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

I have this nagging feeling that there’s a horrific expose just waiting to be written about Trader Joe’s but nobody actually wants to write it and make themselves and all their friends feel bad about shopping there. Anyway I’ll keep buying that garbage!

by garbage I assume you mean the gimmicky processed foods/snacks that are talked about here. otherwise it's a whole store full of good stuff at low cost that is fresh and that you can use to cook great meals! at least that's my experience with my local store

xp i'm not sure if you consider unfair labor practices and union busting to be "horrific" but that stuff is already out there if you look for it - your mainstream news channels aren't going to cover that unsurprisingly. it's also no secret that their model saves costs by inserting "gig economy" structures into the grocery store business. of course i'm going to keep shopping there, where the hell else am i going to get food that good, easy and cheap?

the thing that baffles me about tj's is the uniformly chipper attitudes of the checkers while they bag your stuff at 5x the speed of anywhere else. i'm pretty sure that it's some kind of company policy that they are encouraged to ask you about your day or comment about how delicious something you're purchasing is or w/e. i think most of the people they hire genuinely like doing what they do, and i have heard that the pay is "not terrible" (don't know details), though i can tell that the occasional checker is tired of it. i'm fucking grateful that they're so good at bagging and i don't have to do it myself, but at the same time, it's a little disorienting tbh, like somehow tj's has magically solved some previously unachievable neoliberal equilibrium between customer, employee, and management happiness. like, something doesn't add up here lol.

I like to engage with the checkers about the products they're selling, mostly to talk them up, and have had many interesting responses

i generally don't (though i try and be polite about it), but i certainly understand the desire to.

lately i've had a few who have been good at dealing with the fact that i don't want to talk, which is impressive! one asked me if i was up to anything fun, i said "not really, no" and laughed, and she said "i understand" and was quiet through the rest of the interaction. people who "get" that you're not a talker up front are so damn impressive to me.

another time the checker, i don't know, just said the right things which got me talking a little bit. that almost never happens lol.

I like all of the people who work at my local store - the checkers, stockers, and people looking at inventory for me. They are all knowledgeable, sincere and forthcoming and have offered their preferences. That has meant a lot to me. I've learned a lot from them

I've seen TJs folks literally let people open one of their products to try them before they buy them.

We've talked about this before at home. I think part of it may be a particular work culture (whatever that is), but it's also a self selecting crew (for lack of a better word). Like that actor that made the news for working part time at Trader Joe's, when people sort of poked fun at him he said he did it because he liked it. My friend who works at Trader Joe's, same for her. She doesn't have to work, but she really enjoys the experience.

The other day the check out person asked me if I had any plans this 4th, and I literally responded "fuck this country." And she kind of smiled behind her mask and said "you know, I've been asking the same thing of a lot of people today, and I've been getting a lot of the same exact anger." Then she went through all the many things we all have seen happen, and she ended with a deflated sort of "who can celebrate that?" But she did it in the most friendly manner possible.

I can attest that it is company policy that you talk to customers while bagging, tho there isn't necessarily a policy negging on the sorts of interactions Josh just described— I've talked about some wild shit with TJs cashiers.

One thing that the company *definitely* does as a matter of unofficial policy is either move people to different nearby stores (mid-lvel and upper level store managers) or fire people (regular workers) after three years. It keeps organizing to a minimum.

I also do wonder which Trader Joes y'all are getting fresh produce at. I can't stand to look at most of the produce at my locals TJs locations, it's awful!

The fresh produce typically *isn't* particularly good, especially the vegetables (hardy stuff like carrots aside). But it's still a good place for apples, oranges, pears, melons, lemons, limes, peaches, etc., and also good for onions, avocados, greenhouse tomatoes, garlic, and so on. So, most of the stuff I need, honestly. The salad greens and berries are the weak link, but they tend to turn pretty fast no matter where I buy them.

agree about the greens going bad pretty fast, and I think TJ's limes are bad, just hard little balls with no juice, but I like a lot of the other produce

I think I got really spoiled in California and now only buy seasonally at the local produce wholesaler or the farmers market— The heartier things (like root vegetables) are fine at TJs, but anything that grows on a bush or a tree tastes like a pale imitation of the actual thing afaic, at least in Philly area TJs.

Yeah, I can see that. Here we're kind of beholden to the Michigan growing season, because most of the year we're SOL when it comes to fresh produce. Having recently spent a week in California just renewed my jealousy on that front. It's only a little bit better in PA/NJ/NY, iirc. From October to May or so there are just not a lot of local options, though I've noticed more and more clamshells of hydroponically or otherwise indoor-grown greens year 'round here.

California peaches can be musky. Eastern peaches are bright. Peaches from Georgia or the South seem to be closer to Eastern peaches. I think mangos have a trajectory for ripeness that can be used to represent peaches, with California peaches on the ripe end. (I miss California peaches.) I imagine TJ's may have changed its sourcing, but they used to print the specific varietal on the side of the box. I guess I'll just have to drive to one and find out.

