Wild Oats-Whole Foods merger
Looks like we'll have to wait till April to find out how our Mason and Norwood Wild Oats fare with the Whole Foods merger announced last week. Personally, I don't shop at Wild Oats all that much now, even though I drive by the Deerfield Town Center one at least once a week. But if it were rebranded Whole Foods, I might make it a point to visit more often. Loved the Whole Foods in Old Town, Alexandria, Va. when I was out there for a wedding in October. Great spot to have lunch - seats out front and everything. (AND it's right in the middle of a downtown area, versus suburbia). And Whole Foods strikes me as less "crunchy" than Wild Oats. If that's possible.
posted by Julie Gaw at 1:44 PM
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Julie Gaw said...
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Post a Comment*Julie, I am familiar with both Wild Oats and Whole Foods. I'm not sure what you mean when you say that Wild Oats is more "crunchy."
Could you explain?
There is a Whole Foods just up the road in Columbus that is the best and biggest Whole Foods I've ever been to. At 74,435 square feet, it is larger than any other Whole Foods Market I am aware of including those in Chicago and Manhattan. It is certainly one of WFM's largest stores. It is very foodie friendly and definitely worth a trip. My husband drops me off there every time we go to Columbus to visit relatives...a couple of hours with the relatives, a couple of hours at Whole Foods, and then home.
The Columbus WFM has a huge deli area with several different stations offering many different kinds of prepared foods...fish, meat, poultry, whole grains, Fresh fruits and vegetables, vegetarian, vegan. There are several eating/tasting areas with small exhibition kitchens scattered about. Some of these areas are like small in-store cafes or bistros, and you can get the appropriate wine for the dish you've ordered too.
There is also a huge salad buffet area with a varied array of freshly prepared foods. There is always something new to try there.
At the nearby pizza station with pizza oven, you can try truly top notch thin crust pizza. There is always something new to try here too.
Around the corner from the pizza is another hot food station where you can try some old standards as well as more exotic preparations. As usual, there is always something new to try each time I go.
And wait, there's more! The bakery. Ah, the bakery! The bakery produces very beautiful pastries influenced by the french baking tradition, not only in looks but in flavor. The pastries are not overly sweet allowing you to taste the freshness and quality of the ingredients. They are well-proportioned and beautiful to look at. And most important of all, they are very tasty! The pastries are made, not just assembled, in house. The lemon tart and the pear frangipane tart are so good that I usually tuck some into my cart to bring back home. Mmm! Fresh pears and frangipane paste! I'm lucky if the tarts survive the journey home.
In short, there is enough at the Whole Foods Market in Columbus to satisfy even the pickiest gourmand. I hope we are fortunate enough to get a similar store here in Cincinnati. It would make me and other WFM foodies very happy, I am sure. There is currently nothing even remotely like it in Cincinnati, I assure you. If you haven't been, it's worth the trip!
I mean crunchy as in "granola crunchy" - a little too 60s, earthy, hippie, perhaps New Age for me.
http://www.slangcity.com/email_archive/4_01_2004.htm
I see the rows of health-food supplements, etc., at Wild Oats, and I think that just freaks me out a bit. It's a little extreme. I'm all for eating local, eating healthy, eating well. I like the idea of organic but am I willing to pay for it? Not really. Wild Oats just strikes me as a bit more extreme in that department than Whole Foods. But then, I was only in Whole Foods twice while I was in DC. (However, my brother lives in DC and LOVES Whole Foods, and he's about as non-crunchy as they come!)
I love Wild Oats. I enjoy the size of their stores also (not too big).
Turns out we have another market that will compete in this space as well~Fresh Market, that has just opened its second location near Kenwood Town Centre.
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