Sunshine Wholesome Market

This tiny shop is in a great location, right by West End YMCA, I always walk-​in and hope to buy something that we might not have in our area but selection is really small and everything is very expensive (even for organics) but I get it, rents are high in this neighbourhood.
You’ll find a few basics like organic apples, a few root and green veggies, onions, spices if you’re in a pinch, there are also some berries in the fridge, dry bulk items, pastas, nut butters, green cleaning products and personal care items, they also make fresh juices and a few made to order food items.
I’ll keep on occasionally dropping-​by even though I have been there at least 7 times and haven’t bought anything, maybe next time.
The staff are nice :)

I was so happy when I noticed this place, it’s right next to my house. The female owner is usually there and she’s the only person that ever makes me feel welcome (I’ve never met the husband that everyone seems to hate) the rest of the staff is AWFUL. They seem like a bunch of drippy, 20-​something, wanna be feminists that hate their jobs.
Every interaction I’ve ever had w them has been SO awkward. Sometimes I want to grab a sandwich here but I will go to urban herbivore instead bc even their staff is better. It takes literally 11 mins for one of the girls at Sunshine to put chicken on my sandwich w tongs haha.
So to the owner if you read these reviews, try to find some polite, assertive young ladies who make your customers feel as welcome as you do. The sandwich and juice bar are great. Sandwiches are totally well-​priced, juices and grocery a bit on the expensive side but it’s a small business so I understand. Product is 5 star but service is a 1.
ALSO PLEASE WASH YOUR HANDS AFTER YOU TOUCH MONEY AND BEFORE YOU TOUCH MY FOOD. Jesus.

«Meh» is exactly how I feel about this place. I wanted it to be great. When it first opened, I was happy that a health food store would be opening in the area.
On my first visit i remember paying over $ 10 for a smoothie — and not even a big one at that. one. I was (and still am) momentarily shocked every time I have to pay for my smoothie and it totals over 10 dollars for what is basically some protein powder and a banana.
The smoothies are REALLY expensive here, but I guess that is just fine for the yuppie, yoga mom demographic they cater to like all the little health food places in this area.
Anyway, the service is slow, sometimes pretentious and kind of rude. There is one young man who is an exception to the rule. He has a smaller build and a shaggy hairdo — he is friendly and accommodating. There is one woman who works here who is simply not friendly, generally unwelcoming, and vacant seeming. She has dirty blonde hair.
One item which I would like to make a note of is that no one ever seems to wear gloves when they make sandwiches — i find it rather unsanitary. Maybe they are trying to reduce waste by not using gloves, but if you are going to do that, PLEASE be diligent with your hygiene. More than once I have watched people making my sandwich with grimy looking, unwashed hands (don’t ask me why i didn’t say anything at the time). I have never seen anyone wash their hands before making a sandwich. i have had one person stop in the middle of making my sandwich to go finish something else and then come back and continue to place items on my sandwich such as chicken without washing her hands! Gross!!!
It is nice that they offer chicken and bacon for salads/​sandwiches when Urban Herbivore across the street is all vegan, which is kind of annoying.
The selection in grocery items is shitty because its a small store. However, they occasionally have some items that I wouldn’t expect them to have.
Overall, The smoothies and juices are GREATLY overpriced. You can get a beet juice here for about 8 DOLLARS and at Urban Herbivore across the street you can get one for about 3 BUCKS and it tastes way better. The convenience store on the South side of College, a few doors west of Octopus Gardens actually has a greater selection of health food items at comparable prices. The YMCA has a little café where you can get smoothies and sandwiches. I would rather patronize the aforementioned businesses because at least the people who work there are nice.

Great place to grab organic essentials on short notice. I live around the corner so it’s incredibly convenient. Awesome that they carry Rowe farms products, wish they weren’t frozen but not a huge deal. Juice bar is incredible, one of the smoothies actually got rid of a lack-​of-​caffeine headache, which is pretty awesome. I go here at least once a week for basic stuff and they always have what I need. Just what the neighborhood ordered.

