Whole Foods, what to get?

[Dawgluver]

Okay, we are hicks from the sticks. Will be visiting Minneapolis to see family soon. There's a Whole Foods, recently opened, within a few blocks of Baby Bro's house. His wife loves it, Baby Bro terms it "Whole Paycheck". Apparently quite expensive. What are the good things to get there?

Any advice would be appreciated!

BTW, they also have a Costco close by, which we plan on visiting. Got that covered.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Okay, we are hicks from the sticks. Will be visiting Minneapolis to see family soon. There's a Whole Foods, recently opened, within a few blocks of Baby Bro's house. His wife loves it, Baby Bro terms it "Whole Paycheck". Apparently quite expensive. What are the good things to get there?

Any advice would be appreciated!

BTW, they also have a Costco close by, which we plan on visiting. Got that covered.

Bulk rice, bulk salt, bulk oatmeal....see a trend here? Also perfect for picking out spices that you only need a little of or would like to try, but only if they have them in bulk...

 

[Dawgluver]

Bulk rice, bulk salt, bulk oatmeal....see a trend here? Also perfect for picking out spices that you only need a little of or would like to try, but only if they have them in bulk...

So, we will be bulking up? Thought that was what Costco was for! Geez, they also have a nearby Penzeys.

I am feeling really deprived.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Too expensive. WFM customers = rich people who don't like to cook and would rather visit their expensive deli and reheat dinners and pretend they cooked them.

My best tip: Get some Lundberg "Jubilee" mixed brown rice, WFM is my only local supplier. Also WFM has some really nice/rare cheeses.

Their meats and seafood can't be beat, unless cost is some object.

I visit Trader Joe's a couple times a week, and WFM a couple times a month. I spend $50-$70 at Trader Joe's, I spend $10-$12 at WFM.

Have a look at WFM's soaps, particularly Zum Bars from IndigoWild. WFM sells them by the pound, you cut off as much as you want from logs of various scented soaps. I've been a WFM customer for decades and I remember their boutique soaps as being my initial draw. My advice: cut a very few thin slices from fragrances that smell good. If you like them you can return to WFM or order online.

 

[Dawgluver]

We stopped in one in Mpls last year, and found them to be horrendously expensive. Will check out the cheese/seafood/rice!

Love Trader Joe's, of course we don't have them around here either.

Oh, I remember seeing the soaps! Will have to cut off a few slices! They smelled really good! Thanks, Greg!

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

I'd love to hear if anybody else likes Lundberg Jubilee rice. It's my #1 favorite brown rice. It's a mixture of several different brown and wild rices.

My #1 favorite white rice is Thai jasmine long grain (not broken) rice.

Hey, if y'all are anywhere where they have Sunflower markets they are a very viable competitor to WFM and TJ's, around the same price line as TJ's. They are apparently only in the Southwest and nearby states: CA, UT, NV, AZ, NM, OK, TX... My emotions surge remembering living in SF NM for a summer and visiting Sunflower 2-3 times a week. (SF NM also has WFM and TJ's.)

 

[PrincessFiona60]

So, we will be bulking up? Thought that was what Costco was for! Geez, they also have a nearby Penzeys.

I am feeling really deprived.

Bulk in that you get to pick the size you want. Buying two ponds of oatmeal in bulk at WF is cheaper than at Costco and I don't have to get 10 pounds of it. Same with the rice, and they have all kinds of rice to choose from.

 

[Dawgluver]

Bulk in that you get to pick the size you want. Buying two ponds of oatmeal in bulk at WF is cheaper than at Costco and I don't have to get 10 pounds of it. Same with the rice, and they have all kinds of rice to choose from.

This is what I need to know! Thanks, PF!

 

[Andy M.]

WFM has bins of all kinds of grains that you can scoop out as much as you want and pay for just that.

My general rule is that WFM is where you go to buy things you can't find anywhere else.

 

[4meandthem]

I have gone there a few times and usually don't come out with much. Too expensive for what you get. I do like to get ideas from their deli salads when I am there.

 

[Dawgluver]

WFM has bins of all kinds of grains that you can scoop out as much as you want and pay for just that.

My general rule is that WFM is where you go to buy things you can't find anywhere else.

Got it. Will have to take my time and peruse.

Thanks guys!

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

I have gone there a few times and usually don't come out with much. Too expensive for what you get. I do like to get ideas from their deli salads when I am there.

