Trader Joe’s Customers Voted For Its Best Products, Here’s What Topped The List
Trader Joe’s Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips won top honors, and other winners included Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice, Cheddar with Caramelized Onions, and Hold the Cone! Mini Ice Cream Cones.
Trader Joe’s shoppers are a dedicated and enthusiastic bunch. They have good reason to be, as the chain offers a range of quality products at digestible price points. Every year, Trader Joe’s calls on its clientele to vote on their favorite items in the store, and this year’s results are in.
Trader Joe’s has been asking its customers to vote on their favorite products for 14 years now. However, the same items have topped that list for years on end. So, this time Trader Joe’s decided to shake up the formula a bit.
To ensure that the same products didn’t take top honors, they simply removed them from the list of voting options. So when 18,000 participants flocked to partake in Trader Joe’s annual Customer Choice Awards, gone were beloved favorites like Soy Chorizo, Peanut Butter Filled Pretzel Nuggets, and Mandarin Orange Chicken, according to Food & Wine. The grocery giant said it thought it was only fair to remove consistent winners so that other awesome products could stand a fighting chance at getting proper recognition for their overall deliciousness.
So what product did end up taking top honors this year? That distinction went to Trader Joe’s Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips. It also won for best snack. Other items that came close to taking the crown were TJ’s Hashbrowns, Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings, Everything But the Bagel Sesame Seasoning Blend, and 4 Chocolate Croissants.
In addition to the overall winner, there were also winners chosen in eight other Trader Joe’s categories. Those categories included best beverage, best cheese, best entree, best household item, best produce, best snack, best dessert, and best vegan/vegetarian item. Sparkling Honeycrisp Apple Juice Beverage topped the beverage category. Coming in as a close second was Triple Ginger Brew (seasonal).
Cheddar with Caramelized Onions won the cheese group. Syrah Soaked Toscano took second place in that category. And Baked Lemon Ricotta (seasonal), Blueberry & Vanilla Chèvre, and Brie (various) rounded out the top five.
Trader Joe’s Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice took top entree honors. Bananas stole the top spot for produce. Hold the Cone! Mini Ice Cream Cones beat out the likes of Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches and Chocolate Lava Cake to reign as the number one dessert.
While the Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips won both the overall and snack categories, there were a few delicious runners-up in the latter. Coming in second place for snacks was Organic Elote Corn Chip Dippers. Organic Corn Chip Dippers, World’s Puffiest White Cheddar Corn Puffs, and Crunchy Curls made up the top five.
Other winners included Kale & Cashew Pesto in the vegan/vegetarian category, and Trader Joe’s scented candles won for the best household item. For a full breakdown of results from the competition, head here.
As for the old favorites that were removed from the competition this year, Trader Joe’s didn’t forget about them! They created a hall of fame section, especially for those items. The products rounding out the hall of fame thus far are Mandarin Orange Chicken, Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, Peanut Butter Filled Pretzel Nuggets, Unexpected Cheddar, and Soy Chorizo.
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