And costwise it's cheaper than anyone.

However, we love Wegmans. And now do most of our shopping there, with TJ's as a supplement.

We eat in the pub every week, then do our grocery shopping, with a beer and a full tummy.

His hair was perfect.


Oh, wait, that was Trader Vic's. My bad.


Trader Joe's is one of those fads to which I'm more or less oblivious. Apparently they've branched out to Florida in the past couple of years, but none close enough to me for me to bother taking a trip there. The thing is, when you have a Publix a mile away from your house, you just shop at Publix. That's just how it is for me.

A friend of mine from NJ swears by Wegmen's. I went there once when visiting him. It was okay.

As with a lot of large retail stores, they started in California but that hardly makes them a fad. So did McDonald's and I have never heard anyone call them a fad. Maybe you are confusing fad and trend?

Then again, I actually had never heard of Wal-Mart until they announced plans to open in my hometown (that was a little over 20 years ago).

I tend to stay oblivious to a lot of chain stores until they begin to encroach on my local area. (However, I have heard a lot about In and Out Burger, despite there being none within a 1500 mile radius of Florida. So there are exceptions to the rule.)

So far I've only been to 17 states (plus DC) out of the 50, two Canadian provences (Ontario and Quebec), and the Bahamas.

And some of those visits were rather nominal, like the airport layover in Dallas that counts as my Texas visit.

One of these days I will go out and explore the world. One of these days....

What's a Wegmen? What's a Publix?

We do all our regular shopping excluding paper goods at TJs.
We are on fixed income and we love TJs. We do not eat out.

You went past one Publix? Don't worry. There'll be another one down the road in 2 miles. Guaranteed.

Typically pretty well-kept and reasonably priced. And as I said, everywhere.

Maybe if there was a Trader Joe's within a 10 mile radius, I'd check it out. But I'm not driving 45 minutes to the nearest one.

I shopped at TJ's and Publix when I lived in the South.

Trader Joe's is national.

I think they only came to Florida in the past 2 or so years. And there's only three in the state, total.

You sound like a member of the provincials.

Overpriced, underselectioned, undercleaned, no thank you.

I was always under the assumption that Ralphs was pretty much the de facto supermarket of Southern California.

Of course, my knowledge of Ralph's is pretty much limited to this:



"Is there a Ralph's around here?"

So what would I really know?

Different stores, different strokes. They are upscale in dollars, undeservedly in my experience in only two stores.

especially compared to Winn-Dixie. Near my house there was a WD for years and then Publix opened up across the street. When everyone started going to Publix the old WD tore down their store and built a brand new one across the other street.

Within about 6 months, the new WD was as dirty and dingy as the old one was. The Publix, however, maintained its' bright and sparkly appearance throughout.

I love my Publix although now I am intrigued by this Wegman's thing - pub, food and groceries all in one? I bet I could get into that...

Some were well-kept, others not as much.

Winn Dixie isn't as strong as a force in South Florida as it used to be.

My friend from NJ swears by Wegmans. I went there once. It had a cool layout, rather large; don't know how the prices were comparable to competitors.

We have them here in South Carolina. It's probably my favorite grocery store, mainly because there's no Trader Joe's around here. I know of TJ's from my parents, who lived in CA for a while 20 years ago. The nearest store to me here is about three hours away in Greenville. I think there may be one in Charleston now, too.

We only have one Publix in town, but my town only has around 30,000 people, plus four or five other chains, not counting Walmart.

when I was in Jr. High. Back in the early 70s. 40 years ago.

Both of which have a good reputation for how employees are treated. Not sure about where food comes from, etc.

I shop at a Trader Joe's at least once a week and find very good prices on cheeses, bread, hot and cold cereal, eggs, orange juice, chocolate and some of their produce. Their produce is usually good, but I prefer buying bunched broccoli at the supermarket to the cut up, bagged kind at Trader Joe's. I use their powdered laundry detergent and Nourish shampoo exclusively because of allergies to other products. My husband uses their citrus body wash, which is a great deal compared to other body washes.

I love the quality and variety of interesting and unusual products at Trader Joe's.

Things we regularly get at Trader Joe's include rice, soy sauce, cheese, slightly flavored sparkling spring water, their fantastic Tuscan Pane bread, apple cinnamon oatmeal, some of their frozen lunches such as the lower fat mac and cheese, and the new Chile Rellenos, frozen pizza, and some frozen vegetables. Their vitamins and supplements are almost always less expensive there than any other store in our area. We do not eat meat so I can't speak for those products.

I use lactose-free milk and find it less expensive by the gallon at Giant, the main supermarket chain, than the half-gallons of a different brand at Trader Joe's. I also buy some products Giant sells that Trader Joe's doesn't, like Red Rose tea, Cascadian Farm granola bars, Lean Cuisine lunches for my husband. Cranberry juice is cheaper at the supermarket than at Trader Joe's, and is often on sale.

