Finding a place for a low-key, inexpensive date night can be a challenge. But the new Whole Foods in the Domain might be a very Austin answer to that challenge.

You know we love our Whole Foods here in Austin. But until last night, I never thought of it as a date night option. Grocery shopping just isn’t on my list of romantic activities (although come to think of it I did see a grocery store date night game on Dating Divas the other day.)

But this is something even better. The new Whole Foods has something I’ve never seen at a store…fire pits!

We headed to the hot food bar and loaded up on things like veggie Samosas, sautéed kale and marinated roasted vegetables for me, and salad, Indian Chicken and vegetables for my hubby, then headed outside to enjoy our firelight supper.  Those who want to add wine or beer to their dinner can do that too…the store has a huge selection of both.

The setting was casual and relaxed, with lots of benches to sit on near the fire pits…plus additional seating off to the side if the fire pit area gets too warm.

The new store is within walking distance of the Domain, so you could combine your Whole Foods date with a movie at the iPic, too.

The new Whole Foods is located at 11920 Domain Drive in Austin. They’re open from 8 am to 10 pm everyday, although I would recommend waiting for twilight to head for the fire pits.

Oh, and just one more thing…the fire pits go off as soon as the store closes for the evening, so it won’t work for conversations late into the night. We found that out the hard way, as our cozy fireside supper was suddenly not so fireside!