March 18, 2017

Chobani Cafe (yup)

March 18, 2017/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

Chobani... Cafe? ya, it's a real thing, y'all! it's a big deal in New York, and i for one am ecstatic that Chobani chose the Woodlands, Texas for their 3rd cafe location. what an honor! i'm originally from the north side of Houston...

March 17, 2015

Sprouts Farmer's Market - Heights Grand Opening Day

March 17, 2015/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

Sprouts Farmer's Market Heights is now open for bidness as of wednesday, march 11th! i planned on being one of the first 200 shoppers at 7am to get 20% off my entire basket...and then i woke up. i wanted Frick and Frack to come with me so that we could all enjoy the grand opening samples and experience together, so i chose to go get my solo, early workout in instead. i posted this still shot via IG,

but here's the vid so you can incorporate this med ball move that works your core into your leg routine too.

[wpvideo GWl0lc1G]

i'm so glad i chose to hit the gym cause i had no chance of going the rest of the day. that's usually how my days go though! anyway, we met my mom and aunt there that gloomy day,

and we had a good ol' time shoppin'

and snackin'.

a ton.

of course i'll try some So Delicious strawberry dairy-free ice cream.

i have always loved the size of SFM.

it's just right. neither overwhelming nor cramped.

a sales associate saw how much we loved these roasted and salted okra chips (we kept going back for more samples) so she brought this over to me lol! i put them back though as i would have finished the entire thing in the car on the way home.

trying not to overdo it and get stuck in the matrix, i.e., that infamous bulk aisle.

almost done! what exactly did i bring home? check out the VLOG and seeee:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCCXitoqmnI]

a few of my faves:

YumEarth Organic Gummy Bears

Lisanatti Almond Cheese

Annie's Naturals Organic Dressings

La Tortilla Factory Tortillas

i was looking for the new Arctic Zero flavors and i found'em! just not key lime pie though:( they are 75 cals per serving and 300 cals per pint. love. this. stuff. their new chunky pint flavors are fat-free, low glycemic, gluten-free, nut-free, GMO-free, and lactose-free.

here's that baby food recipe for ya:

Maple Cinnamon Papplesauce (Pear + Apple = Papple ;) )

the stuff:

3 opal apples
1 tbsp pure maple syrup
juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 tbsp water
2 tsp cinnamon

do this:

peel, core, and chop apples preferably the same size so that they cook evenly
add all ingredients to your sauce pan set to medium high heat and coated with no stick cooking spray
saute apples until tender, about 5-7 minutes or until super soft to the touch. keep covered, but stir every so often
transfer mixture to your blender or food processor and blend until super-duper smooth

Q: what do you love about SFM? what do you buy there? what would you change?

November 07, 2014

WFM - Post Oak

November 07, 2014/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

well hello,

WHOLE FOODS MARKET POST OAK!

i caught wind that this location was coming waaaaaay back in 2007 just before Sonny and i got married. we were deciding on where to live and in the middle of taking a tour of some galleria area condos when the sales associate dropped the WFM bomb. i wanted to live in the area JUST for that reason! i didn't know it wouldn't come to fruition for another 7 years lol, but nevertheless, it's time.

i snagged the pic above from @WholeFoodsHOU's twitter page cause i realized i didn't get any exterior pics! whoops. it was actually raining when i pulled up for my private tour and i had Dego with me and no umbrella, naturally :( . anyway, our tour guide, Kate, and another lady blogger were waiting in the front of the store to get crackin'. i'd like to give a big thanks to Jeanette Webster for hooking me up with the tour! so, here.we.go.

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an escalator flows right up to the very front of the store via the parking garage, just like in the Landmark Austin store. Sonny and i actually took a pic in front of it from our 7th wedding anni travels this past September, remember! Kate was sent to help open up the new store from the Lamar location as well. awesomeness.

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first stop, fresh produce. if i enter a grocery store from any other department it throws me completely off. i must start here. #weirdo

just look at all those colors. everywhere you turn! everything screams FRESH. they put so much emphasis on detail and it shows. walking into this department just makes me feel healthier.

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i thought these satsuma oranges were gorgeous and deserved a photo. why he mad though? j/k, j/k

an adorable juice bar with cold-pressed juices and smoothies sits on the outskirts of the produce department. i wanted to purchase a juicer at one point in time but i don't want it to be one of those appliances i use once and forget i even have. i'd rather eat my calories than drink them so smoothies and juices are rare for me anyway. having someone else prepare it (and clean it up) is working perfectly at the moment lol. the top pic was during our tour and the bottom pic was from thursday morning's grand opening. yep, #iwasthere

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all things wine & beer is stationed in between the produce and seafood departments.

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what a gorgeous display and wide variety of fresh, responsibly farmed seafood. they know exactly where it comes from, what it was fed, and more importantly, what is wasn't fed!

making visually appealing and enticing food on a large-scale is no easy task; what a JOB someone has. they do it well though, right?

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a few things you should know about WFM's meat & poultry:

no antibiotics -- ever

no supplemental growth hormones

no animal byproducts in feed

raised on pasture or range for at least 2/3 of the animal's life.

we stayed around the perimeter for the most part; the aisles (packaged goods) are in the very center of the store. only one aisle really matters though.

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#thebulkaisle #findmehere #myfavorite #sometimesiwishitwasnt #scoophappy

there were a few more highlights on our way to the cheese department like:

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the holiday table! TG and Christmas are pretty much here. get those orders in! sides, main dishes, desserts... endless options.

stopped for an #usie. i hear you, Kate, promise.

