Trader Joe’s

I like Trader Joe’s so much more than other specialty stores. The prices on a lot of items are comparable to Kroger. They are way cheaper than Whole Foods. It has a gallon size of soy ice cream for $ 3. There is plenty of hummus to choose. Is also relatively inexpensive wine. They have Charles Shaw for a few bucks. Bananas are cheaper than most places. They also have helpful service. Would come here more often if not for the horrible location.

My 200^th review? Wow!
I had to take a few minutes, when I realized I was hitting a milestone, that I needed to pick one of my genuinely favorite places to shop. Like, top-​ten.
I also wanted to make sure it was a place that lends itself well to explanation and description. No gas stations in this position, no ma’am!
So…Trader Joe’s. They’re all over the place — big and small. Thematically, they are very similar, regardless of where you go. The employees are different, obviously, but the people who work there are of a certain quality. I think Trader Joe’s does a very good job of setting the stores up, picking awesome managers, and selecting staff that are going to stick around for the long-​haul. I feel that this makes a huge difference, compared to other stores that may have high turnover and employees that clearly don’t care.
Trader Joe’s has, for me, been around a lot longer than Whole Foods. I can get everything at Whole Foods, including fiscal ruination. At Whole Foods, my wallet is empty — I’m lucky to get out of there spending less than $ 50, but usually closer to $ 100 or more. And that’s with a small cart! At Trader Joe’s I can go in, fill up the cart, and be pleasantly surprised when I get to the register. I regularly find myself thinking (and saying): «Oh, wow, all that for $ 25? Really?» Like, checking my receipt to make sure they didn’t miss anything. They never do.
I think this huge difference, and one that’s important to anyone who cares about how much money they spend on a regular basis, is that Trader Joe’s has great prices — Whole Foods does not. Whole Foods has everything — and you pay a premium for that. Generally retail-​price (MSRP) plus a little tacked on. At Trader Joe’s, they have a great sourcing and selection team, that buys top-​notch products from manufacturers in huge bulk at low prices and rebrands them as Trader Joe’s, selling them below retail, or they just buy the branded products and charge a decent price for them. The majority of the time, a product you buy at Trader Joe’s will be less expensive than anywhere else.
They don’t seem to mess around with sales, deals, coupons or gimmicks (although I’m sure they’ll take coupons, and I’m sure I have seen buy-​one-​get-​one deals or whatever), instead appearing to favor transparent pricing that always (ALWAYS) translates to a lower bill at the register, if you’re comparing apples-​to-​apples.
You don’t have to «shop the sales» at Trader Joe’s, because the prices are generally awesome. The prices are generally better than average because they take the time to source great products at lower prices, and instead of keeping the prices at full retail, they pass the savings on to the customer, which makes check-​out happier, and brings happy customers back. It’s a win-​win for everyone!
Themes: Trader Joe’s has them. Lots of funny posters and fresh chalkboard art all over the place. It’s always changing, and it’s about as far away from corporate as you can find. Sure, there’s a system. Sure, there’s psychologists and marketers and all sorts of evil behind every major corporation. But Trader Joe’s feels like a good place, and it’s — for sure — kid-​friendly. They even have little «Customer in Training» shopping carts for the kids!
Samples: they offer them. Generally near the back, they’ll be sampling one or two items. You can also ask for samples, if you’re curious about a product — they’ll generally let you try something out. I’ve had great luck with asking in the past.
So, great prices, kid friendly, fun themes… how about the staff?
Well, as mentioned, they seem to hire friendly people, who want to stick around. The turnover seems much lower than usual, so maybe they treat people better, and pay them better, than the average supermarket? I don’t know for sure, I just know that there seems to be a nice core of team members that know the products, are always happy to help, and stay.
Oh! And I need to mention how cool Trader Joe’s is in one very specific area that’s near and dear to me: vegan products. They have a list. A list they keep up-​to-​date and fervently accurate. Just ask them for the vegan list, and you’ll get a copy of every product in the store that’s vegan. It’s so cool!
I think the last thing I want to touch on is the whole boat-​theme thing. Trader Joe’s is boat themed. So they have an actual bell to ring, for certain situations, like needing more staff to handle registers, or a manager up front. A physical bell. It’s cool. And everything is made to resemble a boat, or a Hawaiian tiki hut or whatever. It just looks and feels cool!
So if you want to save a lot of money, and you don’t mind buying «store brand» products that are usually just name brand products in a different box, Trader Joe’s is the perfect place to start shopping. Then, you can go to Whole Foods for the items Trader Joe’s didn’t have, if you’re really picky.

Hey, I love TJ’s overall, but my wife and I purchased California roll last night. THE WORST ROLL WE EVER HAD! Mushy, wet, foul sweet taste and the most impossible to open sauce and ginger packets ever. Come on Trader Joes, dump this supplier and get some good rolls in the store.

