The New Whole Foods at Belmont/Lincoln/Ashland

Visited yesterday, got some quick impressions. (Was mainly there to have a bite of lunch from the salad bar.)

Compared to the one on Kingsbury (which is of comparable if slightly greater square footage--79,000 Kingsbury vs. 75,000 B/L/A), this one gives the impression of having more area given over to grocery aisles and prepared foods (not just more area proportionately, more actual square footage than Kingsbury), less area given over to "mini-restaurant" kiosks. That's OK with me, since I never was much of a customer at those kiosks, and the extra square footage for groceries should make for greater selection.

Was a tad unhappy with the parking lot, which retains some of the "accident waiting to happen" character of the previous location across the street, despite being of a completely different design. Like the parking lot at Kingsbury, it's an expansive space with two-way traffic. But it strikes me as more hazardous than Kingsbury, because the traffic lanes seem narrower (just my impression), and as you round a corner, a car who can't see you, and who you can't see, might be coming at you from seemingly any direction! (There are a few too many options for how traffic is allowed to flow.) Suffice it to say I felt the most prudent way to negotiate the lot was to drive very slowly and with continuous 360-degree vision, if only the latter were possible. This was a Monday mid-day. Perhaps the sense of hazard will diminish once that "new store smell" wears off and the number of customers falls off.

riddlemay wrote:Visited yesterday, got some quick impressions. (Was mainly there to have a bite of lunch from the salad bar.)

Compared to the one on Kingsbury (which is of comparable if slightly greater square footage--79,000 Kingsbury vs. 75,000 B/L/A), this one gives the impression of having more area given over to grocery aisles and prepared foods (not just more area proportionately, more actual square footage than Kingsbury), less area given over to "mini-restaurant" kiosks. That's OK with me, since I never was much of a customer at those kiosks, and the extra square footage for groceries should make for greater selection.

Was a tad unhappy with the parking lot, which retains some of the "accident waiting to happen" character of the previous location across the street, despite being of a completely different design. Like the parking lot at Kingsbury, it's an expansive space with two-way traffic. But it strikes me as more hazardous than Kingsbury, because the traffic lanes seem narrower (just my impression), and as you round a corner, a car who can't see you, and who you can't see, might be coming at you from seemingly any direction! (There are a few too many options for how traffic is allowed to flow.) Suffice it to say I felt the most prudent way to negotiate the lot was to drive very slowly and with continuous 360-degree vision, if only the latter were possible. This was a Monday mid-day. Perhaps the sense of hazard will diminish once that "new store smell" wears off and the number of customers falls off.

i'm in total agreement about the dangers waiting around every corner in the new parking lot. they need to change traffic to one way only in the garage; seeing as it's only 2 levels it won't kill customers if they have to make a full circuit before exiting. and i've gotta give a big hand to the store staff for the way they handled the shopping madness at the old store on its last day, tuesday. normally i avoid anything with a crowd but couldn't resist 50% off on everything. i got there at 8:01am, waited 45 minutes to get in, and pretty much had to abandon my craftily planned shopping list to grab what i could. the staff was magnificent. they directed traffic; they had stanchions up to control the very fast moving check out line; they couldnt have done better if they'd rehearsed for months (possibly they did!).

I made my second visit since it opened. I have not found the parking lot to be much of an issue during those times. But I also head straight to the basement, which is less congested.

I am just about equidistant from this location and the one on Kingsbury, but I almost always went to Kingsbury because I was pretty sure they would have what I needed. This new store is certainly bigger than the previous location and also seems to have a wider breadth of products. I can see myself going there more often, but it will not replace my trips to Kingsbury entirely.

I'm not sure I've noticed a huge difference in the produce area of either store, though that was never something I found lacking in the old Lincoln location. I do think it is an odd choice to have the fish counter right up next to the produce and separated from the butcher counter. However its prominence certainly made me remark on some nice looking whole fish options (these may well exist at Kingsbury, but I'm usually walking by towards something else and fail to notice).

The bulk section is definitely smaller (and somewhat lacking) in comparison to the larger store. There are some staples I could not find (cannellini beans, for one). There also seem to be some odd stocking decisions (half a shelf of crushed Muir Glen tomatoes, no space for simple whole and peeled tomatoes). On the other hand, I think I spotted some olive oils that are not carried on Kingsbury.