Purchased yesterday to replace the box we used up in a crumble:
https://i.imgur.com/3hk6Urp.jpg

I think Moonlight be a company rather than a varietal. It will be a shame if peach varietals lose their distinctiveness. I am glad you had them for a crumble and will have more after that.

TJ's has good prices on a reasonable amount of fresh herbs. I buy their produce if I'm eating it soon. The prices are usually good compared to my other fancypants options. A bag of persian cukes, for example.

I really loved their pasture raised eggs for a week, but the consistency ain't at Vital Farms level.

and they tend to play pretty good music in tj's

― hyperstudio (skeletor), Thursday, October 8, 2009 7:52 PM (twelve years ago) bookmarkflaglink

Is it just my regular TJ (Glover Park, DC) that is always playing 80s college rock (NOT alt rock) whenever I'm shopping there? Is it a general corporate vibe, or an assessment of the customers of my location?

based on nothing i feel like it's up to each store tho legally it has to be radio (i.e. pandora) of some kind i think? my regular tj's does not usually play good music. seems like a lot of the time it's smash mouth-y stuff. one day it was disney songs. the kind of thing white suburbanites in utah remember fondly i guess.

the music that stores and restaurants play is something i've always wanted to know more about. i wonder if there's some kind of inside industry survey about it that goes into all the details.

The Korean Beefless Bulgogi is just a good as early reports on other forums: one of the best faux meat products one can buy.

But like the others, its wildly overpriced. I think I'll try my hand with some textured soy protein chunks and Wang Bulgogi marinade soon.

Banana pudding flavored ice cream is good.

When I bought that a couple of weeks ago the register person held it up, looked me in the eye and said "this is the Devil."

Confirmed. Single serving.

I tried a free sample at TJ's today for the first time since before the lockdown, and the Super Seedy Cheese Snack Bite was an immediate purchase.

the frozen arepas are pretty good

I bought a bag of beef kebabs for ice storm emergency options - depressing 1980s microwave dinner quality meat.

The cheddar jalapeño pull apart bread is stupendous.

I actually don't mind the kebabs. They're seasoned fine, and good in a pinch, especially if you have pitas and other fixings on hand.

just want to remind people that Trader Joe's has had the most amazing Meyer lemons (a cross between a lemon and tangerine) right now, at least on the west coast. They are packaged in bags and the season for them is about to run out

https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/business/money-report/i-work-at-trader-joes-here-are-7-things-i-refuse-to-buy-there-and-what-to-get-instead/3098425/

All the algorithmic news sites serve me up so many TJ’s articles like this.

No one's posted about it yet so get the Mee Krob rice noodle snacks while they're available. Not sure if they'll TOS fast, stuff like this tends to. Best newer TJ salty snack.

To answer the thing upthread, stores have a lot of leeway about their in-store music and it mostly depends on the captain's general attitudes. Employees at mine get to control the music within reason about 70% of the time, especially during slow periods.

(my spouse works there)

Trader Joe’s used to carry some decent stuff but it’s truly just junk food for rich people. The quality of ingredients in their food has gone way downhill and they don’t even really come out with many interesting ideas anymore in my opinion.

I don't really buy much of frozen, prepared meals - tamales on occasion. But it's good for things like frozen berries, jars of olives, cooking oil.. shit like that

Oh, and alcohol!

Employee discount + inflation means all my kitchen staples are from there.

Their alcohol is very on point.

I think their processed foods are mostly bad, and that seems to be the focus of the posts in this thread

- but the fruit, produce, flowers, nuts, bread, meat, canned foods, pasta, cheese, spirits etc are pretty great

their ground espresso is significantly better than anything else near the same price point and also better than any ground espresso available at the “normal” grocery stores

my preferred brand of beef jerky

my local is only licensed to sell wine and beer. oh well

I think their processed foods are mostly bad, and that seems to be the focus of the posts in this thread

agree, but
1. that's what they mostly sell? at least the one near me is basically a giant freezer section with like a head of lettuce in one corner.
2. i'm not standing in that insanely long line to buy the head of lettuce, they sell those at stores with shorter lines.

^why i haven't set foot in a trader joe's in like 4 years

Any TJ I've been in is 20% freezer aisle at most and even then there is useful stuff on shelves above the freezers.

things i regularly buy at TJ's

bag of citrus
carrots
hummus
prepackaged deli meat like prosciutto
crackers
peanuts, almonds, and sunflower seeds
whole bean coffee
peanut butter, jam, mayo, pickles, condiments

is the produce anywhere near as good as my local co-op? no. but i live alone and ultimately a lot of the portioning / sizing works for me.

mostly i shop at my local supermercado or the asian market for produce, meat, and most other things.

^gets it

Yeah, I find their produce underwhelming & overpackaged

I just start in the freezer aisle, walk down and get one of everything, get a free sample, then run out without paying.

^^ gets it

I'm with budo jero. It's also good for pantry staples like cereal, pasta/sauce, rice, canned beans, olive oil, tinned fish, etc.