Trader Joe's Products (2012–2015)

[rotuts]

""" seasonal items that are just at the "sell-by" date at greatly reduced prices """

wow. we dont have that here. they do take anything back

Im only guessing that The Store In Question need some outside help.

from the 800 number.

[Catherine Iino]

I hardly ever get to go, because there isn't one convenient to me. But I wanted to add that I did go at the very end of the summer, and I bought a box of peaches. I was leery, because they were hard as rocks, but the color was good and the low price made them worth the risk. I brought them home and they sat on the counter for three weeks before they seemed soft enough to eat. I expected pasty mush. Imagine my surprise when they turned out to be some of the most delicious peaches I've ever had--juicy, sweet, and flavorful. And then they held that condition for another week. I don't know whether they were frankenpeaches or what, but man, were they good.

[Shel_B]

I hardly ever get to go, because there isn't one convenient to me. But I wanted to add that I did go at the very end of the summer, and I bought a box of peaches. I was leery, because they were hard as rocks, but the color was good and the low price made them worth the risk. I brought them home and they sat on the counter for three weeks before they seemed soft enough to eat. I expected pasty mush. Imagine my surprise when they turned out to be some of the most delicious peaches I've ever had--juicy, sweet, and flavorful. And then they held that condition for another week. I don't know whether they were frankenpeaches or what, but man, were they good.

What kind of peaches have you been eating that those picked so far from ripe can be some of the best you've had? You need to try some fresh picked, tree ripened, "Bend Over" peaches, so ripe, fresh, and juicy that you have to bend over when taking that first bite lest the juice run down your arm and run down your face and neck.

[Shel_B]

The TJs I shop at in Palmdale always has very fresh produce and they are checking daily to be sure there are no "expired" items in the cold case or on the produce gondolas.

They check the other less perishable items weekly and have sets of shelves in the back with crackers and jarred items and seasonal items that are just at the "sell-by" date at greatly reduced prices, same with the breads.

If you take anything back, even fruit that has been cut open, with which you are dissatisfied, they will return your money.

My store doesn't do such things. Pity. Never had a problem getting money back for anything, for any reason. Usually no one asks for a reason. Perhaps they should - might learn something useful, eh?

[rotuts]

call 800 for your issues.

it might help .........

but it might not ..........

one must try .........

[Shel_B]

Shel, I go to TJ's on Lakeshore in Oakland. Which one do you go to? I only buy a limited number of things there, but so far have had no problems. Then again, I don't typically buy fresh produce or dairy. I do buy the Empire kosher chicken once in a while but check the date and try to get the latest packaging. I notice that one product with a short shelf life that I like is the TJ brand organic cherry juice that's not from concentrate; it's far tastier than the non-organic 100%cherry juice from concentrate, which lasts longer in the fridge and costs less.

The following is my list of other TJ's regular purchases: chocolate biscotti, Valrhona 71% dark chocolate bar ($2.99 for a big bar!), Barbara's Puffins and Oat Squares, TJ's frozen in the pod edamame and Bulleit Rye, all of which seem to be consistently okay. For fresh products we usually go the the farmers' market or Berkeley Bowl.

We shop mostly in El Cerrito, and sometimes in Berkeley.

There are a number of staples we get there, although Toots and I each have our own preference. She gets eggs, various crackers, a special lactose free milk, and a few produce items that satisfy here desires.

I like(d) their packaged leeks, get their carbonated water, sometimes, for convenience, I'll grab a bagged salad mix, and I used to by my Greek yogurt there. Even that seems to have changed with their new package, so now I buy Straus Greek yogurt. The items I mentioned in my original post are not things I usually buy. Generally my fruit and produce comes from the local farmers' markets, Monterey Market, or Berkeley Bowl.

[Edward J]

Never been to a T.J.'s yet, but they made the news here in Vancouver a few weeks ago.

There are no T.J.'s in Canada, but there is a lot of demand for their stuff. So an upstart store called "Pirate Joe's" would go over the border to Wash. State, buy a bunch of T.J.'s stuff at their stores, and sell it here in Vancouver in thier store--pirate joe"s.

