Trader Joe's Is Culty But Okay

Trader Joe's is one of those places I feel has more of a cult-like following than actually offers "value" to customers, and that's not a diss on the place, mind you, but simply an observation. The first time I had ever been to one of their stores was probably 14 or 15 years ago when my wife and I lived in the Milwaukee area. They had one at the Bayshore Mall near Shorewood not that far from us.

People really talk it up, though. And I had been hearing a lot about it again for whatever reason so yesterday I thought, "Let's go and give it another look."

The store we went to was in the Brentwood area of St. Louis across the river from where we live now in Southern Illinois and was bigger than I remembered it to be the first time we went to one. I also did find the experience to be slightly better, but I was admittedly not much more impressed with the place than I was the first time either.

As I remembered it to be, it was a lot of organic and "healthy" hype, and the prices are still quite high compared to most other places I shop. I did notice the place was teeming with eager shoppers, though, piling all sorts of overpriced items gladly into their carts without a care in the world.

People like it, of course. There's a reason Trader Joe's has the following it does and continues to delight a certain group of shoppers. It is interesting to peruse some of the foods they offer, especially in the frozen aisle where they sell what I would call "restaurant fare in a bag or a box." 

We didn't buy much. Most of what they offer I can cook myself for much cheaper—even if something is a bit unique, it's not like I can't easily find a recipe online and go and get the ingredients and put it all together at a fraction of the price.

And what I would make at home would probably be healthier too despite Trader Joe's "healthy" angle.

It is among one of those places, as an investor, I would actually have some interest in investing in if it were publicly traded, partly exactly because of the trendy cult following it tends to have. Trader Joe's has a "hooked" audience who truly believe in Trader Joe's and would stop at nothing to shop there. 

There are many other places you can't say that about. That is what makes it interesting as a potential investment, of course.

All in all, I would say it was a bit "fun" to peruse the aisles. At the same time, we did not spend much. Only around $30. And we didn't get much for that. Just a couple of items. I don't think it will be 14 or 15 years before we return. But it also won't be often we will shop there. Maybe once or twice a year will be good enough for me.

Jack-In-The-Box Goes to Pot

YOU HAD TO KNOW IT WOULD EVENTUALLY COME. That is, someone was going to eventually capitalize, or aim to capitalize, on the growing legalization of pot. Currently three states allow recreational marijuana use; Colorado, Washington, and California.

I SUSPECT THERE WILL BE MORE TO FOLLOW.

Enter Jack-In-The-Box who will now enter the busting out of the seams pot industry, albeit on the back-end. Starting in mid-January the fast food chain will try out it's Jack's Munchie Meals at certain locations in the Long Beach, California market.

My suspicion is that most other fast food companies are already getting a boost from hungry pot heads looking for something to fulfill their munchie cravings—although none of them to date have actually tried to directly reach out with a menu catering to them.

So, what's in the munchie meal? Supposedly a couple of tacos, some chicken strips, five mini churros, onion rings, fries, and a drink.

That actually sounds like a nice little snack for anyone. But to go one step further with the whole thing, Jack-In-The-Box will also price it's munchie meal at just $4.20, capitalizing on what is apparently a code term, 420, that pot heads use for marijuana consumption.

As for whether or not this will boost sales for the fast food giant is up for debate. Even with growing acceptance of pot consumption by the general public, one wonders what customers may opt out of eating at Jack-In-The-Box simply fearing that they might be surrounded by a bunch of high customers—and who knows what antics that might entail.

Then again, if you ever frequent a Denny's at 3 o'clock in the morning, it can be a rather entertaining meal in and of itself...

Provided you aren't the source of entertainment.

You may be all right though in the end. One wonders if there may not be a few police officers eating there, or hanging out there to see who might be getting a munchie meal. The consumption of pot may well be legal in the state, even if it is still illegal at the federal level, but one thing that is definitely illegal is driving under the influence of something.

If you get that munchie meal to go, you might want to consider having a driver along who hasn't toked.

