New Location Includes Taqueria, Coffee Bar and Cozy Craft Beer Bar
St. Louis, 2016-May-23 — /EPR Retail News/ — Whole Foods Market® (Nasdaq: WFM), the world’s leading natural and organic grocer, opens its third store in St. Louis, Wednesday, May 25, 2016. The new 28,480 square-foot store, located at 4577 West Pine Blvd, will celebrate the grand opening with music, food and many more surprises for all who attend.
“Whole Foods Market Central West End will be a one-stop-shop for kitchen creators, featuring the best tasting natural and organic grocery staples as well as that hard-to-find ingredient,” says Shawn Milford, Store Team Leader, Whole Foods Market Central West End. “For shoppers on-the-go, we’ll have a variety delicious meals from our chef-driven prepared food options such as seasonal salads, custom sandwiches, traditional and modern tacos and Neapolitan-style pizza, all made without artificial colors, preservatives and sweeteners.”
For a quick lunch or easy dinner, Whole Foods Market Central West End will have a variety of healthy and hearty options made with the same high quality standards found on the shelves. Shoppers will be able to choose from freshly prepared seasonal salads made with the variety of responsibly grown organic and conventional produce on the salad bar; or for more rib-sticking meal choice, the hot bar will provide seasonal, chef-driven recipes.
For a bit of an international flair, the taqueria offers custom taco or burrito selections as well as favorites like barbaqoa style beef; pastor style pork; achiote seasoned chicken; or spicy Jackfruit. For a taste of Italy, pick up a slice of hand-stretched Neapolitan-style pizza – ready in under seven minutes. Freshly made sushi specialty rolls, including those made with brown or whole grain rice, are made in-house by sushi chefs using sustainably sourced seafood. Signature sandwiches featuring in-house smoked meats such as brisket and pulled pork, or build-your-own style options offer a more traditional meal.
Whole Foods Market Central West End will feature “Central Brew” a cozy coffee and beer bar all-in-one. For a morning jump-start or an afternoon pick-me-up, coffee lovers will enjoy delicious, lattes, chai, cappuccinos, and espresso made to order with Allegro Coffee. Allegro Coffee buys and roasts only specialty Arabica beans, which represents the top 10 percent of all the beans produced in the world. From that 10 percent, Allegro only purchases the cream of the crop, so Whole Foods Market shoppers are getting the best quality and taste possible every day. For beer lovers, the Central Brew is an intimate beer bar featuring 10 taps of rotating local and hard to find beers. To celebrate the grand opening, some of the brews on tap featured include local selections from Perennial Artisan Ales and 4 Hands Brewing Company.
Whole Foods Market’s strict Quality Standards for food prohibit artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners and preservatives. Products on the shelves are evaluated on ingredients, but also ideology, philosophy, proper labeling and careful evaluation as part of a commitment made to customers to build a business with high standards that flow through all aspects of the company. These commitments include:
- Produce: Responsibly grown produce is chosen by expert buyers and rated based off organic certification, farming practices that impact the environment and human heath.
- Meat: Classically-trained butchers and meat cutters carve and grind in-house beef, pork, chicken and turkey that comes from farms that have achieved certification in the Global Animal Partnership’s 5-StepTM Animal Welfare Rating program
- Seafood: The Seafood Department has the highest Quality Standards for seafood in the business by working with scientists, fishermen, government agencies and environmental organizations such as the Marine Stewardship Council to gather information about aquaculture and wild-capture fisheries, ensuring customers can make the best environmental choices when purchasing seafood.
- Bakery: The skilled bakers use only ingredients that meet Whole Foods Market’s high Quality Standards, fresh natural butters and creams, and unbleached, unbromated flours for the variety of breads and pastries they create daily.
- Cheese: The cheese department is a culinary destination offering over 250 specialty cheeses free of artificial additives, sweeteners, colorings, preservatives and hydrogenated oils.
On the shelves and in the aisles, shoppers will have over 700 wines, 200 beers, 130 back-to-basics bulk pantry staples, more than 125 bulk spices and three grind-your-own nut butters to choose from.
As America’s Healthiest Grocery Store, what goes on the body is just as important as what goes in the body. Whole Foods Market Central West End marks the first destination in Missouri for the widely popular online cosmetic and facial care product line, W3LL People.
To celebrate opening day, Whole Foods Market will host its version of a ribbon cutting called a “Bread-Breaking Ceremony” with Whole Foods Market Team Members and Central West End neighbors beginning at 8:45 a.m. Doors and shopping officially begin at 9 a.m. The first 500 customers through the doors will receive a Whole Foods Market Gift Card with a mystery value between $5 and $500 with one lucky customer winning the $500 amount.
Whole Foods Market’s dedication to quality and service extends beyond the bricks and mortar of the store.
Whole Foods Market’s new store in Central West End will also empower Team Members and customers to support local causes. Several times a year, the store will hold community giving days, also known as “5% Days,” where 5 percent of a select day’s sales will be donated to a local nonprofit or educational organization. Whole Foods Market Central West End’s first recipient is the Alzheimer’s Association St. Louis Chapter.
Another way Whole Foods Market will support the St. Louis community is through its One Dime at a Time program which provides an incentive to customers who bring their own bags for shopping and helps develop stronger communities. At the register, customers will have the option to receive a 10-cent per bag refund as cash back off their purchase or they can choose to donate it to that month’s selected charity organization. Whole Foods Market Central West End’s first One Dime at a Time recipient will be Trailnet.
This is the third location in St. Louis; Whole Foods Market has two other stores in the St. Louis metro including Brentwood at 1601 S. Brentwood Blvd and Town and Country at 1160 Town and Country Crossing.
EXPERTS
President – Midwest Region
Michael Bashaw’s career with Whole Foods Market started 20 years ago as a Bread and Circus Team Member in the North Atlantic Region.