Oh how I love Trader Joe’s. I was so excited to find them locally after getting spoiled to them in CA. I love the staff. Always friendly, always helpful, lovely to chat with between this and that. The produce is super fresh and not overly priced. I love all of their made-​for-​them prepackaged foods. Trail mix, fruit, some kind of salsa, and specialty sauce always end up in my basket. And I LOVE the prices. I can come out with a couple of bags of groceries for less than half the price for another local grocery store. I also love that they are starting to label their vegan products with a V. Not sure if a product is vegan? Just ask! If they don’t know, they DO have a printed list of all vegan products they carry. Sweeeeeet! I love shopping here and finding new products to inspire my next dish. I highly recommend their sweet and spicy Sriracha BBQ sauce, Soy dark chocolate cherry ice cream, and cowboy caviar salsa. So good!

Lots of parking. many things to chose from. Cookie butter.
Is there anything else that can make this place great?

I came here today and the first impression I get is what a bunch of crazy drivers. I’m literally walking to the store and a car pulls out just about ready to hit me full on without looking.
Next I was hoping to find the Lamb Kabobs I ate at my mom’s house the other night here. I found them but they were opened! I said what the heck! Then I approached a staff member about it and he says oh it’s still okay to sell an opened box of meatballs. I’m looking at him like what? (This must be a crazy Trader Joe’s policy) Why would you leave an opened box out hoping somebody will buy the food this way?
Besides the opened box I’m fine with everything else here. I just wish I knew why it’s okay to sell on opened item and not discount it at all. It almost seems unfair to the customer who has to buy it that way. That’s just my two cents.

As a vegetarian I would struggle to survive w/​o a trader joes in Columbus. I’m here like clockwork but it’s a healthy dependency, always well stocked, seasonal items, and those samples… The staff is great from start to finish and the place just feels good. If you’ve never been it’s an escape from the over-​hyped high priced health food-​stores that prey on the transitioning shopper. My advice? Pace yourself, experiment, & try what appeals to you. There are plenty of other reviews listing the best stuff on the shelves so I’ll give you just one, the beef-​less ground beef! Just discovered it and it’s perfect in my split pea soup.

I always get sushi and tai noodle salad here as lunches. Has a good selection of wine that I would like to try one day. I’m not a big fan of wine so hopefully I can finally find a wine that I like. They have a variety of frozen items from all different countries. Only downside is, their produce is a bit expensive compared to like Kroger and Walmart.

I have heard that Trader Joe’s was the «healthy» grocery alternative to Whole Foods. The main reason being that the prices were generally cheaper. I will have to agree that for the most part, this is true. This can probably be attributed to the size of the store. One can take this Trader Joe’s location and nest it comfortably in the Whole Foods down the street. Now on with the review.
This particular location is located on the business sprawl that it Sawmill Road in Northwest Columbus. Mind you, this Trader Joe’s has its fair share of lumbersexuals prowling the aisles for the latest kale product. In comparison to other Trader Joe’s, it is no different. Layout is the same, product is the same, weird parking lot with no way to easily get to it from Sawmill Northbound is typical. So I can really wow you with any mind-​blowing review cliches.
Five stars because I love Trader Joe’s. Especially their gummy penguins with the marshmallow tummies.

My favorite trader joes in Columbus because it actually has a parking lot to fit all the cars! (Sorry Easton). If you come mid day on the weekend it is an absolute mad house inside the store so I suggest going early right after they open for the best selection. This location in particular does an amazing job of combining products for their sample table! I also love the set up, the aisles seem a bit wider since the remodel.
I would give the store five stars but today I had an employee literally growl at me when I accidentally walked in front of her. Wow! But otherwise the employees are typically very friendly and helpful. I do love this location, keep up the good work!

I love this place! Fresh, organic and cheaper than other stores like it. They have their own brand and everything I have tried I liked. Two things I highly reccomend is the orange chicken in the frozen section and the cookie butter. The cheeses are awesome and well priced as well. The employees are all cool folks in my book.

