The following is a photograph essay from my tour around the new Whole Foods Market location in Burnaby on Lougheed at Willingdon.
Whatever they call it, I think the Whole Foods Market is a very welcome addition to the area and I was quite impressed with all aspects of the store.
All of the displays of produce are perfectly arranged.
The bakery makes wonderfully beautiful pastries and assorted sweets in a variety of sizes.
There is also a wide selection of breads baked in store. They also had a large display of Terra Breads – supporting the local bakery.
The Indian Dosa Bar looked awesome.
And the samples of their fare looked just as yummy!
The pizza oven, although gas-fired, was also pretty awesome. I spent quite a few minutes watching the pizza guy moving this one pizza around to keep it cooking.
Once out of the oven, the pizza is sold by the slice.
There were at least three “salad bars” where you can serve yourself and pay for your bowl by the 100 grams.
This salad bar was filled with Indian foods that smelled just heavenly.
As well as prepared foods to eat, everywhere in the store were little kiosks (similar to the way it is in Costco) with people offering samples.
Like the Indian Dosa Bar, there was also a sushi bar where you can custom order rolls. There was also a refrigerated section with pre-made rolls and sushi combos.
Some time ago I considered getting a couple dozen chickens for my backyard. I did the math on it and it seemed like a foolproof way to make money at $4 a dozen. Maybe I should get some hens?
The meat department was pretty slick with all kinds of meats in a well organized display case. That being said, I still prefer to visit Meat Craft Urban Butchery, my local butcher shop for my meat needs.
It was also cool to see beef that is in the process of aging. The display case has the date the meat went in the case and when it is to be taken out. I have to give Whole Foods Market credit for doing this because beef in the aging process is not that attractive.
Like the meat display cases, the fish was also arranged in an attractive manner. I was surprised to see many pieces of Atlantic Salmon in the display cases and when I asked if it was farmed salmon I was told that it was.
They did explain that their suppliers must strict standards around how the salmon are raised and all that stuff. Still surprised me.
Quite the display of olive oils. From expensive to really quite reasonably priced.
Back into the prepared food section and there was an incredible variety of salads, packaged fresh fruit, sandwiches, and ready-to-grill sandwiches.
One thing I noticed about the displays is that almost everything is positioned on the shelf to best show the product that is on sale. The nutrition labels and ingredient lists are on the products but they are positioned to the rear so that they do not distract from the attractiveness of the food for sale.
All labels are positioned behind the product, whether it is a salad or a sandwich.
Another thing I really liked about the store was the very open and uncluttered lay-out. Aisles were typically quite wide and easily maneuvered through.
The check out aisles were no exception. Easy to maneuver through.
I also appreciate this type of an attitude – 8ish items.
Overall, I quite enjoyed my experience at Whole Foods Market. No, sadly this will not be my go-to grocery store for when I need a cart full of groceries. But I will admit that in the past I had somewhat derisively referred to Whole Foods Market as “Whole Paycheque Foods” because of my perception that they were so expensive.
There is no denying that they stock lots of expensive items but I do see that they also have many products that are at an accessible price point.
I enjoyed the experience and I will be returning to the store soon to sample as many of the prepared foods that I can. I will report back once I do.
Whole Foods Market in Burnaby is located at 4420 Lougheed Highway.