• 5
• the best Whole Foods outlet I've encountered yet

While I actively avoid the downtown Palo Alto location, this Whole Foods store excels for vegan groceries and has become my #1 shopping destination (supplanting the also excellent Country Sun Market). Currently they've got an Engine 2 Diet program (this is Dr. Esselstyn's son's "plant-strong" firefighter diet) going on and they've got prominent red Engine 2 Diet labels on all sorts of vegan foods throughout the store. Their prices can't be beat for organic vegan and gluten-free items, and their produce department abounds with a wide selection of local and organic fruits and veges (the only better produce I've found is at New Leaf Market in Santa Cruz) at reasonable prices (sometimes comparable to our local California Avenue farmers' market, though said farmers' market has [during summer] awesome, knock-your-socks-off organic peaches and pluots for $3 a pound whereas Whole Foods has merely good ones for $4 to $6 a pound). If it's bulk spices you need, don't even bother here -- just go to Country Sun -- but bulk beans, nuts, grains and cereals are great here. Also the staff are unusually friendly and alert -- not weird overly talkative friendly, but just plain old helpful and "would you like to taste that?" friendly. Updated from previous review on Wednesday June 27, 2012