I love Trader Joe’s soooooo much, but hate where the two locations are in Columbus. 161 & Sawmill and Easton… my two least favorite places to drive! I only live about 5 miles from both, but for some reason it takes at least 30 minutes to get to either. Anyway, I work closer to this one, so the Dublin location is the one I frequent most.
My absolute favorite item is the Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels. Unfortunately, these are seasonal, so I end up buying about 10 packages around Christmastime.
Love their Mandarin Orange Chicken. I prefer eating out when it comes to Asian food, as I don’t have all the right equipment to get it perfect. This stuff is great! It has a great flavor and stays nice and crispy.
Cookie Butter is also great. I used to buy Biscoff Spread from Kroger, but since it’s over $ 5 for a slightly smaller jar, I now just buy TJ’s Cookie Butter.
Other good things: macarons, potstickers, frozen spinach artichoke dip, chocolate covered pretzel thins, Joe-​Joes, great prices on cheese and salami, honey sesame almonds, peanut sauce… I could go on.
Would give the 5 stars except for the congested traffic, although you can always find a parking spot at this TJ’s. The other downside of TJ’s is that since it’s a small store, sometimes it’s hard to get through aisles. I like that it’s small since it’s easier to find things, but it’s a pain in the butt to get around when crowded (usually the frozen food section gets backed up).

A cheaper version of whole foods, and they have vegan chorizo… life couldn’t get any better!

Trader Joe’s never disappoints.
I love, love, love the frozen foods section here. Seriously. If you cranked up portion size and served them on china, one might believe they came from a great restaurant’s catering division. Yep, they are that good. I am a particular fan of the Indian cuisine (butter chicken, chicken tikka masala) but their potstickers, tamales, pizzas and countless other items are great too. I highly recommend picking yourself up a package of garlic naan and a package of the spinach artichoke dip (both located in the frozen foods section) it’ll be the best $ 5 you ever spent on an appetizer (or a quick & easy dinner). I pinky swear. My rule thumb at TJ’s…if it looks good, grab it; chances are high it will taste just as good!
Great selection of wines at very low prices! You can actually get a great bottle of wine for less than $ 8. A personal favorite of mine is a Western Cape, South African Sebeka Shiraz 2009. It’s got berry, dark cherry earthy undertones with subtle notes of brown spices, cinnamon and toasted oak.
The staff is always very friendly and politely conversational. They genuinely want to help you and I think that’s fantastic. I don’t do all of my grocery shopping at TJ’s, as this is shared amongst numerous specialty markets, butcher shops, farmers markets and general grocery stores but, I do go for their frozen foods, wine & fresh flowers. Stop into a Trader Joe’s, you won’t leave empty handed (or walleted).

If i had never been to any other Trader Joe’s, I would think this one was amazing and give it 5 stars. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case here.
First, let me say that I love Trader Joe’s. I love the selection, the atmosphere, the prices, the staff, everything! It is an amazing place and, now that I’m moving to be somewhat close to one, I will probably frequent it.
With that being said, I’ve been to Trader Joe’s in Cleveland and in Albuquerque. The Albuquerque Trader Joe’s was huge, with an amazing selection, clean store, friendly people, etc. I’d drive 2.5 hours to get to it, and it was worth it!
In comparison, this Trader Joe’s doesn’t really hold up for me. A lot smaller than what I’m used to, not as clean, with some staff members who were pretty loud and boisterous.
The size wasn’t a huge let down. I am okay with a smaller store. The aisles are pretty tight in some places, which isn’t great. If someone is standing in an aisle with their cart, you basically can’t get past them; one cart only. The floor appeared to be concrete and there were pieces missing, which didn’t offer much of a pleasing visual aesthetic. Whenever I see something like that, it seems to be dirtier, though I don’t know if that’s a fair assessment.
My least favorite part, though, was probably two men who worked at the store. They were clearly getting off of their shift and were shouting to each other (and I mean shouting… when we first heard them, we thought there was some sort of altercation) almost the entirety of the time we were there. Sometimes it was about their shift, «Remember when we both came in at 11 and we didn’t even know we had to be here?!» sometimes about other things. While they were having this conversation, at one point, they were pacing in and out of the relatively small aisle we were in, basically almost running into us with their big backpacks on. They were clearly only concerned with each other, and not with the customers trying to shop. It was bizarre, and not at all the experience I’m used to.
My cashier, on the other hand, was very friendly. I wanted to help get some things out of the cart, but she told me I was doing «too much work,» which was really sweet; talk about someone going out of their way to help the customer.
The prices were, as per usual, very affordable. I got groceries for the week and a freezer bag (which managed to keep my food cold after I left it sitting in the car overnight AND drove from Columbus to Cleveland — impressive!) for around $ 30. Not bad at all.
Overall, not my favorite Trader Joe’s experience. Like I said, I like Trader Joe’s in general. I’m hoping my next visit will be a little better!

