The Cupertino Courier
News
Customers flock to opening of Whole Foods
By Crystal Lu
Sam and Helen Sung are having a late lunch with their 10-year-old niece Seung-La Sung on the patio of the new Cupertino Whole Foods Market. They're also enjoying the cooling breeze coming from the store's misting system.
"Now they have mist to cool you off on a hot day like this. They've upgraded a lot," says Helen Sung, comparing the outdoor dining area with that of the recently closed old Whole Foods Market across Stevens Creek Boulevard, where she and her husband used to shop. The Sungs, both from Korea, have lived in Cupertino since 1992.
The new Cupertino Whole Foods Market, located at 20955 Stevens Creek Blvd., opened Aug. 22 with a bread-breaking ceremony. The 68,000-square-foot new store has more than 200 seats for indoor and outdoor dining.
The Market Bistro dine-in venue serves made-to-order foods including sandwiches, soups, salads, light entrees and desserts.
"I recommend their chocolate pudding," says Scott Rothstein, a classical guitarist living in Palo Alto.
Rothstein drove to Cupertino with his neighbor Mark Weiss, an artist manager, for a taste of the new market.
"We're big fans of Whole Foods," says Weiss. "I think this store is better than the ones in Palo Alto and Los Altos for a sit-down meal. I'll consider bicycling here for lunch."
Besides the Market Bistro, the Culinary Center is another feature of the new store, offering cooking and lifestyle classes.
For take-out meals, the prepared foods sections have added hot teriyaki bowls and sliced pizza.
"We used to only have whole pizza for sale," says John Redmond, a Whole Foods staff member. "My favorite new features are sliced pizza and the smoker." The in-store smoker is used for cooking ribs, briskets and sausage.
The seafood department launches oven-ready items such as pre-skewered shrimp and grill-ready fish wrapped in cedar paper or banana leaves.
The bakery now serves Ciao Bella gelato and also has fondue for customers to order chocolate-dipped treats.
Sampling and demonstration stations, which used to be temporary, are now permanent.
All the store products are free of artificial ingredients, according to Scott Sherman, team leader of the Cupertino Whole Food Market.
"Our customers come here because they trust us," he says.
Sherman added that Whole Food's products are not necessarily more expensive than those in other markets. For instance, 365, a brand seen on many aisles of Whole Foods, sells organic products at lower-than-market-rate prices.
Whole Foods Market currently has more than 190 stores in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Founded in 1980, the Austin-based market chain is America's first national certified organic retailer.
