Hey, South Brooklyn: The Gowanus Whole Foods Is Really Opening. Here's The Date.
First, I'll eat my words, then a delicious meal prepared with ingredients from the supermarket I swore would never open. Yes, the mythical Whole Foods coming to the corner of Third Avenue and 3rd Street in South Brooklyn finally has an opening date: December 17.
It's something I honestly thought would never happen, and here's why. You see, over the past 12 years, I've lived, alternately, in Carroll Gardens and Park Slope, the two sprawling neighborhoods that border the forlorn stretch of Third Avenue with the long-promised Whole Foods Market. During this time, local newspapers, residents and, most annoyingly, earnest real estate agents, touted its impending arrival, but I'd ride my bike past the mostly abandoned lot (there's a historical-looking brick building that somehow stood there, looking all sad and boarded up, amidst a trash-strewn lot in the shadows of the hyper-polluted Gowanus Canal), and think, "Ain't gonna happen."
The reports got more serious-sounding this year, and, lo and behold, the Austin-based company started a Facebook page and made announcement indicating that the Brooklyn Whole Foods might become a reality. Now it's official, and details are emerging, such as:
- It'll offer more than 56,000 square feet of shopping.
- It's being called Third & 3rd, referring to the intersection of Third Ave. and 3rd St.
- There'll be a 20,000-square-foot rooftop greenhouse in partnership with Gotham Greens.
- Crucially, this Whole Foods will feature products from Brooklyn artisanal brands.
- There will be a 2nd floor indoor/outdoor tap room and restaurant, The Roof.
- There will be a take-out venue from noted ramen chef, Yuji Hariguchi.
- And the address: 214 3rd St., Brooklyn, NY
Welcome to the neighborhood, Whole Foods, from a guy who honestly thought you'd never make it.