Whole Earth Center

Literally my fav place in the world. I work a few minutes away and I always get my lunch from here. Also they have brags acv for $ 7. If you’re ordering try their Colby sandwich. I tried their quesadilla and it was alright. I prefer their Colby sandwich.

Small, extremely well-​stocked store that is busy constantly, especially at lunchtime for their deli of creative items. The grab and go dishes and sandwiches are excellent too. Wish I had this in my town. I heard Meatloaf Night is huge.

We are new to the area and have been goldilocks-​ing the crap out of the area markets. Our old standby TJs is right down the street so we go there often and we were supplementing with WF just further down the street a bit more. That is, until we were told about this place! First of all, this place is amazing! The bulk section and local/​organic selection is amazing! If you are concious of what you eat and want good, local, organic food that is labeled non-​gmo when applicable this is the place! They have local pastured eggs as well as yummy yogurts, cheeses etc. I was shocked to see the attention to stocking details down to the specific brand of binchotan charcoal I use to filter our water! They take a lot of the guesswork out of choosing better products because it is clear to me they aren’t stocking their shelves with junk that hides behind a healthy-​sounding name brand. I have worked in one of the big name crunchy behemoths and I know what kind of deception goes on. This place makes a concious effort to be transparent and make good choices for you. The people that work in the store have always been helpful, however, the people cooking in the café do not give off warm vibes. One man from the café did come out and chat with us. He was very sweet! He seemed like a manager. The produce section is beautiful. It seems they carry what is good, local, organic. I respect that. They aren’t trucking stuff in from across the planet to meet every possible consumer need. Since shopping here, we have left all of the other stores. There is nothing we need that we cannot find here. Their body care items are way cheaper than on amazon. I have yet to check the supp prices though but their selection seems top notch. Thank you to these people for FINALLY giving us a one-​stop-​shop!

The Whole Earth Center is great and in a perfectly convenient location for me. Me and my family only eat organic foods, and the Whole Earth Center is almost like a mini Whole Foods with thirty times the charm. The people who work there are so nice and extremely helpful. It’s a great place to get quick groceries, and a great place to get a delicious meal. I always pick up their grape leaves, at the very least. But everything I’ve eaten there I have been very pleased with. I used to come to eat here often with my sister, and we would be able to find most of the things we would’ve got at Whole Foods right after if we went somewhere else.

Great selection and quality. However the prices are a bit steep, and I recommend checking the online prices and asking for a discount if the online prices are cheaper than the store prices.

I mostly come to Princeton on business. While driving into town, I noticed the Whole Earth Center. Being early for a meeting I was going to, I decided to stop at the store. I really liked the fresh produce section. Everything looked and smelled fresh. The fruit section was quite limited though. The vegetables fresh and the selection was great. I really liked the store until I got to the cash register. The cashier did not say a word while processing my order. I could tell that his mind was on something else, far away from this place. When I asked a question about my order, he did not react at all, like he did not even hear me. Placed my products into a bag and turned to the next person in line. Well, maybe he is a student and a big upcoming test was on his mind?

This place is an awesome alternative to Whole Foods and especially since I’m vegan, it offers a lot of options. The produce, although a little expensive, is really fresh and mostly local. I’m obsessed with the guacamole and the vegan almond butter bliss balls. There’s also tons of super foods and gluten-​free options which is really great. I just wish there were more fruit options and that they were more conveniently packaged. Overall, really great.

I’m not vegan, but I do appreciate places like these that sell fresh produce and are close to campus. People who work there are really friendly and welcoming!

This is a Honey Brook Farms CSA drop off, so I have been here often over the last couple of years. They’ve got a number of things that I can’t find elsewhere, and a much better selection of vegan products than any other store nearby. The Sunneen foods vegan «tuna» and «egg» salads are wonderful, as is the treeline goat cheese.
The trouble is that most things are just prohibitively expensive here. (The Sunneen products are the exception – highly recommended.) Produce is astronomical, and I can get better quality for less money at Whole Foods or Wegmans.
Bulk spices used to be a real selling point, but the outstanding Savory Spice Shop downtown makes this point moot. Pasture eggs – nice, but I can get pasture eggs for cheaper straight from a farmer on Saturdays (Princeton Junction) or Thursdays (downtown Princeton).
If I happen to need a quick lunch, sometimes I’ll stop in and get a container of vegan dumplings. The samosa dumplings are my favorite. The treeline goat cheese is arguably better than regular goat cheese, which is saying something, but it’s also $ 8.99 for an egg-​sized package, which is more than I’m willing to pay.

(3.5) ~ Good overall food & service…

Do yourself a favor and pick up the whole earth salad. I used to live near by and ate it 3+ times a week. I still haven’t found anything as good on the west coast. The rest of the market has delicious hummus, very friendly staff, and just the right amount of quality and selection. I highly recommend this market for your wholesome deli or regular grocery shopping needs.

