Ode to Trader Joe's

I have jumped on the Trader Joe's bandwagon - and I may never get off. I know it seems a little overdue for me to have realized the beauty that is Trader Joe's, but I finally live in an apartment accessible to a TJ's. Plus, I grew up in New Hampshire in a family of six, so we were lucky if groceries came from anywhere other than Market Basket.

For anyone who's behind the TJ times like I was, trust me when I say their food is good, organic, natural and insanely cheap for the quality of food you're getting. Case in point: I bought a bag of wild arugula at the Burlington location the other day for $1.99.

Yes, $1.99.

At Hannaford, I normally pay a whopping $3-4 for my beloved, peppery arugula.

I'm still reeling from this inexpensive find because it can be so hard finding cheap, healthy food (especially cheap produce). Right now I'm in love with Trader Joe's for making it possible for me to eat arugula-based salad and still have some cash leftover to buy tomatoes.

Do you shop at Trader Joe's? Why or why not?

Best deal I found this week

I'm FINALLY going to start organizing my blog entries - thanks for bearing with me thus far, folks - and starting next week, I am going to post the "Best Deal I Found This Week" every Monday, in hopes that gives you plenty of time to take advantage of the deal during the busy work week. However, I could not wait until this Monday to tell you about this steal - especially because I found it a week ago.

$1.99 for a box of six granola bars at Trader Joe's. It may not sound like much of a deal at first, but I'm used to spending over $3 a box on Kashi granola bars, so saving a buck or more for just-as-delicious bars is well worth it to me. My bottom desk drawer at work is always full of granola bars, and since I usually eat one as a pick-me-up at the end of the day, I don't want to buy the sugar-infused varieties that tend to be cheaper than Kashi. Trader Joe's bars are made with organic ingredients, and keep my stomach full until dinner (usually).

Trader Joe's had quite a few choices for these $1.99 snacks, but I opted for the Peanut Butter and the savory/sweet Trail Mix. Both bars are perfectly chewy, and full of natural ingredients, which shows in the flavor. Quick side note: Trader Joe's tends to be inexpensive in general, which surprised me.

Do you shop at Trader Joe's on a regular basis? If so, do you find that you save money, versus going somewhere else?