Ladies and gentlemen, we have completed our survey of the Best Deals at Trader Joe's! Thanks to everyone who wrote in. There were 58 total commenters participating – 54 from the blog, 2 from Facebook, and 2 via email. And? Looking at the top ten vote-getters, this is going to be one hell of a party.
To review the process from last week: Every product mention got one vote. (So, if three different commenters wrote "butter," it got three votes.) Some things, like honey, elicited one clear vote and were easy to tally. Others, like cheese, were much more varied, producing several similar-but-not-exactly-alike answers. In those cases, I tallied the category as a whole, and then elaborated on individual responses within parentheses. (Um … if that makes sense, which it only kind of does. But you'll see.)
Some overall observations:
- On the whole, frozen, organic, and restricted-diet (gluten-free, etc.) goods did very, very well, as did TJ's house brand products, especially: Roasted red pepper boxed soup, Joe-Joes, Three-Buck Chuck, and Greek yogurt.
- Overall, it appeared as if you don't necessarily shop at TJ's for the basic necessities, but rather, for beloved extras - chocolate, wine, edamame, etc.
- Almost half of you voted for some kind of cheese. Yowza.
- Votes for bread were split. A few liked TJ breads a LOT, while others mentioned it wasn't quite up to snuff.
- I loved how many people wrote WINE in all caps. Vino lovers, unite!
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| Wiki Commons Sprew |
Cheese (2 votes brie and goat, 1 vote each for cheddar/stilton, smoked gouda, shredded mexican, fontina)
21 VOTES
Nuts (3 votes almonds, 1 vote pistachios)
16 VOTES
Yogurt (12 votes Greek yogurt)
13 VOTES
Wine (1 vote organic, 2 votes Three-Buck Chuck)
12 VOTES
Dried fruit (3 votes mango, 2 vote bananas, 1 vote strawberries and cherries)
Olive oil
10 VOTES
Frozen veggies (2 votes green beans and corn, 1 vote each bell peppers and asparagus)
9 VOTES
Frozen edamame
8 VOTES
Cereal (1 vote Barbara's Bakery, 1 vote Honey-Os)
Chocolate (4 votes 1-lb. bars, 1 vote white chocolate)
Hummus
Marinara/Pasta sauces (1 vote organic)
7 VOTES
Bananas (1 vote organic)
Cookies (1 vote Maple Leaf, 1 vote Oatmeal Cranberry Dunkers, 4 votes Joe-Joes)
Eggs (1 vote organic)
Pasta (3 votes whole-wheat)
Peanut butter
6 VOTES
Boxed soups (3 votes roasted red pepper, 2 votes tomato, 1 vote black bean)
Bread ( 1 vote Cinnamon Swirl Bread, 1 vote pain au chocolat)
Canned beans (3 votes black)
Coffee
Jams (1 vote blueberry, 1 vote raspberry)
5 VOTES
Frozen Fruit (2 votes berries)
Ice cream (2 votes coffee-flavored, 1 vote Coconut milk)
Pizza Dough (generally frozen)
4 VOTES
Almond, rice, and soy milks
Apples (2 votes organic)
Bars (1 vote cereal, 1 vote Luna/Clif, 1 vote Fiberful, 1 vote Walks Into Bars)
Frozen pizza
Frozen prepared meals (1 vote veggie lasagna)
Milk
Salsa (1 vote Serrano)
Stock/Broth
Tortillas (1 vote organic, 1 vote whole wheat)
3 VOTES
Butter
Canned artichokes
Dairy (1 vote RBST-free)
Flat breads (1 vote Feta & Jalapeno, 1 vote Mediterranean)
Flour
Olives (1 vote canned)
Potstickers
Spinach
Tortilla chips
Trail Mix
Vitamins
2 VOTES
Almond butter
Beer
Frozen pre-cooked brown rice
Frozen veggie burgers (1 vote Morningstar Farms)
Gluten-free rice pasta
Ground beef
Organic whole chicken
Quinoa
Seltzer
Tofu
1 VOTE
Avocados, Bacon, Baby arugula, Balsamic vinegar, Balsamic vinegar dressing, Basmati and jasmine rice, Boxed Indian meals, Broth concentrate, Buttermilk, Canned crab, Capers, Cat food, Cilantro and yogurt dip, Clementine oranges, Coffee filters, Cottage cheese, Cranberry juice, Cream, Dog treats, Doggy glucosamine condroitin, English muffins, Facial cleansing pads w/tea tree oil, Flowers, Fresh produce, Frozen basil cubes, Frozen chile relleno, Frozen croissants, Frozen fish, Frozen hash browns, Frozen pie crust, Frozen shrimp, Gorgonzola gnocchi, Gorgozola crackers, Granola, Ground flaxseed meal, Gyoza, Hatch Green Chiles, Honey, Hot dogs, Individual Mac and cheese, International foods, Jarred hearts of palm, Kashi's TLC crackers, Kefir, Kosher chicken/turkey, Laundry detergent, Lemons, Limes, Marinated mushrooms, Mayo (sorry Kris), Meat, Multi-grain pancake mix, Nitrate free meats, Olive tapenade, Organic carrots, Organic sugar, Pesto, Pineapples, Roasted red peppers, Romaine hearts, Pre-cooked lentils, Sausages, Shiitake mushrooms, Smoked salmon, Soy (fake) chorizo, Soy creamer (TJs brand), Special-diet foods, Steel-cut oats (McCann's) , Sun-dried tomatoes, Sushi platters, Sweet potato chips, Tabouli, Tamales, Taquitos, Tempeh, TJ's chicken nuggets, TJ's spaghetti-os, TJ's peanut butter cups, Tomatoes, Tuna, Tuna meals, Veggie sticks
Sweet readers, is there anything you'd like to add to this? Maybe something we missed, or another suggestion for a specific store survey? Thanks again for all your replies - this was really fun. (*runs off to buy cheese*)
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