If there's a Trader Joe's near you, it's definitely worth going there.

in the early 1990's.

Almost 25 years later, we still shop there. I would say out of our weekly grocery budget, 70% is spent at TJ's. Out of the remaining 30%, a good 20% is at Winco for produce and bulk foods, and then the remaining 10% might be at Sprouts or Whole Foods for specialty items they carry that the other two do not.

At TJ's, we get some produce(like bags of kale or arugula), dairy items(like goat's milk yogurt and cheese), meat (they have some great chicken apple sausages!), almond butter (great price compared to Whole Foods or Sprouts), pasta, rice, dried fruit & nuts, beer, wine (some great prices on good wine), and quite a nice selection of frozen fair (like fruit for smoothies, peas for our rats, and prepared quick meals.) Their prices on most items are definitely less than Sprouts or Whole Foods. They are sometimes more than a grocery store but the quality is better and the ingredients more healthy. For example, they have a can corn that is the best I have ever had - low sodium and no sugar added.

They treat their employees really well, and it shows. At our closest local store, the cashiers and stock personnel all know us and are extremely friendly and helpful. If I could get everything I needed there, I would.

We get probably 70% of our food there. Their prices are great, much better than the average "chain" grocery store down the street. They are especially awesome for pre-packaged foods like hummus & boxed soups, specialty cheeses, and frozen foods.

The only thing about them is that it's hard to get fresh seafood there, and some types of produce. I would love to do all our shopping there, but we can't really get good fish at TJs. We pick up the rest at Whole Foods.

We get maybe 10% of our food there, mostly specialty items like grass-fed beef, low sodium ketchup, that sort of thing. I don't consider their prices to be out of the mainstream. In fact some items are significantly cheaper than at the large chains.

I certainly noticed that the employees appear to be well treated and enjoying their job.

We go because the place has a smaller foot print without having 2 isles of "sports drinks " or an isle where you can buy a mobile home and 200 versions of US magazine.

Go to the big empty of people Super market for toilet paper ,dog/cat food and none food items -----we save about 50$ a week
Traders Joe's IS AWSOME !!

So I plan a TJ's and gas run very couple of weeks. Great stuff at great prices, but read the labels. Some of their juices, for instance, have apple or grape juice to stretch it and lower the price.

If you are a wino, they have a knowledgable staff and you can get great deals. Large selection of beer, too. Vitamins, sweets and cookies, good breads. I highly recommend TJ's.

There is a big push by NYS grocers to introduce these items, however its meeting a lot of resistance...we will see...

I appriciate your willingness to share your experiences and look forward to checking it out firsthand this week...

But we have Costco, Whole Foods Market, local Farmer's markets and finally, Trader Joe's. I was really glad to get TJ (only one in Houston proper but it will not be the last I am sure).

I am influenced by price, treatment of employees and sustainability of products. I really love TJ. they have a nice selection of good products that are reasonably priced and healthy. They are now 30-40%. Whole Foods are 30-40% and Kroger's and Costco make up the remainder..20-40%. I find there are products that I can only get at these places (esp TJ) that are worth planning a route by the store.

I really like Sprouts too but they seem to be only Ca And Az. They told me they are expanding into Texas....I love their produce.

We have Sprouts too; it's great for produce but staples are high. We've been so happy that Trader Jo's decided to expand to CO. Two stores have been approved; one in Denver and one in Boulder. State law only allows liquor in one so Denver got the wine. The store in Denver seems to be in progress but the one in Boulder which was supposed to open this summer has not even been started. Think the problem is that WalMart is trying to open a store in Boulder which no one wants. We do have Costco not too far but to be affordable you have to buy a large amount at once.

also they don't really cater to the bulk shopper - or one with multiple teen/young adult male bottomless pit-type eaters. Hell, even Safeway is getting hard to shop at if you are a once a month or every two week shopper. I can't be running to town every day for a freaking fresh salad. I need large storable quantities.

I do it maybe once or twice a month. It saves me a lot of money, even considering the cost of driving, when compared to the stores here in town. They have some good wines for very cheap, but mostly I like their frozen foods.

I only get to shop in one when I visit family out West, or if I happen to be in some place like Atlanta or Charlotte, which is pretty much never. The family that owns them also owns the Aldi chain, and we have one of those. Their selection is limited, especially compared to TJ's, but like TJ's, the prices are great. Aldi has the best chocolate in town. Most of it is imported from Germany and Austria. I strongly suspect that it's the same stuff one finds under the Trader Joe's label. The same goes for many of their other products. Same stuff, just branded differently.

I did all my shopping there. Now it's a 35 mile round trip, so I only stop in if I happen to be passing by.

I got high quality products that either weren't at the mainstream grocery store, or were more $$ there.

A smaller selection, but higher quality, and I could always find what I wanted, good prices.