Trader Joe's comes to Kansas City! (finally.)

Yes, I braved the crowds during opening weekend of Trader Joe's here in Kansas City.  And yes, I was a huge dork and took my camera with me.  Would you expect anything less?

I went with my friend Bev of BevCooks, so I wasn't alone in the geeking out and thorough documentation of a seemingly somewhat arbitrary experience.

I've been waiting for this day ever since the announcement was made.  When I was in college in Boston, Trader Joe's was a regular spot for me.

This makes keeping fresh flowers in the house a bit easier to swallow.

$8.99?  Are you fucking kidding me?  Yes, please.

Produce.

Bargains.

SAUCES.

Meat.  Their meat looked pretty good.  Everything was nice and pink, no yellow tints in sight.

Again, are you fucking kidding me?  I can feel good about eating this and not run through my life savings (which is EXTREMELY impressive, let me tell ya).

Does Three Buck Chuck have the same ring?  Guess not.  Rumors fly that this wine is so cheap because airlines are no longer allowed to use corkscrews, so they had to dump their stocks of wine; or, that Charles Shaw was victim of a nasty divorce and priced the wine low enough to eliminate profits that would be shared with his now ex-wife.  Neither of which are true.  It's just plain business.  Demand slowed with the economy, so this winery took a creative approach - cheaper grapes, cheaper operating costs, cheaper wine, still great taste, more volume.

SAMPLES.  I tried some great chicken apple sausage; looked at the back of the package to pleasantly find that each link (about the size of a typical hot dog) was only 120 calories.  Into our cart it went!  I avoided the infamous Trader Joe's Mac & Cheese, despite its very enticing smell, thanks to it's nearly 800 calories per box.  I'd say that's some real cheese in there.

Frozen goodies.  And Carrie.  We're pals.  She put up with Bev and I taking pictures every 13 seconds.  Gold star for the day.

WHOLE TARTS.  Ready to go.

These will be perfect to have on-hand for out-of-town guests.  Freshly-baked croissants and none of the dough rolling and refrigerating and rolling and refrigerating.

Love the colors of this packaging.  Doesn't hurt that it's chocolate.

The spoils, ready to come home with mama.

That's how it's done!

We three foodie amigas had a great idea for this particular Sunday.  Not only were we going to experience TJ's for the first time together, but we were going to take our spoils, combine our forces, and make dinner together, along with our husbands.  Well, they were really just along for the ride, drinking summer brew and chatting it up.

We decided to make TACOS.  3 kinds of tacos, no less.  In the spirit of trying new things that TJ's has to offer and keeping it simple on a Sunday afternoon, we picked up these guys:

And did this to them.  Well, The Stallion did it.  Don't blame me.

Along with some veggies to add to our smorgasbord of accoutrements for our tacos.  I used the word accoutrement A TON yesterday, and I felt so pretentious saying it that I would practically whisper it.  But I couldn't think of a better word.  Bev recommended 'shit' (after sampling the twobuckchuck) - as in, 'Add some of this shit and some of this shit and this taco will be really fucking good'.  Bev doesn't cuss a lot, promise.  We finally decided on toppings to keep me from sounding like a total food snob. (phew.)

I'm not the only one!

The Stallion and Bev's husband commiserated over cold meals and grumbling, impatient stomachs.

Accoutrements.  Ahem, toppings.  That there on the right is TJ's Avocado Salsa Verde.  I found it fitting that I subconsciously recreated the Mexican flag with these bad boys.  All the way on the left is Bev's yummy salsa (she has a super secret trick to making it yummy; except she blogged about it this morning).

My fam was over watching the Women's FIFA World Cup.  No networks carried it.  Dumb.  Also dumb - the US Team's loss.

That Pollo Asado?  YUM.  It was whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts, already pounded out flat.  And marinated in an Asado sauce.  Obviously.

Ditto that on the beef top sirloin.

Tilapia rubbed with a magic spice rub.

Quick-Pickled Veggies for some TANG.

Warmed up on the grill.

My beef creation.  Corn tortilla, carne asada, grilled bell peppers, queso fresco, avocado salsa verde, lime cilantro.

The Stallions chicken creation.  Flour tortilla, pollo asado, grilled corn, pickled veggies, grilled bell pepper, avocado, lime, cilantro.  Every taco concoction should end with lime and cilantro.  It's a rule.

Contentment. 

Sunday Funday was an absolute success.  My only regret was that it was not Saturday and we all had strict bedtimes.  Bummer.