How To Cook A Corned Beef Brisket

Corned beef brisket, whether it be a flat cut or a point cut, is a truly delicious meal. But due to the brining process a corned beef brisket can be quite salty. Depending on who you talk to, people have various ways of cooking one of these. This is the way I cook my corned beef brisket, and I have done it this way for years, and it always turns out quite delicious, and the process is easy as well.

The way I like to cook my corned beef brisket is to bring it to a boil, and then simmer it. The general rule is that you want to cook your brisket for about 50 minutes per pound. Usually I have at least a 4 lb brisket.

STEP ONE: Cut the brisket out of the bag and drop it into a large pot. Find the "seasoning packet" and set it aside. The bag is full of blood and brine. This is all flavor folks. Before I put any water into my pot, after dropping the corned beef brisket into the pot, I rinse the bag it came in and dump that mixture into the pot with the meat. This way I get all the goodies. Next, turn on the tap and fill the pot so that the meat is fully covered to the top in water.

STEP TWO: Add the seasoning packet that came with your corned beef brisket.

STEP THREE: Set the pot, uncovered, on the burner. Set your dial high and bring the pot to a slow, rolling boil. Once it is boiling let it cook for about 3-5 minutes, watching the foam. If it foams too much just turn the heat down a notch.

STEP FOUR: After it has boiled for about 3-5 minutes, turn down the heat to a high simmer and cover it. Set the timer for 50 minutes per pound. Just let it cook. Watch it to make sure you don't have to make some heat adjustments, but mostly your corned beef brisket will simply cook on its own without any attention at all for the allotted time.

Note: If at any point during the cooking process if you feel the meat should need more water, just add it. You are not going to impede the flavor at all. The meat should be covered with water through the cooking process. If you add some water, just bring it back to a slow boil and then bring it back down to simmer and you are fine. You will not screw this up. Trust me. A corned beef brisket is all flavor. You cannot kill it.

Now here's a little secret. A lot of the time when someone cooks a corned beef brisket they want a combination of cabbage, carrots, and potatoes. Many people will simply add these ingredients to the pot about 45 minutes to an hour before cooking is done.

Frankly, this makes for some pretty salty vegetables.

What I do instead is to cook my vegetables separately. I still want the corned beef flavor. But I do not want the excessive saltiness that goes along with it. So here is what I do.

STEP ONE:1 hour before your brisket is done, prepare your vegetables, cut up your cabbage, carrots, and potatoes and set them aside. (This should take about 15 minutes)

STEP TWO: Siphon off 1 cup of liquid from your corned beef brisket pot and drop that into your vegetable pot. (If you have to add water to your corned beef brisket follow the note above). This gives you the corned beef flavor you want. Add 2 cups of beef broth. Drop your veggies into the pot and mix it all up.

STEP THREE: Cook your veggies for about 40-45 minutes bringing them to a boil first, then dropping them down to a simmer. Add a tad of Worcestershire just for some added flavor if you want, and  normally I do this...but normally there is enough flavor already. I just like a little bit of Worcestershire with my veggies.

When the corned beef brisket is done it is best to let it stand for at least five minutes before carving it. This only makes the cuts more "presentable." If you do not care about presentation, just dig in.

This has been the method I have used to cook my corned beef brisket for years, and the veggies to boot. It always turns out good. I hope this was helpful.

Enjoy your corned beef brisket.

When The Mustard Farts, Make A Marinade

Mustard is one of those items we tend to have in our refrigerators that is bursting with flavor and goes well with just about any kind of meat you might be cooking. Being one who likes to save every single penny I can, I cannot just simply take my farting mustard container and throw it into the garbage and call it done. Instead, when the mustard farts, I make a marinade.

Do you know that on average an "empty" mustard container contains about 2-3 teaspoons of mustard in it still? Imagine in a lifetime how much mustard you might be throwing away? And while you may not miss the pennies in the short term, over a lifetime you're basically tossing money right into the garbage bin.

Instead of tossing your empty mustard containers, why not rinse them into a marinade?

First, measure up a 1/2 cup of wine of choice. Bring out your "empty" mustard container and pour in a little bit of the wine. Close her up and shake. You'll bring out all of the residual mustard left in the container. Pour it into your mix. Voila! You've saved a few pennies rinsing your mustard out and you'll have a fantastic marinade to boot.

