Trader Joes! Have you tried it? If not, here are a few reason to.
Taking a mental break from the rat race of thoughts that course through my mind 24/7 that revolve around political/philosophical/moral ideas. To talk about Trader Joes and another one of my loves and passions...FOOD!
It saddens me that there are 14 states in the US that currently don't have even 1 Trader Joes. Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, (did you just start singing the States jingle in your head like I did the first time I read the list?), Hawaii, Idaho (although they are getting one soon), Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, ND, SD, Oklahoma, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Utah, and Wyoming. Those poor, poor souls probably have never even stepped foot in a Trader Joes. If you're lucky enough to live in a state that does have one, I highly suggest you try out a few of my favorites...
Olive Tapenade
The best idea since sliced bread, which coincidentally, is the best thing to put your tapenade on. Depending on my mood, either their fresh baguette or their fresh sourdough loaf. I buy 3 at a time because I can (and usually do) eat a whole container in one sitting. Seriously, the best little snack ever.
Organic Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper Soup
I don't even like tomatoes. I think they're absolutely gross. I try a fresh picked one every year to see if my little taste buds have decided to change their mind, but to no avail. They reject it the same way it went in. Barring fresh tomatoes though, I love ketchup, soups, and any tomato sauce used for pasta. I don't get it, but whatever.
This soup is sooooo good! I add my own twist to it though by poaching two eggs prior and pouring the hot soup over them. Depending on how you like your soup to taste, you can break open the egg early to release most of the yolk. Or wait a while and have the yolk harden up a bit more like a soft boiled egg. It is the perfect combination between rich/creamy and smooth and salty.
LOX BAGELS
A smoked salmon bagel essentially. You can't just walk in a buy these off the shelf, but you can get all the ingredients for them at TJ's. Starting off with their pretty damn good selection of smoked fish. Take your pick of different smoke salmon brands. Walk down a little farther and grab a fresh cucumber and your choice of cream cheese. Walk over to the vegetable bins and pick out a nice red onion and most importantly, you absolutely, positively, can NOT forget the capers. Get the capers, get the capers.
Some people also add a big ole fat slice on tomato on theirs. But if you've actually read this post, you know I definitely skip that step in the process.
Pretzel Bites
This is a no frills snack, salted pretzel cracker outside with a peanut butter ball inside. Didn't take a rocket scientist to come up with this one, probably more likely a crack head seeing as how addicting they are. I have to routinely tell my wife to get them away from me or I will just sit there and eat the whole bag. Same as the tapenade, multiple bags thrown in the cart otherwise we would have to go back every day to restock.
Besides the food, the employees that I have encountered seem to be more energized and happy to be at their place of work compared to some other grocery stores/chains. The prices are good for the most part and reasonable on more expensive items like the smoked fish. There are plenty more items I didn't list which are home runs as well, you'll just have to try them out and see for yourself.
It's not all sunshine and puppies though, the only negative thing I can say about TJ's (and this could be seen as a positive as well) is that their fresh produce doesn't often last long once I get it home. If it isn't eaten within 2 days sometimes, it rots or develops mold. That could just be a sign of how fresh their produce is and that it isn't loaded with a ton of preservatives. We have learned our lesson now after shopping there so frequently that we end up going pretty light on the produce. But when it's fresh and cooked the same day, it's delicious.
I don't work for TJ's nor am I being compensated by them for writing this. I just like their company.
all imgs sourced from google, TJ location stats from https://www.thedailymeal.com/15-states-dont-have-trader-joes/21814
I just moved to Glendale, CO and we have one just north of us.
When I first moved in, I was really excited that we had Target with a liquor store AND King Soopers (Kroger) with a liquor store within a minute of my place (Colorado chains can only have 1 liquor store in the entire state).
But after living there for a few months, I'm finding I just pass up both of them and go to Trader Joe's. That place is awesome!
Nice!! No doubt man, their own TJ's brand is pretty stellar too and price wise compared to Target (we don't have Kroger here so I cant speak on that) is usually less than Target. The attached liquor store is pretty decent too, although they only have a very small 'cold beer' section. The rest of the beer just sits warm on the shelf, only thing I can really rip on them for.
My love for Trader Joe's rivals my love for my family. Hav you tried the beer bread mix? Holy cow, it is amazing.
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Other TJ favorites at our house are the string cheese, corn nuts, and the New Mexico Pinyon Coffee.
Mmmmmmm, that looks so tasty and I am sad to say I have not tried it. But you just convinced me to give it a try next time I go. I'll let you know what I think!
I am a sucker for IPA's, is there a specific beer like the Deschuttes American Wheat that you recommend?
And also, thanks for the upvote. It seems you're fairly new around here so a little advice to help keep your voting strength high...when a post is past it's 7 day payout window, it cant make any more money. So although I really do appreciate you giving it a 100% upvote, you could have accomplished the same thing by doing 1%. And as I type this, I am thinking to myself that you probably don't have a slide bar yet to change your %'s, so forget this for now but now you know in the future when you do get the slide bar.
Thanks for swinging by @meco! Steem on!
Thanks! This all so confusing. I see some of the posts with so much money and I just don't get it. So I'm just sticking to what I'm interested in and having fun.
As far as the beer goes, I'm sure anything would work. I just use whatever is in the fridge. Try it. You won't be sorry.
It can be confusing at times. If you ever have any questions or need clarification on anything don't hesitate to drop me a line, I am more than happy to help and want to see this platform flourish.
You're best bet with where you are now, is to keep doing what you're doing...making comments that add value. By doing that you will accumulate followers and once you have a decent following you will have much better chances of getting your posts which you spend a bunch of time on more visibility, and thus more votes.