Whole Foods - my new love

I'm a small town girl from Oregon who got used to living pretty humbly.  Now I'm a small town girl living in the big city of Chicago, and I have to say, I'm in love--with the shopping.

 

This store is pretty much my dream come true! I have lived in Chicago for a year now and I was getting so frustrated with the grocery stores around here.  I lived on the west coast so I was able to find things like fresh seafood, very very easily.  Not here though.  All of the fish in all of the grocery stores looked so gross. Not fresh at all.  Today I wandered into a Whole Foods Market for the first time, and I swear my eyes grew double in size, and I heard angels singing!

Ok, maybe not the angels part, but definitely the eye part.  It was BEAUTIFUL!!!  Fresh organic fruits and veggies lined the entrance.  Things I have not seen since leaving my small town of Pendleton, OR.  And only on special occasions could you find it too.  Usually once a week, at the farmer's market that runs during the summer and fall months.  Things like colorful heirloom tomatoes, and bunches of fresh organic herbs.  

And I also saw a lot of things I've never seen before!  Rows of delicious fancy olives, and other antipasti.  Dozens and dozens of cheeses, half of which I can't even pronounce, and...AHHHHH *angels singing* the seafood counter.  I was so happy!  It all looked so amazingly fresh and delicious.  The worst part about it was deciding which to get!  I did end up getting a pound of raw shrimp, and a compliment from the guy behind the fish counter who said I looked really nice and he liked my sun glasses. Random, but I'll take it! Tonight I plan to cook my shrimpy friends along with some cheesy grits...pictures and recipe to come in case anyone wants it!

So, for those other small town people who never even heard of whole foods before, go inside! You won't regret it! It's a little spendy but I think worth it to get the better quality goods.  I can't wait to go back.