Trader Joe's

12/11/08

Best Market Ever!

by tambs at Citysearch

TJ's is the best market ever!! It's cheaper than the regular market and the whole selection there is great! Everything is always fresh and healthy. Plus, if you're a starving college student, they have great frozen foods that are healthy and still have lots of flavor!

Fresh produce and gourmet frozen foods sold at affordable prices.

by Martha Burr at Citysearch

In Short
Founder Joseph Coulombe started this L.A.-based convenience chain 34 years ago. Today, you can get exotic, prepackaged frozen foods, fresh salsas, huge portobello mushrooms, baby artichokes and heirloom tomatoes fresher--and cheaper--than at most supermarkets. Inexpensive meat, fish, coffees and teas, dozens of cheeses, grains and pastas cram the shelves. The frozen section features tasty treats, including barbecue chicken pizzas, mushroom risotto and salmon patties. Beer, wine and liquor sections are stocked with very affordable labels.

02/21/08

Great Location

by alexdeveza at Citysearch

I must be doing something wrong been here to shop for years didnt know it was a hook up spot.

Love the food love the neighborhood. Now I gotta try this locations new specialty. =)

• Pros: parking
• Cons: parking

01/15/08

It's my fave

by zoessimo at Citysearch

Never knew it as a hook up spot. It's my neighborhood grocery store. The one on 3rd is far too small to get through--this one is 1/2" larger. Everyone is so freakin' friendly that I wonder what they are on. I'm tempted to go work there just to find out. Maybe it's something in the water.

• Pros: It's got better parking then other TJ's and slightly wider isles, and a super friendly staff. And it's not full of Hollywood/Exec types.
• Cons: None--except they quit carrying peanut butter-filled dog bones & keep rearranging everything.

11/15/06

Best Local Neighborhood Market , Great Service

by dcracing at Citysearch

You're not going to find a better neighborhood bar than this. Great selection of healthy and organic food you can find. Great prices too. Not as crowded as wholefoods. Wish the hours were longer by another hour or two. Won't find some of the great items in other normal markets. Nice market

• Pros: Great Neighborhood Market
• Cons: Not long enough hours, Open until midnight please.

05/05/05

If you liked pre packaged and canned goods

by wonder1818 at Citysearch

I don't understand this love of Trader Jo's. For fresh foods it's the pits. If you want to buy giant bags of nuts, okay. If you want to purchase the most fattening (bar none) breads or other bakery items I've ever seen, go for it. But if you prefer fresh food, and bakery goods that will not equal a week's caloric intake, go to just about any other market. I suppose for special ocasions where you want something different, or for cheap wine, it's pretty good.

• Pros: some good buys, ample frozen food, good alcohol prices
• Cons: hardly anything fresh, calorie packed bread, not a real market

02/12/03

Fast check out

by dragon at Citysearch

Besides Trader Joes being the only market I shop at due to their eclectic selection of foods from around the world, their check out system is better then ever. They just revamped their check out system and it is fantastic! They can now swipe/key in all your food, you can see the tally right in front of you and if you pay by credit card you simply swipe and electronically approve your signiture. No more paper to sign! Also, no backing up into your neighbor in order to leave the store. You just keep progressing forward and you are in the stream to get out the door and on your way home to cook.

• Pros: fast check out, eclectic food, great prices
• Cons: parking lot, crowded

05/20/02

Stocking Up

by JaneTunks_Citysearch at Citysearch

Once I week, I head here for the "homemade" tortillas, on-sale Cabernet, shiitake mushrooms, roasted red peppers and those delicious frozen shrimp ;) Put on your lipstick before you arrive, 'cause you will probably run in to someone you know. And you want to look good, right?

05/17/02

Fine Food, Frustrating Layout

by RichardTate at Citysearch

At Trader Joe's, the canned goods, frozen foods and cheeses are top-notch, as is the wine selection (must try the Bear's Lair chardonnay). In terms of product, only the produce disappoints (over-ripe bananas, bruised apples, limited selection of veggies). Still, it's the kind of grocery store that can make a mac-n-cheese bachelor look like a gourmet chef without breaking the bank. But TJ's does its customers no favors with the awkward layout of the registers. Lines that form immediately cut of traffic to the exits and run into the aisles. The parking lot is, without fail, a complete zoo as well. The staff is always friendly and helpful, however. (If the store seems to be out of your favorite item, just ask about it--they'll usually order it or save a selection for you from the next scheduled shipment.) All in all, it's worth the hassle.

• Pros: Great service, Unique foods
• Cons: Parking, Checkout lines