++

Same for me. Thus my comments in another topic about baked tofu as an appetizer. Bought it first at WFM, liked it, searched the Internet for recipes and now cook my own. Probably cost about $10/lb at WFM.

I get better shopping than most people because I'm in the big bad city (Los Angeles). We have plenty of places that sell bulk foods, a lot cheaper than WFM, particularly Asian and Latino markets, although not necessarily the same foods.

I have a complex market strategy where I get many things from many different markets. OTOH I know people who have to drive 30 minutes or an hour just to get basic market items.

I would always like WFM as a market alternative although I'll never buy any significant amount of products from them. Think 'niche.'

 

[bakechef]

So, we will be bulking up? Thought that was what Costco was for! Geez, they also have a nearby Penzeys.

I am feeling really deprived.

We have a Penzys here in Raleigh, I love to go there! We have whole foods too, I go there for local cream and eggs, which are really well priced surprisingly enough, the cream is actually cheaper than the store brand in the regular grocery store! This is where I get my Spectrum organics shortening. I like getting different flours and grains to try since you can get just a little from the bulk bins.

 

[Steve Kroll]

Hmm... a Whole Foods just opened down the street from my office. I wonder if this is the one that's near your brother.

I shop there quite a bit. It can be expensive, but it depends entirely on what you buy. Pre-made foods at the deli counters are outrageous. So are some, but not all, of the meats and fish. But they have some items that are hard to find elsewhere - for example, I don't know many places that sell rack of veal. WF does.

As mentioned, their bulk foods area is very good, and so is the produce section. They also have a nice, though somewhat small, cheese selection. And I find their cheese prices to be pretty competitive.

 

[Dawgluver]

Hmm... a Whole Foods just opened down the street from my office. I wonder if this is the one that's near your brother.

I shop there quite a bit. It can be expensive, but it depends entirely on what you buy. Pre-made foods at the deli counters are outrageous. So are some, but not all, of the meats and fish. But they have some items that are hard to find elsewhere - for example, I don't know many places that sell rack of veal. WF does.

As mentioned, their bulk foods area is very good, and so is the produce section. They also have a nice, though somewhat small, cheese selection. And I find their cheese prices to be pretty competitive.

Rack of veal. Oh yum. We will be bringing a big cooler. Now, maybe 2 coolers.

Great stuff, guys! Thanks so much!

 

[buckytom]

with respect to steve, i hope you don't get dissapointed, dawg. i used to buy meats for our holiday get togethers from whole paycheck until we found it wasn't a sure thing that it would be the best available. in fact, we found over time that wf was hit and miss, averaging about the same as a supermarket but for twice as much.

actually, we found costco had, on average, better quality meat. i had this conversation with my neighbor when i found out that he was a butcher for a local costco, and the secret to their superiority was turn over. he loved to brag about how many packages of various meats he cut and wrapped in a given day, and how many more he had to do when his boss asked him to stay late to refill empty shelves.

imo, save your money for costco.

btw, a rack of veal will be a few $$$$.

 

[Steve Kroll]

btw, a rack of veal will be a few $$$$.

You ain't just whistlin' Dixie. I think it was around $40/lb.

No disrespect taken, BT. I know what you're saying. I guess my point is that there are a few deals to be found at WF, but deals aren't really their shtick. It's more a place to buy foods that are hard to find elsewhere.

By the way, I bought some fresh buffalo mozzarella there just today. Flown in from Italy. At $8 for a half pound ball, it may not be a bargain, but considering that I've seen it in other places for twice that price, I didn't feel too ripped off.

 

[buckytom]

ooh, don't wait to eat the bufala. i'm sure you know the reason it's such a big deal about being flown in is that it loses it's depth of flavour and (for lack of a better term) sweetness in just a few days.

i plan on buying some as soon as the garden tomatoes are in this summer to make a simple capreses salad.

 

[Claire]

Whole Foods isn't a place I'd be able to do my weekly shopping (and, yes, I've also heard "Whole Paycheck"). But we have absolutely nothing like it anywhere around here, so when I'm somewhere and run into one (last time was in Fort Collins, Colorado, visiting friends; there is one in Madison, Wisconsin which I get to every few years). So my answer is I buy whatever tickles my fancy since it is a very seldom treat and I only buy stuff I cannot get at home. The last time I bought pappadams, something I cannot find around here and I love he black pepper ones.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

What to get? A second mortgage on your house!