Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Tofu edamame nuggets - like! Thought it'd come with a sauce (the picture suggested so) but it didn't (and if you read the fine print below the picture, it did say it is not included...) Taste pretty good as is without sauce, but I think it'd also go well with a variety of Asian sauces like soy, plum, sweet chili (maybe even the toasted sesame salad dressing I have bought elsewhere!)

Also like the dark chocolate covered pomegranate seeds, a combo of sweet (but not too sweet) and tart, and slightly crunchy due to the seeds.

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Also like the Pappardelle with Chicken and Mushroom, though the portion is smaller than expected - lots of air in the package!

Also tried the salmon/asparagus pasta, it was okay... like the chicken/mushroom better.

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Yep I found the Milk Chocolate w/Caramel and liked it! I checked all over the shelves by the cashier for the Dark Chocolate Speculoos Bars but no luck last time... will try again next time :)

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Meh - Golden Caramel Swirl Super Premium Ice Cream. Not enough Caramel. Didn't taste the sea salt (I think it said it has some sea salt or something in it? Too lazy to go check).

Okay - coffee ice cream.

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Oh good idea! I have to remember to save the garlic juice and use the garlic nibs on eggs!!

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

I hope they'd stock them in the midwest soon! (yes LAWoman, I am in the midwest!!)

Ummm in Chains

New Dim Sum Place

Hubby and I went there for dim sum. Overall I liked it better than the (now closed) Jun Bo which we went to 6 or 7 years ago (so this is my 2nd time going yum cha here in MN!) For reference, I grew up in Hong Kong and Melbourne, so have been to really authentic dim sum places.

The food is decent, but is kinda pricey as for the two of us it was about $45 including tips (which they included in the bill already).

The dish I was most disappointed in was the chicken wrapped in tofu skin. The other ingredients in the dish were not what I would have expected (fake crab stick and taro?) The spare ribs with black bean sauce lacked some spice (usually comes with some thinly sliced red chili but they were no where in sight... maybe not to scare the typical Minnesotan off... and I don't even like my food that spicy but found this dish lacked some kicks). The deep fried seafood roll was meh (should have tried the spring roll instead, but I guess they pushed this dish to my non-Chinese husband when I went to the bathroom... not something I'd have ordered), and the coconut pudding tasted more like jello, rather than the spongy kind I like with rich coconut flavors.

The shrimp dumpling skin was slightly too thick (plus when I picked them up, both times, the skin got stuck at the bottom and could only grab on to the fillings... yes I know how to use chopsticks :)) and the bbq pork "noodles" (cheong fun) was slightly too thick too, and the bbq pork is more red-dyed and a bit too sweet...

We had other dishes too but I don't remember much - which is prob a good thing which means I don't have any complaints :)

Overall it's a decent experience. I know I can't expect too much, but that doesn't mean I can't be critical, and I can't help but compare them to my past experiences :) At least we didn't wait to be seated when we went (about 11:30am). I have never heard so many people speaking Cantonese at the same time in MN, so if the native speakers are going there, it can't be that bad right? :) I am just picky lol.

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Couldn't find Smore's Frozen Sandwiches. Asked an employee, and she said they carried them last summer, but there were some quality issues or something and hadn't seen them since?

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Couldn't find the Dark Chocolate Speculoos Candy Bar. Where are they at? Near the checkout?

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

I don't usually like pickles much, but I really like these mushrooms! I think it's the garlic.

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

It is 80% saturated fat, so not quite as bad!

We thought the ice cream bars were fine, kinda like Dove bars. I make my own vanilla ice cream though, and I think my ice cream is better :)

Ummm in Chains

What to order at Saffron?

Thanks Rowdy for sharing that. I hope our child will be well behaved (not born yet :) but at the same time I wouldn't want to disturb others' dining experience.

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Spicy Shrimp Bao was just okay to me. Like the Asian/Chinese BBQ pork buns better (bao = buns).

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Thanks vttp926. I think that might be what I'd returned... I'm picky about my dried mango, what can I say :)

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

I like the Kao Soi, but for some reasons I always make a mess in the microwave with the sauce spilling!

Chicken Wonton is better than expected - at least the wonton skin is not as thick as some other wontons I'd had. (Wonton is supposed to have thin skin, dumplings have thicker skin.)

Ummm in Chains

MSP: New Restaurant(?) - Grand Szechuan in Bloomington

Well we'll be going on the weekend, so no hot pot for us this time! Sounds like Dan Dan Noodles is a must try (and I like noodles :) Will keep Boiled Beef in mind! We're choosing this location just because of convenience, since I haven't tried either LS or GS, location wins :)

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

MSP: New Restaurant(?) - Grand Szechuan in Bloomington

Thanks, just the two of us for a casual dinner. Good idea about what may be fresh! Do you know if the Pork Belly in Garlic Sauce is a cold or hot appetizer?

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

MSP: New Restaurant(?) - Grand Szechuan in Bloomington

Any more recent reviews? Thinking of going to dinner there. Any must try dishes (preferably from the Szechuan menu, not the Americanized Chinese food menu...) I haven't had Szechuan food before, so don't know where to start (heard of Dan Dan noodles, but don't recall if I have ever had it... ) Thanks!

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

I think I had tried the dried white peaches, but just meh to us (I am kinda picky about dried fruits though). It was a while back... just not quite what I expected I guess. Have the turkish apricots, not bad, and good price.

Ummm in Chains

What to order at Saffron?

That's good to know, as I wouldn't want to disturb others, and that the staff is okay with it.

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Yes I have tried the mango/passionfruit juice too. I thought that was good but I was craving for something thicker and the mango nectar fitted the bill (but not as thick as some other apricot nectar I'd had, which could be too sweet or too thick.) Great to use the mango nectar in smoothie too!

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Do you know if their dried mango ever come from the Philippines? I thought I bought one (sweet, juicy whatever... I forgot what it's called) that was really good and for some reasons I thought that bag was from the Philippines (my favorite). I went to get some more bags (the same ones or so I thought) but they were not good at all and they were from Thailand so I returned them all... so I don't know if I was just imagining that one bag was from the Philippines? Or I just lucked out that one time with a good bag? I just wonder if they use mango from different countries based on season...

Ummm in Chains

What to order at Saffron?

Is Saffron a baby-friendly restaurant (let's say 2-3 month old), if we go early and not during popular dining hours?

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

Mango nectar. I like that it's not overly sweet or thick. Maybe I am a little biased because we bought a whole bunch of juice and the V8 ones (the "smoothie" and other blended fruit juice, not the straight vegetable ones) were so bad... the berry ones tasted like cough medicine even my non-picky husband didn't like them. So it was great to find the mango nectar!

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012

We bought a bag of the Heirloom Navel Oranges and Cara Oranges. Both were fine, but didn't wow them. Not sure if that's because we live in MN...?

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 1st quarter 2012 [old]

I am in MN and I found mine in the 'new product' shelves (at end of aisle), but usually they are by the cereals / nuts.

Ummm in Chains

Meyer Lemons?

I have bought them from Trader Joe's in the past (in the Rochester location though, but I assume they'd have it in the TC locations.)

Ummm in Minneapolis-St. Paul

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 1st quarter 2012 [old]

Not sure if it's new? I like the Mango Nectar. Not too sweet, and just the right thickness.

Ummm in Chains

Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 1st quarter 2012 [old]

I don't think it was raspberries since I liked that one okay. It may have been strawberries because I think I thought it tasted like those you found in some cereal that came with strawberries?

Ummm in Chains