Elise Osafo has 390,000 TikTok followersOsafo via TikTok TikToker Élise Osafo is attempting to review every frozen food item at Trader Joe’s. So far, she has tried 28 items and given them each a score out of 10 as part of her TikTok series. Osafo told Insider the experience has turned her into a Trader Joe’s fan who shops there regularly.
Law student and content creator Élise Osafo had only been to Trader Joe’s a handful of times before she decided to commit to trying every frozen meal they sold in a series of TikToks. Having spent many years living in the suburbs of Chicago, Osafo said she did not often come across their stores until she moved to California in August 2021, when she noticed the area was packed with Trader Joe’s. “It felt like there was one on every block,” the 24-year-old told Insider.
@eltheegg And the journey begins…part 1! #traderjoes #foodie #eatwithme #cooking ♬ original sound – Élise Not fully understanding why everyone who lived near her was constantly talking about and shopping at Trader Joe’s, Osafo decided to try some of the store’s frozen food products to “see what all the hype was about. ” She decided to post videos of herself trying the meals on TikTok because she noticed her viewers enjoyed previous food reviews and recipe videos she has posted on the app. So far, Osafo has posted 11 videos as part of her latest TikTok series, where she films herself going into a Trader Joe’s picking out two to three frozen items before cooking them at home and rating them with a score out of 10.
Trader Joe’s stocks over 150 frozen items, according to its website, and Osafo has so far reviewed 28 of those items on TikTok. She told viewers that of the items she has tried, she thought the best one was a sweet potato gnocchi, which she rated 9. 1/10, saying, “This was fricking fracking delicious.
The gnocchi was sweet and the sage butter was savory. ” @eltheegg I think this was my highest rating so far #traderjoes #eatwithme #cooking #traderjoesfinds ♬ original sound – Élise She also rated the mandarin orange chicken at Trader’s Joe’s an 8. 8/10, saying it was “delicious” even though it still wasn’t “as good as an actual restaurant” would make it.
Her least favorite food from the series was beef pho soup, which she said “had no real flavor,” and gave a score of 6. 2/10. Despite saying she saw lots of people on TikTok saying Trader Joe’s cacio e pepe pasta and sauce was the best thing at the store, Osafo told her viewers it was a disappointing meal, giving it a 7/10 and saying, “It kind of just tastes like mac and cheese with cracked black pepper in it.
” Osafo’s Trader Joe’s TikTok series has amassed more than 3. 2 million views on TikTok. @eltheegg And the journey carries on #traderjoes #traderjoesfinds #cooking #eatwithme ♬ original sound – Élise She told Insider she thinks people enjoy her videos about Trader Joe’s because the store itself is unique and excites people.
“I originally thought, ‘Is Trader Joe’s not just like any other supermarket?’ but I think what people really enjoy is the fact that so many items, particularly the frozen ones, are Trader Joe’s own-branded products. It adds to the fun of it because it’s only available here. ” Frozen meals are also an enticing theme for viewers of her series because they “don’t take a lot of effort” for people to make at home and try themselves, she told Insider.
Commenters under Osafo’s videos appear to have been trying the frozen foods in Osafo’s series at home, often leaving suggestions for the TikToker about new ways she can prepare the food, for example by adding sauces or air-frying them, as well as suggesting meals she should try in her upcoming videos. @eltheegg I’m not even half way through all the frozen foods lol #traderjoes #traderjoesfinds #eatwithme #traderjoesfoodreviews ♬ original sound – Élise “It’s been really nice seeing people give their personal take on how they try these foods, and it’s been fun to try them myself and be like, ‘ooh, that’s really nice,'” Osafo told Insider. Following on from the success of her current videos, Osafo said she hopes to complete her goal of trying all the frozen food items at Trader Joe’s for her TikTok viewers, and also go on to taste-test items from other grocery stores.
Osafo told Insider that her series has turned her into a Trader Joe’s fan, saying, “It’s so funny because before this, Trader Joe’s was just such a foreign concept to me and now, I’m one of those people who actually go there on a regular basis. I tried some really great options that made me think, ‘I really like this, and I’m going to make this in the future. ‘”For more stories like this, check out coverage from Insider’s Digital Culture team here.
Read the original article on Insider.
From: insider
URL: https://www.insider.com/trader-joes-frozen-meals-best-worst-tiktok-review-2022-7
