Don’t shop while you’re hungry at the new Whole Foods

Although some are against the opening of Whole Foods, it felt like at least half of Bozeman attended the grand opening of the store last week. Those worried about the mom and pop grocery stores being at risk should not fret for long. Bozeman is too loyal to the Co-op to let this affect them.

On the other hand, Rosaurers and Town and Country might feel a little pain for a while. Whole Foods may have sales and discounts to lure people in now, but at some point, they will live up to their reputation of being a very pricey grocery store.

While the prices are not ideal, the product is. Whole Foods has a spectacular fish market, deli, bakery and even Treeline Coffee Roasters, so you are energized to do multiple laps around the store as you fill up your cart with the endless goodies they offer. They even managed to be fully stocked on eggs.

I was shocked to find a price of nine dollars for a dozen and a half, which is pretty good since the egg shortage began. The fish market was extremely impressive. They had everything from clams and mussels to sushi-grade tuna. I have to say that everything but the bagel seasoning smoked salmon bites they were giving out were over the top.

They also had two hot bars and one salad bar. One hot bar held every soup you could think of, while the other had baked mac n’ cheese, chicken thighs, tikka masala, and other delicious dishes. I tried the tikka masala and cauliflower dal over rice with a side of beets. I got a hefty serving for only 12 dollars which is a pretty good deal considering you spend a minimum of 20 dollars going out to eat these days.

The deli also had a sandwich bar but I was not overly impressed with it. I got the chicken bacon sandwich which was good but not as good as the local deli spots around town. The pizza, on the other hand, looked like a better option.

I was disappointed that the sushi bar was not open yet because I have very fond memories of Whole Foods sushi from when I was younger. I am eager to try it and have high hopes that it will be an upgrade from your typical grocery store sushi and will not empty your bank account.

Whole Foods has everything you could want in your pantry – and more. I'm pleased with their wide selection of groceries but even more to see that they are giving back to the community. Instead of having their own coffee shop, they chose a well-known and loved local one and gave 130 jobs to the Bozeman community.

At the end of the day, even if you do not plan on shopping at Whole Foods, I recommend going for the free samples. Those alone are worth a trip.