Daniel B.
Yelp
All of the Whole Foods Markets that have opened in metro Atlanta in recent years have been impressive. This new one in Midtown trumps them all. It's my favorite. I'm also biased because I live less than a mile away. A Whole Foods in this part of Atlanta was long overdue. I have no reason to go to the Whole Foods on Ponce anymore. It was inconvenient and trafficky to get to.
This Whole Foods opened on April 5, 2019 in the block surrounded by 14th, Spring, West Peachtree, and 13th, just east of the 14th Street Bridge. It's on the ground level of the Icon Midtown luxury apartment high-rise building. For years, this block was nothing but parking lots. Now, it's home to the South's flagship Whole Foods store and less than half a mile away from Whole Foods' regional headquarters at Colony Square. This is the company's 500th store and its biggest store in the Southeast at approximately 70,000 square feet over four floors.
There are three levels of parking with elevator and escalator access to every floor (elevator and stairs only to the rooftop). Parking is free for two hours with store validation; see a cashier for validation. Enter/exit the parking garage from Spring or 13th.
Whole Foods Midtown Atlanta is more than just a grocery store. It's a meetup and hangout spot. There's a bar with a covered patio on the main level (14th Street Bar) connected to a juice and smoothie bar; made-to-order ramen, poke, Neapolitan-style pizzas, grain bowls, and more served at the counter; Whole Foods' traditional hot bar and salad bar (still $8.99/lb), olive bar, and new pasta bar and customizable avocado toast bar (yep); beautiful grab-and-go pastry and dessert displays and freezers filled with assorted self-serve mochi and macaron ice cream sandwiches; the rooftop terrace (Canopy Court) with a "food truck" (Brick); the downstairs cafe (Capital Commons) serving Allegro coffee; and Farm Burger, serving what I think are some of the best burgers in town.
Canopy Court is relatively compact. It's not super spacious. When it's not crowded, there's enough room to spread out and relax. There's fake grass and lawn games like cornhole and Jenga. There's a variety of seating from standing-only cocktail tables and standard four-tops to outdoor benches and Adirondack chairs on the grass.
There's plenty of seating in the indoor dining area on the main level next to the bar. There are charging ports for your devices.
On our first visit to this store, we ran into our neighbors at checkout and ended up sitting down to have dinner with them. I got ramen from the Genji counter. They offered four different types of ramen, most priced at $12.99 a bowl. They also had three kinds of poke bowls ($9.99 each) and fresh-made rolled sushi. I ordered an original tonkotsu (pork broth) ramen and it came with all the toppings: thick, lean and fatty slices of pork, seaweed (two kinds), bean sprouts, scallion, pickled ginger, half a soft-boiled egg, and more. The ramen was surprisingly delicious with a creamy, rich broth, decent noodle texture, and all-around good-quality ingredients.
My fiancee grabbed some food from the salad and hot bars (kale salad, mashed potatoes, okra, mushrooms, roasted chicken, barbecue pork, and turkey) and also boxed a custom-made cubed turkey, cherry tomato, and kale salad for lunch the next day. My neighbors grabbed various items from the same bars too (chicken, cabbage, broccoli, etc.), plus a big slice of pepperoni pizza from the pizza counter (they're baked in one of those tiled Italian ovens). I tried a little bit of everything and everything tasted okay to very good. This is now one of our go-to spots for quick, easy, convenient, high-quality, and healthy meals.
I haven't even gotten into the grocery aspect yet, but I don't have much to say about it since my fiancee does most of the grocery shopping. This store has the first "Veggie Butcher" counter that I've seen. Someone will chop and cut your fruits and vegetables for you. The meat (butcher) and seafood (fishmonger) departments are always fun to look at. The butcher had a couple whole hogs (local) and Kentucky lamb, hanging from meat hooks, on display as well as stores of dry-aged beef for sale. Both the butcher and fishmonger have ready-to-cook meat and seafood meals/snacks, such as breaded and/or seasoned fillets and things like protein-veggie skewers and bacon-wrapped meats, which are great for bringing to get-togethers and grilling out.
Aesthetically-speaking, the store looks terrific, from the parking deck entrances to the rooftop design. It's very modern with a nice attention to detail and a nod to all things local. Large murals in the dining room and produce section show off Midtown. Huge windows in the produce/flower section look north/northwest towards the Midtown Atlanta (Atlantic Station) skyline.
If you're an Amazon Prime member, install the Whole Foods app on your phone to unlock discounts in-store. Scan your QR code at checkout to start saving.