OFFICIAL Trader Joe's Discussion

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Tue Apr 23, 2013 10:10 am

Lime Chile Mixed Nuts: I have never complained that anything was too spicy before, but this might be a first. The flavor is fantastic with Thai chili, lime, lemongrass and whatever else is going on in there, but good lord, does it set your mouth on fire!

Dark chocolate covered coconut and mango bite: absolutely amazing, and perfect for putting out fire caused by product listed above.

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Tue Apr 23, 2013 10:35 am

I love the dark chocolate peanut butter cups.

Rush2112 · Post by **Rush2112** » Tue Apr 23, 2013 10:48 am

They are supposedly opening one in Denver with booze at the end of this summer, and another in Boulder sans booze this fall.

I need my roasted vegetable pizza damn it!

Steve of phpBB · Post by **Steve of phpBB** » Tue Apr 23, 2013 12:55 pm

They finally opened one in Salt Lake City a few months ago, without booze of course.

I only went once, though, and was underwhelmed.

But all this talk about snacks is making me want to go back again. I'd better head out for lunch.

Post by **brian** » Tue Apr 23, 2013 1:02 pm

Yeah, I was psyched when I moved to Las Vegas a few years ago to check them out, but it never really did much for me, especially relative to the prices and crowds. But it has been awhile and you guys have referenced some stuff in the past that sounds pretty good, so I might have to check them out again.

sancarlos · Post by **sancarlos** » Tue Apr 23, 2013 1:07 pm

I get cereal, bread, and sometimes wine there. My wife gets some other stuff, too. I beware the nuts, which don't taste fresh and the beer, which is sometimes old.

testy boxcar · Post by **testy boxcar** » Tue Apr 23, 2013 1:20 pm

Aldi's For White People

wlu_lax6 · Post by **wlu_lax6** » Mon Aug 26, 2013 1:15 pm

So Cross Border Trader Joe Resale causing the Germans (Trader Joes is owned by German Family Trust Markus-Stiftung) is suing the guy for trademark infringement. Scottie will dig this as it is Vancouver guy crossing over to buy stuff from Bellingham, WA
http://freakonomics.com/2013/08/26/trad ... rate-joes/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Post by **Shirley** » Mon Aug 26, 2013 2:44 pm

wlu_lax6 wrote:So Cross Border Trader Joe Resale causing the Germans (Trader Joes is owned by German Family Trust Markus-Stiftung) is suing the guy for trademark infringement. Scottie will dig this as it is Vancouver guy crossing over to buy stuff from Bellingham, WA
http://freakonomics.com/2013/08/26/trad ... rate-joes/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Please diagram that first sentence.

Brontoburglar · Post by **Brontoburglar** » Mon Aug 26, 2013 2:51 pm

What is this cookie butter that everyone raves about?

wlu_lax6 · Post by **wlu_lax6** » Mon Aug 26, 2013 3:45 pm

Brontoburglar wrote:What is this cookie butter that everyone raves about?

let TJ explain
http://traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/ar ... cle_id=561" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Brontoburglar · Post by **Brontoburglar** » Mon Aug 26, 2013 10:23 pm

wlu_lax6 wrote:
Brontoburglar wrote:What is this cookie butter that everyone raves about?
let TJ explain
http://traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/ar ... cle_id=561" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Right, I got that -- I guess I should have clarified that I was asking for rave reviews like I've seen other places.

It's selling on Amazon Prime for 4x what TJs sells it for. I guess I need to go down to TJ's here and get some.

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 1:11 am

Hrmm. Looks like I'll have to pick some up when I'm in Belgium.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 7:05 am

testy boxcar wrote:Aldi's For White People

There's an aldi's close to my house. We've taken to getting a few things there. They are basically half price compared to kroger and we haven't noticed much difference in quality.

Don't care much for their canned veggies, but their produce has been good, and their meat selection(spare ribs excepted) have been strong. Frozen foods, too.

rass · Post by **rass** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 7:14 am

Brontoburglar wrote:What is this cookie butter that everyone raves about?

It tastes good (if you like gingerbread) though I don't really get the fuss, and I'm not quite sure what you're supposed to do with it other than eat it by the spoonful.

testy boxcar · Post by **testy boxcar** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 8:30 am

AB_skin_test wrote:
testy boxcar wrote:Aldi's For White People
There's an aldi's close to my house. We've taken to getting a few things there. They are basically half price compared to kroger and we haven't noticed much difference in quality.

Don't care much for their canned veggies, but their produce has been good, and their meat selection(spare ribs excepted) have been strong. Frozen foods, too.

A lot of Aldi's products (especially processed goods like crackers, cookies, cereal, other things that start with the letter "c", apparently) are literally the same products as Trader Joe's, just with less slick packaging. It's the same company.

