removed in 2018, the same year that this store got the Sienna Lite refresh. 

Located after aisle 15 is the store's produce department.

A view of the aisle 15 and seafood signage from produce.

This Publix also had a seating area, located after the deli and being near the exit doors and secondary restrooms. The seating area was formerly a sit-down restaurant when this store operated as a Food World.

Certain sections of the parking lot were reserved for curbside pickup, which is used when picking up orders from Instacart, a grocery delivery service.

Here is part of the road sign for the Lake Miriam Square shopping plaza, which faces Florida Avenue.

And a reference to store 2043 (along with other locations) that is found on the New Store Openings section of Publix's corporate webpage.