Tips for Trader Joes
 

We’re going there later. I’ve heard recommended on here a few times now, never been before.
Any tips for what’s good?

Thanks in advance

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

It is a good German company (owned by the family that own Aldi). Consequently, anything German. I always buy loads of their excellent greeting cards too incidentally...

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I love TJ’s! You will be pleasantly surprised by the choice of goodies! If you are lucky the one you visit will also have alcohol....always good value, sadly my local store doesn’t. My only gripe is that when I really get to love something, they discontinue it....for example they used to have a fab crunchy lemon ice cream with lemon zest in it, but sadly no more.

You can have a free sample of coffee and they usually give out small samples of some food they are promoting.

Too much to list here but they currently have a lot of seasonal produce in....I’ve just bought a frozen creme-brûlée tart and ‘Wassail’ drink mix to add to red wine (for mulled wine) ;) Oh, and Jingle Jangle ice-cream (it’s very nice!).

I love their English Coastal Cheddar (from Dorset) and Irish Blend tea bags (more like Typhoo tea bags.....their English breakfast tea bags are much weaker than the Irish ones btw).

They sell crumpets! :thumbsup:

They also have (in the frozen section) Balti chicken pies and steak & ale pies.
Frozen bags of risotto rice (with asparagus or mushroom). Also frozen polenta with veggies.

Their fresh meat is mostly pretty good, no antibiotics and tbh most of the produce in TJ’s is non-GMO with quite a lot of organic stuff too.

Argentinian (large) shrimp. Excellent value and quality.

Their bags of salads are varied and good value, and I always buy blueberries and bananas there.

I always buy the halved walnuts there....the price is good compared to my other local supermarkets.

I do find that their breakfast cereals can be a bit hit or miss (they don’t seem to be very nutritious when I read the labels) but I am currently using their ‘Heart Healthy’ whole grain blueberry instant oatmeal with flaxseed and plant sterols (I add walnuts, fresh blueberries and some slices of banana).


Lots of choice of (healthy) chips and dips....I love their low-fat spinach and kale dip in Greek yoghurt and the 3 layered hummous.

Fresh flowers are very inexpensive.

You do need to watch the bread though....a lot of variety inc. pretzels and part baked baguettes...but as they don’t use (many?) preservatives it does go stale quickly and you have to watch the dates on the labels.

Www.traderjoes.com

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Agreed. Also, their produce is not so great. I love their frozen Indian food (Lamb Vindaloo, Chicken Tikka). I also really like their frozen pizza. Another highlight is their Greek Yogurt, although my wife prefers their 'european style' yogurt. Belgium chocolate is tasty and cheap. And if you like hot sauce get their habanero sauce.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

For some British goodies: the English coastal cheddar and Welsh cheddar, sponge candy (which are like crunchie bars) and the English fudge which is amazing.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

My tip is to avoid the place. :lol:

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I agree.

We went there once, and while we wouldn't rule out going back, the range of products was very limited - want crisps? We have these! Want crackers? We have these! Want olives? ..... Oooh look! We can choose "black" or "green"! :thumbsup:

It was like a trip back in time to the era before supermarkets, when you went to the corner shop and bought whatever products the storekeeper had decided to stock. :lol:

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Their "Charles Shaw" brand of wine is a passable vin ordinaire. It's nickname is "Two Buck Chuck" from it's old California price of $1.99 a bottle. (One daughter lives in New York state which prohibits wine sales in grocery markets. Alcohol sales are regulated by the individual states).

Here in California, milk and eggs are a good deal. I like their mini shredded wheat breakfast cereal.

I like salt-free crunchy peanut butter. TJ is the only store that carries it.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Also Empire Kosher turkey breasts are good if the store carries them

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

One opened near me about 5 years ago, so I went, and I don't think I bought anything. Similarly a World Market recently opened in Clearwater. I went last week. Felt like a Tourist Trap, but it is my US colleagues that rave about both!

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Perhaps I am still too British, but I don't find the (comparative) lack of choice to be a problem since, for the most part, I like the specific things that they actually have on the shelves.

