Whole Foods in Lake Grove is now open - what do you think? (Jericho: appointed, coupons) - City-Data Forum

villager-li · 03-28-2010, 01:42 PM

So now that Whole Foods is open in Lake Grove, I was curious as to what everyone thought about it.

I've been there 3 times so far. Here are my thoughts:

1. Produce department is excellent - best looking fruits and vegetables anywhere. Great price on organic apples (99 cents/lb.). Only problem was that their bananas were already ripe, which is no good for me (need them to last for about a week).

2. Seafood department is good - great selection of fresh fish - had the filet of sole the other day and it was outstanding. But their prices on smoked salmon were high compared to Trader Joes, and no better in quality.

3. Meat department - haven't bought anything there yet, so no comments. It looks good, but expensive (seems to be in the middle of Stop & Shop and Uncle Giuseppies).

4. Dairy - good prices on milk ($3/gallon) and half and half ($2/quart) but my wife is convinced there is something "different" about the half and half and she does not like it. Good selection and prices on greek yogurt. Whole Foods brand hummus is ok, but not as good as Trader Joes brand.

5. Other food (down the aisles) - you can find what you are looking for in general, but expect to pay more for it. And, if you're looking for some standard brands like Nabisco (I love Triscuits), you are out of luck.

6. Drinks - forget it if you like to drink diet drinks - you will not find much here due to their avoidance of artificial products. I tried the Root Beer flavored with Stevia and my whole family said it was the worst tasting thing they ever had. And, I was very surprised to find the extremely small selection of coffee - they are just no comparison to what Trader Joe's offers.

7. Hot/Cold Food Bar/Pizzas/Deli - I was not that impressed. I found a lot of the stuff in the self-serve were not recently filled up (i.e. sitting out for a while). The pizza is OK but I'd rather have a slice of standard NY pizza than that "artisan" stuff (although the buy 1 get one free deal on Tuesdays is not bad).

8. Bread - they don't sell the Martin's line of bread, which is my favorite. Their bread is not so good. Note I am not talking about the fresh baked bread - they seem to have a good selection of that, but I haven't tried it yet.

So to sum up - I really have mixed feelings about the place. I'll pick up a few things from them every so often, but this store in no way replaces a standard supermarket like Stop & Shop (where, in a pinch, you can get everything you need) or a store like Trader Joe's where they have some really good specialty items (with the exception of produce - Trader Joe's is the worst in that department). Overall I am disappointed and still have not found a true "one stop shopping" location.

I'd be curious to hear what others think...

RoleModel · 03-28-2010, 02:31 PM

This makes only one place irrelevant - Wild by Nature.

geo123 · 03-28-2010, 06:26 PM

Trader Joe's may also be rendered irrelevant. I love Whole Foods, especially the coffee/dessert bar.

I_Love_LI_but · 03-28-2010, 06:32 PM

The one in Lake Grove is a little too far afield for me since I am in western Nassau. I don't even know if they have one in Nassau. I got turned OFF to Whole Foods when it came to Manhattan and people nicknamed it "Whole Paycheck." If Manhattanites are calling it Whole Paycheck, I figure I am too cheap to shop there, so I will stick with Trader Joe's.

OhBeeHave · 03-28-2010, 06:38 PM

I've driven by several times, received Whole Foods coupons in the mail and have yet to stop in.

vlorak · 03-28-2010, 06:56 PM

i was not overly impressed. i needed hypoallergenic stuff for my kids and got them there. they're cheaper than ordering via amazon (with free shipping), so that was good for me. their desserts were great. strawberries were cheaper than at stop and shop. bananas were already ripe.
the baked bread was ok. just ok.
as much as i would like, i can't bring myself to get fish/meat from whole foods for the whole family. ok if i do it a few times but if i can't do it for every meal then i see no point. just the whole paycheck like I love LI but said it.
i will use it from time to time for my kids and their skin products, their fruit/veggies, and desserts. stop and shop has gotten me by the neck (with the help of recession)

AndreaII · 03-28-2010, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by I_Love_LI_but

I don't even know if they have one in Nassau.

There are at least 2 in Nassau County. One is on Northern Boulevard in Manhasset just west of Searingtown Road, and the other is on 106/107 in Jericho, east side of the street, adjacent to the Milleridge parking lot. The Whole Foods in Manhasset got bad reviews - evidently the store is rather small and doesn't have the inventory the larger stores have. Tomorrow I'm trying the one in Jericho.

Johninwestbury · 03-28-2010, 08:49 PM

What's the bakery like?
Though I have to say given the choice (from the Whole Foods I have been in..Jericho and Manhasset) I'd still rather go to Shoprite in Happauge.

vlorak · 03-29-2010, 04:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johninwestbury

What's the bakery like?
Though I have to say given the choice (from the Whole Foods I have been in..Jericho and Manhasset) I'd still rather go to Shoprite in Happauge.

the bakery was smaller (smaller than what i had seen in fl and MD whole foods). they had whole wheat stuff (yuck

, german round breads (don't know what they're called), huge salty pretzels, rosemary garlic round bread. i got the rosemary one but did not taste good. was not crispy enough.
i haven't looked at their cheese selection as i forgot. i was disappointed to see they did sell baklava but only in a package of two

. i used to get a huge tray of ohhhh sooo good baklava in other whole foods. can't complain though, i am happy it's open finally in my neck of woods (which is behind God's back)

dman72 · 03-29-2010, 07:20 AM

I'm going to wait until the fervor dies down to actually buy anything there. It's way too crowded, lines were 6 deep on Saturday, I took a walk around and left.

Strawberries at meat farms were about half the price as they were there, and they said "conventional strawberries"..I guess this means not organic.

Everything looks good, but I can't deal with the crowds right now or nearly getting run over by jerks in Range Rovers who ignore the mile high speed bumps. I'll try late on a weeknight or something.