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 8:34 am

They just opened an Aldi's in our area and I've started going there to get eggs, milk and paper towels/plates/napkins. I can get a gallon of milk and a dozen eggs for a dollar less than a gallon of milk at Kroger.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 9:02 am

I didn't know aldi and trader joes was the same company. Makes sense.

Scottie · Post by **Scottie** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 11:28 am

wlu_lax6 wrote:So Cross Border Trader Joe Resale causing the Germans (Trader Joes is owned by German Family Trust Markus-Stiftung) is suing the guy for trademark infringement. Scottie will dig this as it is Vancouver guy crossing over to buy stuff from Bellingham, WA
http://freakonomics.com/2013/08/26/trad ... rate-joes/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I've been hearing about this and I'm actually anxious to talk with the chap involved, one of these days.

Twelve or so years ago, back when I was living in Chicago, my then girlfriend and I used to go to Trader Joe's every once in a while, usually Sunday mornings; it wasn't that far from where I lived. Oddly, at the time I thought that a Trader Joe's would be perfect, absolutely fitting, for Vancouver. And, oddly still, I had Kitsilano in mind specifically as my site. Now, for those unfamiliar with Kitsilano, it is a relatively expensive area, young families, yuppies, hipsters, designer bohemian, located in the fashionable west end of Vancouver. Surrounded by artisanal products, local breads, cheeses, preserves, pastas and the ever-booming Okanagan wine-producing valley that is challenging Napa for continental supremacy. Could you imagine a more ideal place for a Trader Joe's? No, you cannot.

So, twelve years ago, I track down some phone numbers and start calling them; trying to figure out how I can franchise a Trader Joe's in Vancouver. I didn't really know Vancouver very well at the time but I could identify, easily, that it was the perfect fit. So I call. Run-around, nothing. Call again another time. Nope, can't help you. Called again. Well, you can see where this is going. Not only couldn't I get anyone to discuss franchise opportunities in Canada, but they were deliberately shutting down anyone that asked. This was mysterious to me.

There is no way, I reasoned, that I am making the only inquiry about opening a Trader Joe's somewhere in Canada. No way. They are getting dozens of calls every week, right? Have to be. Yet they won't even discuss it. This became vexing after I mailed them a pretty sweet offer that was around $2-million for the licence, a yearly licence renewal fee of around $100,000 and a 5% royalty on everything sold (by that point I had a small group of people interested in doing this with me). Crazy-weighted deal in their favor, right? No response. So we sent another offer to them increasing everything by 25% or so. No response. And . . . why? That's what none of us could ever figure out. Why not at least give a reason? Very frustrating.

If I had approached Microsoft in 2001 and told them "I came up with this idea where anyone can pick and choose who they want to keep in contact with. I call it Linkbook. It will be known as social-media. And I can integrate it with Microsoft Office." I can guarantee that Microsoft would have listened seriously to that idea. Very seriously. And if they rejected it, I would have been given a very thorough reason why. "Well, we just don't feel that it is true to the Microsoft vision of Office and it is more of a social tool than a business tool." Okay, fine, sure.

But from Trader Joe's? Zero response. No reason given. All one can do is speculate and speculation is a waste of time. Is the cat that owns Trader Joe's banned from Canada? Does he have a criminal record that prevents him from crossing the border? Was he married to a Canadian and then divorced and now thinks all Canadians are douchecanoes? Does he hate Celine Dion?

I spent a month, in bits and pieces, toying with the idea of bringing a Trader Joe's to YVR. And then gave up. The guy over in Kitsilano right now? That became so frustrated with Trader Joe's that he went down to Washington state and bought a half-million bucks worth of their stuff and brought it up here to sell? He had been trying for ages, year after year, to open a Trader Joe's in Vancouver and kept getting absolutely nowhere. And he's a rich, very rich, dude; worth millions himself. And it is not like he wants to have the exclusive rights for all of Canada so he can open up a Trader Joe's in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan and then another one in Fisted Seal, Alberta. Nope. He just wants one store. One.

I can see where Trader Joe's can sue him for flaunting a semi-use of the name. There are chalk boards outside of the store that say "we sell Trader Joe's products". But that's about it. You can't sue someone for selling stuff they bought from you. And good luck suing someone in another country; even if that other country is five miles away, it might as well be Sweden. And suing your best customer? Not a good idea. No, not a good idea at all.

