TJ stores are not all that large. Certainly not super-store or even regular grocery-store sized. They carry a very limited number of items.

But good things come in small packages.

I always stock up on low-sodium soups (really truly low) and chicken stock.

They vary in size from one town to another. The one here is small but not as small as some I've seen or as small as it used to be. They enlarged it a while ago. The one in Napa is large and carries at least three times as much wine. I remember being in a tiny one in Pacific Grove.

I've been to a few, and they all seemed small except for one near Seattle. We drove by our new TJ's and it looks fairly big. It opened a couple of weeks ago and I'm taking Monday off to go. We're hoping the crowds have thinned by now. It's only an hour+, so we can buy frozen food if we want...yay.

There are 4 stores I go to, PG (the one Barnmom thinks is so small), Monterey, Capitola and Morgan Hill. Except for wine and liquor sections, I think that they all carry about the same number of items. Maybe more produce in larger stores? But none are that large. The aisles seems wider in the larger stores, I think. The basic product selection is about the same in all the stores I've been in.

Be sure to check all the goodies for holiday baking, nuts and chocolate and dried fruits, etc. Really a nice selection. Cheeses, great selection and great prices.

I wish the stores were closer for me, and I'd be in them all the time, but I am about midway about 30 minutes from all of them, none in areas that I go to on a daily basis, but at least not far. Jim and I do stock-up trips that coincide with a Saturday lunch at someplace nearby.

Here in NY, there are three TJs around me, 5-minutes,10-minutes and 15-minutes from my house. They are not big(5,000 sq. ft.). Many items are cheaper than supermarkets.

Whole Foods is gigantic(75,000 sq. ft.), also expensive.

dcarch

Whole Foods was my benchmark and I just assumed TJ would be about the same size. Our TJ is about a block away from our Whole Foods. Now that I've had a chance to review some of the posts about what to buy at TJ,I plan on making another trip next week. It was fairly crowded and I expect it to stay that way.

The 3 near me are all small and I really don't get the appeal at all, I would much rather shop at Wegmans. Shrug.

Alexa

Our TJ is also small. It is always congested and difficult to navigate. There are certain things I like to buy there.
I really like their Ground Turkey Breast - they carry 2 different ones that have different sat fat content. I buy the lowest and they are out of it often.
The Everyday seasoning in a grinder is good when you just need to add a little something. Use it on vegetables, soups, etc
We like the Baked pita chips - all flavors.

Check out their 3-lb Desert Mesquite Honey, about 1/3 the price of regular honey.

dcarch

Here is a link that might be useful: Honey

I've got two within 5-10 minutes of my house and size-wise they're definitely not near the scale of even the smallest regular supermarket.

I've checked them out a few times as a result of this forum, and I'm shrugging along with Alexa. We're probably just spoiled by all the other higher end offerings we have near us.

I don't have any higher end stores within an hour's drive but I'm still uninspired by TJs. The closest TJs is grungy & unkempt. Every time I've been there we leave with nothing. Not a pleasant shopping experience so I'm in the "shrug" group.

/tricia

I do shop at Trader Joe regularly. I skip the produce that's wrapped in plastic as a rule. Interesting cheeses are good prices, the beef is good quality. As I recall the organic turkeys were well priced. I'm not in charge of the major turkey purchase for this year's orgy, um Thanksgiving meal, but will buy a very small one to cook ahead for gravy and stuffing.

I like the handmade tortillas. I have no interest in making my own and I find the usual grocery store tortilla brands to taste awful. Nuts and dried fruits are fresh and well-priced. There are some other products I like, too.

We have no Whole Foods. We have Safeway. A couple of small high-end local markets that are super expensive. A regional chain called Raley's. A more local chain called Savemart. And most recently a Sunflower market opened not far from me. Underwhelmed by that one so far except that they have natural and organic meats.

Except for TJ, the rest carry pretty much the same fare with few exceptions at more or less the same prices. Nothing special. We also have a few bag it yourself stores that are very ordinary in their selection but the prices are usually cheaper.

My Fairytale pumpkin came from TJ. It was 6.00. A comparable one at Savemart was 9.00. At the farm stand that same pumpkin was 5.00.

