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I have never even seen a Whole Foods.  

post #1 of 28
4/4/08 at 12:38am
Thread Starter 
Or shopped in one, anywhere. I feel so left out. I am sure there is one within an hour or 2 of here (the boonies). Who wants to travel that far for groceries?

I am so jealous of people who get to shop there on a regular basis.

I have never seen a Trader Joe's either, by the way! I need to move!
post #2 of 28
4/4/08 at 3:28am
You're not missing much, really.



Okay, well there is some drool-able stuff in there, but honestly? I've been there once. There are several in my area, although not TOO close, but the one time I went I almost died. Well, not really, but it was SOOOOOoooOOooo overcrowded, I just couldn't stand it. So I never went back.

TJs, on the other hand, I do shop at pretty frequently. It's a little bit closer, and definitely cheaper. But they always pack too much into really tiny spaces and have really crappy, often-cramped parking lots, so just think of it as missing out on a giant headache.
post #3 of 28
4/4/08 at 3:37am
I love WF, but it is always crowded!! I've regularily shopped in the past at two in Northern VA, one in Annapolis, MD, and now one in Raleigh. It's always the same! The aisles are narrow and there are so many people in there it takes me forever to shop, it drives me crazy. TJ's is a little slower, but there isn't one near me now (well, I'd have to pass two WF and some local HFS to get there). We also have a WF like chain in the south called Earth Fare, and I love it!! They space the aisles out a little more and it's never as busy.
post #4 of 28
4/4/08 at 8:57am
I was to WF once or twice when they first opened when I lived near the Big City. It's very $$ IMO. Now, it's a 2 hour drive, so I don't ever go. TJs is a 2.5 hour drive... however I make it a point to stop in if I am traveling anywhere near one

As nice as TJs is, I don't think I would move back to a metro area just to be near one
post #5 of 28
4/4/08 at 10:19am
I could have written the original post. And as I was reading it, I thought, I wonder if she lives in Iowa too? And then I see that you do.

I don't think there any TJ or WH anywhere in Iowa.

I'm in Ankeny, I know there are none around here or DM.
post #6 of 28
4/4/08 at 10:22am
Thread Starter 
I'm 3 hours from Des Moines, so even if there were those stores there, I probably wouldn't go!
post #7 of 28
4/4/08 at 10:28am
Tell me about it! Costco is only like 25 min or so from here, and sometimes that seems like too far!

I wouldn't go 3 hours for groceries, probably ever, unless it was on my way to/ from my dad's house (Rockwell City).
post #8 of 28
4/4/08 at 3:29pm
I love Whole Foods

When the farmer's markets have stuff that isn't just shipped in, I buy almost exclusively there (probably May-Oct). The other months we shop at Whole Foods, or Wegman's (which I also love ).

While WF is more expensive than TJ's, I like that I can shop in WF without having to worry about picking something up that has trans fats, mgs, hfcs, etc. I have very little time to shop, so I like knowing I can just swing stuff off the shelf and not read labels!

We only buy meat that is on sale to save money (there's always something good, pork chops last week and lamb stew meat this week all organically raised). I live in a city so getting to WF isn't a problem, but it's so crowded it makes me crazy.

I went to the TJ's here twice and both times it was dirty, more crowded than WF, and disorganized - so even though I loved the one in my old town I don't shop at this one anymore.

I can't wait for farmer's markets to open back up again though!! May 1 here we come!!
post #9 of 28
4/4/08 at 3:34pm
You're not missing that much, really. Just an opportunity to spend $$$ on stuff you can probably find elsewhere cheaper. I see a lot of convenience foods there and smug people who think they're eating better, when really, chips and soda are, well, chips and soda. Doesn't matter if they're organic or not.

I LOVED TJ's. I had one near me in college and didn't know how lucky I was till I moved to NY where I had to drive 35 minutes to get to the nearest one. Now, I'm in Wyoming and I'll not see a TJ's here for a long, long time. I had standards I bought there, not a lot of prepackaged stuff and once I figured out what I liked, I could be in and out and do a months shopping trip all at once.
post #10 of 28
4/4/08 at 3:34pm
WF is nice but I agree with PP's- too crowded and over priced- most things. Some things I can get there cheaper or for the same price as somewhere else. I'm just so ready for my garden!!

