This Professional Meeting Planner Has an Enviously Methodical Approach to Grocery Shopping

Name: Linnyette Richardson-Hall
Location: Plano, TX
Age: 61
Number of people in household: 1
Occupation: Meeting Planner
Where you shopped: Tom Thumb®

Grocery hauls aren’t just what you fill your cart with: They’re also the possibilities that spring from a single trip to the store. Inside all those shopping bags are potlucks with friends, family game nights, comfort meals when we need them most, and nutritious starts to the school day. So we don’t only want to know what ingredients folks are buying — we also want to know what moments they’re making with them.

For Linnyette Richardson-Hall, those moments include meal prepping, making easy dinners for one, and hosting her famous Sunday Suppers. And they all begin at Tom Thumb®. That’s where Linnyette knows she can find high-quality ingredients for all of her meals without breaking her budget. “My store is less than 10 minutes from my residence. This is perfect for my schedule and my gas tank!” she says. “And I know that the products are fresh, stored well, and rotated so that as a customer, I’m getting the best.” Linnyette has her grocery routine down to a science. Here’s how she does it.

It’s more like strategies, plural, because Linnyette has a lot of them. “I meal prep on the weekends, so I shop early on Saturday mornings — like, literally when the store opens,” she says. “It allows me to get ahead of the crowd, use my store geography strategy, and get back home before noon.” She also learns when stores receive deliveries, uses the Tom Thumb®4 U rewards program, and doesn’t shop hungry.

Unsurprisingly, Linnyette is big on meal planning. “I meal plan using a ‘list strategy.’ I make conscious decisions on what the menu will be for the week (including any meals which will include guests), peruse the weekly circular for deals and discounts, then write a list in my handy-dandy notebook that stays in my purse,” she says. “I categorize items based on the store layout and write out everything that I’ll need.”

Linnyette loves a meal prep moment and encourages people to make the process fun and interesting. She meal preps every weekend and always includes roasted chicken, green beans, and potatoes (among other things). For Linnyette, the joy happens when she plays around with preparation and presentation. “You can do this as a sheet pan meal, or you can make it as a casserole dish,” she says. “It makes a great sandwich or chicken salad the next day, too.”

When the topic of Sunday Supper surfaces, Linnyette’s face lights up. Every Sunday, she whips up a hearty menu of “heavy hitters” to enjoy with family, friends, or even just herself. “This is a tradition that I grew up with and continue to this day,” she says. One of her favorite things to make is Brown Sugar & Bacon Brussels Sprouts. “Bacon is nature’s candy and nature’s duct tape,” she says. Amen to that.

A born planner, Linnyette loves to host friends and family. She also likes to make a splash with her presentation, as you can see in her Shrimp & Three Cheese Grits “On the Rocks” stunner, served in a parfait glass. “I show all the way out when I do this,” she says. “It’s a little something made with love.”

Let’s bust a myth right here, right now: Cooking for one doesn’t have to be difficult or boring. You just have to think outside of the serving size. When she knows she’s going to work late, Linnyette preps what she calls her “single girl chronicles” meal: Taco Stuffed Spaghetti Squash. “I work from home and my client portfolio consists of companies nationwide, so those time zones can be something else! When I know I’ve got a late meeting on the books, I intentionally craft a lighter dinner so I won’t get sleepy or lethargic from a heavier meal.” Spaghetti squash has a good texture and absorbs flavor well, so she keeps dinner exciting by playing with proteins and experimenting with spice level.

We’re almost finished talking about Sunday Supper… almost. (Can you blame us?) Linnyette always finishes the night with a little dessert. “I’m not a big sweets person, but my friends and loved ones are,” she says. After a menu of heavy hitters, she likes to serve something light, like these Salted Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bites. If that doesn’t inspire you to start your own Sunday Supper tradition, we don’t know what will.

With fresh seasonal produce, restaurant-quality prepared food, and top-notch pantry staples, Tom Thumb® can make all your moments more delicious.