LOTD: Never not shop at Trader Joe's

I've been in New York for two days now, and my immediate life plans have changed. They now involve getting a refund on my dorm for the summer, permanently moving into Chelsea Market, sleeping there at night and eating there all day. To combat all the food consumption, I'll be getting exercise as I pace back and forth in front of the Food Network elevators.

Well, that was my life plan yesterday. Today, I realized that, as incredible as Chelsea Market is (so incredible that I plan to return tomorrow), inhabiting it on a 24/7 basis would mean limiting myself – because New York City offers a whole world (er, city) of food. And I only have two months to eat it all.

Here's what I've learned and experienced so far in the city that offers a liquor delivery store (yes, I saw one today and was impressed).

1. I can choose restaurants on a whim.

Lemongrass rice with tofu is part of the Thursday special.

I spend as much time staring at menus and picking out restaurants as the next girl (excessive amounts – see recent TIME article about us millennials), but apparently in New York, I can do just as well without all of that.

On my way to my (intended) first destination, which would entail purchasing food for my dorm (a.k.a grocery shopping), I made a spontaneous decision to purchase food for my stomach. I saw a sign that said on Thai Thursdays (today), the spot offers $10 meals of lemongrass rice, mixed greens, and Thai iced tea. I immediately thought, "Lunchtime!" The restaurant was called Dee Daa, and it seemed like a straightforward fast casual concept. It's an Americanized version of a Thai restaurant. Like the Chipotle of Southeast Asian cuisine.

The food was not super authentic, but it was quick, affordable, and seemed decently healthy. It was also tasty (not exploding with flavor like most Thai dishes do, but rather carefully balanced). They deliver, which is a huge plus, and offer a discount for locals, and I'm currently dreaming about that iced tea. Next time I want to try the pad see ew with kale.

2. Always shop at Trader Joe's. Never not shop at Trader Joe's.
That's the #LOTD (Lesson of the Day). My main mission today was to go grocery shopping at Trader Joe's, about a 20-minute hike from my dorm. Being the incredibly ridiculous, food-obsessed person that I am, I for some reason decided to post-game my lunching and pre-game my grocery shopping by walking into another grocery store.

Across from a Fairway Market, which I'd presume to be affordable, I noticed a specialty grocery store that literally had the word "fancy" in its name. So I was curious. As soon as found these, I got sucked into the shenanigans, despite the high price tags:

Happy Hippos: I first discovered these in the Land of Milk and Honey

I walked out of the store with those Happy Hippos and three items that Trader Joe's later showed me were a stupid mistake.

• Unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze almond milk: Half the price at TJ's
• Extra creamy hummus: Couldn't resist because I've been trying to find something comparable to Israeli hummus, but I soon found out that the particularly creamy Mediterranean-style hummus at Trader Joe's was featured in the Flyer and on sale this week.
• 1 50-cent banana: Bananas cost only 19 cents at TJ's.

3. I'm going back to Eataly.

Tagliatelle from the Pizza/Pasta mini restaurant at Eataly

A ginormous gourmet Italian food market with accompanying mini restaurants, Eataly is in the Flatiron District, right across from Madison Square Garden. I went today with my friend, who called it an Italian food theme park. When you enter, you realize there's so much to look at and don't know where to begin. Fresh pasta? Meats? Cheeses? Focaccia bread? Gelato?

I definitely plan on returning for some grocery shopping, but tonight I specifically ate dinner there. The pasta was the freshest I've ever tasted. Whenever I finally get myself to Italy, I hope that's what everything tastes like. I ordered the tagliatelle with short rib ragu (who comes up with these things?!), and I tried a bite of my friend's lemony ravioli sprinkled with pistachio nuts.

And then I returned home for dessert – chocolate I bought at Trader Joe's. I can always count on TJ's.