Crossing into the US for Trader Joe’s essentials

Cross-border Trader – A mother of three drives nearly an hour from Canada to Bellingham, Washington, twice a month because Trader Joe’s has no locations in Canada. She says these nine items—featuring Mandarin-orange chicken, kebabs, smoothies, chips, potstickers, and cultured salte

Twice a month, the grocery run starts before the first bag is even packed. For this mother of three picky eaters, it means nearly an hour of driving from her home in Canada to Bellingham, Washington—just to stock up on Trader Joe’s favorites.

The hard part isn’t the distance. It’s the fact that there are no Trader Joe’s locations in Canada. Crossing the border for groceries might sound extreme to outsiders, she says, but the product quality and her kids’ reactions make the trip feel necessary.

Her cart is usually guided by the meals that reliably land with her family—dinner options she says her whole household loves at prices she considers affordable. Prices may vary by location, but her must-haves don’t change.

One repeat staple is Trader Joe’s Mandarin-orange chicken. She loves pairing it with stir-fry noodles, and she says her whole family is obsessed with the dish. She buys four packages each time she shops. The chicken is battered in an orange-ginger sauce, and she serves it either on its own or with stir-fry noodles. When she wants a fuller dinner, she adds broccoli, carrots, and white rice, finishing with sesame seeds.

Not every preference in her house is predictable. but she says Trader Joe’s fettuccine Alfredo has been a turning point for her son. She notes that he never liked fettuccine Alfredo—whether it was served in a restaurant or cooked at home—until he tried the Trader Joe’s version. For a family of five, she typically heats up two packs of the frozen pasta. She also adds Trader Joe’s breaded chicken tenderloin breasts for extra protein. To elevate it further, she mixes in high-protein milk and butter, then tops it with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and parsley.

When she wants something fast and comfort-forward, she leans on Trader Joe’s Middle Eastern-style kebabs. She’s originally from Egypt, and she says the kebabs remind her of home. She adds that her oldest daughter loves them too. The kebabs take about 20 minutes to grill. and she uses them as a shortcut for shawarma—combining them with tomatoes. a homemade tahini sauce. and onions seasoned with sumac and parsley. She then packs everything into Trader Joe’s Egyptian-sourdough Baladi pocket bread.

There’s always room for a treat, too. Her secret indulgence is Trader Joe’s chocolate-covered wafer cookie bars. She says the snack tastes exactly like her favorite childhood treat from back home in Egypt. Each bar costs only $1.20, and she usually grabs anywhere from five to seven during her grocery trips.

Her youngest daughter has her own favorite: Trader Joe’s fat-free vanilla meringues. The family haul always includes them, she says, because the container is the one treat her daughter consistently reaches for. She also points to the price—$4.50 per container—and describes the meringues as fluffy with the “perfect amount of sweetness” in each bite.

For snacks, her son’s go-to is Trader Joe’s chili-and-lime-flavored rolled corn tortilla chips. She says they’re loaded with spice, and she always makes sure to pick up a bag whenever she visits. She recommends the extra-crunchy chips for anyone who likes spicy snacks, calling out their “zest and heat.”.

Her teenage daughter, meanwhile, gravitates toward something colder and non-dairy: Trader Joe’s mango 100% juice smoothies. She says her daughter’s favorite item from the store is the mango juice smoothie. and she describes them as a staple in their fridge. She notes they’re non-dairy and made with mango purée, apples, banana purée, and lemon juice. She also highlights nutrition and price—each smoothie is full of vitamins A and C and costs only $3.

When guests are coming over, her appetizer choice is Trader Joe’s pork gyoza potstickers. She says she loves serving them and pairs them with soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar. then garnishes with green onions. She emphasizes practicality here: each pack has about 20 pieces, which she says makes them a good fit for get-togethers.

And for cooking at home, she swears by Trader Joe’s cultured salted butter. She says many of her favorite Egyptian recipes rely heavily on butter. and she’s always searching for one that’s high-quality with an affordable price tag. Her favorite, she says, is Trader Joe’s cultured salted butter—tasting “amazing,” softening in minutes, and elevating every dish.

So the border crossing isn’t just about shopping—it’s about keeping her household fed with familiar foods her kids actually want to eat. Twice a month. that practical reality pulls her from Canada toward Bellingham. Washington. where nine Trader Joe’s items make the long drive feel. in her words. worthwhile.

Trader Joe's Canada Bellingham Washington cross-border shopping groceries Mandarin-orange chicken fettuccine Alfredo kebabs mango smoothie tortilla chips gyoza potstickers cultured salted butter