Whole Foods Unleashes Its Cheaper Concept in Fort Greene Today

Whole Foods Market 365, an offshoot of Whole Foods that offers lower prices, makes its East Coast debut today with the grand opening of its new location in Fort Greene. The 30,000-square-foot space is located at 292 Ashland Pl. at Lafayette Avenue, and not only has cheaper prices but also has a cafe level with four restaurant concepts, including a popular West Coast vegan burger chain and a homegrown bakery.

On the cafe level, vegan fast food chain Next Level Burger — think of it kind of like By Chloe, but less extra — uses Beyond Burger, the “bleeding” plant-based product that’s supposed to mimic beef with beet juice acting as the blood. All the other burger chain standbys, like fries and shakes, come in organic vegan form.

There’s also a new outpost of New York essential bakery Orwasher’s, selling breads, pastries, sandwiches, salads, and coffees. Downstairs, Roberta’s and Hot Bread Kitchen also sell their bready wares. Juice Press gets a location here, too, along with a self-serve beer, cider, and wine bar with a lot of local beverages.

Whole Foods 365 first opened in Los Angeles in 2016 and has expanded to Ohio, Oregon, and Texas since then. The market was created to appeal to millennials, since a common criticism was that it was inaccessibly expensive.

Whole Foods 365 is now open daily from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., with the cafe level starting to serve breakfast at 7 a.m., and will on opening day donate five percent of net sales to the Fort Greene Park Conservancy.