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Best deal was the ORGANIC SEEDUCTION BREAD...about a 3 pound loaf at half price ($3), really delicious.
If you want an orchid, large phalaenopisis are half price at $10. I've got 3 so I passed.
The salad/hot food bar is appealing but $8.99 so you want to be careful with rice or pasta.
Deli is tiny but the adjacent fish department is great but pricey. Opening day deal on nice lobster tails for $6 each.
We bought some frozen Indian entrees on a whim for half price.
The cobblers near the check out looked really inviting, so we snatched up a blueberry: $4.99.
We just put our toe in and spent $16.
I really doubt they will take much business from our local Key Food.
My first impression was right...store is on the small side for a Whole Foods. If you go today, just get a hand basket because pushing a cart through the crowds would be aggravating.
Last edited by Kefir King; 02-18-2015 at 11:27 AM..
You're crazy, that's not even remotely close to being true
Oh but it is true.
Reported in local NYC news media a year or so ago (NYT?) did some price comparisons and yes, WF was cheaper for many things versus other Manhattan supermarkets. Their produce and other things were often fresher as well.
As noted persons need to learn from our mothers and grandmothers days and know how to shop. That is know what things are priced at before shopping. Gristedes is known for over priced and selling things past their sell by date. You can read comments on Yelp and elsewhere about Gristedes anywhere in the five boroughs that echo the same.
Sadly too many transplants and others tend to base their shopping on location, that is what is the closest supermarket to their building. This is why DAG and Gristedes stores remained in business historically, but that is slowly changing as more competition arrives.
Best deal was the ORGANIC SEEDUCTION BREAD...about a 3 pound loaf at half price ($3), really delicious.
If you want an orchid, large phalaenopisis are half price at $10. I've got 3 so I passed.
The salad/hot food bar is appealing but $8.99 so you want to be careful with rice or pasta.
Deli is tiny but the adjacent fish department is great but pricey. Opening day deal on nice lobster tails for $6 each.
We bought some frozen Indian entrees on a whim for half price.
The cobblers near the check out looked really inviting, so we snatched up a blueberry: $4.99.
We just put our toe in and spent $16.
I really doubt they will take much business from our local Key Food.
My first impression was right...store is on the small side for a Whole Foods. If you go today, just get a hand basket because pushing a cart through the crowds would be aggravating.
Walked pass earlier today and the mob scene was more than one could endure right now. May take a walk up later to see what there is to see.
We have theater this afternoon but will try to stop at WF afterwards.
I've only been able to peek through gaps but it struck me as very shallow. Like half the size of the Union Square store. I will soon have my impression confirmed or not.
Think WF really wanted to open on the UES and simply had to deal with what space they could find. Maybe in five or more years from now when whatever is developed on the Gristedes site at 86th will include large ground floor retail. That would open the way for a store the size of Union Square or some such.
So we had the two frozen Indian vegetarian entrees last night and they were really delicious and (2 for $5.) With rice they fed the two of us nicely.
I'll go back this morning and hope the sale is still on and stock up.
Forget the Crumble...it looks a lot better than it is. Only a veneer of very gelled blueberries.
DO get the SEEDUCTION bread if it is still $3.
I'd buy an orchid but carrying it home 4 blocks in sub-freezing weather will likely cause all the buds to blast.
Reported in local NYC news media a year or so ago (NYT?) did some price comparisons and yes, WF was cheaper for many things versus other Manhattan supermarkets. Their produce and other things were often fresher as well.
As noted persons need to learn from our mothers and grandmothers days and know how to shop. That is know what things are priced at before shopping. Gristedes is known for over priced and selling things past their sell by date. You can read comments on Yelp and elsewhere about Gristedes anywhere in the five boroughs that echo the same.
Sadly too many transplants and others tend to base their shopping on location, that is what is the closest supermarket to their building. This is why DAG and Gristedes stores remained in business historically, but that is slowly changing as more competition arrives.
DAG and Gristedes are facing major competition from Whole Foods, Fairway, and Fresh Direct. But not only that, if you're desperate to go around the corner for juice you can go to CVS, WalGreen's, or Duane Reade.
Expect a number of location closing for supermarkets like Gristedes in the next 5-10 years due to intense competition and rising rents.
WF was very uncrowded today and I cleaned out the 2/$5 Indian entrees: Tandoor Chef. That's all I bought.
I use a half dozen stores to buy what I need and I know the price points of EVERYTHING...it's my curse. I rarely pay more than the lowest possible price for ANYTHING. Of course I have the luxury of being retired.
I'm super excited about Whole Foods opening on the UES, mainly because it will cut the crowd at Fairway! I love Fairway, but every time I think about stopping on the way home from work, the line wrapped around the produce section changes my mind! I really hope the Food Emporium on 84th and 3rd doesn't close soon, but I'm sure it's inevitable. I don't really like Food Emporium, but its nice to be able to run in quick, even if I have to pay a few bucks more for the stuff!
A Trader Joe's on the UES would be amazing, but I don't see that happening any time soon. Would love it if they went into the old Food Emporium spot on 86th & 2nd, under Yorkshire Towers. I try to do an Aldi run every week or two...it's out of the way, but soooo cheap, and good quality.
Whole Foods seems generally over-priced for most things, but their hot food and salad bar is a great option to pick up dinner on the way home.
I stopped by about a half hour after opening yesterday and it was pretty hectic, although the checkout line at that time moved pretty fast. Today there was no line at all and I pretty much went right up to the register. I actually haven't checked out the entire place yet as I was really just wanting a couple of things yesterday and a salad today but it does seem pretty narrow - although brighter than the 57th Street WF. I generally do my weekly WF run Friday nights after work so I will really look at everything then. I did notice that their elevator is already out of commission.
I generally shop at a variety of places, picking up what they do best/are cheapest at - Whole Foods is competitive on a lot of things, especially with their own brand and also their bulk bins. With this Whole Foods and Fairway being so close to each other, it makes it really easy to pick up items in both, and then get the rest at my neighborhood store (which is also pretty good with produce and organics) in Brooklyn.
I did my spin through yesterday. I was in a hurry to get somewhere, so it was only a quick recon. I had the reaction I usually have to WF. It looks very nice, it's madly busy, and the prices are ridiculous.
And when I was upstairs, the down escalator broke, causing a traffic jam trying to get out.
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