Auntie Anne’s (Meijer North)
5121 S. Westnedge AvenueI have so many things I really need to fix around the house. I just don’t have time so it keeps getting pushed off.
One of the things high on the list was a new porch light. The last one I bought was an LED light so there was no way to replace the bulbs when it started to dim.
I went to Menards, got a new light, and made quick work of replacing it.
I went to caulk around the light just for that added protection (I’m a shoddy contractor) and I realized I didn’t have enough caulk laying around the garage to go all the way around.
I was heading to a K-Wings game later in the day so I figred I would just stop at Meijer on my way home.
The K-Wings have been playing 4:30 games on Saturday’s this season so I was out of the game around 7:00. I headed over to the Meijer right off I-94 to pick up what I needed. d
As I was checking out, J asked for a couple of things. Boba tea and pretzels. Meijer has shops for both on the way out.
I actually planned on stopping at the Auntie Anne’s inside the Meijer on Westnedge in Kilgore in Portage anyway. I did all my shopping then headed for the mall food court like shop just past the registers on the way out. It’s actually a combo Auntie Anne’s and Cinnabon but I was just there for pretzels this time.
Being an 80’s kid, I grew up with Auntie Anne’s in malls. You could always smell the pretzels well before you found the shop nestled among the Hot Topics and Champs Sports stores that were staples in malls in the 80’s and 90’s. Unfortunately, malls aren’t what they used to be so Auntie Anne’s has expanded outside of malls to spaces like this. They don’t need an entire storefront of their own and it probably wouldn’t be successful. Pretzels are kind of a, that smells good, I’m going to grab one of those kind of stores.
There are two Auntie Anne’s in Portage now. Both are on Westnedge Avenue. One at Meijer north and one is still at the Crossroads Mall.
The thing about Auntie Anne’s is it’s designed to be quick. All of the pretzels are already cooked and sitting in a display case. Pretzels are the original standard but they also have different kinds of pretzel bites. I ordered two pretzels and an order of Pepperoni Nuggets. The cost was just over $21 once I added in two cheese dipping cups for the pretzels.
I started eating the Pepperoni Nuggets. These were really underwhelming. It was just a regular pretzel nugget with a slice of pepperoni on top of it. They were fine but I was expecting something with a little more flavor. They weren’t bad but I should have just saved a little bit of money and ordered the original pretzel nuggets or gone the dessert route with the cinnamon sugar. The savory thing just didn’t do anything for me.
I got two pretzels because I knew I was going to have to share when I got home. Everyone in my house loves pretzels. The two pretzels are classically twisted pretzels with a rich butter flavored topping and thick flaky salt. These pretzels taste like childhood to me. I got two cups of cheese to dip these in but I think it’s really just me who likes to dip pretzels. We ripped up the pretzels so everyone got one. Pretzels so easy and so synonymous with things like food courts and sporting events. Auntie Anne’s are the far superior the frozen ones you get at a ballpark though.
Auntie Anne’s has a big nostalgia factor for me. I used to spend so much time at the Northfield Square Mall in Bourbonnais, IL as a teenager. I wasn’t quite a mall rat but I did a lot of shopping there and hung out at the arcade next to the food court. There even appears to still be an Auntie Anne’s there even though the rest of the mall is in pretty sad shape.
I don’t shop at this Meijer often even though it is probably my favorite Meijer in town now after they did the remodel a few year ago. It will be hard to walk past this shop on my way out when I do. I really like Auntie Anne’s pretzels.
SW Michigan Dining 