A few days after we moved into our new home, we received the weekly flyers in the mail. Usually they get tossed, because most of our grocery shopping is done at Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. But the Mi Pueblo flyer got our attention. Two pounds of tomatillos for $1 – how could we not check it out? So we drove over that Saturday and found a lot to like. The San Rafael store (330 Bellam Blvd) is their 15th in the Bay Area and just opened earlier this year, in an old Circuit City building (2 points for re-using an existing structure instead of building a new one!) It’s big, shiny, and very colorful (from the pinatas to the agua frescas to the red and yellow shopping carts and so on.)

We were like big kids in a candy store. The panaderia (bakery) is quite impressive (even to a former SF mission dweller) and it took us about 5 minutes to look over all the cases, overflowing with tasty looking sugary treats, and pick a few to try. Unless you speak/read Spanish, or are willing to ask an employee, who may or may not speak much English, you choose based on what looks the best. I loved the shell shaped pastry with a dusting of fine sugar – yeast bread-like and not too sweet.

The bulk section is great. There are, of course, beans of all types. We got a couple pounds of red and black and have been enjoying making slow simmered beans instead of opening a can (thank-you to Rick Bayless for the inspiration we continue to receive from his pbs series and cookbooks.) The spice assortment is phenomenal – big bags of all the staples, plus tons of dried chiles. We plan to get most of our spices here from now on and just refill our existing glass jars. Also on the list was jamaica, otherwise known as dried hibiscus flowers, and, as hoped, they had a large tub of it. Rick Bayless made a pitcher of jamaica cosmos on one episode of his pbs series and we wanted to try it.

Here’s a simple recipe for the basic syrup, mixed with lime juice and water to make a jamaica lime-ade, courtesy of another one of our favorite foodies, Guy Fieri. (Most Friday nights from 9-10 you can find us watching Diners, Drive-ins and Dives – “Triple D” – on the Food Network.) Once you’ve got that mixture, it’s easy to add tequila for a margarita or vodka for a cosmo. We had rum on hand and that was the plan, but Noah showed up with a bottle of my favorite champagne, Gloria Ferrer from Sonoma (we’re driving distance to the vineyard now!) so we created “Jamaica Kir Royales.” They were quite good.

Anyway, back to Mi Pueblo. Our favorite part of the store is the produce department. The selection, freshness, and prices cannot be beat. I mentioned the great sale on tomatillos recently. Likewise, jalapenos (and all the fresh hot peppers), cilantro, limes, garlic, onions, tomatoes – basically everything you need to make salsa and/or guacamole – are always incredibly cheap. For example, the cilantro is usually 4 bunches for $1! Onions, potatoes, mangoes, bell peppers – all priced very low. We do love the farmers market and go almost every week, but on a tight budget it’s nice to do some of our shopping here, save some money, and enjoy the vast, and unique, selection.

You can also find everything else a full service grocery store carries: canned/boxed, dairy, meats/seafood, etc. They have a full-on restaurant at the front, which is always packed. So, if you’re craving a taco, agua fresca (love ‘em), or full meal, that’s an option, too. And, I mentioned the wall full of pinatas – fun for the whole family!

Here’s what we got last Saturday:
* celery
* radishes
* romaine lettuce
* onions (1 white, 2 yellow)
* bell peppers (1 green, 1 yellow)
* russet potatoes (5)
* hot peppers (1 anaheim, 2 pasilla, 1 jalapeno, 3 serrano)
* avocados (2)
* mango

Total = $10.53