There’s a new lord in Huntington Beach and he cares, I mean really cares, about local sourcing, local products, supporting and giving back to the community, and wholesome, sustainable food! His name is Whole Foods and he’ll sweep you off your feet with his soulful sincerity and commitment to a higher calling!
I was fortunate to be granted a private audience with the honorable Whole Foods before the public opening and this is what I found. (If you’ve been blessed with Whole Foods in your kingdom, then forgive my fervor.)
The first national grocer to provide a science-based sustainability rating system for wild-caught seafood developed in partnership with Blue Ocean Institute.
Color-coded Green, Yellow, and Red to make it easy for shoppers to make informed choices at the seafood counter. Red choices represent low abundance where fishing methods seriously harms other wildlife or natural habitats. Why stock them at all, you might ask. They are stocked to increase awareness and ease shoppers into making better choices.
A commitment to local sourcing and products:
Top – Stehly Farms Organics of Valley Center, CA and Carlsbad Aquafarm (Carlsbad)
Bottom: Portola Handcrafted Coffee Roasters (Irvine) and Gringo Bandito (Huntington Beach)
A strong focus on the flavors and tastes of the local surfing culture and Vietnamese communities.
You can enjoy a pizza slice and a cold beer on tap at Beach Bar 405 while watching the surf report or choose from a selection of Vietnamese entree dishes and pho along with wine made from grapes from Vietnam to take home.
A 5-Step Animal Welfare Rating system so shoppers know how their meat purchases were raised.
They had me at cheese! Cheese and more cheese! A full selection of cheeses sourced locally and from around the world.
Organic breads made daily and artisan and organic chocolates galore!
Of course, there is the full array of locally grown and organic produce, including products from Orange County Produce, featuring in-season and unique, ethnic selections such as baby bok choy, baby celery and greens for Asian cooking grown at Yasutomi Farm and a large selection of fresh squeezed citrus and veggie juices.
There are Whole Foods stores in many US cities, Canada, and the UK. Find a store in your area or possibly there’s a store in development close to you.
I only shop at Whole Foods occasionally although there is one right down the street. I never knew about the fish rating system but next time I buy fish I’m going to Whole Foods to ck that out and try to be a more conscious shopper. 🙂
@Judy – I never shopped at Whole Foods because I’m not close to either Tustin or Laguna Beach. I’m excited to have a better alternative!
I really miss living near a WF. I love their seafood color coding to show sustainability…I wish my grocer would do that! 🙂 Their cheese selection was pretty amazing too. One of my favorite cheeses there was a cubed Danish blue that was sold in jars with oil…it was amazing!
I want to park myself at the cheese display and try everything, do you think that they would mind? I’ll bring my own fork.
@Faith – I miss the grocery stores we have here when I travel, too. We are truly fortunate to have such a selection, from farmers markets to specialty and ethnic markets.
@Chef Renee – I’ll be right next to you! Like I said – they had me at cheese. The major reason why I can never go vegan 🙂
Hey Priscilla, it’s nice to give Whole Foods or Whole Paycheck as we sometimes we like to call it a nice shout out;) We just got one in our town and I love it too !
Great photos! I wish our Whole Foods was larger – the one in New Orleans is huge! Looks like y’all got a big one too 😉
My dream is to someday make WF my full time residence.
What a beautiful Whole Foods!
Living in Austin, I have the opportunity to shop at the Flagship Whole Foods. The company’s headquarters are right above the store, and I just love everything about it! How great that you were able to preview it before the store opens. What a neat opportunity to get a behind the scenes view of such a great place.
That is heavenly! Now why can’t I have one of those shops near me.
I am so excited that we have one closer now…Adam told me about the coffee roasting and said the cheese selection was one of the largest. I am going this week 🙂
I love that I am now surrounded by a few Wholefoods location. I stock up on their sale item on pantry staples.
I was also able to do the private tour for media/press for the event. It was fun 🙂