Friday, October 10, 2008

Welcome to the Neighborhood, Trader Joe!

Today is Opening Day for the new Trader Joe's in uptown Charlotte!

There's another Trader Joe's grocery store in Charlotte (on Rea Road) but it's not very close to my home or work. I pass by the new store four times a day when I take Sam to and from school!
Aaron and I fell in love with Trader Joe's when we went on vacation to Oregon. I'll give you just a few reasons why we love shopping there so much:
  • Trader Joe's sells healthful, tasty, high quality foods at the lowest prices. They eliminate the middle-man and buy from the producer whenever possible (along with lots of other price-reducing tactics), enabling them to sell their products at lower prices.
  • The buyers for Trader Joe's travel the world in search of the most interesting, unique, and tasty foods and beverages. Whether it's wine (or beer) from Oregon, cheese from Europe, or pizza from Italy, Trader Joe's has researched and taste-tested everything they sell (and even guarantee you'll like what you buy or give you your money back!). Shopping at Trader Joe's is truly a culinary adventure!
  • Trader Joe's supports local organizations and communities. All requests for donations are handled in-store. Each store even has it's own Donations Coordinator, making it easier for Trader Joe's to be involved in the community.
  • All of the employees at Trader Joe's are incredibly nice and helpful. No matter what you need help with or have a question about, someone will be able to help you find the answer you're looking for.

Today I walked out of the store with Whole Grain Strawberry-filled Cereal bites (made with real fruit), Honey Whole Wheat Pretzel Sticks, one pound of Tempting Trail Mix (made with unsalted mixed nuts, dried fruit, Belgian chocolate pieces, and peanut butter bits), Jasmine Rice with Tom Yum Sauce and Vegetables, Kung Pao Noodles and Sauce, and a bottle of Pinot Noir from Black Mountain Vineyard in California. Good stuff!

I'll leave you with a funny story from our adventure to Trader Joe's today.

As I was browsing the Pinot Noir section of the wines in search of a new find, Sam began talking to a Trader Joe's employee. The nice guy was stacking cans of foreign beer on a nearby display and this is the conversation that followed:

Sam (to nice employee guy): Oh, that soda looks so yummy!
Nice employee guy: (laughs...) Well, this soda is very yummy...but it's for big kids like me.
Sam: Well...I'm a big kid...right, Mrs. Allison?
Me (still looking for a Pinot Noir I haven't tried before...): (grinning) Yes, you are a big kid...but you have to be a bigger kid to drink that soda. Like Mr. Aaron's age...
Sam: Oh. Well can I have some of that grape juice you're holding?
Me (deciding on a Pinot Noir I've tasted before and love): You have to be older to drink this, too.
Sam: Well, what can I have to drink from this place?!

Sam is so funny! He made friends with 5 different Trader Joe's employees today who made the mistake of asking him his name. He proceeded to unload his life story on them and talked until I told him it was time to let them go back to work. He hesitantly agreed, and told them we'd be seeing them again soon.

We'll be seeing them again soon, for sure! Go check out Trader Joe's. You'll love it!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

If you get back to TJ's here are some of my favorites Trader Joe's Wines you might want to consider. Pinot there is very tough...hard to find a good one for less than $14 nowadays.

Barbara said...

I am also glad it is open, it is so much closer to me.

I love their Cherry Juice and at $3.99 a bottle it is almost $2. cheaper than other stores. I like to mix it 50/50 with the sparkling spring water and it is like a healthy soda.