They opened one near me a while back; I’ll probably go once just to say I did.
What do folks think of Trader Joe’s? I’ve never tried that either.
You might find that Whole Foods has good bread from local bakeries and decent eggs and some nice cheese. It has some organic produce and some local produce in summer. They have inexpensive (365 is the generic name) olive oil from Spain, Greece and Italy. I finally found champagne vinegar there only to find it is as good as ordinary white vinegar.
The New York City WFs are good. The suburban ones, in my opinion, depend on how rich and food-educated the neighborhood is.
Trader Joe’s is very inexpensive and has some good deals. Very bad produce, though. For a long time it had kosher chicken which I like (Empire) but that seems to have disappeared.
Returning now from my roadtrip to the deep south, I have picked up a sack of White Lily Flour, pure cane syrup, sorghum syrup (impossible to find except at a Tennessee market high in the Appalachians), apple butter and apple jelly from an Alabama farmer’s market. I may have bought other things but they are locked in my suitcase.
Trader Joes has some really good products. I especially like the Chicken Soup Dumplings. They come six to a pack for less than $3 a pack and only take 3 minutes in the microwave. Just had one for a quick, easy dinner with some gyozo sauce which they sell also. Hubby likes their chicken pot pies, though I don’t care for them that much. They have GREAT deals on cheap wine.
I love Trader Joe’s! Keep in mind though that they discontinue things on a regular basis. I have fallen in love and been jilted many times there.
Their cheese selection is very good and the prices are very reasonable. I always pick up some type of chevre, the cranberry goat cheese log is heaven! Prosciutto is a lot cheaper than regular grocery stores and fresh mozzarella balls. Love the prosciutto and mozz balls with some fresh basil on toasted baguette. Also in that area of the store are Pub Cheese spread, particularly the horseradish one and spicy Pico de Gallo.
The snack selection is incredible. Fig and Olive crackers or Raisin and Rosemary crackers are among my favorites. Also organic blue tortilla chips with any of their jarred salsas. Love the Hatch green chile.
In the frozen food aisle, the Tarte D’Alsace is an addiction of mine and cheese enchiladas. I could go on but I don’t want to bore anyone.
Oh yeah. Cheap prices on spices and jarred sauces from Marsala sauce to Soy Vey. Love me some TJ’s!
I never get to our Trader Joe’s and the parking lot experience is kind of rough. But when I go, I am pleased at the selection and prices and new stuff I always want to try. Some of their products are very good. I always get more than I went for.