Whole Foods in Midtown to open full-service restaurant

Whole Foods Market on Ponce de Leon in Midtown Atlanta is already a hub of activity for the residents and visitors to the area. A new restaurant inside the store, planned to open next spring, will add to the attraction of the destination. Photo: courtesy Whole Foods

Whole Foods Market on Ponce de Leon in Midtown Atlanta is already a hub of activity for the residents and visitors to the area. A new restaurant inside the store, planned to open next spring, will add to the attraction of the destination. Photo: courtesy Whole Foods

The Whole Foods Market in the Midtown Place shopping center plans to add a full-service restaurant to its expanded footprint.

According to the retail and restaurant publication What Now Atlanta, the new restaurant inside the grocery story, to be called The Roast, will offer full service, live music, beer and wine on tap.

The style-conscious grocery emporium recently expanded into space once occupied by Staples office supplies next door, adding nearly 5,000 square feet. It describes itself as “the world’s leading natural and organic grocer.”

What Now Atlanta reports that the new restaurant will open early next spring. Located at 650 Ponce de Leon Ave., Midtown Place is across Ponce de Leon Avenue from the massively popular Ponce City Market, and adjacent to the Beltline, the economic engine for dozens of construction projects.

The shopping center is located in a gently-sloping natural bowl that was once Ponce de Leon Park, home of the Atlanta Crackers.

The new restaurant would be the latest element in a wave of re-development in the area, and should take advantage of the crowds of millennials and young professionals drawn to the area.