Whole Foods Market

I find Sarasota very UN-vegetarian-friendly. There are 2 good raw places I have found, but nothing else. I wanted soemthing besides raw so I went to this Whole Foods.

There is a deli area where you can get a sandwich. You pick the bread, what you want on it, and a "meat" category. I picked the "non-meat" thing. The lady told me that the only one they had was on the salad bar. I went over and looked at it, and it was in a stew. That wouldn't work on a sandwich. Then a guy told me they had some but it wasn't cooked. What?! He said, well, it's cooked but squishy. Then the lady offered to put hummus on my sandwich. What makes people thing that ALL vegetarians like hummus and mushrooms?? (I don't like either.) Both people were nice, but, come on - no meat substitutes in WHOLE FOODS?!

Also, in the prepared-foods frig section, there weren't any "non-meat" nuggets like most Whole Foods have.

I left with nothing. The store is beautiful, big and had lovely produce. But, there wasn't tofu or anything else in the already-cooked area of the store to satisfy a non-meat-eater.

I am giving 2 Happy Cows (instead of 1) because the people were nice and the store was big and clean-looking.

Big disappointment. I won't be back.

I both love and hate going to Whole Foods. Overall it is a great place, but I always feel that it could be better. It tries too hard to bring organic to the mainstream, and thus has tons of "healthier" meat and junk food. Luckily it also had amazing vegetarian soups, a wonderful bakery, great produce and more environmentally friendly household products (soaps, wax paper, etc.).

Whole Foods is quite well-known as this point, but this one doesn't fail to deliver. A plethora of vegan and veggie options in the to-go/hot food area, as well as a wonderful salad bar. All the faux meat and dairy staples are there, and they seem to have a decent amount of weekly sales, too. The produce is very vibrant and mostly organic, though not particularly local. This Whole Foods has quite a bit of everything, including their own street block, parking garage, and outdoor seating.

On Saturdays in the morning they block off the streets for a huge farmer's market that is well worth a visit. Everything from vegetables and dried fruits to raw vegan cookies. Also many non-food vendors.

Thank god they are are around, but not overly impressed with the prices or the smell.

When asked where to go for great whole organic food while traveling to the Gulf, my unlce who resides about 20 minutes north of Sarasota on Sneed Island in the Keys just south of Tampa recommended this establishment. I was very thankful that he did because of its environment, location and selections. I bought over 1 lbs of 65%natural dark chocolate for way less than I would have paid anywhere else. The salad bar was something out of a vegetarian's dream. I have been to 13 different countries and have never seen so many different types of olives displayed on one salad bar. If you visit Sarasota be sure to stop and visit this "Vegggie meca!"

We were thrilled to learn of a Whole Foods Market in Sarasota and were not disappointed when we went out of our way to stop there. With an extensive inventory with many veg friendly and organic items, a friendly and helpful staff, a sparkling clean store with ample free parking, it was a vegetarian's delight and an oasis in an area without much otherwise available for vegetarians.