<p>As someone who primarily cooks from scratch, I’ll pipe in here.
I do really love Trader Joes. But it’s not the only place I shop. I supplement with Wegmans (fish, produce, other items) and sometimes Whole Foods.
I buy lots of non-exciting stuff at TJs at good prices. Organic fresh chicken. Pork Tenderloin. Whole Wheat Pasta. Exotic mushrooms. Organic Romaine lettuce. Blueberries. Kefir. Greek Yogurt. Fresh mozzerella. Frozen artichokes. Frozen mangos. Soft Wheat bread and tortillas. I also sometimes buy quickie things like the bruchetta mix and french bread (sliced and toasted of course) to take as party appetizers. The ingredients are terrific and I’m very fussy.
I don’t like their fish. And I hate that I’m tempted by all those great cookies and candies and crackers. I don’t really like their prepared frozen stuff (except maybe the vegetable gyoza).<br>
I think TJs shoppers are a varied group…some go for the prepared…some not. There are too many products available to pigeon-hole your average TJ shopper. But I do agree that it’s hard to make it the only store you shop at. I like fresh fish (and scallops and shrimp)too much.</p>
<p>toneranger, LOL about how “exotic mushrooms” are on your “non-exciting” list. :)</p>
<p>Last night’s dinner came entirely from TJ-purchased ingredients. Soak mixed dried mushrooms in warm water. Half a pound of fresh mushrooms, thick cut, sauteed in olive oil. Add chopped up drained dried mushrooms, chopped fresh spinach, a pinch of red pepper flakes, chopped garlic, saute. Add mushroom soaking water, a tablespoon of butter, and salt and pepper to taste. Slice a loaf of ciabatta bread in half, toast, rub with cut garlic. Top with grated gruyere and veggies.</p>
<p>OMG that was good!</p>
<p>Interesting social commentary you started, epiphany! </p>
<p>Well, I blame the Food Network. There our mothers were, blissfully cooking traditional roast beef and stews, and now we know all about chipotle peppers and cilantro, not to mention broccoli rabe and the liberal use of freshly ground nutmeg.</p>
<p>We learned how to use these newfangled ingredients, we tasted them, we loved them, but now we don’t have time to cook with them!</p>
<p>Trader Joe’s figured us out. They created quality convenience food at a reasonable price, thank goodness. So, now, we can have our cake and eat it too! 
</p>
<p>Well, I like to cook, but at the end of the day my creativity is all used up and I hate to clean. So, I’ll stand up and admit it: I proudly serve Trader Joe’s convenience foods when I can get them (I have to drive a few hours to get there). In fact, I stock up!</p>
<p>I like to get skyr at Whole Foods, the heck with the cost. I can’t find it anywhere else.</p>
<p>I recall Trader Joes in Pasadena, California in the 1980s and I can’t remember if they had the level of prepared foods that they have today. I was amazed at their selection of nuts and breads back then.</p>
<p>Trader Joes is owned by two brothers from Germany and it’s a privately held company. I often wish that they were publicly traded.</p>
<p>The family also owns the Aldi stores.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Do you think I’m different from you (“us”)? Or that I don’t understand that “modern cooking has changed”? :rolleyes:</p>
<p>It was merely a question about lifestyles and a fascination with a corresponding drift in buying habits.</p>
<p>What sample counter? I have yet to see samples at the TJ’s where I shop :mad:</p>
<p>I shop there strictly for sweets and treats (Joe Joes, chocolate covered nuts and fruits) and jarred sauces, rather than for staples, produce or prepared foods. Their prices are just too steep for my everyday purchases.</p>
<p>Our TJs has samples (we have 2 stores relatively close to us). I find that the produce is often less expensive than our regular grocery stores, but I find that a green grocer is less expensive for produce and herbs than TJs or grocery stores. I find things like cheese and dairy products to be better priced overall than my grocery store.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Ditto here. Those of us with access to really good produce stores & sources are perhaps less impressed with some of the products we’ve seen or are being reported, because we can get equally good + more abundant + cheaper identical items elsewhere. But it seems that this may also be a matter of availability (not to mention hours!). I know that I get off work so late that my green grocer is closed. TJ’s tends to be open later than typical g.grocer hours, so I’m sure it’s a good alternative to many. (And now that I have a better idea of perhaps how it’s grown in the last several years – in inventory, in choices, I will take a second look at TJ’s for such an alternative to horrible Safeway after-hours.) </p>
<p>The TJ’s that I’m more familiar with is something that sprouted up in my area in the '90’s. I used to go there often only because I was determined to figure out what everybody was raving about. At that time I sure didn’t see much to rave about: narrow breadth of food – much of it things like dips and frozen foods with an exotic twist. No or little produce. Very little dairy. Meat only frozen. They had some unique or semi-unique items, but again – better for those inviting a crowd over or who had large families. It would seem perhaps things have changed since, or some larger TJ’s have more variety, or both.</p>