Scottie · Post by **Scottie** » Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:19 pm

wlu_lax6 wrote:So Cross Border Trader Joe Resale causing the Germans (Trader Joes is owned by German Family Trust Markus-Stiftung) is suing the guy for trademark infringement. Scottie will dig this as it is Vancouver guy crossing over to buy stuff from Bellingham, WA
http://freakonomics.com/2013/08/26/trad ... rate-joes/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

And dismissed.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Tue Dec 31, 2013 3:16 pm

Just picked up the Trader Joe's 2013 Vintage. I would have been scared off buying Trader Joe beer, but Rush touted it in the past, and $4 for a 750 ml bottle, not much of a gamble. I now know that it is produced by Unibroue, so I figure it has to be good. Or at least worth the money.

MaxWebster · Post by **MaxWebster** » Tue Dec 31, 2013 11:16 pm

only since i haven't been around here in about 6 months, i now live about an 8 minute bikeride from "Irate Joe's"

quite a limited selection, but they have a few family favourites in there.

i haven't been there in a while but i enjoyed how they printed out and posted on the front window hate emails they've gotten from some in the neighborhood.

BSF21 · Post by **BSF21** » Thu Jan 02, 2014 11:48 am

Picked up one of their proprietary beers a week back or so. KBC? KBG? Whatever it was, 6.2 ABV IPA and it was pretty good! and it was 5.99 for a 6er. 9/10 will buy again.

rass · Post by **rass** » Tue Dec 02, 2014 7:16 pm

I cane't quit you, Candy Cane Joe-Joe's...

Ryan · Post by **Ryan** » Tue Dec 02, 2014 7:52 pm

No shit. I'd kill my own carton of oatmeal cranberry dunkers for a box of those.

mister d · Post by **mister d** » Tue Dec 02, 2014 9:22 pm

A: Trader Joe's, olives, wine, the Hold Steady.

Q: What are things Mister D tries to will himself into liking but can't?

rass · Post by **rass** » Mon Dec 08, 2014 6:10 pm

DC47 · Post by **DC47** » Mon Dec 08, 2014 11:21 pm

mister d wrote:Mister D tries ...self ... liking but can't

Post by **brian** » Fri Oct 09, 2015 5:07 pm

Just got the monthly mailer from Trader Joe's and it was like 16 pages of all pumpkin stuff. After a couple of pages I thought it was a Portlandia skit or something. Pumpkin tortilla chips, pumpkin butter, etc.

Seriously, what the fuck?

howard · Post by **howard** » Fri Oct 09, 2015 7:29 pm

rass · Post by **rass** » Fri Oct 09, 2015 7:35 pm

I noticed the pumpkin salsa and two different kind of pumpkin chips yesterday. Probably a little overboard this year, I'm sure they'll find the balance.

This stuff is the tits. I just stand in the kitchen and eat one chip at a time, squirting it on them directly from the bottle...

Ryan · Post by **Ryan** » Fri Oct 09, 2015 7:43 pm

I was actually disappointed when I found the pages of that flyer that weren't pumpkin. Really killed the joke. Every endcap and every checkout endcap at our TJ is pumpkin-related. It's Gourd Zero.

The maple leaf cookies can stay

howard · Post by **howard** » Fri Oct 09, 2015 7:58 pm

Ryan wrote:It's Gourd Zero.

Spit take. Very funny.

DC47 · Post by **DC47** » Fri Oct 09, 2015 8:54 pm

Killing it. Funniest thing here in months, and this is a pretty funny place.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 7:20 pm

rass wrote:I noticed the pumpkin salsa and two different kind of pumpkin chips yesterday. Probably a little overboard this year, I'm sure they'll find the balance.

This stuff is the tits. I just stand in the kitchen and eat one chip at a time, squirting it on them directly from the bottle...

Went to TJ's for the first time in months today. I picked up this sauce and didn't get it. Now I regret that decision. The pumpkination of TJs was unreal. My daughter was lured in by the free sample of pumpkin waffles. I gotta say, they were good. The pumpkin spiced pumpkin seeds are really good, too.

howard · Post by **howard** » Sun Oct 11, 2015 11:18 am

A wonderful threadjack, from Trader Joe's to The Official Pumpkin Thread

A Pumpkin-Pie Shortage Is Looming Thanks to Heavy Summer Rains

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Sun Oct 11, 2015 2:56 pm

The last time I opened this thread was over two years ago. There was also an Aldi's discussion in here. And despite my acknowledgement of cookie butter, I didn't actually try it until just last year. Speculoos spread is amazing. I put it in my oatmeal.

howard · Post by **howard** » Sun Oct 11, 2015 6:52 pm

Moreta · Post by **Moreta** » Mon Oct 12, 2015 10:30 am

There's a TJ's three miles from my house. I've never been there. I completely fail at Basic White Girl.

I do buy Kroger's generic cookie butter though.

mister d · Post by **mister d** » Fri Dec 04, 2015 10:48 am

Has anyone ever had TJ's "red" juice and did it turn any of your output red?