Whole Foods Market in
New York (NY)

The young man at the checkout was rude. He did not want to assist me when I told him I was not experienced in the Prime way of checking out. He just kept pointing at the register. When I said he didnt want to help me, then he decides to come and assist me. Not every customer knows about certain aspects of checking out at different locations. Even though I have Prime, I never used it before. The folks who use this establishment seem to be fine with the escalator being out of service and an employee NOT helping a woman get something on a top shelf. This place was a bit much. But I got out quickly, only because I buy a few things from here.

Omg I was visiting from out of town and I brought these shrimps I love so much good thing I check they was expired . I almost fed it to my 6 year old and unfortunately the cheese I brought was moldy as well ( didn’t get a picture) I hope someone see this and check this out I was soo disappointed Check your food before you BUY people

Love the place ,I go to the store at least 2 times a week and nice location also affordable price, most of employees are friendly, except some of them, especially one of male employee with eye glasses who works downstairs by vegetable section,if I'm not mistaken name is "dony" I was shopping around and he was standing talking with someone and tried to pass him to get something, for some reason he rolling his eyes on me and give me horrible look, didn't touch him, never see him before, tried to ignore him because I get that sometimes from other employees but I understand they pretty busy and when they work on the shelf they probably don't have enough place to stand and work so when you try to pass and get something they have to stop working so that's why they are not happy,but but this one is weird give me that look a couple of times and I just leave the area immediately, I don't what happened maybe he had a bad day or something, but still that's not nice and unprofessional!

Get rid of these "security guards" that think they're bouncers. I've spoken to many people, and we all hate your guards. GET RID OF THEM, or Allied Universal is going to lose yet another contract. Capisce? Also, tell them and the (so called "loss prevention" DT) to stop following people around the store. You are making them self conscious, and furthermore, bringing troubles to your own establishment. Do you not think your actions go unnoticed? You're obvious point blank. Whomever has the contract with this co., I suggest you don't follow the actions of previously contracted outside 3rd party security firms.If there were any Stop N Shop's in my area or in the general Manhattan region, trust me, they are the ones I go to, and the ones I reccommend.

My sister went over there to buy a giftcard, on 12/20 between 4:20 and 5:00 and this asian tall girl with long black hair (she was in one of the reg facing self checkout) accused her of stealing some flowers and then proceed to be rude once she tried to show the receipt from where she got them. How smart to open store in Black neighborhood, but your staff treat us like thieves

The prepared foods can be very old. They are so old they stink and should be a public health concern. I’m surprised we have not heard more about food poisoning from Whole Foods products.

I absolutely love this store. It's expensive but worth every penny. The hot bar is sooooo good. Best hot bar ever!

Lucitania as a cashier gave me a excelente service and told me about the give card of 50 and save 5 us dollars; I tried to make a survey and you don’t have any form and they told me to call a number: note: you need to have those papers so ppl can said and the information doesn’t lose through supervising. Good service and all.

This particular Whole Foods located in Harlem 125th is only operational for profit & gentrification purposes, This location is in disservice to the community for the simple fact they do not have any restrooms for customers that frequent their business, there is not any other Whole Foods located in NYC that does not have a restroom!!! How are they able to ethically justify this? Because this community is predominantly black its acceptable!! I say this is a grave disservice and the community should protest & hold Whole Foods accountable for we are humans with respect and dignity and having no restroom in this location is a racial disparity that cannot,shouldn't be ignored.My niece is pregnant and wanted soup a few days ago and of course she needed a restroom while we were deciding well surprise no restroom!!! Whole Foods located in all other locations all have restrooms this was deeply disappointing &disheartening to discover. I hope WF's can make a restroom in the near future its priority to do better for Harlem Communities that serve your needs & make your profit margins its not acceptable I will be petitioning for this at the one location that has no restroom for paying customers.

What can I say. If you eat clean this is the spot! All organic!

I didn't shop there. I took items that I needed to return to Amazon. The return process was fast and easy. The staff were very respectful.

Expect the food you would at wholefoods; and it IS conveniently near the express 2/3 trains, and the crosstown buses. (Even the M60 to LGA!) also great for dropping off amazing packages!

Concern Regarding Declining Standards at Harlem Whole Foods and Ongoing Quality Disparities

Dear Whole Foods Customer Care Team,

I have supported the brand for many years, and I have consistently provided detailed feedback through your survey links. Unfortunately, little has changed to bring the Harlem location in line with the standards upheld at Whole Foods stores in other, non–historically Black areas of New York City.

On November 14, 2025, I purchased a Sourdough Boule from the Harlem store. Once again, what I received was not sourdough, but a clear variant of wheat bread. This is not an isolated issue. The bread at this location is frequently inconsistent—with significant differences from products sold under the same name in other Whole Foods markets and at comparable establishments.

My concern extends beyond any single item. When Amazon acquired Whole Foods, and later when the Harlem location opened, I anticipated a decline in quality and service. Unfortunately, those concerns have been realized. What should have been an opportunity to provide high-quality goods and reliable service to a community that has long endured discrimination and commercial neglect has instead become a pattern of diminished standards.