T.J.'s finally got wind of it and it went through the Wash. State courts. T.J.'s lost the case.

I think the point heads at T.J.'s would have been better off spending the money they did on lawyers to do a feasability study on opening stores in Canada......

[rotuts]

""" point heads at T.J.'s would have been better off spending the money ""

the point heads you well describe are not local. not to the USA

its now a conglomerate owned and operated by a German Trust.

no big deal with the German part. but nothing local about it.

there are no TJ's in germany as I understand it, either.

its pretty much a distant company that says:

" show me the money "

unless you take a lot ie a lot ie a lot of their mistakes back

1 dollar ( USA or CAN ) = 1 vote.

Edited October 20, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[Pierogi]

Shel, I'm with those that recommend contacting Corporate, either by phone or e-mail. I've done it a few times, and have found them to be extremely responsive.

That said, your store seems to me to be an aberration; I routinely shop at each of the three here in Long Beach, and while I've seen issues with each, they've been rare. Nothing of the type you've cited, and certainly not frequently. Sounds to me like the management in your store needs a refresher course in the TJ way. And I buy the majority of my meat, dairy and pantry staples and about 50% of my produce there.

[Toliver]

Shel, I'm with those that recommend contacting Corporate, either by phone or e-mail. I've done it a few times, and have found them to be extremely responsive.

That said, your store seems to me to be an aberration; I routinely shop at each of the three here in Long Beach, and while I've seen issues with each, they've been rare. Nothing of the type you've cited, and certainly not frequently. Sounds to me like the management in your store needs a refresher course in the TJ way. And I buy the majority of my meat, dairy and pantry staples and about 50% of my produce there.

Yes, this.

My TJ's is not a very large store and yet there seems to be a good turnover rate with most of their products.

Be the squeaky wheel and let Corporate/Management know about your experience.

[andiesenji]

""" seasonal items that are just at the "sell-by" date at greatly reduced prices """

wow. we dont have that here. they do take anything back

Im only guessing that The Store In Question need some outside help.

from the 800 number.

To give you an example. A year ago they had chestnuts, peeled, in vac sealed bags, for microwaving for 60 seconds and they came out as good, if not better than the ones I cooked the traditional way (8.99 each). In January they went to the "sale" shelves priced at $2.99 each. I bought all of them and put them in the freezer - still have a few and they are as good as ever.

The sale stuff may not always be in an obvious spot so ask.

[annabelle]

I've never shopped in a TJ's since they are not in my area, but this doesn't sound like a typical experience from what I have read here and elsewhere about their stores.

I'd talk to the store manager first. It's his/her responsibility to see that the store is run properly. If you don't get results there, then go over his head and call corporate. There's no need to blind-side the store with a visit from corporate until you give them a chance to correct the problems first.

[Porthos]

call 800 for your issues.

I agree. I had a TJs that used to mid-handle wine. Particular bottles bought at a different store would be fine but if bought from that store tasted "over the hill." Happened more than once. That is why I second the 800 number because if there is bad management at your store your concerns may not be taken seriously, whereas a corporate-level customer complaint will alert the company that something needs to be looked at.

The TJs I use now has excellent customer service.

[Baselerd]

A TJ's just opened up near me recently and I've been a few times. I've felt the quality and prices of the food are all over the place. Some of the produce I've purchased there was pretty meh, although I got some really good cheese, and they had cured beef bresoala that was great as well.

However, I bought some of their frozen fish following some high praise and was utterly disappointed with it. Their frozen Sole (which was obviously the Pacific variant due to the $7/lb price point) did not smell fresh once it was thawed.

[Porthos]

I've never shopped in a TJ's since they are not in my area, but this doesn't sound like a typical experience from what I have read here and elsewhere about their stores.

I'd talk to the store manager first. It's his/her responsibility to see that the store is run properly. If you don't get results there, then go over his head and call corporate. There's no need to blind-side the store with a visit from corporate until you give them a chance to correct the problems first.

The only reason I would by-pass the manager at this point is that it has been multiple bad items on different trips. Just my viewpoint ...

[annabelle]

How large are these stores? Are there multiple layers of management? I don't know anything about their corporate structure.

