A sign of things to come in the world when it comes to getting your groceries and weekly food.
I was there when it opened and hope to get in one more time before it closes next week.
Whole Foods at Yonge and Sheppard opened on September 14, 2014, and I waited in line with excitement to shop for fresh, healthy foods.
At the time, my grocery choice was to go to Loblaws, a subway stop away, or to go to a small Korean Market about a block away.
Before I moved here, there was a strip plaza with a Metro, and then they took it all down, and there was nothing for years.
Then the Whole foods opened in 2014, but it never seemed to be as busy as the Loblaws was.
Then a few years later, when the Yonge Sheppard Centre was renovated, they switched the existing Movie Theatre into a Longos. Yeah, I could get groceries in the winter without going outside. I still couldn't get everything I shopped for, but I could get the majority.
In the past 2 or 3 years, a Food Basics was opened across the street from Whole Foods. This is because very busy because of the available ethnic products not found at Whole Foods, which catered more to the demographics in this area.
M2M Mart was converted into the popular H Mart chain, although I didn't see much of a change. I was there today and picked up snacks. I get some specific Asian products, but it doesn't meet my weekly needs.
And about a year ago, a Galleria opened a few blocks north of Sheppard on Yonge. Also catering to the many condos in the area, with the demographic of people who actually live in the condos. It's pretty popular, but I would say Loblaws is the busiest of them all.
I don't like Galleria as much. I don't like the prepared food that sits in heated plastic, and a lot of the products are high in sodium, so I rarely go there.
Back to Whole Foods. I am not surprised that it is closing. Over the past year, when I have been in the store, it has been pretty empty. I walk out, spending $100 for a bag of groceries. Mostly, I shop for things I can't get in other stores, like my favourite tea, which isn't at any of the other stores in the area. I liked the cheese selection, the bread, and they had tiny bags of Tortilla chips with low salt that were my fav thing to grab with salsa or guacamole.
I have been wondering for a while how long it would last. I'm pretty sure they weren't sustaining the costs of a large high-density area with ever-increasing leasing costs and wages.
I feel bad for the people who work there who are losing their jobs. I can't imagine they will get the same wages if they try to get jobs at Food Basics.
I have been noticing that the food industry has become so short-lived in these times.
I went downtown and past 2 restaurants that were there only a few months ago, and one was a very long-standing restaurant popular with the late-night people. I don't even know what it is now, and the other place will become another Asian restaurant.
The food landscape in Toronto has undergone a seismic shift since the pandemic. I have seen things migrate to more Asian groceries and restaurants, and little mom-and-pop places just can't compete with the skyrocketing cost of food.
I feel like we had the best food scene before the pandemic. So much choice, so much diversity from low to high-end eats. Restaurants had time to hone their skills and build their clientele. I can't count the number of times I have tried to go to a restaurant over the past year that was still listed on Google but is gone now.
It really makes me sad and hungry. I found it frustrating to find quick food when I did Tiff last year, other than getting street meat or A&W. I hope it's better this year. More about that in a coming post.
Here's what the lineup for Whole Foods looked like today. I didn't bother lining up because it didn't move fast, and I probably would have waited for over an hour. I didn't need that much stuff. The line-up went around the block. I will post the video on my Instagram account.
I also noticed that the people who were lined up were not their regular customers. I know because I shop there, and it was a very particular shopper. So this tells me that with the insane cost of food now, people are willing to stand in line for hours to get it cheaper. I just didn't have the energy for the amount I would have bought. I only have so much space and won't even be able to eat it all.
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