I have heard folks talking about Trader Joe’s stores for a while now and we have a couple of locations in the St. Louis area. Finally, the other day T and I headed out to check out Trader Joe’s. I had mentioned that we were going on Twitter ahead of time and was sent this fantastically funny “commercial” video
What was even funnier was that when we went to the store we saw all those things that were in the video. It was fun looking for all those things.
I really liked the store overall. It is quite a bit smaller than the regular grocery store we visit so I’m not sure if I would be able to use that as a main shopping location. There are a lot of great different products that I don’t normally see at my regular store. Trader Joe’s carries a lot of organic items and items for those with various food allergens would find some useful products also. I do not recommend going while you are hungry because they do have a lot of snack foods and candies. Granted some of them are some healthier choices but still easy to go overboard.
We tried some blackberry juice samples and some chicken ravioli samples, the juice gets 2 thumbs up, the ravioli maybe just one (good but not yum). They had a nice selection of breads that were very fresh; I picked up some ciabatta rolls for the burgers we were having that night. A huge assortment of cheeses which I just quickly glanced at and then moved on because I knew if I stayed too long I would buy lots of cheese. The meat department is very small, but had some nicer selections of fresh items. The frozen food aisle is apparently a favorite of many and they have quite the assortment of things not sold at traditional grocery stores. I had heard lots of positive comments about many of these items so we picked up a few to have on hand for quick lunches during the week. My nephew raves about their chocolate chip cookies so even tho they were pricey we had to pick up a bag and try those – yummy!
Customer service was wonderful. Everyone working in the store was very friendly and had smiles on their faces. They quickly pointed out their weekly drawing to me during checkout also (love giveaways) so I’m hoping for a call that I won. Trader Joe also has a nice selection of reusable shopping bags, much cooler than the plain jane bags we usually find.
I think it was a successful trip and I have been pleased with everything we have tried so far. If it was a tiny bit closer to home I would go more often. It is just a couple of blocks from Hubby’s work however so I can always send him there if need be. If you have one in your area I think it is definitely worth the time to stop by and check out Trader Joe’s. Happy shopping!
