starbucks at walmart a delicious pairing #deliciouspairings #cbias

This Starbucks at Walmart post has been compensated as part of a shopper insights study for Collective Bias®.

The weather on Cape Cod has been brutally cold, gray, and downright miserable. When I saw the weather forecast for this week, I quickly planned a fun afternoon Spring Break playdate on Thursday afternoon with a girlfriend of mine and her son. I wanted to have a fun treat for the kiddos and a fancy drink for us!

I hopped in my car on Tuesday morning and made the trip to Walmart in Plymouth. The shopping center there; it reminds me of the open-air shopping that we so enjoyed when we lived in Florida. I made my way to the back of the shopping center where the Walmart is located and headed inside.

Because it’s a bit of a drive for me, I don’t shop at Walmart often. I don’t remember the bakery being so big! I love how much space they all between aisles. There is nothing worse than trying to navigate a wide cart down a skinny aisle. While in the bakery, I searched for the Starbucks display, but the store did not have one. That was disappointing as I was really looking forward to seeing it.

What they did have was The Bakery at Walmart Chocolate Chip Cookies. If you know me in real life than you know that Chocolate Chip Cookies are my second favorite cookie in the world {the leader is a minty treat only available from pushy little girls once a year!}. I couldn’t believe how many boxes of Chocolate Chip Cookies they had. I put two in my cart.

And then put one back on the shelf. No need to be greedy.

Because it was so close to Easter, I thought perhaps the store put the Starbucks display in another area to help boost bakery sales. After walking the entire store, I realized that was not the case. Be sure to look for the display in your store and let me know if you see it! Disappointed, I found my way to the coffee aisle only to see that the Starbucks Caffe Verona Roast was sold out. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find an employee to ask if there might be more Starbucks Caffe Verona Roast in the stockroom.

My check out experience was wonderful. The cashier was so friendly and even complemented me on my hair! Her comments caught me off guard, and I forgot to ask her if she knew anything about the Starbucks display. A few kind words and my brain is like scrambled eggs!

Fast forward to Wednesday, where it rained and was cold. There’s an old saying about the weather in New England, it goes something like this: “If you don’t like the weather, wait a minute and it will change.” That is true, particularly in the Spring! I headed back to Walmart, in the rain, to grab the Starbucks Caffe Verona Roast. HOORAY! They had it in stock, but still no display. Finally, the cookies would stop taunting me. I really wanted to pair them with the coffee on Thursday afternoon.

Thursday morning, my friend called to cancel our afternoon playdate. Seems the crazy Spring weather caused her family to get sick. That happens a lot around here, sometimes it’s allergies, sometimes is a full blown cold. Whatever it is, it’s always best to stay home when you’re sick.

I convinced The Texan that a coffee date night would be a fun way to celebrate the pending arrival of Spring. Spring Date Night, at home! Woo-hoo! We waited for The Boy to go to bed – yep, we didn’t want to share the cookies! – and I brewed us each a cup of the Starbucks Caffe Verona Roast and piled a few cookies on a plate.

Because I wanted to ensure we’d taste the milk and dark chocolates and caramelized sugar notes of the coffee, I served it black. Typically, I like my coffee with half & half, The Texan takes his with coconut sugar. Once the first cup finished brewing, I knew that we would both enjoy this coffee. Our house smelled delicious!

We headed into our den and enjoyed the coffee with the cookies. I noticed that when having the coffee and cookie together, the flavor was evident. When I sipped on the coffee in the kitchen, I was wondering “what’s that flavor”. It’s fascinating to me that pairing certain foods and beverages together can enhance both!

It was nice to relax with The Texan and try something new. We rarely have a coffee date, usually I reserve that for girlfriends. Perhaps we’ll have another again soon!

If you’re wondering, there were just a few cookies left…and we enjoyed seconds on the coffee!

Have you tried the Starbucks Caffe Verona or The Bakery at Walmart cookies?

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a shopper insights study for Collective Bias®. All thoughts, experiences, and opinions shared are my own, your experiences and opinions may vary. #cbias #SocialFabric #DeliciousPairings