Smart & Final Store Tour (plus a great recipe using their private label products!)

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.
#ChooseSmart #CollectiveBias 

Do you have a Smart & Final store near you? We are lucky enough to have two Smart & Finals near our house! On June 5th 2015, the store at 25050 Alessandro Blvd (Moreno Valley, CA) had their Grand Opening. I was curious to see the store layout and what the rebranding of the company was all about, so my family and I went for a little shopping trip to pick up supplies for one of our favorite dinners, Tuna Casserole (recipe is at the end of this post!)

The store really exceeded our expectations! While Smart & Final is a warehouse club (without club fees, though!), it didn’t feel like a warehouse store that might frequently need Platforms and Ladders to either stock up necessities or bring them down. The atmosphere was inviting, the displays were nicely put together (no food stored in boxes on the shelves, they were all nicely displayed), and the produce department looked fresh and delicious!

I loved that there was a section of the store to measure and buy everyday essentials in bulk (like oatmeal, coffee, and even candy).

Since my boys were with me, I had them “help” me look at the store map find the aisles we needed for our Tuna Casserole 😉

We were able to buy a bulk sized bag of egg noodles (which is great because we love our noodles!)

We easily found the rest of our ingredients: tuna, peas, cream of celery soup, crunchy fried onions, cheese, and a loaf a french bread for the side.

The rebranding of the store has a greater emphasis on the “&” in the Smart & Final name. The emphasis is to show that the store wants to be a part of the community it serves: they want to be our friends & neighbors, our warehouse & supermarket, our Smart & Final choice for serving our family’s needs!

Tuna Casserole is one of my family’s favorite comfort foods! I love how simple this meal is to make, no defrosting meat or slow cooking, just a quick meal that can be on the table in less than 40 minutes!

Ingredients:

• 2 cans (5 oz.) of tuna (drained)*
• 1 can (10 3/4 oz) cream of celery soup (cream of mushroom works well, too)
• 1 soup can of water
• 1 cup of frozen peas*
•  4 cups of cooked egg noodle pasta*
• 2/3 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 cups of crunchy fried onions*

* These products can be purchase under the Smart & Final private label, First Street, for great value and quality!

Heat oven to 400 degrees. 
Stir the cooked noodles, cream of celery soup, 1 can of water (use the cream of celery soup can for this), frozen peas, and cheese in an 11 x 7 baking dish. 

Sprinkle the 2 cups of crunchy fried onions on top of the casserole. 

Follow Smart & Final on their social media!
Facebook   //   Twitter

Visit Smart & Final’s website for more information on their products, store openings, etc.!