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| - Come for a few items - leave before you take out a second mortgage.
As a health nerd/gym rat/person who loves food on a budget, I love Whole Foods. What's not to love? Nutritious, high quality foods in exciting varieties, a massive prepared food area and a cool patio in which to nuzzle your noshings. All these things are great. The price, however, is not.
SELECTION
Organic organic organic soyganic and grain-fed and lullabied to sleep, whatever, you want it, you got it. Organic fruit and veggies, organic meats, organic nuts, gluten-free items, naturopathic remedies, everything an Enya-listening ethical foodie wants in paradise.
Fairly Italian and European in scope, the food here is vaguely global but mostly focused on organic, Canadian and fair-trade. Fine meat and fish, bakery items, and the most comprehensive grain, lentil and nut selection you're going to find outside a nut factory. The produce was beautiful of course, and comparative to other top-tier stores when not organic.
Surprisingly, the selection of (affordable) tofu was not great. The tofu award still goes to: TnT.
PRICE
Holy crap the organic stuff is nearly double. Budget? What budget? Who cares about budget when I could have two chicken breasts for $16 dollars a pair, fine Spanish cheese for $12 and pre-sliced coconut for $8? While we're at it, let's go make our own nut butter at the nut butter station. Half-tub only $10 bucks!
...and really, don't even consider buying anything household like toilet paper. Just don't.
NAVIGATION
As per usual, the store opens with a cornucipia of produce and as you square-snake around the outside of the store aisles, you get meat, dairy and lastly, bread and prepped foods. Whole foods falls into the extremely annoying 'double aisle' category, where in a single aisle, you have two sections with two signs. The one closest to you, you can read. The one farther away from you, nope. I always end up losing time in double aisle stores and it makes me peevish. I'm looking at you as well, TnT and FoodyMart. Rrrg.
PARKING/ACCESSIBILITY
There is a nice big parking lot and either a set of lights or a right-turn to get into the plaza, which is great. The lot is big enough that you should get a parking spot for sure within good walking distance. Construction at the moment can be a problem. Best parking award: still goes to Michael Angelos on Woodbine.
EXTRAS
1) Samples. Love em. Glad I'm not a germophobe or I would have serious issues with unattended samples. As it is, I only have a little moment of ergh, followed by 'it's free and I'm paying HOW much for this chicken breast? Eating it now om nom nom take that Whole Foods'.
2) Paper bags and compressed cardboard trays for your takeaway. At least your extra dollars are going to stuff like this and the handy motion-sensor lights in the aisles. Putting the effort into the recycling, Whole Foods! Good on yuh, eh?
OVERALL
Go here for specialty organic and health-nerd items but not for a general shop. Stop in for a healthy lunch and enjoy the salad bar - just beware: the price sneaks up on you in here like a hockey-mask serial killer in an 80's movie.
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