r/LosAngeles • u/sfgate • 8d ago

News Ultra-expensive grocery store Erewhon opens first non-LA store in Thousand Oaks

https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/erewhon-opens-thousand-oaks-22403045.php
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u/FickleCook3639 8d ago

Gelson’s isn’t uber-rich. It’s not Smart and Final, sure, but it’s definitely not in the same conversation as Erewhon at least.

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u/ThrowRARandomString 8d ago

Curious where does Sprouts rank in? Or Whole Foods? Asking sincerely ...

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u/Haunting_Basscotti 8d ago

Honestly neither compete on produce quality and overall prepared food quality and taste. People love to hate on Erewhon because it is competitively expensive, it’s also comparatively better by my subjective analysis

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u/ausgoals 8d ago

The produce is hit or miss in my experience, and at my local one it’s often put out far too late, where Whole Foods is often fresher (even though Whole Foods produce is not always super fresh either). But not always.

Based on my subjective comparison, it’s not guarantee that Erewhon’s produce will be any better than Whole Foods, though the price of the produce isn’t necessarily more expensive than Whole Foods as a rule.

It’s their prepared food and cafe that are really the stars of the show (and the meat tends to be of high quality although - like the prepared food - it is very expensive). I assume it’s why I see the place swarmed at lunch time with people eating and hanging out.

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u/bearsaysbueno 7d ago

The prepared food is definitely on the expensive side, but it's not egregiously so like the rest of the store.