I recently went to the Trader Joe’s in the University District with my partner and noticed that our bill climbed to around $100. I decided to take a picture showing what we bought and ask readers to compare what $100 will get them at their local grocery store, food co-op, or nationwide supermarket. A detailed grocery list as to what we bought is included at the end of this post. This little project is a twist to Peter Menzel’s Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, which you should definitely click on and check out if you haven’t yet.

Trader Joe’s is fun (Hawaiian uniforms and ringing dinner bells at the check-out counter), reliable (other than the fact that I often am not able to find my Trader Joes’ Os breakfast cereal stocked because it’s too popular), efficient (no mile-long grocery aisles with numerous varieties of the same food item), tasty, unique (most everything at Trader Joe’s you can ONLY get at Trader Joe’s as they carry their own brand and very few outside brands), and not overpriced (you can’t complain with free coffee, food, and chocolate samples in your mouth).

Generally, our bill for a week’s worth of groceries (which is arbitrary because it’s not like we shop when our cupboard, fridge, and freezer are bare) is under $50 every time we shop here. Unlike most places where you wonder where your money went, I’m often happily surprised as to the quality and quantity of the food I obtained for my dollar at Trader Joe’s. Yep. I’m a pretty satisfied, loyal customer.

Note that of the 36 food items we bought, 14 are organic. I often find myself buying something organic at Trader Joe’s without even realizing it, which is always an added bonus—no matter how “organic” it is or not.

Favorite meal with Trader Joe’s food: Chicken pieces and sliced carrots mixed with Trader Joe’s Cacciatore Simmer Sauce

Favorite Trader Joe’s food item: Spicy Black Bean Dip (my aunt buys this stuff by the case and uses it as tomato paste on pizzas, forever redefining for me what a pizza can be)

Downside of Trader Joe’s: Excess packaging; no bulk foods section; it’s not a co-op or your local farmer’s market

GROCERY BILL DETAIL
3.14 Baby Chalet Swiss Cheese
5.99 Shrimp Large Cooked 50-70 Count
1.89 Wheat Free Waffles
1.49 Pineapple Fruit Tidbits (frozen)
8.90 Salmon Copper River Sockeye Fish
6.99 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
1.89 Raspberries (frozen)
5.55 Boneless Pork Strips
3.99 Sausage Chicken Pepper and Onion
1.79 ORGANIC Spinach Salad
2.99 Cacciatore Simmer Sauce
2.99 ORGANIC Pickle Spears
1.49 Wheat Crisps
2.79 Zucchini
2.99 Picatta Simmer Sauce
2.49 ORGANIC Vanana (cross between vanilla and banana) Yogurt
3.57 Zone Perfect Chocolate Peanut Bar (3 at 1.19 each)
1.19 Extra Large Grade AA Eggs
1.49 Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce
3.99 Extra Virgin Italian Olive Oil
2.99 ORGANIC Roma Tomatoes
2.49 ORGANIC Bosc Pears
1.19 ORGANIC Penne Pasta
1.99 Roasted Garlic Salsa
2.29 ORGANIC Round Yellow Tortilla Chips
1.49 Spicy Black Bean Dip
2.29 Sparkling Pomegranate
2.99 ORGANIC Strawberry Preserves
0.79 ORGANIC Whole Carrots
1.16 ORGANIC Oranges (4 at 0.29 each)
1.99 ORGANIC Oatmeal Cereal Instant Basics
2.90 ORGANIC Bananas (10 at 0.29 each)
2.69 ORGANIC Omega/Flax Bread
1.58 Grapefruit (2 at 0.79)
2.29 Salsa Tomato Jicama
2.49 Roma Tomatoes
101.21 TOTAL

Email your photos and detailed grocery bill of around $100 to me at Jeff.Markwardt.blogger “at symbol” ecometro.com for inclusion in an upcoming post.