The Trader Joe's Product Discussion Thread (S/D)

one of the best Japanese approximations of Budweiser for sure

yeah the chicken balti pies are awesome but are super calorie/fat dense :(

i bought the hatch chili mac & cheese...very very mild. just get the regular mac & cheese and doctor it up, probably a better value for the $$.

soy and flax seed chips are pretty good, especially if you warm them up a bit

wtf who warms up chips

Fresh tortilla chips are warm.

Yeah I usually warm up my tortilla chips. Because I can't deep fry my own.

i have never even considered doing such a thing unless i'm melting cheese on them, and i'm told this is frowned upon by snobs (not that i care what snobs think about my nachos)

True snobs wouldn't even eat nachos, that's purely a slobs thing.

there are bad nachos, but all nacho choices are, in the end, very personal. if you enjoy them, then they're good.

actually, i warm them up because we're a bit sensitive to the oils and salt they use

warming them up helps. there are a bunch of usa/california products that we're sensitive to in my family; massively produced fruits, processed foods, etc.

uh, not produced...but harvested, i guess?

I can't resist 6.99/lb almonds even though they aren't as crispy/crunchy/fresh as other brands

thai lime & chili cashews every time

why do i buy trader joe's salsa? every time I do it, it is always so disappointing that I eat a tenth of it and then say, "why suffer through bad salsa?" and get good salsa at whole foods.

that said, the Indonesian salsa is actually quite good

their corn uhh salsa or whatever they call it is pretty good

the tomato-based salsa are all pretty meh as far as I've found

The tomatillo is OK if you want mild.

i like taking the red or green jarred salsa and blending it with loads of cilantro and many habaneros. they're both great bases, imo, but kinda weak by themselves

ooh ooh i'm going today for the first time in a long time!!!! gonna stock up on SO MUCH GREAT STUFF

outdoor miner otm
i like the tomatillo salsa with the additives of my choice but plain it's blah

http://i.imgur.com/vqLWeAL.jpg

ew

Playing to the furry crowd, TJ?

the food is good but the ppl *facepalm*

The 'country potatoes with haricot vert and mushrooms' is pretty awesome for a quick side dish, though a bit light on the mushrooms.

tjs is decent, but i don't like that they relabel all their products with their name on it. sometimes i want to see what company/manufacturer a product actually belongs to

Isn't that at the manufacturer's insistence? Don't want to have people stop buying the more expensive "name" version for the TJ version.

it's their main point of negotiation, working with suppliers to negotiate mass buys for off-brand goods

Isn't that at the manufacturer's insistence? Don't want to have people stop buying the more expensive "name" version for the TJ version.

― nickn, Saturday, March 5, 2016 1:48 AM (18 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i don't think so. the bottle of vinegar i bought at world market looked exactly the same as the one at tj's, the only difference being the logo

yeah, except world market probably pays a little more per bottle and you pay a little less at TJ's, that's their value proposition

The two frozen stir-fry-type dinners I've bought have been not just bad but vomit-inducing, much worse than anything of the sort /i've ever bought from the big grocery stores

name names!

the last one had chicken, mushrooms, and i think snow peas. i think the one before that was kung pao? anyway, staying away from that section . . .

i don' know how you mess up something so simple, let's just say each main ingredient seemed to combine odd textures and odd flavors

I've read good things about TJ's California Estate extra-virgin olive oil. Is it truly good? Incl. flavor and good for you?

The frozen Kung pao chicken is great!!

ok I didn't try the Kung Pao, I had the Chicken Chow Mein which was bad and the Shiitake Mushroom Chicken which was baaaaaad

I like the shiitake one, usually spice it up, though

not product but the stores here have changed their pos system & it's so slow, there's a ridic long lag between each screen & it drives me crazy.

I'm a believer in that olive oil, dow. Very good for that price.

And I have a bag of that shiitake mushroom chicken in my freezer, think I bought it on a rec here. Haven't tried it yet.

not product but the stores here have changed their pos system

Here, too. Their new credit card machines take for-fucking-ever.

my go-to TJ's oo has been the kalamata

omg using a card takes forever at my store too

I use Apple Pay.

TJ's Sour Patch Kids equivalent: very very good, brilliant natural flavors, even the colors are cool
Gummy Bears: quite bad

yeah, except world market probably pays a little more per bottle and you pay a little less at TJ's, that's their value proposition

― μpright mammal (mh), Sunday, 6 March 2016 00:48 (Yesterday) Permalink

i'm going to do some field sampling. i don't remember the price difference

World Market has had problems keeping their stock fresh, I've found. You kinda never know how long something's been sitting on the shelves.

i don't shop there usually. i sometimes need non-US products, and they are the ones that carry them

there are deals to be had at world market but it's definitely no substitute for a good ethic grocery store