Day 6 - back in Las Vegas

Tuesday morning, I was eager to get up and finally see my hosts (who were in Memphis for the weekend). After a little catching up and finally meeting baby Eli (born in September), we headed out for lunch to In-N-Out.

Yes, this is still a vegetarian blog, but I'd promised the SO that we'd go and I remembered from a previous trip that they had some rockin' french fries (prepared for frying on site daily!). I also knew of the not-so-secret secret menu that had some vegetarian-friendly items. So I ordered the grilled cheese, fries and a strawberry milkshake.

Oh. Oh.

Generally speaking, I think that "American cheese" is an oxymoron. Though I grew up loving the stuff, you can't easily get me to eat a Kraft single. And don't even ask me about Thousand Island dressing--I don't touch the stuff. But this sandwich was delicious. I don't know--maybe I was extra hungry (I did send the SO inside for another order of fries), but it was one of the most enjoyable sandwiches I've had in a while. And the fries--they really are very good. Crisp and tasty, not too oily and never limp. When In-N-Out talks about their food quality, they ain't lyin'.

Could I have lived without the second order of fries? Yes, but I think my life is that much better for having them. In-N-Out: salted thumbs up.

For dinner, I decided to treat my guests to some lasagna. I had a request for no mushrooms, so I subbed in freshly-roasted red peppers. And you know what? I really liked the addition of that flavor, so I intend to add it to my recipe (though I'm keeping the mushrooms when I cook at home). When it was time to shop for dinner, I decided to take the opportunity to check out the local Trader Joe's. TJ's is a legend in the vegetarian communities and all my friends from out west seem to lament the fact we don't have them in Tennessee, so I was eager to check it out.

Meh.

First off, it was tiny and cramped. And had the all the ambience of an outdated Piggly Wiggly. The lighting was harsh and made the place seem dirty and the food look unappetizing. But I could really get past that if they actually had the items I wanted. I didn't think I was getting too exotic, but I couldn't find squash or zucchini or a red pepper. And I wasn't thrilled about the cheese, pasta or sauce selection. It was like a gourmet Aldi without the produce selection. It just had a very narrow selection that didn't even seem to included what I would think are basics. But there were some nice-looking convenience foods and I did see that collection of very cheap wine (though I didn't buy any). I did buy some fleur-de-sel caramels on the advice of my host. And some other candy. But I had to go to Whole Foods for everything else I needed to prepare dinner. So my trip to Trader Joe's was a fairly big disappointment. Nonetheless, now I know what it's like. I guess I'd go once in a while for some specialty items, but it wouldn't be my weekly trip. Trader Joe's: one thumb up, one thumb down; neutral thumbs.

Up next: the SO eats more sea critters and we eat at a high-concept Mexican restaurant that I actually like.