Oooo Wegman's, is it better than WFs? From what I have read it would be nicer.
post #11 of 28
4/4/08 at 3:46pm
I haven't been to WF either. It's about 2 hours from here and I keep meaning to at least make a trip and check it out, just so I can say I did it once, but I never get around to it.

I am also a Wegmans addict. Now, there are plenty of unhealthy things to be found there; it is still a conventional supermarket, but it has a much higher percentage of healthy things, plus a wonderful ambiance.
post #12 of 28
4/4/08 at 6:37pm
You can get a lot of the stuff they carry at Whole Foods online. If you are looking for good organic product maybe check out a CSA? You are in Iowa how hard could it be to find a farm?

www.localharvest.org

I live in the land of Whole Foods. I have at least 3 within 15 minutes. I prefer to support local stores so I will drive past Whole Foods to shop at the family owned natural food store on the other end of town.
post #13 of 28
4/5/08 at 12:17am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by angelika13 View Post
You can get a lot of the stuff they carry at Whole Foods online. If you are looking for good organic product maybe check out a CSA? You are in Iowa how hard could it be to find a farm?

www.localharvest.org

I live in the land of Whole Foods. I have at least 3 within 15 minutes. I prefer to support local stores so I will drive past Whole Foods to shop at the family owned natural food store on the other end of town.


Funny! We do have lots of farms. If you want beef or corn, that is.
post #14 of 28
4/5/08 at 12:45am
When I lived in LA I went to TJs once in a while. And then in Colorado we ALWAYS shopped at WF. During the day it wasn't that crowded and I loved the huge selection of organic veggies.

I definitely miss it since moving to DM. (I think the closest one is in Omaha.) I think the local health food stores are way more expensive then WF. And the selection is blah. But I was pleasantly surprised to find an organic section at Hy-Vee. So we aren't as strictly organic as we once were.
post #15 of 28
4/5/08 at 2:46pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Down2Earth View Post
When I lived in LA I went to TJs once in a while. And then in Colorado we ALWAYS shopped at WF. During the day it wasn't that crowded and I loved the huge selection of organic veggies.

I definitely miss it since moving to DM. (I think the closest one is in Omaha.) I think the local health food stores are way more expensive then WF. And the selection is blah. But I was pleasantly surprised to find an organic section at Hy-Vee. So we aren't as strictly organic as we once were.
Yep, HyVee has a nice selection of organic. Last time I was there, the organic bananas were cheaper than the chemical kind.

Our HyVee has a really great "health food" section. They have a few bulk items, yogurt, veggie meals, GFCF, etc. Its pretty nice!
post #16 of 28
4/5/08 at 3:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jojo F. View Post
Oooo Wegman's, is it better than WFs? From what I have read it would be nicer.
I think so I get some conventional stuff too, so I like Wegman's a lot. It's 45 min from here though, so I only go when visiting my family and stock up on stuff.
post #17 of 28
4/5/08 at 4:34pm
I've never been to WF until a few weeks ago. (I'm also originaly from IA .)I went to the one in Omaha with my aunt. I like it alot. Too bad for me the closest one is over 70 miles.
post #18 of 28
4/6/08 at 11:31am
Id never been to one until I was 7mo prgnant with my little guy and theres one about 5 miles (i think..close anyway.) from my mw office.

I do like it, especially having more than bananas and Amys frozen stuff, milk, and a couple B&J's stuff thats organic in the whole store, kwim?

Its really nice but yeah a lot is expensive.
post #19 of 28
4/6/08 at 3:16pm
We have a whole foods and I do love it However after reading all the talk of TJ I feel so left out. We dont have one of those. We just got whole foods a year ago!
post #20 of 28
4/6/08 at 3:23pm
I love Whole Foods, the only times ours is croweded is around 6pm and then on Saturdays. Otherwise it's not bad at all. I feel like ours is competetively priced and there are sooo many things there that you cannot get anywhere else. The quality of their fresh products is sooo much better than our other grocery stores that it makes it hard not to spend a little extra money and shop there. Plus I buy less junk food if I mostly stick to whole foods, I definitely won't pay extra for stuff that even though it's organic is still mostly "junk food".
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