Every year, Trader Joe’s runs a “Customer Choice Awards” ceremony on their website. Anyone can go on the website and vote for their favorite products in each category. As an avid Trader Joe’s customer, I have some opinions about this year’s winners. To keep it fair, I also interviewed Brandon Lattanzi and Tascia Dores, two people who shop at Trader Joe’s and have different palettes and lifestyles than I do. The three of us picked our winners based off of the real winners and runner ups.
Category: “Overall”
Winner: “Steamed Pork & Ginger Soup Dumplings”
Author’s Pick: “Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese: It’s perfect, I can’t imagine autumn without it.”
Brandon’s Pick:“Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese: my favorite item, I wait for it all year.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings: These are my go-to lunch when I’m too lazy to cook.”
Category: “New”
Winner: “Protein Pancakes”
Author’s Pick: “Sour Strawberry Belts: I’m a sucker for anything sour.”
Brandon’s Pick: “Garlic Butter Irish Potato Chips: The girls love garlic butter, thank you Trader Joe’s.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Protein Pancakes: I love pancakes and I love that these are guilt-free.”
Category: “Beverage”
Winner: “Spiced Cider”
Author’s Pick: “Sparkling Lemonade: Cider isn’t anything special or new.”
Brandon’s Pick: “Sparkling Lemonade: Their lemonade in general goes triple platinum in my house.”
Tascia’s Pick: “ 100% Tangerine Juice: A Dores family favorite, delicious but not too sweet or artificial.”
Category: “Cheese”
Winner: “Chevre Creamy Fresh Goat’s Milk Cheese”
Author’s Pick: “Saint André Triple Crème Brie: Brie is a classic, but I do want to try the caramelized onion cheese.”
Brandon’s Pick: “English Cheddar with Caramalized Onions: Literally French Onion Soup in a bite.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Chevre Creamy Fresh Goat’s Milk Cheese: so underrated and much healthier.”
**Author’s Note: Why is a cheese-themed bag even a runner up???**
Category: “Produce”
Winner: “Teeny Tiny Avacados”
Author’s Pick: “Teeny Tiny Avacados: They’re so cute and they don’t go bad quickly.”
Brandon’s Pick: “Gone Bananas!: They should probably be in the sweet treat category, but they’re still insanely good.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Teeny Tiny Avocados: So convenient, I don’t have to leave half of one out to go bad.”
Category: “Appetizer”
Winner: “Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip”
Author’s Pick: “Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip: Very deserved, try it with some pasta.”
Brandon’s Pick: “Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip: so delicious, but not as good as the mini beef tacos #JusticeForTacos.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip: Who doesn’t love spinach dip?”
Category: “Breakfast & Brunch”
Winner: “Hashbrowns”
Author’s Pick: “Hashbrowns: I personally like savory over sweet for breakfast, and these are divine.”
Brandon’s Pick: “Hashbrowns: Perfect for your TikTok inspired savory plate.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Hashbrowns: I love these! This just reminded me to pick some up.”
Category: “Lunch & Dinner”
Winner: “Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice”
Author’s Pick: “Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese: Can you tell I’m obsessed?”
Brandon’s Pick: “Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings: I love my mac and cheese, but these are too good.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings: You can’t go wrong with TJ’s dumplings.”
Category: “Bath, Body, & Home”
Winner: “Brazil Nut Body Butter”
Author’s Pick: “Ultra Moisturizing Hand Cream: My Excema’s best friend.”
Brandon’s Pick: “Brazil Nut Body Butter: I don’t know why we’re putting butter on our body, but I’m here for it.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Daily Facial Sunscreen SPF 40: Amazing! It doesn’t leave your face white and oily after use.”
Category: “Snack”
Winner: “Garlic Butter Irish Potato Chips”
Author’s Pick: “World’s Puffiest White Cheddar Corn Puffs: These are a must try at Trader Joe’s. So delicious and light. ”
Brandon’s Pick: “World’s Puffiest White Cheddar Corn Puffs: I could eat three bags in one sitting.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Garlic Butter Irish Potato Chips: Garlic, butter, Ireland, what’s not to love?”
Category: “Sweet Treat”
Winner: “Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches”
Author’s Pick: “Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”
Brandon’s Pick: “Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches: The most deserved win of the night. They’ve put in the work for years.”
Tascia’s Pick: “Mint Chip Ice Cream: I’m keeping Trader Joe’s in business with how much of this I buy. PERFECTION!”
Although I’m tempted to buy every single one of these products and give a fair review, these are our personal favorites and we hope you actually take our advice. If you’re a die hard Trader Joe’s fan, let me know down in the comments what your favorite Trader Joe’s product is, or if you agree with our picks or not.