I will say that the cheese department is vastly better in terms of its layout and organization. I can quickly direct myself to the area likely to have the cheese I want (as categorized by country or region). I think I'd say the same for the whole store. I think that signage was quite prominent so it was easy to navigate and find what I wanted. In comparison, the Kingsbury store seems a bit dimmer in lighting and items and areas are less prominently marked.

I mentioned in the La Fournette thread that this location is carrying some of their breads. The sourdough miche I tried was fantastic. I don't know if Kingsbury also carries this bread, but I'll look out for it the next time I'm there.

I did not count, but it seemed like Ashland had more cash registers and checkout was quite quick, even at a peak weekend time.

So overall, I find this store more brightly lit, better laid out, and may have a slightly different product selection than I've found at the first 'super' Whole Foods I experienced (Kingsbury). It's a significant and noticeable improvement over the previous neighborhood store. However, if I continue to find that they are missing the breadth and selection of products I've grown used to at the other store, it may limit how often I shop here.

I like that there is a light - I won't miss having to turn left across 2 lanes of traffic to get into the old location.

I was completely overwhelmed by the opening weekend crowds, my mistake for going then! I found the "stacked" checkout lanes confusing - who goes next? And it was narrow to get to the one further out. I couldn't find the smaller 2-tier carts, though they did seem to have them. They are easier to move around crowded aisles. Too many bump-outs and bins, making it difficult to get around, but that's all grocery stores today. I'm sure I'll get used to it - where things are that I want to purchase.

Hopefully that stretch around there won't get as crowded as the area around the Kingsbury store. I only go over there if I absolutely have to.

gastro gnome wrote:I made my second visit since it opened. I have not found the parking lot to be much of an issue during those times. But I also head straight to the basement, which is less congested.

I took your advice and did the same. Good call. One look at the main (ground floor) level was enough to convince me. Not that I couldn't have found a space there if I drove around enough, but that I didn't know whether my car would come through unscathed. (This was about 2 PM on a weekday afternoon.)

As for the store, this was my first time shopping (as opposed to eating) there. It's pretty huge and will take a while to learn. But two things I was in the market for were wine and cheese, and both departments impressed me. The wine selection was the largest I've ever seen in a grocery store; my impression was not only that it was more extensive than at WF Kingsbury, but that it rivaled the Binny's at Clark and Wellington! Oenophiles will like the store, I think. And the cheese department was very well laid out and organized, with good selection. Easier to make my choices than at WF Halsted or the old WF Ashland.

The small number of bulk bins is depressing. I've still only been 3 times but it feels like half the store is devoted to takeout, the booze sections, and multiple bars. The coffee shop on the first floor is quite good as well. The nitro cold brew is a relative steal at $3.

The pasta section will cut fresh pasta sheets into a variety of thicknesses (fettucini, pappardelle, etc.) to order, and that's kind of cool.

What makes for a happy vibe in a store compared to an unhappy one? Hard to pin down! But I was in the Edgewater Whole Foods yesterday shopping for a few items with my wife, and I couldn't help but notice a difference. The difference was marked because the Edgewater store, physically, resembles the B/L/A one to a very large degree, despite originating as a Dominick's conversion. All the customers seemed happy and relaxed. All the staff did, too. Shopping was a joy. Square footage devoted to groceries, prepared foods, and wine seemed, if anything, greater than at B/L/A. (Leading me to suspect that the greater total square footage of B/L/A is due to a larger dine-in area.) A very unscientific, totally anecdotal impression, based on a very small sample size of visits, and this one on a holiday weekend at that--but I left feeling that B/L/A should figure out whatever Edgewater is doing, and do some of it.

After a few more visits I'm finding the general vibe at this store better than before, with the staff pretty helpful and friendly. Maybe they just needed time to settle in.

Re the parking: Not sure if they had this at the beginning, but there's now an electronic "space-count" sign at the entrance to the parking garage, and it's not unusual for it to show that there are zero spaces available on the (very large) street level floor. However, there are always plenty of spaces on the sub-level.

On that lower level, I notice that the intended traffic flow is equally insane and without sense or logic! I really don't know what was wrong with whoever "designed" it. (I have no choice but to put that in quotes.) But there are so few cars down there, it matters much less. In any case, judging from the first level being always full or nearly, the store is doing well, which is a good thing for the neighborhood.