The Ultimate Whole Foods 365 Taste Test

Come to think of it, a near-empty Whole Foods is a very rare sight. The chain of health-oriented supermarkets makes a splash wherever it lands, and it's bred a very passionate following amongst its loyalists, who oftentimes refuse to shop anywhere else (here in New York, we've seen shoppers carrying bags of Whole Foods groceries from Union Square all the way out to the outer boroughs' deepest reaches).

So what is it about Whole Foods that inspires such fierce loyalty? Obvious answers include its selection of fresh meats and seafood, wide assortment of prepared foods, and knowledgeable staff. It's also easy to navigate, and is stocked with products that are hard to find elsewhere. Some of its products really can't be found anywhere else, though: those would be ones made exclusively for its house brand, 365.

We've set out to do the ultimate 365 taste test, and take weekly trips to our local Whole Foods to sample as many of those products as possible. We'll be working our way through the majority of the brand's offerings (except for items like shampoo, obviously), so check back in with our Whole Foods page often, and be sure to let us know if there are any products we haven't tested that you want the skinny on.

And on the other end of the spectrum, there's Trader Joe's. We've got the same approach going on over at that page, incorporating reviews from the intrepid duo of Nathan and Sonia Rodgers, who run the blog What's Good at Trader Joe's?.