urbanMSP

Isn't "big-name hipster retail" kind of ironic?

Which, ironically, makes it even more hipstery.

Eh, I find their deli and grab and go type stuff to be pretty underwhelming and VERY overpriced for what it is. I would much rather spend $25 at Lunds(love their deli items) or even Chipotle like you mention. That is just me. Not a big fan of Whole Foods...but I am very glad they are at this corner now!

Exactly. I found it very underwhelming for the price.

Big name hipster retail on Washington would be about as ironic as 10,000 spoons when all you need is a knife.

^^^Maybe not as ironic as you might think. I leave the responsibility up to you to figure that out. As far as Whole Foods being underwhelming, make your free choice not to shop there and leave the rest of us alone.

For all the negative comments on this thread, it's really a no brainer to predict the new North Loop store will be highly successful and hugely popular with many many people who live downtown (which includes me). This is exactly the type of retail downtown residents want. Whole Foods is a very profitable company, knows it's demographic market well, and has great savvy in strategically locating its stores. It's quality is fantastic. A great addition to downtown that we can all be proud of.

^^ -1 Yup, amenities like this will accelerate the draw of people and families (like mine) downtown, which obviously spurs further residential development, retail, tax base expansion, etc. Lund's paved the way, and the opening of WF marks a critical milestone in downtown livability.

To be sure, I'm not sure of anyone is rejecting that notion. It appears some people are just saying they do not like Whole Foods.

Only partially related (pun very intended), but I loved this.

http://www.startribune.com/local/minnea ... 56401.html

Eh, I find their deli and grab and go type stuff to be pretty underwhelming and VERY overpriced for what it is. I would much rather spend $25 at Lunds(love their deli items) or even Chipotle like you mention. That is just me. Not a big fan of Whole Foods...but I am very glad they are at this corner now!

Well it depends on which Lunds. The Uptown and dt Lunds are much better than the NE location. The deli in the Northeast store was just God awful this past Saturday & has lacked consistency the past couple of months, to the point where I complained, just after another customer raised similar issues. The pastas looked a day old, clearly the soup I had was a day old, maybe two & some of the salad ingredients were borderline fresh. I mean I was there just before noon - no excuses.

In all, I just find grocery stores in Mpls average, even my nearby Kowalski's on Henn & The Wedge. The difference between the St. Louis Park or Edina Byerly's and anything in Mpls, including Seward, which is my favorite city grocery store, is pretty obvious. The former pair prevails, but I just don't have time to get to those places.

I actually got to the point of complaining about the Lund's in Highland Park. I'd go in there and the produce section would look like absolute crap as often as it would look nice (empty bins, wilted leaves and vegetable detritus littering the floor, etc.) Lund's is a cut above the 'typical' grocery store pricewise and I found it completely unacceptable that they could not keep their shelves stocked and floors clean (and safe, I might add) on a random Tuesday evening.

I was reserving judgment on this project until I had seen and experienced it. It's really nice. It just has a nice feel as you walk around it, lots of tables, lots of glass and most of the time you aren't looking up beyond its facade to notice it's not a skyscraper. Is it perfect, no. Is it a huge boon for this area, I would say so.

Did a quick walk along Washington to 1st and back to get a feel for the street presence. With the windows looking into the store, similar to Hennepin Lunds, the windows and the trees make for a good street walk. Bus came so I did not get to walk around the full building and go in and check out Whole Paycheck so that will have to wait for another day to see what I think about them.

The grocery store has a really nice layout that's simple and easy to navigate with wide aisles. Has great views of the city skyline when you're in the seating area. Has a industrial chic look which fits the North Loop. Business appears to be doing well as every time I've been there its bustling.

Nighty night view:

222 Hennepin at Night by MSPdude, on Flickr

Walking around this block finally yesterday I found there to be a great street presence on Washington and Hennepin. Even the north side with it's driveways still has a few street level apartment that give you some sense that this is a residential area with the balconies hanging overhead. Again the great number of trees that have been planted around this block help make the street presence great. The first avenue side is a disaster The massive blank walls do not help here. The use of contrasting red brick only makes you notice it more. Maybe we are supposed to think there was an old warehouse that got incorporated into this structure. Over all I give this building a seven.

They won the poll.

Ahem. Thanks for asking permission to use my photo, Nick.

You're credited!

The first avenue side is a disaster

Agreed. When the Velo is completed, this will be an odd stretch of 1st Ave. It's as though Velo's face will be right up 222's butt crack.

Minneapolis: so gay, the buildings are into it.