Trader Joe’s stores are small… really small. If you’ve never been in one prepare to practice patience for all the aisles and departments are tight. The vast majority of product is private label but don’t let that throw you. The majority of it so high quality at very reasonable prices it’s sometimes unbelievable. They also make the holidays fun with traditional, themed items like Pumpkin Waffle Mix for fall and salted caramels (which seem to be everywhere now) for winter. Sign up for the monthly mailer and email for all the details.
Compared to the location at Easton Mall this store has about the same variety. I will say they half double, if not close to triple the amount of beer. Wine seems to be the same amount though.
Layout’s definitely different as is the parking. This Dublin TJ’s shares a parking lot with other small businesses so there’s always ample parking, even when I was there at a very busy Saturday afternoon. Easton’s location shares as well but with the mall being right there parking’s really tight.
Granted, both are almost on two different sides of the city but if I had a choice I’d go Dublin.

I was really impressed by the selection. It felt like I was in a new food world with items to discover I had never new existed before.
Being new to Columbus, I had never been to a Trader Joe’s, but had seen them while out of town out West before. I thought the prices were really good considering what they have to offer.
There are items here you can’t get anywhere else. The two times I have visited, the staff has been extremely helpful and eager to answer any questions. I will definitely be back to explore more.

Two words: pumpkin croissants!!!
If, like me, you stock up on everything pumpkin to enjoy autumnal goodness all year long — then get to TJ’s right now! They are offering samples of warm pumpkin croissants with pumpkin butter! Amazing! The croissants come frozen, then you let them sit out overnight to rise and they’ll be ready to enjoy in the morning. Seriously, stock up, they’re that good.
I love Trader Joe’s for what they do best — frozen foods. TJ’s will never be my one-​stop grocery store. Instead, I find myself there about once a month to fill my freezer with prepared foods. You can’t go wrong with their frozen Indian dinners!
A word of warning on the bread aisle — most breads are preservative free. If you can’t eat it in a day or two, then skip it. If not, you’ll find yourself disappointed a few days later to find moldy pitas.

So this is where I do most of my shopping. It’s a nice size, the staff are always insanely friendly (like really, most people would go insane if they were this nice all the time), and unless I’m looking for something highly specialized, I can usually find what I need.
My mother swears that all Trader Joe’s stores must deliberately be built in the absolute worst parking situations possible. While there may be something to that, I’ve never actually had trouble parking at this one. Still, the parking lot is not the easiest to get into if you’re coming from the south, so here’s my tip: If you’re coming north on Sawmill, turn left onto Martin Rd before you reach 161. Take the first right onto Marcy Ln, and from there you’ll be able to see which driveway to turn in on. After I discovered that, it became a much easier place to visit.
Although the parking lot is big enough even on the busy days, it can still get crowded on the inside of the store, so adjust your expectations accordingly.
While you can pick up most standard shopping items, it’s the special TJ’s stuff that earns the store its fandom. I like to find at least one new item from the New Products endcap (facing the produce, at the end of the aisle with nuts on one side and juices on the other) each time I go. I’ve discovered all sorts of stuff that way, from basics like lentil soup to the new and intriguing like salmon jerky.
Also, keep an eye out for the speculoos cookie butter, especially the crunchy variety. It is phenomenal. It’s the consistency of peanut butter but tastes like cookies. You can eat it straight out of the jar, but be careful — you can get through half of it without realizing where it went.
The legendary Two Buck Chuck (aka Charles Shaw wine) is actually $ 3.79 per bottle these days, at least at this location (the TJ’s website explains that markups are almost always due to state and local laws), but it’s perfectly decent stuff.
And they have stuff for the furballs, too. I recently discovered they have tuna for cats for half a buck a can. My critter loves licking up the tuna-​flavored water from ordinary tuna cans, but he doesn’t normally eat wet food or the tuna itself. The TJ’s tuna for cats, however, he simply devours.
Oh, and chocoholics, don’t skip the chocolate aisle. Ok, so it’s actually the frozen aisle, but to me it’s the chocolate aisle. Look up on the top set of shelves above the freezers. There’s almost as much chocolate as there is frozen food. Chocolate-​covered nuts, chocolate-​covered dried fruits, chocolate-​covered mints, chocolate-​covered peanut butter, chocolate-​covered chocolate! Chips, bars, bigger bars, jumbo-​sized bars, milk, dark, omgyumz.
This is the kind of store where, if I didn’t live within a reasonable distance from it, I’d still make special trips just to come. I know people who do that. A couple times a year, they drive two hours just to pack up on wine and cookie butter and Mint Joe-Joe’s (special seasonal cookies only available in the winter — think mint-​flavored Oreos) and coffee blends and juices and other tasty noms. When I visit my dad and stepmom in the middle of NY state, I make a stop at TJ’s to bring them some of the new stuff. You may not become as obsessed with it as some of us are, but you’ll surely come away with some happy find for your tastebuds.

*singing*: I loooove Trader Joes. The staff is really nice and I love the selection of items available and everything’s at a really great price.
I absolutely hate how crowded it is, though. But that’s what happens in awesome stores, I suppose. Going really early and/​or during the week helps with that problem.