What you will need:

• An "empty" mustard container
• 1/2 cup wine
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 ounce apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 ounce soy sauce

As I said, shake out the excess mustard and dump it into the mix. Add the other ingredients and whisk it all together. Add your meat and marinade. Trust me, you will save money and have a fantastic meal to boot.

Plummeting McDonald's Sales May Be An Economic Signal

A couple of years ago I wrote that one thing about downturns in the economy is that it causes people to, of course, scale back their purchases, and that means low-end retailers such as Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Walmart, and even thrift stores like Goodwill will tend to do very well since consumers are more concerned about value than necessarily quality, or customer service. That is not to disparage any of those companies on either quality of product, or quality of service, but simply to suggest that price becomes king in that kind of an environment. In that commentary I suggested that when the economy begins to fire up a bit, retailers to look at to buy shares in are slightly higher end, or steps up from the deep discounters. Places like Target and Kohl's, for example.

During the same period I also wrote about how well McDonald's stock performed throughout the entire recessionary period. To put it literally the stock was on fire, and that was because people were flocking to McDonald's stores, particularly interested in their value menu which offered consumers the best bang for their buck when it came to dining out. Even when it came to coffee, a cheap cup of what is arguably a noteworthy brew was just what the hurting consumer needed to get their coffee fix at a price that went easy on their wheezing wallets.

Interestingly enough, Starbucks did not fare all too poorly during the recession either, but that's another story. There's a different dynamic going on there.

McDonald's sales have taken a turn for the worst, having seen percentage decreases for nine straight months, and even Walmart has been seeing some declining sales.

With gas prices lower and jobs numbers higher, the shortfall in sales at McDonald's may actually be a lagging indicator of better times ahead. What it suggests is that people may be stepping up to slightly
higher end operators like Wendy's, Chipotle, and Panera Bread to name a few. Five Guys burgers are a strong competitor in this sector as well, and have been one of the fastest growing quick serve hamburger chains for some time now.  My gosh, if they went public, I would be one of the first guys in line.

Shake Shack may shake things up a bit as well for McDonald's. And actually Wendy's stock has been seeing new highs, so to my mind these are very clear signs that there is a paradigm shift in where consumers are spending their dollars.

And the begging question? Could it be that with lower gas prices and better job prospects, consumer confidence may be rising, and consumers are now willing to spend a little more elsewhere?

If that's the case, it could well be a signal that the economy may be getting better. I think it is too soon to tell for sure. Certainly I am not going to use hamburger sales alone as any indicator in the macro-economic picture. But in the micro it seems to at least make a suggestion which I think is worth taking a close look at.

People are beginning to make a shift in their spending, and McDonald's horrible sales numbers are making that all too clear. Stocks that I think are ripe for this environment are Wendy's and Chipotle (I'd stay away from Shake Shack), Whole Foods, Target, and I will go ahead and throw Darden Restaurants into the mix as well. These are companies I want to own right now. I think these companies are primed to benefit from any improvement in the economy, and I think stocks to avoid right now are stocks like Dollar Tree, Walmart, and yes. McDonald's. But do watch the company very closely. McDonald's has historically been able to weather many storms and has an uncanny ability to right its ship eventually. I do not recommend writing it off completely in the short term. But these other companies, I think, have a lot more going for them as it currently stands, and that is where I would put my investment dollars.

We're up for a ride, and the ones who will win are those who are treats to the American consumer if it becomes all too clear that we are headed for better times. In this case playing the value play is not as good a bet as playing the upgrade play.

A Note To My Delivery Guys

From time to time we all will order something to be delivered for dinner, whether it be a piping hot pizza or some Chinese food, or some other cuisine. I have made a habit out of tipping my delivery people very generously, 20%. I look at it this way. I am able to stay at home, stay in my creature comforts, and you are saving me time and energy not having to trek out or have to cook at home.

I appreciate that, and am willing to pay for that.

But something I do not advocate is a delivery charge. This is a decision that you, as a business has made to expand the reach to potential customers. There is a benefit to your business by providing delivery, because at the end of the day I see it this way.