I love dropping in here after the gym to grab a smoothie. Yes, it’s a little expensive but I think they’re going rate in the city. I have found the couple to be nothing but friendly and love that they include their kids in the business. It’s a great idea to teach your kids about being healthy by involving them in the process. I personally love that they carry the almond milk on the go packs as they’re difficult to find.

I love this place! I used to live in the neighbourhood and became addicted to the fresh juice bar. I’ve recently moved away but still try to get a juice and do some shopping at Sunshine Natural Foods once a week. Knowledgable and friendly service, a great selection, and the best fresh juice bar in the city!

Small store, selection is minimal. But they have the basics for a health food diet. I purchased some sauerkraut, organic olive oil and organic garlic. There were out of nutritional yeast. Prices were way above Whole Foods and Essence of Life prices.
The big draw were the organic vegetable juices. Prices were, again, slightly higher than normal. My big beef with them (or beef flavoured tempeh, if you will) was the male owner’s response to the juice I ordered. Even though I chose a «make your own option», I was told my option was not suitable and I would have to modify it. So I modified it. I was then told that there would be a 50 cent surcharge (which was not stated anywhere) because cucumbers had been particularly expensive the past few weeks. I was not cool with this and told him that I intended to pay the listed price. A brief argument followed. I paid because I will not ruin my day over 50 cents.
My issues with the surcharge:
–businesses are expected to predict and absorb costs. This is challenging with a small business supplied by local farmers but this is where business management and planning comes in.
–if prices for a good have gone up for a while and you are unable to continue providing it, take it off the menu. Not hard to do when your menu is written on a blackboard.
–if you do not want to take the expensive good off the menu, you need to take some chalk and write next to it in brackets that there is a surcharge.
It is not cool that customers be surprised by prices when they are paying. If there is a surprise, it should be a pleasant one.
Their only saving grace: their daughter was at work with them and she was really adorable.

Sunshine is a very cute little health food store located at Dovercourt and College, across from the Y. They are probably most well known for their smoothie and juice bar. They have a menu board of options or you can make your own. I had a mixed berry and banana smoothie with E3 vegetable protein. It has an ugly green colour, but it tastes so good. It was $ 6 for the smaller size. I also like their selection of organic produce, dairy and specialty foods. I bought a bag of Valencia oranges from them one day and they were so juicy and flavourful. The back part of the store has a fridge with tofu and tempeh products, jars of fresh soup (I recommend the Beet soup), and fresh greens, like salad kale, sprouts, shoots, etc.

Pictures give you a good idea of what it looks like in there… this place is right across from the College/​Dovercourt YMCA… so after a workout one of their smoothies is wickedly satisfying. They have lots of hippie ingredients in them like E3 vegetable protein, spirulina, flax seed oil, but they still taste very good. Also good after to help kill a hangover.
In the back they have a fridge with organic milk (and chocolate milk) in glass jars. Mmmm no growth hormone! Tastes better, too. Gotta pay a $ 2.00 deposit on those badboys, though.

This is a small but attractive «health food store» run by a couple who obviously take pride in their business. They are friendly and accommodating, and seem to enjoy their jobs.
Try the frozen juice treats… they’re home made!

Sunshine Foods is a nice little piece of healthful joy on the strip which I call my home. A good assortment of fresh organic fruits and vegetables, and some more splurge-​y items like daily shipments of what I like to call ‘luxury bread’ (that being any loaf that costs more then $ 5), from my favourite purveyors, Fred’s Bread. The only problem with a loaf of Fred’s Bread is I sometimes can’t eat it quickly enough, and I have an irrational (?) fear of bread mould (which preservatives are better at combating than… none).
Anyway, the city has lots of stores that carry these organic and green-​alternative products, sauces, juices, cleaning supplies, but this particular one feels like my own. The couple who owns it are incredibly sweet and always friendly, and they recently added a fresh (and almost painfully refreshing) juice bar! It seems I don’t even have to cross the street to spend all my money anymore.