Because my feedback has been thorough and ongoing, yet the same issues persist—and new ones continue to arise—I am now exploring alternative markets for my family. I cannot continue to support businesses that appear to reinforce discriminatory commercial practices or that fail to provide equitable service to the most vulnerable, disadvantaged, and politically disconnected residents of New York City.

I hope Whole Foods will take this matter seriously and implement meaningful changes at the Harlem location, ensuring that all communities receive the high standards your brand promises.

Sincerely,
Theresa B., Attorney. Marine Corps veteran. New Yorker. Women-owned, veteran-owned, and black-owned U.S. business owner.

Went to return something to Amazon. Was in and out in under 10 minutes. Line was long but workers worked really fast. Place is beautiful and clean. Just be mindful of the area and keep your eyes up at all time.

I'll never go back to the pizza counter again after I was racially targeted by night staff. Denying to make a white family pizza it was 6:30 this woman told her own manager to make it she was not going to. She gave other customers pizza but when it was my turn she said no. She treated me like it was harlem in the 60s..

Whole Foods has a lot of options to choose from even for vegans. Their products are high quality (lacking mold) and are at an affordable price. The store is clean and well organized. From my experience, security looks professional, and well trained. I definitely like the selection of vegan products offered here; and that's an understatement.

Me and my wife had a great customer service experience with either believe the guy name was Ryan. He is a true asset to the company. He was informative and very approachable. I would hope that Whole Foods would recognize his customer service. He did a great job and I’m hoping that the higher ups see this.

The checkout process was very organized, and the cashier was courteous, making for a smooth experience.

great selections and the prices, I love the store just wished it had less employees all over the place, I guess is due to theft but i feel overwhelm with so many people doing nothing around.

First time at this location. Overall a fairly standard whole foods, with a few notable exceptions:

* The hot bars were already being cleaned at 7:45pm (closing time of 9pm), save for one island with still some food left... Couldn't tell if they just simply closed the hot bars earlier than other whole foods or if they ran out of food. It was a Sunday so maybe close earlier than usual?

* While I was browsing the hot bar, a woman came up to me asking me to buy her some food. I had never experienced this before in a whole foods, so I froze for a few seconds processing what just happened she quickly moved on after I politely refused. The event bothered me for a little bit, but I decided that it was not a big deal and could happen anywhere.

Overall still sufficiently satisfied with the shopping experience, mostly got what I came for, self-check out was quick and painless, etc., so still a 4 ⭐

I really like this Whole Foods. I get all my meat from here (fish, poultry, and meat). Everything is as great quality as you’d expect from a Whole Foods, from the Mediterranean bar to the sushi. Their buffet isn’t as good as some of the other Whole Foods I’ve been to, but it’s going to be hard to compete with all the nearby restaurants anyway.

This whole foods market is one of the busiest in the city. I go often to this market to buy lunch. At times, lines are long so store has self checkouts to ease the process.

Super clean and quite large! The top level has mostly fresh pre-made food options and fruits. There are escalators going down to the main level with normal groceries. They have an escalator for carts to bring them up to the top checkout level.

Only reason I give it 4/5 is because the up escalator was broken, leaving to a bunch of people having to walk up the stairs. With one escalator, it’s tough getting back upstairs as you also have elderly taking their time going up the same stairs.

Great customers service. The staff was very helpful but when it came to some of the items like meat and seafood the selection was very limited. I didn't like the checkout line system that they have set up. You actually end up waiting for a long time as suppose making a line behind the cash register. The restroom was clean and the cashier was helpful.

Pros:
- Fairly well laid out and easy to navigate
- Fairly well-stocked, with the exception of certain sale items
- Decent-sized eating area
- Downstairs grocery area is fairly quiet and roomy - not cramped and crowded like the WF at 59th Street or Union Square
- Good selection of produce, with some unusual items

Cons:
- Check-out area is awkwardly laid-out, due to a large refrigerated section blocking the traffic. I had some unpleasant encounters with people who were basically trying to get by. Whoever designed this area should rethink it asap.
- Smaller than some other Whole Food stores. Bakery was especially small, and I saw few gluten-free items.
- Hard to find an employee downstairs if you have questions
- Store exit is far from the entrance - to get back to 125th Street you have to walk about 3/4 of a block.

Overall, a welcome addition to this neighborhood. I hope it does well and improves as it goes along.

So excited to finally have a Whole Foods close to home. This is just what Harlem needed. It's close to all of the major bus and train lines that run through Harlem. The food was fresh and the store was clean. The store employees were eager to help. There are lots of options, and this store supports and promotes local vendors.

Omg thank you Whole Foods for adding a location to Harlem. The selection is great, lots of workers willing to help, and very clean. I love how many local options there are as well. It's a bus ride from me now so I won't have to always go to the one on 2 Ave or 14th street.