Whole earth center is the best organic food store In NJ. The produce is the freshest and has a wide variety of non GMO foods. The staff is so friendly and will help you with anything you need. Great deli section and bakery too. The Colby cheese melt is my favorite.

I must have passed this place a million times before finally stopping in. So glad I did as it is perfect for vegans or anyone who wants to eat extremely heathy.
It’s a decent sized supermarket with nothing but healthy and organic versions of everything. Actually ended up doing a decent amount of grocery shopping here.
They also have a café section with seating where freshly cooked food is served. I had myself a plate of chickpea stew with roasted potatoes and collard greens and it was very good. I was expecting a decent tasting meal, but my expectations were certainly exceeded.
Overall this is the perfect place to shop for the health conscience. Prices are cheaper than whole foods and there are about 70% less people in there. I’ll surely be coming to this place consistently if I’m in Princeton and need to do some grocery shopping or want a tasty vegan meal.

This is the best source of organic vegetarian food in this entire region. I’ve been coming to it from across the state since the 1980’s, and it has since expanded (and I’ve since moved right into Princeton). The food is of the highest quality, and it carries an impressive variety, including bulk organic grains and dried foods, bulk teas, bulk green cleaning products, and fresh produce (locally grown when possible).
Best of all, it now includes a delicious all-​vegetarian prepared foods department (with limited sit-​down eating for lunch). If you want to lunch here, come early or be prepared to wait in line, as it gets busy. Parking is tight. The entire store is small, but packed full and extremely well managed.
People who think Whole Foods is natural, organic food have no idea until they’ve tried Whole Earth, which is the Real Deal.

If you like old style groceries and natural/​organic foods, Whole Earth Natural Grocery is the place for you. It is everything that Whole Foods could be, but isn’t. Minimal commercialism, reasonable prices, deep community roots, and a sense of true wholesomeness that makes you feel good just to be there.
They carry most of the well known organic labels, while local sourcing their produce as much as possible. Their signs and ingredient displays are clear, and best of all they don’t dedicate a third of their floorplan for overpriced buffets and salad bars. No. Here you buy what you want to eat, take it with you home or to your office, and enjoy good grub.
As with most natural food stores, it is not a one stop shop. You will still need to go elsewhere for most canned goods, and those non-​organic items we all still rely upon. No worries — with so many alternative groceries around from Wegmann’s to Trader Joe’s and Shop Rite, you can get anything you want within a small radius of WENG. Even the aforementioned Whole Foods.

**UPDATE** My local big name grocery store now makes their own version of the whole earth salad in the deli and it’s amazeballs.
And served with a smile. So bye bye to this place. I’ll pay extra for good food but not for bad attitude.
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Some of my vegan friends swear by this place so I decided to stop in for lunch to go while I was in town.
The food was good — the whole earth salad that people drool over was every bit delicious as promised. But the workers weren’t nice. No smiles, barely any interaction at the register and surly men working the loading and stock from the outside.
I may try again later this summer because maybe I got the (entire??) staff on an off day but this seems to be a recurring theme in the reviews. I don’t spend money where I don’t feel welcome soooo

Looks like really fresh food and everything they serve is organic which leaves out the questioning or guess work. All of the ingredients are labeled. The staff doesn’t seem enthusiastic but that’s always hit or miss at health food stores.

Grabbed a quick lunch here with a couple friends. It was absolutely delicious and the folks who work at Whole Earth are friendly and fast.
Get the sunburger at the deli, and ask for it to be prepared vegan. They have vegan mayo available. It’s served on a toasted whole grain english muffin with a ton of sprouts, shredded carrots, and a bit of vegan mayo and mustard. The sunburger is filling and perfect for a quick bite.

Why is it that every time you go to somewhere with great local products you have to feel like you need to grow out your hair, start composting, and start doing yoga? Nevertheless, Whole Earth Center does have the best selection of local and organic foods in Princeton. They also have a deli area that makes a killer kale salad (I have to get it every time I go there). They have an extensive selection of packaged foods, frozen foods, local dairy (including cheeses from Cherry Grove Farm. Yum!), and a pretty sizable vitamin/​supplement section if you’re into that kind of thing.
In terms of produce, people who aren’t used to seasonality may be disappointed when they go looking for asparagus in, say, December and not find it. But rest assured that the produce you are getting is fresh.
So go, wear your Baja Hoodie, don some dreads, and go shopping! Namaste.

I’m not one to frequent shops like this, but with my family getting older and being more concerned with our health, we decided to take a ride into Princeton and check it out. I have always had a good experience at «Deans» in Red Bank, so I was expecting a something similar.
If you don’t mind being overcharged for supposedly «healthy» items that a snobby & pretentious worker that barely had a moment to help you with, then you should shop here.
My family was made to feel stupid for asking questions about some of their products, most of which, I recognized from bigger food stores for less money. I find the people working at Wegmans, Whole Foods and even Trader Joes to be more informed, more helpful and just plain old nicer.
I don’t need a side of arrogance with my quinoa, thanks. I won’t be back.