Just a couple days out from its grand opening, the Coddingtown Whole Foods market is nearly set up and ready to roll. Here are some of the highlights:
– The Tap Room: An in-house beer lounge open during store hours, the Tap House features 16 local craft brews on tap.
– Kombucha Bar: This fermented health tonic flows on tap near the frozen yogurt bar.
– Fresh Pretzels: The bakery has high-tech in-store ovens and we hear the fresh soft pretzels are the bomb.
– Dry Aged beef and sustainable meats: The store will feature many local meat purveyors, including a super-local beef program that sources from North Bay ranchers. Their 5-step animal welfare program rates how chicken, beef, pork and other meats are raised.
– Monterrey Bay Seafood Watch seafoods: Sustainably raised seafood is a high priority.
– Local Produce: The store will highlight locally-grown produce
– Gluten/Vegan: Specialty foods for gluten-free and animal-free lifestyles will also be highlighted
– Education Center
– Expanded bulk and bulk spices
The store opens Wednesday, Sept. 22 and hosts a barbecue on Sunday, Sept. 26 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. This free event is an outdoor barbeque featuring fun for the entire family including a delicious selection of meat and seafood on the grill, live music and an opportunity to meet local ranchers and attend workshops to learn everything from buying, cutting and marinating meat.
Local vendors include more than 125 Sonoma county producers and farmers: Crumb Hither baked goods; Rawk Me Organics raw, vegan, organic ice cream; Mateo Granados’ line of Mayan habanero sauces; Primavera tortilla chips, salsa, hand-made tortillas and tamales; Alexander Valley Gourmet™ pickles; Café Gratitude raw foods to go; Harvest Time spring rolls; The Hummus Guy hummus, dips and spreads; Gipson’s Golden honey; Artisan Bakers baked goods; Full Circle Baking Company baked goods; Salmon Creek Ranch pasture-raised organic duck eggs; Vibranz Kombucha; St. Benoît Yogurt and yogurt cheese; McClelland’s Dairy organic European-style butter; Dry Creek Peach & Produce and Quetzal Farms produce; Devoto Gardens flowers; Two Rock Valley cheese; Coast Roast Coffee, Taylor Maid and Ecco Caffé organic coffee and Bohemian Creamery Italian-style cheeses.
Stopped in today, it was very crowded! Considering they are trying to put so much emphasis on local producers, I was shocked by their wine selection. Except for a couple of brands, it looked like the selection at Safeway. No, I take that back. Most Safeways have a better selection of small local wineries.
They also have the nerve to put little “Local Winery” signs on a bunch of brands owned by Gallo, Diageo, and Constellation. That’s like saying the old Chevy Sonoma is a local brand! Also, who needs a beer pub in the middle of a wine country grocery store?
The $1 tacos were good, however!
Don’t worry about the prices! Whole Foods will be setting up a layaway plan
so you can pay for your purchases in increments. This works especially well
for aged beef—–you buy it, pay for it over a six-month period and don’t pay
any extra for the extra six months of aging. Of course, you have to wait six
months before you eat it.
I was at this store today, and couldn’t help but notice the very small selection of local products. I’m not anti-Whole Foods by any means, and appreciate their beer,wine,and cheese inventories, but we need to remember what we started here in the North Bay-eat and buy local! I love Santa Rosa Community Market and will continue to support our local farmers and food producers by shopping there. Then I’ll stop by W.F. to pick up some beer and cheese!
While I will always enjoy shopping at Olivers, it is going to be awesome to have Whole Foods on the west side of town…Whole Foods,whether it is a ‘marketing machine’ or not,has a wonderful selection of groceries and other fine products…(Excuse me if I am mistaken,but aren’t most successful companies out to make a profit?). And what about the employment offers that it will provide? I would reckon to say that the local labor market could use any boost it can possibly get. I say,let’s go shopping!!
Pendolino: Mackey is too CEO (I never said he is the Chairman). While earlier this year he announced he’s appointing a co-CEO, his imprint on the company is huge and noone on Wall Street has any illusions about who is in charge. Mackey has led it since he started it 32 years ago and remains one of the biggest individual shareholders, if not the biggest. It’s amazing to me that the company manages to flourish while the CEO spits in the face of its major constituency, liberals, while inciting them to shop with their conscience at every opportunity.
Don’t shop at Whole Foods…support your local community and stay with Oliver’s. 3x more of your spent at Oliver’s will stay in the local community opposed to Whole Foods. We need every penny we can get to support Sonoma County!!!!!!
Plus- you can get all the local brands that Whole Foods has plus more as well as conventional groceries…
There was a great article about Mackey in the New Yorker recently…Food Fighter: Does Whole Foods’ C.E.O. know what’s best for you?
Can’t wait to check out the taproom!
I so enjoyed the tour yesterday and am very excited about the gluten free section. I know my husband is anxious to try out a flight of beer.
I’m not shopping there as long as they have that right wing extremist nut job CEO Mackey. And I can’t stand their sanctimonious “we really care about you” pitch which really is just marketing positioning to appeal to their target demographic and take their $$. Farmers markets and local stores like Olivers, Pacific and Andy’s are the way to go. Don’t be fooled. Underneath the sanctimony is a cynical, well-honed highly profitable (highest gross margin in the industry) $8 billion in sales marketing machine.
Mackey is no longer CEO and Chairman. He split his job in half a couple of years ago, delegating most of the day-to-day operations to Walter Robb, who used to manage the Mill Valley store. The Chairman is now Dr. John B. Elstrott of Tulane University. This information may allow you to rest your anger.
Ugh…if only I could afford items from them. I live within walking distance and it’s sad to know that I as well as just about everyone near there will still have to drive to get groceries.
Something that this Whole Foods is really focusing on is making it an affordable shopping experience. Their store brand of ‘365’ products are in direct competition with Trader Joe’s and are priced the same, but unlike TJ’s you can literally trace every product back to the farm it came from. This, combined with their all the time ‘great buys’ that compete with other large competitors, you can afford to shop at Whole Foods! And yes, i work there~in seafood, stop by and say ‘hi’!
I’m totally neutral on the Whole Foods/Whole paycheck thing. I guess I find that I end up shopping at multiple stores each week for the things that I like the best. It can be expensive, but if you shop the sales and look for good deals, I find that it all washes out in the end. Whole Foods is always my go-to for exotic(ish) things (kale chips, bee pollen, Asian specialities) and I LOVE wandering the aisles for trophy items like forbidden rice, goat milk ice cream, amazing fish, muscat grapes, fresh mozzarella and great pastries and breads. I got to G&G for produce and everyday stuff and Safeway for packaged staples. I love Oliver’s (though its too farm from my house for regular patronage) and Pacific Market for quick bites and lunchmeat (it’s super close to my house). The farmer’s market is also a huge favorite for produce (but sometimes I miss it).
I agree with you……Most of the folks within walking distance will NOT be able to afford to go there to shop and isn’t it a bit overkill? Anything to make the mighty dollar I guess…..
I am so excited about this! I think my main grocery store will still be Oliver’s (convenient to my house and local) but I will definitely be doing some shopping here, too. I like the emphasis on local products.