There's an Italian deli nearby which I can go to *if* I want to agonize over which of 20 different kinds of olive I want to buy but, for the most part "what I want" when buying olives is "green" or "black".

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Of course, every Trader Joes product is identical to a brand name product. I believe Trader Joes Greek Yogurt is actually Stonyfield yogurt.

https://www.eater.com/2017/8/9/16099...-joes-products

Most of the time the Trader Joes product is cheaper as well.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Their french cheeses are amazing! Try the "mini basque" a half round of sheeps milk cheese straight from my part of France - the Pyrenees. They have stilton in pots, lovely goats cheese - if they have any of the goats cheeses with jalapeno in it - yummy! Welsh cheddar - bit pricey but very nice. They have a salami secchi ( dried sausage) which even my Italian neighbour loves. Duck pate?
They have some very nice french wines for about $13 a bottle. I can't remember exactly what its' called but it a St Emilion. It costs more in France! Trader Joe's own label champagne at $20 is a very good buy.
They have traditional french pizzas - tarte d'alsace (onions and creme fraiche). goats cheese and tomato are both excellent.
real creme fraiche at a decent price
Their french village yoghourt is really lovely and creamy and if you get the plain one, it has no sugar added.
In the produce section they have a sachet of cooked puy lentils which is really good - cook them with onions and bacon and diced carrot to make a lovely french style lunch.

Love the place.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I love TJs. My favs include their own brand kurig coffee cups, cheese, avocados, salad in general... not so much fruit, jalipino hummus, organic frozen brown rice , organically c chicken breasts and tenders, empire kosher chicken, their chicken and veggie low sodium broths, washing up liquid, washing liquid for clothes (unscented) kitchen towels, loo roll, organic olive oil popcorn., wine, (any!) sparkling water, organic whole wheat pasta, honey, raw almonds individually packaged.... Ive just written out my upcoming shopping list! I also always have a mini coffee and whatever nosh is on offer. 🙄
Oh and first pressed olive oil and coconut oil

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

:goodpost:(s)

I couldn't agree more. I went in one once and that was once too often to visit a place with wilted produce, dirty floors and over priced meat.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

We don't buy their produce. Other than the kosher turkey breasts, we don't buy their meat.

TJ is, in no way, a general supermarket. Our local TJ is across the street from Gelson's Market. Daughter's local TJ is in the same shopping center as Wegmans. (I wish Wegmans was in CA, but I digress). One goes to TJ for specific items they are good at.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Love TJs, but it's not a general grocery store to us. For a start, it's over an hour's drive away, but when we go, we stock up on some staples, mostly frozen. The French Onion Soup is a fave of the wife and I really like their Indian frozen meals and really good grlic naans to mop it up. I like to spice them up a little with some ghost pepper sauce sometimes, too!

For quick meals, it's hard to beat the mandarin Chicken paired with some fried rice. WE usually find some other good things to try and the cheese selection, as has been mentioned previously, is hard to beat. Prices, on the whole, are pretty reasonable too!

Just like any store, there are good things and not-so-good. You decide, but if you don't like it, don't go. That leaves one more of the usually sparse parking spaces for me!

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Our Trader Joes is right next door to a very good supermarket (Healthy Living in Burlington, VT.) 130 miles from where we live, unfortunately.

Both have a very good selection of wine. Apart from that, I find that they complement each other - bread, produce, cheese, other fresh food from the supermarket, food in jars and cans, frozen yummies etc. from TJs. My wife loves capers for instance, we get those at TJs.

I like French wine, and they always have a decent selection of claret at TJs.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I love TJs and find it so reasonably priced compared to other supermarkets local to here, it is generally 25% cheaper overall.
I happily buy their fresh produce, love their cheeses, polenta, the Chinese section in the freezer is fantastic, their rice cracker nuggets are gorgeous, l have hardly bought anything that we don't like and if we do, they happily refund you.
The only thing l don't like is their bread and bakery items but l just buy them elsewhere.
Enjoy!!!!

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Bananas

Chocolate bars

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

1lb of Belgian chocolate! I take them on camping trips....

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

and do not bring them back?

