On Sunday I decided to take the kids to a produce stand that I saw while driving around in my new neighborhood. Well, I guess it’s not technically a stand, it’s more like a small grocery store. So I packed the kids up, threw the double stroller in the trunk and we were on our way. From JBLM it’s a little less than 15 minutes and from my house it’s only about 4 minutes away! H & L Produce is on the corner of Custer & Lakewood Dr.
We got there around 10:30am and it was pretty quiet (which is what I like when shopping with the kids, makes things a lot faster). There was plenty of parking in an actual parking lot so I didn’t even have to try and parallel park, I’m awful at it.
First thing I see is a big sign for Honey Crisp apples (my favorite) for only $1 a pound! Can you believe it, that’s a great deal! So of course I pick some of those up. They have tons and tons of gorgeous produce that is local and HUGE sweet potatoes. I decided that I would pick up dinner for Monday night since we were having my parents over. I got a couple bunches of asparagus, some stuff to make a nice big salad and some beautiful strawberries. I could have bought a ton of things but I knew there was no way we would be able to eat it all before it went bad.
After checking out the produce we headed over to the meat counter. They had lots of choices in the fresh meat case. Tons of stuffed meats, some marinated meats and just basic cuts. I chose the stuffed Cornish game hens, which I have never had before. Why not give it a shot? They also had smoked meats, sausages, and seafood. There was some tortilla crusted chipotle tilapia that looked amazing. Definitely going back to get that for dinner one night.
After picking out dinner, we wandered around the rest of the place. I took pictures because words just can’t describe everything. On their website they say that it’s like a treasure hunt and it’s so true. There are so many different types of items and hard to find items that there is no way that I could list them all. Dips, sauces, marinades, flavored almond butters, candy, health foods, fresh salsas, Asian foods, cheeses, and so, so much more. I could have spent hours in there looking at everything but I only have so much time with the kids.
One section that I completely missed was the beer and wine section. I need to go back and see what they have. I have heard that they have some pretty unique beers and ones that were at the Olympia Brew Fest this past summer that you can’t buy at the big box grocery stores. I also missed the outdoor section that has pants and pots. I was pretty empty this time of year but I will be curious to see what they will have come spring. I am planning on planting a vegetable garden and hopefully they will have some starts available.
In the end, it was so much fun to wander around and see what they had. I love checking out new places like this and seeing all of the interesting things that they carry. I will be heading back to get more stuff soon.
About the dinner, it turned out amazing! The stuffed hens were so good but they did take longer to cook than what the directions stated. That could have been my over though, I don’t trust it! The asparagus was great and the strawberries were juicy and sweet. Oh, and I had bought a loaf of rosemary and olive oil focaccia bread that was really good. Dinner was a success!
For more information on H & L Produce and to see their weekly specials check out their website http://www.tacomaboys.com/
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