A New and Novel Whole Foods Opens in Port Chester

I was excited to hear that another Whole Foods Market recently opened in the Kohl's Shopping Center right off Route 95 in Port Chester and decided to check it out. I was pleasantly surprised to find many new offerings – including prepared food stations where you can select a meal to take home, an in-house smoker and Whole Food first wood-fired pizza oven. All of these new food stations made it well worth the trip on the highway and I have gone back several times since my first visit.

We didn't get too far inside before we spotted the Coffee and Juice bar where we found a tempting array of freshly baked pastries, coffee, and a variety of pure pressed juice blends. My son tried the pressed orange juice and though the price was steep - $6.00 for a 16 oz. cup, --he truly enjoyed it.

As we made our way past the floral arrangements and fresh produce, we came across wooden crates stocked with a wide variety of home-made pastas including southwestern orzo and whole wheat penne. There were also self-serve bins of domestically-sourced bulk frozen fruit and veggies allowing you to buy just the amount you need.

Along with an impressive variety of fresh seafood, there is a large meat and poultry department with an in-house smoker offering pre-smoked meats including sausage, bacon, turkey legs, wings and meatloaf. I purchased a small sampling of the smoked wings at the food buffet and they were delicious, just the right amount of smoked flavor and tender, moist meat.

Another stand out display in the store is the beer section offering local and American craft beers. Whole Foods works with several local breweries including Captain Lawrence who has created a beer just for the Port Chester store. The variety is quite impressive, take a look.

The cheese section of the store is quite large and there are hundreds of cheese options from all over the world. I enjoyed sampling the varieties on hand.

There are several hot and cold prepared foods available including Indian, Italian and BBQ. There are also various food items made to order. Although I have never been overly impressed with the prepared foods in the White Plains location, a few of the stations truly impressed me.

One station is called Fire and Pollo which offers chicken meals built to order. This station has fresh made tortas, tacos, chips, salsa and guacamole. A half chicken meal is $10 and that includes 2 sides and 2 corn tortillas. There is a Chopped, Topped and Wrapped station where you can choose toppings to create a salad, wrap or hummus bowl.

Also appealing is the pizza station that offers both Roman style square flat pizza and traditional round pies from a wood burning fire oven. This is the first wood fire oven for Whole Foods in the tri-state area.

Along with a large display of desserts and breakfast treats, there is a Waffle Bar station offering waffles made fresh to order with your choice of toppings. My boys and I enjoyed a seasonal favorite, a pumpkin waffle drizzled with caramel sauce.

The chefs are making fresh food options daily and there is full catering menu for private events. And if you want to order in advance and drive by, the Port Chester store is offering curb side pick so you don't need to get out of the car.

Although there are currently a few Whole Foods Markets in Westchester County, this store has some terrific additions and makes grocery shopping a fun, and filling family outing.

Whole Foods Market
575 Boston Post Road
Port Chester, NY
(914) 708-1985
Open Monday through Sunday 8 am to 10 pm