The Trader Joe's Product Discussion Thread (S/D)

Re: the vegetarian sausages, while he was asking me about them, he was also scanning my many meat purchases (chicken breasts, pork chops, steaks, and Canadian bacon) and I said in a totally "I AM MAKING A REALLY DUMB JOKE" tone, "Well, as a vegetarian, I really like them," and he was just all, "Totally! I'm a vegetarian and I love them, too!!!!"

And there was also a different clerk who was talking about how much bacon his TJ's location sells, and I was like, "Well, we are the hog butcher to the world" and he was like, "Really? That is so cool!" but it would be kind of awful of me to judge somebody for not getting that dumb joke.

(Note: I totally judged him for not getting that dumb joke.)

I got judged for not getting a hog butcher Chicago joke, right here on the ILX.

lol.
once in the freezer section there was a sign next to the pork buns with a picture of tj's employee 'ben' saying that they were his "pick" with the quote "i eat them every day!" so when it was time for checkout, bf recognized him as one of the cashiers and insisted we get in his line, then proceeded to ask him about the pork buns and if he really did eat them every day because we thought it probably wasn't that healthy. he admitted it was probably more like 3 times a week. he also said he was from hawaii and he never thought he'd find pork buns anywhere else so he was so excited about them. uh... have you tried chinese restaurants, dude?

Abbbbbs, I would never judge a non-Chicagoan for not getting a hog butcher Chicago joke! But I mean, if you have a job selling pork products in Chicago, it seems like that should be in the employee training manual.

Last time I was at Trader Joe's the clerk asked me what my spiritual guide animal was, which was unusual small talk, but also interesting enough. I told her a magpie because "I am easily distracted," and she said, "why does that make you a magpie?" So I grabbed a shiny pen and said, "A magpie would be distracted by your shiny pen and take it," and she grabbed the pen out of my hand. She did not like my object lesson.

The Ben's Bun's story is kind of like the seamy underbelly of TJ's super friendly employee policy. I am imagining Ben's manager forcing him to memorize some stock patter about the pork buns. "But they are available in Chinese restaurants! Why should I say I could never find them outside of Hawaii? I'm from Bayonne!"

xp LOL

haha - last trip to TJ's in NYC I left thinking "jeez these check-out people sure are FRIENDLY - maybe they're imported from California?"

the line between inappropriately friendly crazy person and helpful TJ's employee is kind of thin, you know

tru

FRIENDLY - maybe they're imported from California?"

Was going to say that where I live in California is like a whole town of TJs employees. And the TJs employees are terrifyingly friendly.

My hell.

friendly AND sincere
it's like apple store employees and tj's employees are trained via same methodology but apple store employees get an extra module on how to deal with dry humour

did a big shop with two friends at tj's in sf and we were musing about whether we could split the bill between 3 cards and the cashier guy was like 'no problem at all' and was so chill about it (it wasn't a crazy busy time of day). i was impressed.

we had a bbq and i tried the veggie sausage and they were okay, but the pork sausages were way better. weirdly, that tj's had only one kind of pork sausage (bratwurst) and like 50 kinds of chicken sausages.

The Chicago TJ employees seem to fall into the "wacky" friendly type, which is perhaps the worst kind of friendly. This isn't Seinfeld, no one wants wacky friends when they are buying groceries.

For some reason when it opened in Portland it was like they were offering free samples of heroin or something - flocks of people. No parking.

Seagull people

no - cat people!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APrBdP0bBJM

and then...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0L0D80Xg-A&feature=related

<3<3<3

That song is so OTM.

I just got back from a trip to tj's and my checkout person gave me a high five after he checked my Id and realized that i am a fellow Virgo. Then we had a nice conversation and I think he gave me a free apple.

Sometimes these convos are painful, but today it was nice. Not busy, didn't seem pained at all. They always ask me what I plan to do with the fennel, and this guy just chatted with me like a human being.

I remember once at Hannafords the checkout guy saw our leeks and wa s like "Oh I love these" and proceeded to rub his huge nose u pand down them, snorting in their oniony goodness. Didn't he ever go to nose school? You don't slide your nose on other's tubers.

haha trader joe's in video is the trader joe's we went to (more than once) in SF!

or at least the insane parking lot is

Second dud ever for a Trader Joe's product- the chicken sausage with garlic, spinach and fontina. It wasn't due to expire for another month, but it smelled soooooooo bad when i took it out of the package. I still cooked them and it made my house smell like dead hooker vag. Or what I would assume...

weirdly, that tj's had only one kind of pork sausage (bratwurst) and like 50 kinds of chicken sausages.

that was the case at the tj's i was at yesterday -- no idea about the pork sausage, but there were many chicken sausages to choose from. i went with the spinach/fontina/roasted garlic ones and they were delish.

xp hahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahaha

i didn't think they smelled like dead hooker vag, but i am a bit congested.

yeah hopefully not from your memory there Yerac. Today I wrote Jennis Macaroons to tell them they taste like vomit

The garlic and herb chicken sausages are really, really good on a crusty roll with sauteed mushrooms and caramelized onions. And mustard. And I throw a little red wine in with the shrooms and onions. I'm classy.

my daughter excitedly bought "yogurt beans" - yogurt covered raisins - boy was she sad when she tasted them. Also a boxed soup languished in our cuppboard for a year and then was executed to the trash

dead hooker vag

rejected DJP screen name

I don't buy much produce at TJ's but the jumbo-size packages of blueberries are consistently plump & juicy. product-wise my son now reps for the jarred marinara sauce. it's OK.

I like wild Maine blueberries
http://www.wymans.com/

you can get em frozen and thaw the delight

I bought the Donut O's and they are not that great.

I love the horseradish hummus.

Is that a donut flavored cereal?!?!

No. Trader Joe's Old Fashioned Donut O's are donut holes.

THE CURRY TUNA IS BACK. BACK AGAIN. TUNA'S BACK. TELL A FRIEND.

really liking the pistacho/white chocolate cookies and i'm by no means a white chocolate head

actually, most of their cookies are pretty boss

i will have some now, in fact, having just eaten TJ's pork gyoza

Do they have gyoza sauce?

Their sweet chili sauce is kind of underwhelming. Plus I'm used to paying $1.75 for a big ass jug of the good stuff in "Little Saigon" and it bothers me to pay any more.

idk, i have sriracha

My lips are pursed in disapproval.

they do sell gyoza sauce. i've never bought it. damn i have some of their sweet chili in the cupboard (unopened). sad to hear it will be not awesome.

It's OK, but I like the real deal.

Why can't I buy salt or white sugar there? I guess I know why, sort of, but I still want it.

them

They have salt at TJs. A bit plastic tube of sea salt, with a kind of inconvenient spout.

it's blue

they usually have sugar, too, but i find that stuff is always getting moved round and isn't always in the most obvious place.

uh, "big" plastic tube of salt. hey guess what else, trader joes has. booz

when I'm walking by a trader joes I stop in for a little coffee