Not better, just very different, and probably way cheaper than WF.

I really like Trader Joe's. They are more affordable than other stores of this kind in my area. There food is excellent, without all the additives that make so many things taste off.

I boycott Whole Foods. They sell rabbit meat.

Yes, lucky you!!!
Eileen

Yes, you should be. They have things that your regular store doesn't. Take your time to thoroughly look through the flyer because it is easy to miss some of their unique items.
My DD's love the Thai veggie dumplings. They have great dips, no preservatives, spreads etc.
You probably could do much of your shopping there, as they have all the usual suspects, yogurts, cheeses, milk, fruits and veggies. I usually use my larger supermarket as I get reward points, and it is closer to me.
If one were closer, I would run in more often.
They have seasonal things, more so than a regular supermarket ,which is why you should read the flyer. Get on the mailing list. They have pumpkin macarons only in the fall for example.

Gosh Deeby.....most groceries sell rabbit! :-)

Have fun when it opens, Glenda! I'd love to visit a Trader Joe's.

They have a lot of organic stuff, but they also sell a lot of pre-packaged "crap food."

We have several TJs in this area, and they're always full of the Hipster crowd. :)

Trader Joe's is owned by Aldi, a low budget food store...Trader Joe's was created to bring in higher income customer's, but still has the same suppliers.

Interesting, Monica. I didn't know that. I like TJs well enough. It's nice, but doesn't replace a regular grocery store. Their prices are good and you can get things there that you can't get elsewhere, especially their frozen items. You'll enjoy having one nearby.

I don't "get" Trader Joe's. I know many people love it, but I just feel kind of lost when I'm in there. I don't understand what's so great about it. Now please understand that I'm not saying it's not great, just that I'm missing something, I guess.

I like going there for a few items. They sell dirt cheap fresh flowers. I also pick up mushrooms when I'm there, they're cheaper than Kroger or Wal-Mart and look 100 times better, not partially rotted already. I also like their frozen stacked eggplant parmesan. They have a salsa that's really good. Can't remember the name of it, but it spicy and sweet at the same time. I think it has pineapples in it.

I also like to try the cheeses, there's different types from different countries. I try some of the frozen foods if I find something interesting. The only one I really like is the eggplant parmesan. I recently bought some premade mushroom ravioli that I haven't had a chance to try yet.

And I like the big paper bags with handles. They come in handy for potlucks at work. ( :

I do at least half of my shopping there, mostly because of all the organic food. Believe me, they don't sell "crap." And yes, they have lots of unique items, pre-packaged as well as prepare-yourself. I think you'll love it; take your time browsing the shelves and have fun!

Glenda, Where will it be located? Good access from Tuscaloosa?

We don't have a Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, or Fresh Market around here and I've never been to any of them. We do have an Aldi's that I've only recently tried out. Their selection is very limited, but I love how small it is -- I can get in and out fast there! :)

I'd be excited about any new option for anything! It all has a chance to be good. There's a restaurant about a mile from here that's been closed for years. Last November somebody bought it and put up a sign saying that XXX was coming soon! and they started to "work" on the building. They're still working on it! I don't understand why it's taking so long... I see work-crews and huge equipment there every day. lol! (ah! I just now realized... they're probably waiting to get their liquor license!!!)

I will await YOUR take on it, Glenda. You *know food*. You're the pro here.

I'm interested to see how all these stores survive. These are within reasonable driving distance of my home: Aldi's, Fresh Garden, Fresh Market, Heinen's, Jewel/Osco, Mariano's, Sunset (local 4-store group affiliated with Centrella), Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and...Costco.

The Heinen's is new, and is getting my business over the closer Jewel and Fresh Market (very small, specialties). I'm still spending a good bit on groceries at Costco.

Something I find astounding is the enormous BEER section at Heinen's. I've seen many stores with big wine and liquor departments, but this is 15% of the retail space. (I might drink one glass of beer in the summer.)

My nearest TJs is an hour away, but Whole Foods twice that far and I rarely get there. Life in a small town, I travel with a cooler....

I'll stop at Trader Joe's when I go to Costco, I have a few things I like to buy there.
Flowers as was mentioned above, live florists plants are a great price including orchids.
Corn salsa...add can of drained black beans, some chopped tomato and you have a great appetizer with some kind of tortilla strip or scoop
Fresh and filled pastas (ravioli), quality and better price than my local Top Foods or Safeway
Sea Salted pita chips, 1/2 the price of Top Foods
Nuts for baking, recipes
Out of ordinary cheeses
Oils of all kinds, can't beat the price. Olive, Coconut, last week I bought a bottle of toasted sesame oil for $2.99. A small bottle, but it still would have been twice as much at Safeway
Mirepoix. I have a food processor and can chop my own, but it's nice to have it on hand for those days I'm rushed, I'll freeze it if necessary
Wine prices are very good.