I recently stumbled into a Grocery Outlet. It's in a crappy area and not on my path but I was curious. I was surprised at the selection. Lots of gourmet stuff at dirt cheap prices, including imported cheeses I haven't seen other places. Lots of not so special stuff too but cheap. And the selection changes all the time I guess. Wines were real bargains. Produce was cheap if not all that varied. Inexpensive coffee beans. I bought some. Meh. Those were cheap for a reason. TJ coffee beans are a good product at a good price.

I don't buy a lot of processed or prepared foods but if I do, TJ has a good selection at moderate prices. The occasional tapenade or pesto for a gift basket makes its way into my basket. I like their balsamic but the little bottles from the dollar make me just as happy.

There are two TJs near me and both are small. The closest one also has narrow aisles and there is often gridlock in them. Parking is a nightmare on weekends. It shares a lot with the Farmers Market.

One Whole Foods near me is also tiny with aisle gridlock and horrible parking. Another one farther away is enormous with a restaurant, rooftop deck, etc. Parking plentiful. However with those prices, I don't bother.

I can walk to my local Super Fresh, although I usually drive since I would have to carry packages home.

I shop TJ's all the time - be sure to taste what ever their free sample of the day is. It's a great way to try something you might not have purchased otherwise. My store is always clean (that would turn me off too Tricia) and the workers are over the top friendly and helpful. You'll find their prices on every day items such as milk, butter and eggs are better than other stores.

I was hoping more people would comment on their Brined Turkey's. I have Googled it and they seem to get positive reviews. I know brining is not hard, but I'm hosting Thanksgiving on Thursday to my family of 14 and on Friday to my husband's family of 18 - so that would be just one less thing on my plate if they are good.

One other thought - I don't see how we can compare TJ's to Whole Foods. Whole Foods it going to have *lots* more to offer, but they also cost 3 times as much. Their nickname of "Whole Paycheck" is appropriate. TJ's on the other hand, has prices closer to CostCo but you don't have to buy in bulk to get it.

We're finally definitely on schedule to get at least TWO Trader Joe's in Houston. Woohooooo!!! The first one will open in the spring about an hour from my house. (Yeah, Houston is pretty spread out.) I will definitely make a field trip to go up there and shop when they open.

The second one will open in a location about 5 minutes from where I work (about 15 min from my house). I actually expect that one to be fairly large because they are opening in the former site of a movie theatre turned bookstore which is pretty big. Not sure how much of it will be actual store floor space but it's a big place.

No idea when that second one will open but I can't WAIT!

We have many TJ's of all shapes and sizes. IMO, Whole Foods is a very different type of store. Every time I shop at TJ's I'm surprised that I don't pay more.

Don't have one close to me. Closest one isn't "on the way" for regular errands, so if I'm even remotely in the area... I stop in. It's in Marlton, NJ... and SMALL... and always pretty crowded. I like the extra virgin olive oil (HATE the term "evoo"!?!), solid tuna in olive oil, and REAL Maple syrup... good quality and price.

Only other TJ's I've been in is in Media, PA... think it's in building that was an "armory" at one point?? Remember it being MUCH larger... possibly 2 floors!?!

Like looking for something I've never had before. Bought box of Quinoa... cuz it looked interesting. Though not something I HAVE to have, was not an expensive experiment.

One thing i love about TJs is they seem to locate them in existing buildings where possible, which does result in a variety of sizes. Ours opened last year in an old Good Guys space that had been vacant for years. It is so maddening to have one national chain after another bulldoze down some undeveloped land, pave it over, open their doors, then go bankrupt and leave another ghostly mini-mall. TJs really revitalized the little mall area when they opened. Makes me want to support them.

Oh yes, their maple syrup! Another bargain I purchase often.

We're getting a TJ's also and i wouldn't be surprised if it is small because TN laws don't allow wine in grocery stores. I know... what's the difference....they sell beer, but I don't want to try to figure that out. The shopping center they're locating in is being revamped and a former kitchen/appliance store was torn down where I think TJ's is going to be. Also getting a Whole Foods which is like comparing apples and oranges. They are too expensive for me to do much shopping there.

