Swamplot culled through the best of the many media previews of the Whole Foods Market Houston-area flagship on Post Oak Blvd. — so you don’t have to! Yes, the much-hyped supermarket is finally throwing open its doors to the public Thursday. (Free reusable shopping bag to the first 500 customers!) So here is a quick round-up of the wonders within the 8-years-in-the-making anchor development in BLVD Place:
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A 26-photo slideshow graces Prime Property; it ranges from shots of the store’s brewmaster at work in the  first-in-the-galaxy in-supermarket brewery to a view from the Jetsonesque second-floor dining area:
Houstonia‘s Katharine Shilcutt snapped even more photos, taking special note of the store’s Great Wall of kombucha and its beer-tricycle, from which pedaling Whole Foods employees will peddle brews to thirsty shoppers from the produce section to the cheese counters and beyond.
Culturemap’s Eric Sandler gushes over the store’s wood-fired-oven pizza, cold-pressed juice bar, souvlaki and taco stations, and plenitude of local and organic products. The store also offers something of a high-tech shopping experience, with a red-light, green-light parking system in the underground garage and twin escalators — one for people, and one for carts.
And yes, did you hear? There will be an in-store brewery!
Is all the coverage overkill? Houston is no stranger to luxury supermarkets, but this one has been in the works since George W. Bush was president and people were still talking about the movie Crash.
- BLVD Place coverage [Swamplot]
Photos: Paula Murphy, via Twitter
taking “whole paycheck” to an entirely whole new level.
I am REALLY not looking forward to the added traffic on San Felipe around 5-6pm. Getting back on 610 is bad enough as it is. Oh well, at least they do good pizza (ok and the coppa, all the rest is overpriced nonsense)
Fresh Market and formerly Rice is fine by me and I’m less likely to be nearly run over by the inconsiderate masses of yuppie douchedom..
Good luck with all that Fresh Market!
Holy Mother Mary of Jesus I will get so shit-faced there buying bananas and bread. Way to go Kayla. I will say hello to your hubs.
First-in-galaxy = Galaxy Foods! Based on the pics alone this place looks like it’ll be a tourist attraction.
Anyone remember when this outfit was a humble hippie food co-op in Austin?
yuppie co-op, hippie co-op; is there really such a difference though?
“yuppie co-op, hippie co-op; is there really such a difference though?” One drives a VW van and the other a BMW.
Seems a bit over the top, but I guess it’s meant to be a destination, not just a grocery store. I’m doubtful about this beer bike finding space to navigate through crowds of tipsy shoppers. And will shopping carts be zooming down those ramps? The articles didn’t mention controls, but there must be some. Have to go look…..
My prediction is that it will have approximately the same lifespan as the old Eatsie’s that used to be in that location. Plenty of hype, lots of goodies for all, but ultimately shoppers will go elsewhere to locations less stressful.
@Hdtex:
Whole Foods wasn’t a co-op. You may be thinking of Wheatsville, which is still a co-op. When I was at UT in the 80s my hippie girlfriend shopped at both. Wheatsville was much cooler because they had Hydrox and rolling papers.
It’s both very interesting and infuriating to see the effect this place has had on traffic patterns already. Instead of drivers entering this theme park off Post Oak, they proceed to Post Oak Lane, hook a U-turn and then backup traffic on San Felipe to get in what I think is a valet line that spills out onto San Felipe, in the middle of rush hour no less. Maybe its due to the restaurant right there, but I haven’t noticed it until the Whore Foods opened. it’s not just the volume of cars, but the type (big SUV’s) and their operators, i.e. people that can’t maneuver large vehicles in compact spaces.