<p>No TJ’s in Texas?!! What is up with that?</p>
<p>I don’t have ten favorites because I don’t shop there that much, but Trader Joe’s has recently become one of the stores that I shop at, since one recently opened fairly close to my home. Other stores nearby have a wider range of good quality meat and produce, though often at higher prices, but several things stand out to me based on my last few months’ experience at TJs: </p>
<p>Organic milk that is not ultra-pasteurized, comes in a carton rather than a jug, and costs the same or less than the 365 brand at Whole Foods.</p>
<p>A fun array of frozen items that are useful to have around for weekend lunches when we don’t have leftovers or feel like making sandwiches (the various dumplings are quite good).</p>
<p>Inexpensive and pretty flowers.</p>
<p>The chance to enter the weekly raffle for $25 worth of groceries when you bring your own reusable bag.</p>
<p>Most of all, the cleanliness of the store and the cheerfulness and courtesy of the staff members.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>epiphany, I now understand your comments much better in context. Looks like the selection really varies by region.</p>
<p>So I’m going to visit my local TJ’s today, and see if there’s any change from previous history, and especially whether they truly have all the fresh food (meats, produce), as opposed to frozen, that so many here are raving about. (And to compare prices with actual produce stores that feature organic meats, produce, and extensive bulk as well as prepared offerings.)</p>
<p>Just a note that the TJs near us has expanded a great deal since they came in about 10 years ago - including taking over an adjacent store. With that expansion came lots more fresh produce and meat, along with expanded bread and other selections. In the beginning, it was more of a novelty store with a focus on frozen. Now it’s one of my three key stores (along with Wegmans and Whole Foods). It just happens to be 3 minutes away so I stop there often and get lots of cool stuff…at what I believe are really good prices (maybe not the fresh produce and meat…but my time is worth money!) Love the snacks they hand out but they’re not always healthy!</p>
<p>^^Good idea! Please report back. I’m especially interested in a comparison of cost and quality of “staples” (i.e. olive oil, maple syrup, jasmine rice), and maybe cheeses. Has anybody else done this? How1 about compared to Costco? (A always get Costcos new crop pecans in bulk, and store in the freezer).</p>
<p>I started shopping at the original TJ’s in the late '70s. It was primarily a independantly owned meat market (Taylors meat) inside of Joe Coulombes store that sold primarily wine, dried fruits and nuts. I have a background in the food service industry(sous chef, line cook, and chef) and cook A LOT and always from scratch. I have an excellent, well priced butcher,a twice weekly farmers market nearby , and a great “Fresh and Easy” so though I have a TJ’s about two miles from my house, I rarely go unless it is a holiday or some other special occasion (love the cheap flowers). I live in an area of So Cal where food merchandising is very competitive. When I happened to go for my Christmas shopping, I was shocked to find items (chicken stock, almond paste) that were priced 25 to 30% HIGHER than the Whole Foods just two blocks away. A possible sign of the apocalypse?</p>
<p>ps…Joe Coulombe sold his major interest in the company a few years ago. He is still here in Pasadena and a VERY VERY generous patron of the arts.</p>
<p>Post 456:</p>
<p>And I also live in a sort of a “foodie’s paradise,” musicamusica, so that is why I will be interested (and so will Shrinkrap) in today’s comparison shopping efforts.</p>
<p>Shrinkwrap, for something like cheese, I like to shop at TJs over Costco because as a general rule the amount of cheese that I need to buy at Costco is too large. There are exceptions. Sometimes Costco has a few cheeses that are in smaller packaging, or I will buy the larger chunk because I am buying for a party, etc. As far as olive oil, that lasts, so I’ll buy the large jug at Costco.</p>
<p>Makes sense! I can’t imagine buying cheese at Costco. My favorite local small chain for perishables is “Nugget Market”, and that’s what I’ll have to compare to.</p>
<p>[Nugget</a> Market](<a href=“http://www.nuggetmarket.com/]Nugget”>http://www.nuggetmarket.com/)</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.nuggetmarket.com/locations.php[/url]”>http://www.nuggetmarket.com/locations.php</a></p>
<p>Made the pilgrimage to the nearest TJ’s in Ann Arbor today. Many items less than I would pay at our local Kroger and better tasting:
Bagels $2.29 for 6
Fruit bars (like Nutrigrain): $1.69
Banana’s - .19 each
Chai tea - $1.79/box
Wisconsin sharp cheddar - under $4 for a nice size chunk</p>
<p>and…had to try the frozen Mandarin Chicken - $4.99 a bag!</p>
<p>Gotta have my frozen steel oats from there…haven’t tried them any other way and since I’m the only one that will eat them, I just buy it frozen.</p>