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

sure I do! on my hips...;)

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I mainly buy cheese, coffee and nuts from TJs and creme fraiche. I bought the famous "Turkey & Stuffing en Croute" that was advertised everywhere for Thanksgiving as I was making a vegetarian option (Mushroom Wellington) and had 2 meat eaters and I couldn't be bothered to do a whole turkey. They said it was good.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Chocolate Brooklyn Babka
Sliced French Brioche
Everything but the Bagel Seasoning
Lemon Curd
Chicken Tikka Samosas (frozen)
Pepper Jelly
Cookie Butter
Chocolate Croissants (frozen)
Chicken Soup Dumplings (frozen)
Shrimp Tempura (frozen)
Shrimp Nuggets (frozen)
Cookie Butter Cookies

Just a few off the top of my head 🙂

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

oh yeah! Forgot about the frozen croissants. My french friends all buy them. They are really good and so much better than anything we can buy "fresh" locally

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Add me as another HUGE TJ fan. Sadly the closest is almost an hour away, but when we have to travel that way, I insist we stop in.

Flaxseed Tortilla Chips (aka crisps)

Cheapest bananas anywhere (+ decent with it!)

Triple Ginger Cookies (yum!)

Frozen Green Beans (--for some reason these are SO good!)

Frozen Edamame

Frozen Indian hors d'oeuvres of ANY kind

Trail Mixes of many types

Irish Breakfast Teabags (strong!)



And more I can't remember right now. Plus low prices on much of their stuff--terrific!! Just have a wander around--some are smallish shops, & some are big.

P.S. I think their products used to be healthier overall. Decades ago when I fist discovered TJ, their stuff seemed super healthy, free of sugar, etc. Now you have to check the ingredient list.... :(

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Oh and another one I forgot yesterday... the TJ factor 50 spray on sun lotion is the BEST... I actually read a report on it an it came out really well. I never burn with it.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Their Bulgogi

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

What on Earth is Bulgogi? Is it Korean? :unsure:

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I would have to agree with you *if* I had ever experienced those things.

It seems that individual TJ stores vary quite a lot in terms of the way that they "feel" and present themselves. I have never experienced "wilted produce" or "dirty floors" at either of my local stores (but, if I had, it certainly would have put me off going back there) - on the other hand I have visited a couple of stores on the East coast and was somewhat less impressed.

I agree that their meat is expensive but I don't buy very much meat in the first place and, in any case, I don't need or expect to be able to buy everything in one place. My weekly grocery shopping takes me to Trader Joe's, Whole Foods (for their fresh Tuna salad and very little else), Safeways and a locally owned independent store.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I concur it is not a market where one would do their full weekly shopping. It is like whole foods for me. If I go through Sidell, LA on my way to New Orleans I will stop and perhaps pickup an item or three that I can't get in Mississippi.

Other than the condition of the store and its produce which was very off putting for me, I don't particularly care for much of their frozen foods, particularly anything that hints at curry or Indian. Irish products I was able to get around the corner from my apartment, including the freshest meats and poultry, including English imported Cadbury, Roses, Quality Street, Bisto, Bird's custard, Hob Nobs, etc. I had stopped twice in TJ only because my daughter liked it and thought, hey why not stop and give it a try. After the second time, I was cured.

Trader Joe's just as with any other chain can be hit or miss as to its condition and stock. The best TJMaxx I ever was in was in Pittsfield, MA and the worse was in Hartsdale, NY.

It's great that transplanted residents to the US have someplace that they can go and find the things that they love and perhaps crave. I know I can only wish that there were someplace in MS that could fill the void for me.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Oh, and I've never thought to buy meat there (--I go to Stop&Shop for that) but TJ's fresh fish is pretty great. Not exactly as cheap as many TJ items, but very good--love their salmon.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

We buy the vast majority of our meat there. Getting quality meat in the USA isn't as easy as I remember it being in the UK. Everything is so fatty (and antibiotic-laden), but the meat at Trader Joes tends to be lean and tasty. I buy a lot of staples there.

I'm kind of a health nut, so I purchase their tuna because it's the only brand in the region that doesn't have preservatives (it also tastes better), and I buy their tomato sauce. The sauce costs the same as a regular grocery store, tastes better, and has a nice set of ingredients. OH! They also have fantastic fig newtons... if you're into those. I know that's a love-it-or-hate-it item.