Maxmom, it's at the Summit. Seems like that is where everything is these days. Like Hwy 280 needs more traffic!! It's convenient for Glenda but not so much for me. I was hoping for one in Trussville. I guess I will visit TJ when I go that way for lunch with Glenda.

We actually had one in Athens, GA where I used to live. I was shocked that Birmingham didn't have one. I like some of the stuff from TJ but wouldn't do all my grocery shopping there. It's fun to look at what they have and everything I've tried was good.

Sad thing is they made the announcement yesterday but it doesn't open until the 2nd half of 2015. Long wait.

Trader Joe's is NOT owned by the same people who own Aldi's, but by a different brother.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldi

I think Trader Joe's gets overhyped. They are great for some things, but not so great for others, especially now that other supermarkets are carrying a wider variety of SKUs in some areas.

That said, I love their Pita Bite and sesame crackers as well as their seasonal toast crackers. Their ice cream is a superpremium brand relabeled for them and their frozen macarons are excellent. On the other hand, I think their refrigerated and frozen entrees aren't any better than those from any other brand, their produce can be overpriced and their packaged "fresh" baked goods are usually mediocre.

I think you will have fun exploring their offerings even if you don't do the bulk of your shopping there. Their employees are hired and trained to be friendly and helpful and their advertising piece, called the Fearless Flyer, is usually a hoot to read as it is written from a punny, tongue-in-cheek perspective.

I think it is personal choice. Have not been to T.J for years since the one in CA was too far for me at the time I lived there, thought they were a bit pricy, but did like some things. Like one poster said, when you go, be prepared to look around and compare and then share your thoughts with us.
Marie

Thanks for the info, Lindy. You're right about 280. Everything is there, including the traffic. I don't get up to Bham much as it's difficult to be on my feet for long periods of time, but I just may have visit TJ when they come in. My favorite thing is their dark chocolate covered crystallized ginger bits. My son would sometimes bring me some from Atlanta.

The one time I was at Whole Foods it didn't have something I though it would, but I enjoyed looking. Unfortunately on that day I just wasn't in the mood for shopping. Guess that has it's advantages.

Didn't know the opening wasn't until further down the road.in 2015.

Linda we will have to lunch again, BEFORE then.

I'm up and down 280, all the time, as I live there maxmom. You might have to meet us for lunch some time.

I live smack dab between three Trader Joe's, all within 5 miles of us.

We like the place but do not do our regular shopping there. We primarily go there for potted orchids, cut flowers, cheese, wine and the best deal anywhere on mochi, a Japanese ice cream dessert.

Beware walking down the frozen food aisle ...above the frozen peas, chicken and pizza ours are lined with small tubs of every imaginable types of candies. oh my.

Get on their mailing list and you will receive a cute little four page newsletter called the Fearless Flyer. It's filled with clever antidotes, humor and recipes featuring their products.

Enjoy your new TJ's but don't rely on it for everything.

Jodi-

Trader Joe's is OK. It's small, therefore the selection is limited. Some people rave about it. There's one near me and I've stopped in a few times but I fail to see the big attraction. Of course I also have 2 Aldi's nearby and I've never even gone in them.

I do most of my shopping at Wegman's and Shop Rite and the local farm markets. Whole Foods is too pricey.

Deeby - why do you boycott stores that sell rabbit? Do you boycott stores that also sell beef and chicken? I'm not being snarky, I was just wondering what the difference was. I assume the rabbit is also commercially raised just like most other meats.

I enjoy Fresh Market's meat. Buy there when I need something special.

Thanks for the invitation, Glenda. I'd love to meet you.

I know that 280 is bad, but I've never minded traffic as I'm usually not in a great hurry to get anywhere.

TJ's is more a specialty store not a grocery store as we all define a grocery store. For someone who lives alone and spends a lot of her time eating out, some of the frozen items might be right up Glenda's alley. A friend of mine used to buy lots of wine there..not sure about now a days...I used to love to stop buy and shop in MA but nothing close here in TX

I get all my frozen veggies at TJs. I don't know why they are better than everyone else but they are fresher tasting. Most frozen veggies are waterlogged and cook up mushy. TJs frozen veggies cook up crisp, just like fresh.
They have interesting food that is inexpensive so if you feel like trying something new, you are not spending a fortune. They have pretty strict quality control and take pride in the products they sell. They stand behind them and have a liberal return policy.

The employees are happy and helpful, going out of their way to make sure you find what you are looking for.

When a new one comes to an area, stay AWAY on weekends and go during the day, if possible. You will want to walk around and look at everything. The stores are usually placed in the worst parking lots and the aisles are not super conducive to double buggy shopping.

Just go and have fun checking stuff out.

TJ's isn't the place to go for day-in, day-out groceries because of the limited selection. If you had to settle for just going there and nowhere else, it would work fine but you'd be missing some things.