Eileen is the grocery outlet, you mentioned, UGO, United Grocery Outlet? We have those but not in a convenient location for me to shop. Have a friend who works in one in another community.

The one TJ's I've been in was no larger than an Aldi and could well be smaller. I too haven't found the secret of the enthusiam for Joe's. My sister gets a couple gluten-free items there so she'll go there occasionally but she too doesn't find much there. The few things I found there that made it worth the trip are now available elsewhere and cheaper. I haven't been to one for years.

I think of it more as an Aldi with a 'tude! :)

Now I suppose the TJ fanatics will go (macadamia) nuts! LOL

Jude,

A quick look tells me they might be similar. Grocery Outlet, according to the website, only has stores in the West.

Even if I had a Whole Foods here I doubt I'd it use except for must-have items I couldn't find other places or for an occasional quick deli meal of ready to eat foods. Whole Foods has made it clear, according to a friend and local city planner, that they have no interest in putting a store here.

Here is a link that might be useful: Grocery Outlet

I may have to go and check out our Grocery Outlet. 'Back when' we went to Food Rainbow, which turned into Grocery Outlet. It was stock from grocery stores that had closed, or had fires/floods/etc. If you sifted through the dented cans, you could all kinds of strange brands and everything was really cheap. Excellent canned tomato products, but I don't remember gourmet cheese. Might be worth a stop.

I will be shopping TJ's with a fresh eye. We've never even looked at the fresh and frozen foods because we were always traveling. I'll be happy if I can get there twice a year for grade B maple syrup, orange champagne vinegar, chile lime nuts and chocolate covered gummi bears for my crew (they love 'em...go figure).

The turkeys are very good. I have been getting mine there for a couple of years.

I buy a lot of things from Tj's, which is conveniently located next to Whole Foods. Some foods I get regularly are carried at both places but the Tjs is cheaper.

I make a trip about once a month and mainly get nuts, fish, bacon, crackers, cheese and wine among other things at Tjs.
I will not buy produce wrapped in plastic either.

We have an Aldi's locally, a few miles from the house, but many of the things I buy can only be found at other stores.
Raw nuts, Greek yogurt, good cheese, organic things, better fish, etc. The Alidi's is good for basics: non organic milk, eggs, spinach, romaine, sugar, basic canned foods and some quite nice kitchen cooking things: enameled cast iron, silpat...

The first time I went to a Trader Joes I thought it reminded me, also, of a vamped up Aldis. I did a little research and found they are owned by the same people.

Judi

No Aldi's around here (though I do know of them as they are in the Midwest where we visit all the time). However, I have 3 TJ's within 15 minutes of me. However, I'm in the "shrug" group and don't see the excitement of TJ's.

The nearest Whole Foods is about 30 minutes across town. I've heard it referred to as "Whole Paycheck", though, so I'll stay away.

My daughter is close to a Fresh-n-Easy, about 15 minutes from us. She likes that store!

Donna

We go a few times a year (it's an hour away) for some specific things. Their "British Muffins" are much better than other English muffins. I like their Soft Whole Wheat Bread. Some cheese is cheap and good, Havarti for instance; some is not so good, like Manchego. We buy canned beans, broths, Triple Ginger Snaps. Not impressed with their ground almonds or their chocolate.

KatieC, the grocery outlet here was one of the rainbow dented can places, too. I don't think I ever went there.

We have a Fresh-n-Easy but it's not in an area I ever go. I might check it out while on a bike ride today, though. It will give me a destination for my ride and is far enough away to supply my hour of exercise. A friend of mine went there, she didn't like it but she is very much a traditional scratch cook. Another friend of mine loves the store for its imported food bargains.

TJ has turkey jerky which I buy as a care box treat for Alice. I love the organic brown sugar, it has a great flavor. I like the organic shelf stable polenta in a tube. I've tried others and they tasted "preserved" TJ's does not. Bought a box of quinoa. Eh. It was okay. Love the pound plus bars of dark chocolate for dipping. I buy their white whole flour and vanilla. Eggs are a good price as is butter.

I do like their compressed sponges and vitamins. Larabars are a good price and I like those as a backpack snack. They have a low sodium deli turkey I like. Costco has it too, I think. But I don't need that kind of quantity.