Wholly Foods, Batman!

I've been a fan of Whole Foods since one landed in Bellevue, WA a couple of years ago. Though I love the foods they carried, I rarely shopped there because of the price point. Plus, I had Trader Joe's (which I miss SO MUCH!!!) who's food items are so unique and who's prices can't be beat.

Being that Austin is the home of Whole Foods, I decided that I needed to at least check out the 80,000 square foot, newly-constructed building. Maybe I would buy a couple of things just to say I did. First I'll touch on the parking situation because it is downtown. When it comes to parking, you're covered. Not only do they have a decent sized lot on the street level, they also have underground parking.

Upon entering, one of the first things I noticed were the perfectly erected towers of lemonade, wine, or whatever was on special. Not a big deal, but it made you feel like you were about to shop in an organized environment.

My feeling was validated when I starting walking through the produce department. Not a carrot out of place! Really, it was a sight to behold. The produce was so beautiful that I wanted to buy things that I didn't need and things I'd never tried. I was feeling healthier just walking through the store! Perhaps I was absorbing airborne nutrients!

Though I didn't have time to make a full-fledged shopping trip, I couldn't help but notice that the aisles went on and on! There was a plethora of variety for everything on your shopping list. On this particular trip, I wanted to check out the gluten-free options. I was pleased to find out that finding gluten-free baked products was not going to be a problem when shopping at Whole Foods.

Our trip was cut short because we were late meeting friends at the nearby Lady Bird Lake (formerly Town Lake.) More on that in the next post!

In conclusion, my husband and I decided that we would skip the nearby super market for a weekly, luxurious experience at Whole Foods.

A Glimpse of SoCo

I kept hearing all sorts of wonderful things about the shopping on South Congress, so I eagerly awaited the chance to go. That day finally came. I really don't think I saw very much of what the street had to offer, but it was such a hot day, and with 2 kiddos in tow, we decided to make it a short trip.

We parked at the first place that looked like what South Congress had been described on websites as: eclectic. As soon as I saw the little strip made up of cute cafes, antique stores, and candy shops, I knew we needed to stop.

Our first detour was a large antique store called "Uncommon Objects." If you love the ancient and interesting, this is a store you could spend all day at. The prices seemed really reasonable, but I'm no expert, and the variety was extensive. The only downside was that the store was so cluttered and items were spread out that it made it difficult to see everything they had to offer. The store is literally bursting at the seams with well, uncommon objects!

"Off-the-Wall Antiques" was a different experience. The store was more clean and organized and had different kinds of antiques, or rather, certain kinds. It seemed the owner is more picky about what he accepts. It was a relaxing experience, but prices seemed higher.

No two stores are alike on this particular strip. Aside from the aformentioned stores, there's also a costume store, a barber shop, a grocery store, a clothing store, a furniture store, and a few others which I can't remember at the moment.

Next time we visit, I've made a promise to myself to stop at the cupcake stand in the Airstream across the street. It took great self-control not to stop on this trip! A couple of trolleys, which are free to ride, putter up and down the street making it easier to get around. Next time I may take advantage of that, too! I'm definitely excited about my next trip to SoCo!