NEW YORK – Whole Foods Market, America’s Healthiest Grocery Store®, will open the doors to its ninth New York City store on the Upper East Side at East 87th Street (1551 3rd Avenue) today at 9 a.m. The store opening celebrations will kick off with a traditional bread-breaking ceremony at 8:45 a.m., followed by sampling, special sale items and other events throughout the store.
To celebrate the opening, all nine Whole Foods Market locations in New York City will donate 5 percent of sales from February 18th to City Harvest’s Healthy Neighborhoods program that aims to increase the availability of affordable fruits and vegetables in low-income communities and provide the nutrition education and resources to maintain a wholesome, food-secure diet.
“Whole Foods Market plays an important role in helping feed hungry New Yorkers, and we are thankful for their commitment,” said Matthew Reich, vice president of food sourcing for City Harvest. “Since 2007, Whole Foods Market has donated more than 2.6 million pounds of good, nutritious food to help fill the plates of our neighbors in need, and their 5 percent days further support our Healthy Neighborhoods programs. For every dollar donated, City Harvest will rescue 4 pounds of food and deliver it to soup kitchens and food pantries across the city.”
The 39,000-square-foot, three-story grocery store will be a community destination, offering Upper East Side residents a full range of high-quality natural and organic foods, with a heavy emphasis on products catering to the distinct tastes of the area. Exclusive products from local favorites such as Eli’s Manhattan/Bread, Ample Hills Creamery, Vegan Divas, Black Seed Bagel, and more will be available in one convenient location.
“We’ve been looking forward to opening a store on the Upper East Side for a long time,” said Christina Minardi, president of Whole Foods Market’s Northeast Region. “In addition to the level of service that our shoppers have come to expect throughout our other eight New York City locations, we’re also really excited to be able to offer this community a beautiful store that puts an emphasis on both quality and convenience.”
The Upper East Side store will showcase a variety of in-store venues with kiosk ordering systems, which allow shoppers to order meals instore and soon, from a store-specific website, ensuring speed and convenience. In-store venues include a wood-fired pizza station, fresh salad and wrap bar, a taqueria, handmade Paninis and breakfast sandwiches, and an Allegro coffee and juice bar.
Other unique store innovations include:
· Specialty: A cheese club offering subscribers the opportunity to receive a monthly selection of cheeses and condiments, expertly selected by a local Certified Cheese Professional.
· Produce: Varieties of infused waters featuring fresh flavors such as blackberry mint and strawberry lemon basil, and pre-assembled juicing kits.
· Bakery: Made-in-house quiches, including flavors such as sweet potato, caramelized onions and Gruyere, spinach and ricotta, four cheese and Quiche Lorraine.
· Seafood: Sliced to order smoked salmon.
· Meat: Pre-assembled crock pot meals and special dinner-for-two kits.
In line with the Whole Foods Market’s commitment to excellence, the new Upper East Side store will continue to deliver high quality meat free of antibiotics and added hormones, including locally sourced options from farms in the Northeast and offer fresh-caught seafood, sourced by local vendors throughout the Northeast. With our Whole Foods Market 365 Everyday Value™ line of high-quality household staples, the grocery department is a one-stop shop for all your pantry needs. Dedicated to well-being, the Whole Body department will feature top-of-the-line, natural and organic ingredients for personal care, and beauty items as well as nutritional supplements, herbal remedies and baby care items.
Customers can also choose to shop at Whole Foods Market online through Instacart, a white glove service with delivery in as little as one hour.
For additional information and exciting announcements about Whole Foods Market East 87th Street, please visit the store’s social media channels:
Facebook – facebook.com/wholefoodsnyc
Twitter and Instagram– @WholeFoodsNYC
Whole Foods Market East 87th Street
1551 3rd Avenue
New York, NY 10128
Regular Store Hours: [Mon –Sun] 8 AM – 11 PM
Phone Number: (646) 891-3888