When my elder son was in high school he worked at a local grocery store that has about 30 stores in its empire. There were multiple layers of management and the store manager spent most of his time in his office doing ordering and the like. If TJ's structure is similar it's possible the manager is unaware of the problems. I like to go to the guys who are on the ground first. Messages get garbled when you call on the phone and many times the ball can be dropped. Of course, it's possible that others have already expressed a concern to corporate.

In the spirit of fairness, I would go to the store manager first and see if that does the trick.

Edited October 21, 2013 by annabelle (log)

[Porthos]

I can't speak for the bay area stores but the stores I use all have the manager on the floor. There is an elevated area near the registers and that is where the manager conducts his business from. Customers are free to walk up and engage the manager at any time. It is only because of my experience with multiple TJs in southern California over a period of 35 years coupled with having patronized one store (with the aforementioned raised manager's area) that consistently was mis-handling wine that I think corporate should become involved. Not asking anyone else to share this opinion and in general I have a very high level of respect for TJs.

About a year and a half ago there was an empty box of a single malt with a shelf tag at "my" TJs. After a couple a visits of only finding the empty box I asked for help. They checked for stock in the back room and found none and brought out a computer printout related to stock and looking it over found that they were no longer carrying that scotch. Instead of suggesting something else on their shelf they recommended 2 competitors that most likely still carried it. That is real customer service.

[annabelle]

Whatever works, of course. I'm sure that TJ's would like to know about the problem one way or the other. And if they don't care or nothing changes, I'd shop somewhere else.

[rotuts]

I made the TJ's cornbread mix in my new TO :

a picture of the result is in the Cornbread thread here:

http://forums.egullet.org/topic/146023-cornbread-whats-your-favorite-and-how-do-you-bake-it/

its as mentioned: a sweet version, rich if you choose the asked for amount of oil, and fast to make.

that's not necessarily a good thing: it seems to disappear rapidly.

these smart ovens are very easy to use, and should come with a 'pay-to-bake' feature that accepts 5

dollar bills. just to even things out. They would also pay for themselves very quickly.

next up: Tj's Cinnamon crumb coffee cake mix : baked 'as directed' 3480 Cals

CornBread mix 'as directed' 1710 cals.

just saying.

Edited October 24, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[Toliver]

I don't get it.

If you buy the Trader Joe's Pork Shu Mai, you get 9 pieces. Box after box...just 9 pieces in each box.

However, if you buy the Trader Joe's Chicken Shu Mai, when you open the box it's like opening a circus clown car...they just keep pouring out. The last box of Trader Joe's Chicken Shu Mai I bought contained 19 pieces. Sure, they were a little smaller than the Pork Shu Mai, but why the huge discrepancy in piece count?

Color me perplexed.

[Shel_B]

If you buy the Trader Joe's Pork Shu Mai, you get 9 pieces. Box after box...just 9 pieces in each box.

However, if you buy the Trader Joe's Chicken Shu Mai, when you open the box it's like opening a circus clown car...they just keep pouring out. The last box of Trader Joe's Chicken Shu Mai I bought contained 19 pieces. Sure, they were a little smaller than the Pork Shu Mai, but why the huge discrepancy in piece count?

Color me perplexed.

Dear Perplexed,

Is the total weight significantly different?

Signed,

Confused in Coalinga

[Toliver]

Is the total weight significantly different?

How about that? I never thought to compare the weight of two boxes. I assumed the difference was more likely due to cost-of-ingredients. Never assume...

[OliverB]

I've been looking for it for a long time, now my Trader Joe's (of all places) has it: Black Garlic! Under their own brand, two to three bulbs in a small resealable bag. The stuff is delicious! Check it out, buy lots, so they keep carrying it :-)

[Chris Amirault]

TJ's had the best Oregon hazelnuts I could imagine for a while. They were my staple snack at work until last visit -- when they had been replaced by some feeble nuts from Thailand....

[judiu]

We finally got a Trader Joe's in south Florida (YEA!) The problem it's in WAY south Florida, down by SW Miami-Dade county (BOO!) It'd be an all day trip for me, and I know damn well I'd get lost! Guess I gotta wait a little longer to get one in Broward County!