They also have some of the best-priced salmon around, and some affordable wild-caught Atlantic cod. I should qualify that I think their selection varies by area, but that pretty much sums up the things that make me smile from there.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I rarely go to TJ's, there's not enough reason to drive the 10 miles to buy the odd item. If I'm in the area I'll take a look around but rarely find much of interest.
Most of the local chain stores sell the odd British items, Colemans Mint Sauce, HP sauce, Bisto Gravy Granules. Avoid ready made meals and soups, far too much salt for someone with high Blood Pressure.
Has anyone been to 'Sprouts' not sure how wide spread they are. 'Ranch 99' Asian Markets are an interesting experience.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I have a couple of (Tetra Park) boxes of TJ’s low sodium organic cream of tomato soup, low sodium organic tomato soup with red peppers; they are delicious!

I also have some tins of their organic vegetarian chili, which is fab comfort food with a baked potato :thumbup:

Our TJ’s is about a decade old, but very clean and the staff are very friendly and helpful. They are a good employer, with employees getting good healthcare benefits.

Trader Joe’s will not move into stores with a very large floor space. In our township, “Wholefoods” moved about a mile up the road into a town with lower taxes, just off the Interstate 78 and with a vast amount of floor space with a dedicated dining area for eating the prepared salads, pizzas and other hot food. There is also a sectioned off bar/dining area. I rarely bother to go there anymore.

However, when ‘Wholefoods’ vacated their store to move up the road, there was a huge effort by residents of the local towns to persuade ‘Trader Joe’s’ to move in....they were inundated with requests and TJ’s moved in; the unit was divided into two and PetCo (or PetSmart) took the other half. The store is always busy and the parking lot is a nightmare with non-attentive drivers almost running shoppers over :ohmy:

Sadly they don’t sell alcohol as our township has a strict limit on how many licences are issued and there are a lot of restaurants in our town (there is the popular Paper Mill theatre where a lot of productions have been or are about to go to Broadway) and the mall at the other end of town. In fact, the Cheesecake Factory paid a whopping $2.3 million for a liquor licence at the mall! :eek:

I’m surprised that parent company Aldi hasn’t tried to bring a similar version of Trader Joe’s into Europe and Australia....I’ve never understood why they bring in odd items eg things like scales, taps, shower curtains for the bathroom, gardening and camping equipment, kitchen equipment, keep fit/cycling/ski clothing, car maintenance products etc. every Thursday, never to be seen again until the following year! There is an Aldi about 15 minutes from where we live and it is very small and not very clean-looking and nothing like the European stores.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

The Welsh, Colliers cheese is great and it's usually about half the cost of regular grocery stores.

TJ's, bit hit or miss though, some locations are great, others are a bit scabby. They all suffer from really poor parking spaces.

Snacks are usually good though and the dairy/frozen food line.

If you've got one that has beer/wine, the selection isn't to bad on a budget.

Fresh goods, very hit or miss. Seems to suffer far more seasonal issues and on local market than the bigger grocery stores. Not bad in summer, bit meh in winter, down my way.

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

I went in with a new to the USA Italian woman this afternoon - it was really nice to see her face light up at all the Italian goodies she could buy - and cheaply too!

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

The Unexpected Cheddar is excellent

Loads of great bries and cold meats

The pre-marinated pork tenderloins are handy to keep in the freezer. The meat generally is good.

Around St Patrick's Day they do good Irish Bangers.

Great salads for lunch - DH quite often buys several for the work week

Meringues
Crumpets
Frozen leeks
Lemon curd
Naan bread that doesn't cost the earth

My kids love the 6-packs of yogurt

Bags of dried fruit and nuts of many types

I like the lack of choice. I don't need 27 types of mayo or pizza to choose from.

I think their cakes and pies are mostly disappointing and the cereals are a bit iffy.

The staff are lovely

I can do most of our grocery shop in there but the parking makes me want to weep...

Re: Tips for Trader Joes
 

Oh and the wine.