Laguna Niguel Loves Whole Foods, More Than 6K at Grand Opening

It's been almost three days and the crowds are still flocking to the at 23922 Aliso Creek Road in the Aliso Village Center.

I made sure I was on hand the first day and it took me 20 minutes to find a parking place. There wasn't a spot to be had; in fact there were four security guards directing traffic. I haven't seen that much traffic at the Aliso Village center since, well, ever!

Shoppers were in line well before 9 a.m, waiting to peruse the aisles and check out what they have long been waiting for, the store to be open.

Again, on Friday, the market was teaming with people eating outside in the open-air seating section, waiting in line for fresh sandwiches to be prepared, making their own salads from the various salad bars, and enjoying hot slices of wood-fired pizza.

According to  more than 6,000 were at the grand opening.

"We are really pleased with how the Laguna Niguel and surrounding areas have welcomed us to the community. We had over 6,000 customers visit us on opening day. The store was bustling, and customers seemed to really be enjoying themselves.

"We were really glad to see the Rock-it Bar was a popular destination for customers. We really want people to think of us as a destination where they can meet friends for a drink and a great meal," he continued. "We have a lot of events planned to welcome people to our store - from cooking classes to beer and wine tastings, and more."

All of the information on upcoming events is posted at the store's calendar at wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/lagunaniguel/.

On Saturday, May 19, Cathy Pavlos from Lucca will be at the store for a cooking class, and on Saturday, May 26, Fabio will be on hand to introduce his new Happy Planet Whey Protein Powder to shoppers.

"We will be posting for several new positions in the next few weeks," he said.

Anyone interested in a position can go to wholefoodsmarket.com/careers/and select the Laguna Niguel location.