On the other hand, they have "stuff" the likes of which most stores don't have. I don't mean simply something with a private label, but rather the nature of what they have. As a completely made up example, if a chain store has 4 brands of regular canned corn, TJ's doesn't have any. But in its place they'd have a ginger-soy flavored organic corn with artichoke hearts. To my California tastes, their stuff is very interesting. Whether it's Two Buck Chuck, their wide selection of moderately priced cheeses, beers and wines or interesting concoctions of other sorts, or bagged arugula, or unique crackers, soups, etc, TJ's stuff makes entertaining and eating at home more interesting.

Their buyers and merchandisers also "get it". Frozen fish (one of their specialties) is almost always wild and not farmed. Packaged products never have trans fats nor high fructose corn syrup, there's no need to even look at the small print.

(jodi, I think you mean anecdote, an antidote is something you take to counteract a poison)

Yep, anecdote is what I really meant. Thanks Snidely for the correction.

About selling rabbit meat, all I know is that the House Rabbit Society has asked pet rabbit owners to boycott so I do. I don't think any other of our local stores sell rabbit meat. Just thinking about it breaks my heart. I have three rabbitties and they are my kids. Rabbits have emotions, preferences, they do fun things, the whole shebang and are like cats and dogs. About TJ, have fun and look around. I like the cat cookies, the chocolate ones taste like brownies. Going to try that frozen eggplant parmesan. Sounds good !

I miss not having TJs close by. At one time in CA, TJs was less than a block from my home. There is one in West Des Moines almost an hour away from me. Their prices are fair and their selection is fantastic. Lots of vegetarian frozen items. I tried Two Buck Chuck and poured it down the sink. It is a white wine that is popular.

I would go more often if the closest one to me didn't have such a horrid parking lot.

I love Trader Joes. They have some wonderful items.

A few things I always pick up (because they're cheap and woderful):
Roasted tomato and red pepper soup. Amazing!
Craked Wheat sourdough bread
Spice mix in grinders ($1.99! Try the "everyday seasoning")
Sparkling mineral water (about $.30 cheaper than the local grocery)
Mushroom brie
blue cheese crumbles
shaved brussels sprouts (amazing as salad)
frozen orange chicken
frozen scampi (I haven't seen this one in a while but I would always buy 2 boxes to keep in my freezer. They need to bring it back)
Ginger flavored candies (like Altiods in a tin by the register).

I am so excited for you. Trader Joe's is great. Cheaper than the regular grocery and no hipsters in mine. I don't like their milk though. It seems to go bad more quickly than when I get it at Ralph's.

Ralphs? You must be in California too?

I love TJ's! I buy some produce there. They have a good selection of cheeses. During the winter, I always buy their tomato and roasted red pepper tomato soup to keep in the pantry for quick meals. They also have a green curry sauce that we love for stir frying. Their pasta sauces are good too. Their prices are very reasonable.

I live within driving distance of 4 TJ's and go to one about every week. I like to stop in and get a mini-cup of coffee and try whatever they are sampling. When we had our grocery employee strike a number of years ago, it was one of the few places we could shop without crossing a picket line.

The staff is generally very friendly and helpful.

Many of their prices are very reasonable (bread, peanut butter, milk). Some of the meat is higher than the grocery store, but it is better quality too. I would say only half of the produce is organic, and a lot of it is pre-packaged. Bread is well priced and a good variety. Cheese--imported is good but the stuff with their name on it isn't that good. Frozen veggies are good, especially that roasted corn. Cards are a buck and very nice; I like them better than any others because they are short and sweet. Oh, if you like peanuts, get the blister peanuts. Salads are inexpensive, easy to pick up for lunch and a wide variety. I'm not too crazy about their prepared foods (enchiladas, for example).

Have fun, Glenda.

This post was edited by socks12345 on Fri, Sep 19, 14 at 9:31

Yes, Deeby. I am in South OC. Pretty close to Jodi (She is in Irvine and I am in Mission Viejo)

I'm in San Marcos, north San Diego county.

I love their chocolate truffles.

We love...
Frozen vegetables, especially roasted corn and French cut green beans
Champagne vinaigrette salad dressing
Cuban black beans
Pasta sauces
Spice grinders
Corn salsa
Tomato and red pepper soup
Cookies...grandkids love the ABC cookies and kitty cookies
Pumpernickel pretzels
Soy chips
Many cracker varieties
2 Buck Chuck...really about 3.49 a bottle at our place. The Pinot Grigio is very good. If you don't like it, bring it back and they'll refund your $. Actually they do that on any product.
Greeting cards...cute, well-designed and $1.

I'm sure I've left out some other things. We go to TJs about 1x a month and stock up on what we like. We took a dozen bottles of salad dressing with us when we went south for the winter, but now that they're building a TJs in Jax, we won't have to import so much!