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oooh just snacking and dropping crumbs on top of Dego's head.

we made it! cheese, cheese, cheese,

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and then chocolates (among all other things sugar) in the bakery. such an incredible amount of detail goes into the dessert decor! another fun job.

well this is new! WFM is never afraid to try new things, that's for darn sure. there's something unique about every single location, and this gigantic wood-fire oven in the Souvlaki Grill definitely makes WFMPO stand out. and the fact that it looks like a storm trooper. maybe it's just me.

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they still make sandwiches, pizza, and sushi, no doubt, as well as prepared foods and their world-famous salad bar.

i don't know why i was expecting to leave the tour with dinner though, smh! wishful thinking. everything was wrapped up nice and tight.

but on the morning of the grand opening it was ON.

i tried the Red Eye Boost which is made of spinach, beets, carrot juice, lemon juice. it was REALLY good. extremely refreshing after my workout that morning. i got some citrus collard greens, harvest salad (cabbage slaw mix with dried cranberries), scrambled eggs, plantains, and some of the most tender, smoked brisket i've ever had. YUM. the mango salsa was from the taco bar and it was scrumptious too. they have a bunch of salsas to choose from that range in heat. what taco bar?

this one. you order what you like from those monitors and there are sandwiches to choose from too. on the other side of that wall is something that has been getting so much press...

WFMPO is the first grocery store with an in-house brewery! Kate mentioned that several times during the tour as they are super proud of this accomplishment!

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once you pay for your goods and head past the registers to the winding staircase, you'll arrive at the last stop of our tour.

the 2nd floor seating area to relax with friends & fam and enjoy your goods. such a fantastic view of the entire store from the balcony. i'm feeling the big orange, oversized chairs too! this is why i don't have an eye for interior decorating though. if i had seen these chairs in a furniture store solo i'd be like 'ok, WHO would ever buy that??'

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if you don't head upstairs to eat, then back down the escalator ya go to the parking garage.

thanks a bunch, Kate! she was such a gracious, genuine, and knowledgable tour guide.

so what's in my goodie bag?!

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WFM Brewing Company Glass
Green Plate Foods Nubblers: all natural Cherry Chocolate fruit bites
Empire Mayonaaise White Truffle
Enfusia Lemongrass fizz & foam bath bomb

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Popcorn Indiana Sriracha Popcorn
365 Mismatched Sandwich Cremes
Peace Water
if you made it to the grand opening that morning then you walked away with one of these adorable bags too.

click play to see my very first vlog ;)

[wpvideo P5AFWHI7]

thanks for reading and watching and i hope you thoroughly enjoy the new Whole Foods Market Post Oak as much as i DO!!! let me know what you think!

January 31, 2013

WFM KATY <3

January 31, 2013/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

feast your eyes on the awesomeness that is Whole Foods Market............. KATY, TX.

i pulled up like 3 minutes before go time and hopped my butt right on in line.

they had some great grand opening deals, and fresh wild salmon was one of them! they were selling like hot cakes under that tent up there for 5.99 a lb.

as i neared the door, i heard....music? there was a live orchestra back there, even though you can't tell at all from this pic. that's how WFM does it! it didn't make the weather any warmer, but it was a nice touch.

this is the very first pic of the madness once i stepped foot in the store. this is NOTHIN! there were still a ton of peeps behind me.

:shock: the freshest produce ever in life :shock:

beautiful berries!

how can you not want one of everything?

so i was caught on camera using my own camera. (l) #awkward! i have no idea what station he was affiliated with but i do hope it was a major network LOL

beans, beans, the musical fruit!

the beloved bulk bins. i couldn't pass up getting a couple scoops of pumpkin flax granola.

this is THE cleanest this area will ever be in life. lol

ok i have a confession. my phone straight DIED a few minutes after i took this pic and i was devastated. seriously. i went to bed with a full battery and did not put it on the charger and because i have soooooo much crap on my phone these days and have yet to order an SD card. which means my battery is toast in a matter of hours. soooooo, i sped through the store and came back a few hours later with my bro for lunch. hey i had a dr's appointment and was out anyway ;)

i'll pick back up where i left off-

fresh

meat!

would i like a sample? do you know who i am?

'air chilled' is a new term i said i'd google later. the tender was super juicy!

right, Matt?

and wow, that camera man was still there.

these were so cute. and true.

we rounded a corner of the store and walked past the gourmet grilled cheese and specialty beer station.

it was a little after lunch time here and the store was CRACKIN'.

and then we saw a walking banana and had to get a pic! and yes...i've officially been #photobombed by the lovely shopper behind us.

twice, smh!!!! who does these types of things!? i thought you only photobombed people you know!

we kept going and passed the delectable desserts...

just looking!

they had pizza samples left and right, mmmmm.

next up was the prepared foods section.

man...food presentation at its finest. *DROOLING*

this was matt's incentive for coming with me. free lunch! he got a sammich at the sammich station.

gettin' mo samples...sushi samples.

it was a shrimp, avocado, multigrain rice roll; lovely combo!

we turned around and saw several fresh food bars like the olive one above,

and this multicultural one. variety is something WF never lacks!

so many overwhelming options to choose from.

and uuuuuuuuweeeeeeee that 8.49 per lb. hurts my HEART! especially when i remember when it was 2.99.........

last thing on this side of the store was the cool coffee bar.

more samples on the way to checkout- this tasted like kombaucha soda. not bad!

i meant to get some canned tuna while i was there so i cut through the frozen foods aisle and ran into this thing- i thought it just rotated commercials and advertisements all day long, but nope, i touched the screen and was wowed immediately!