Had you not offered delivery, you probably would not get a sale from me.

So your business is benefiting from my business directly because I have chosen you as my source to have something delivered to my door as opposed to having to go out and get it.

I should not have to pay you for my business.

And that is exactly what a delivery charge is. It is a request from your business for me to pay you for my business. This delivery charge will be deducted from my generosity.

I get that there are a lot of people out there that will still think that tipping their delivery driver a buck for their time and effort is appropriate, and it is probably what started the whole delivery charge trend, as well as, of course, gas prices.

I would rather you incorporate your cost of doing business with me into your price. Plain and simple. And that is the way you should be conducting business.

As a rule, if there is a delivery charge added to my total I deduct the delivery charge and calculate my 20% tip based on the total minus the delivery charge. My thinking is that the delivery charge is not put directly into the driver's pocket, but the owner's pocket. So the argument that gas is expensive is moot. The driver is paid an hourly wage plus tips. Not an hourly wage plus tips plus delivery charges.

This is gouging the customer and screwing the delivery guy.

I will grant you that very few people probably provide for a 20% tip to delivery drivers. But that being said, I want you to tell me what your product costs and let me decide how much I think that is worth. If you find that the cost of providing delivery is not correlating with the revenue generated from it, simply raise your prices, but leave the delivery charge off the table.

Chives Or Lobster?

That's right. You heard the question correctly. Chives or lobster? The reason I pose this very odd question? Did you know that McCormick sells a freeze dried chives container at Walmart that sells for...

Wait for it...

$492.96 PER POUND???

No my friends. That is not a typo. You read that number just as correctly as you read the question I posed in the title.

You have to say that seems a bit steep, no? I mean, since when is a chive, freeze dried or otherwise, ever worth nearly $500 per pound? I would venture to say right here and now, for the record, that there is never a time when chives are worth that.

Pot growers stand up and take notice. There is new crop out there you can grow. AND IT IS LEGAL TOO!

No more need to worry about the bad boys from the ATF knocking at your door, or coming to your crop fields looking to burn down your crops and haul you off to jail in handcuffs. Now you have chives!

So, I ask the question? Chives or lobster. Because obviously lobster only runs about $30 per pound.

What Happened To Onion Prices?

It seems like a silly thing to write a blog about, but as a guy who absolutely loves his onions, when the prices for onions have nearly doubled in the last month or so, this just really gets my goat. I don't know about how things go in your house, but in my house? Onions are a staple. I use onions in nearly every single dish I cook. I use onions on my sandwiches, and onions go in my salad as well.

Still, I also happen to be one of those guys who watches prices very carefully. Call me anal retentive, I don't care. It wouldn't be the first time I've been called that. And in watching those prices I also have set prices in my head for how much I'm ultimately willing to pay for an item.

Pork, for example, stands around under $2 a pound. Regular beef stuff (unless we're talking about steak or something like that) I'll fork over no more than $3 a pound. I'm a sale stocker too. When things go on sale, so long as it's not something sure to perish in any short period of time, I scoop it up right quick, and in whatever quantity I can. Especially if it happens to be an item I use a lot of.

And when prices bump up above what I'm ultimately willing to pay for them I stop buying them. I boycott them. Sometimes painfully so. In the case of the onion situation, I've not been able to outright stop using them...

But I sure do buy them in much smaller quantities, and I have avoided using them in all of my dishes.

So adamant am I on this type of thing that I once went without ground beef for nearly two years. At the time it went for around 99 cents per pound—and was at least on sale for that price nearly all the time. When it bumped up to $1.19 I said no thanks to it. Then it bumped up to $1.39, and soon thereafter $1.59. I refused to buy it. I've since changed my price to around $1.79-$1.99 depending on whether it is ground chuck, or ground round, or ground beef.

I wonder sometimes if they get it. The marketers? Do they get it? Am I the only one who changes his buying habits according to the price? I mean, in this case I am sure there is something that has happened to have caused the onion prices to have doubled. But still. Do they get that I'm buying less? Will this help drive the prices down? Will onions ever go back to their old prices?

Or will I have to wait two years before I break down and change my price threshold?