For over 16 years, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers in Florida have been demanding better working conditions and a living wage in exchange for their backbreaking tomato picking labor. And the group just scored a major victory: after a year of protests, it persuaded Trader Joe's to join with places like Whole Foods, McDonald's and Burger King, in accepting the CIW's fair food agreement. more ›

Will no one think of the young bankers in these hard economic times? Between the third quarters of 2008 and 2011 the financial sector lost 110,000 employees between the ages of 20 and 34. DealBook spoke to one 28-year-old former Credit Suisse employee, who was hired and fired in a week's time. "I did everything right. I came into work every day, I put in long hours, and I still got punched in the face." more ›

Tired of the crazy lines at the 14th Street location? Don't have a problem surreptitiously supporting PepsiCo? Couldn't care less about underpaid tomato pickers? Great! Then perhaps you'd like to consider doing your Trader Joe's shopping at the brand-new, spaciously appointed Staten Island location instead. more ›

Snowstorms, hurricanes, basically any time people are in full-on freak out mode, grocery stores tend to make a killing based on our need for three dozen eggs just in case we're trapped in our apartment for 10 days and really, really crave omelettes. Readers have passed on evidence of the vicious scramble for victuals, and see check out last night's line at the Food Emporium on Union Square in the video below. more ›

Now that the MTA will be shut down tomorrow at noon, people are seriously stocking up for a weekend at home. Mandi at The Bike Writer tells us the line outside the 14th Street "around the block... They started passing out bon bons to appease the crowd." more ›

There are plenty of things you can complain about in Trader Joe's. If the line wrapping around the store isn't enough, then the fact that you're actually supporting PepsiCo and other evil monoliths when you shop there should do it. But overly friendly service? Shouldn't that be the silver lining in a town full of jerks? Not according to CityRoom's latest Complaint Box contestant, who said that her check-out experience at the Trader Joe's on Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn went beyond the norm. more ›

Well, folks, the trial of century—the sensational tale of two Upper West Side moms who viciously battled it out over a frozen Trader Joe's pad thai (or something)—has come to an end, with a judge declaring accused slapper Marcella "screaming banshee" Caprario not guilty of attempted assault and harassment. NO JUSTICE, NO FROZEN PEAS! more ›

A verdict could be reached as early as TODAY in the sensational trial of an Upper West Side amateur opera singer accused of slapping a prominent physician during a spat last January in the frozen food section of a Trader Joe's on Broadway and 72nd. The fracas began when singer and grade school teacher Marcella Caprario's husband was blocked by Dr. Cathleen London teenage son as he tried to obtain his wife's beloved frozen vegan pad thai. Yesterday the teen, the singer, the doctor and the husband all testified, and the nasty insults volleyed from the witness stand may have irreparably damaged the Upper West Side's sterling reputation for civility and patient understanding. more ›

Two moms. Trader Joe's. The Upper West Side. An (allegedly) "obnoxious" teenager. And one package of Trader Joe's brand Frozen Vegan Pad Thai With Tofu THAT WOULD TEAR THEM APART. This story seems like a pre-packaged viral ad campaign for the wildly popular supermarket chain, but it's actually a true and harrowing tale of Mom vs. Mom Gone Wild. The defendant is "amateur mezzo soprano" and grade school English teacher Marcella Caprario, who's accused of assaulting Dr. Cathleen London, a divorced mother of two and frequent TV talking head. The two ladies locked horns in the frozen food section of Trader Joe's on Broadway at 72nd Street last winter, and despite numerous plea deal offers, Caprario has demanded her day in court. Today, at last, is that day. more ›

Acknowledging they are a hotbed of criminal activity, Trader Joe's has put up a chalkboard message warning customers to keep an eye on their things. (Whatever happened to the sign targeted at the actual criminals?) Anyway, do you think if this sign doesn't work then those guys in Hawaiian shirts will start a 21 Jump Street-esque undercover squad in their spare time, to bust up the band of bandits ruining their "it's all good" vibe at the store? Because that would be awesome. more ›

At 8 a.m. this morning, the doors opened to the long-awaited Trader Joe's on the Upper West Side corner of Broadway and West 72nd Street. Leis and steel drum musicians greeted shoppers (some of whom were waiting since 7:30 a.m.) as they ventured down escalators to the two subterranean floors featuring the store's signature groceries and competitive prices. People were marveling how beautiful and open the store was—but we happened to go there right when it opened, so it wasn't crowded (DNA Info says there was a line halfway around the store by 9:15 a.m.). more ›

A thief has struck again at the Court Street Trader Joe's on Friday, nabbing a wallet from a woman's unattended purse that she left in her shopping cart. The woman didn't notice her wallet was missing until she went to check out. Last month, police caught a thief in a sting operation after multiple reports of stolen purses from that location. But the next day a thief stole a man's wallet from atop his stroller in the same store. So, can this finally be the incident that teaches people to keep an eye on their stuff in public, or at least when shopping at the crime-ridden hellhole that is Trader Joe's? more ›

Just one day after a sting operation that nailed a purse thief at the Court Street Trader Joe's, another bandit made off with an unsuspecting man's wallet. The 37-year-old Brit had left his bag, containing his wallet and Green Card, on top of his stroller on April 29th and wandered away. The thief grabbed the bag and bolted to the subway, accruing $90 in credit card charges at a nearby subway station. When asked why they abandoned their lookout at the grocery store, one cop told the Post, “What, do we have to go in every day?” Only if people keep wandering away from their stuff like that. more ›

After numerous reports of shoplifting at the popular grocery store, cops from the 76th Precinct have begun posing as shoppers in the Court Street Trader Joe's to catch the thieves. But last week they finally caught their first purse snatcher. The Brooklyn Paper reports cops caught a man stealing a woman's purse out of her cart—unaware that the innocent looking shopper was really a cop, who had radioed a description of the suspect to cops waiting outside. “We have to wait for him to leave the store,” said Capt. Kenneth Corey. “Otherwise, he could say, ‘I was just going to return it to the cashier.’ ” more ›

The Hawaiian shirtification of the Upper West Side is about to go down, with the new Trader Joe's setting up shop in a residential tower in the neighborhood. NY1 reports that the construction is nearly complete at 72nd and Broadway, and Gotham Organization Vice President Jeffrey Kaye confirms rumors of the grocer moving in. Kaye told them: "It's official. Trader Joe's will be coming. We expect them to open later this year... we can’t confirm what the date will be." Fairway Market and Citarella are just two blocks away, and one UWS resident wonders if "this is going to become food row." more ›

Fresh on the heels of news that Trader Joe's is set to invade Chelsea, word is that the TJ's sister-slash-superstore, ALDI, will be opening in Queens. The Voice talks to a "supermarket consultant" who tells them to expect a dozen more ALDI locations to follow. The Wegmans count for the five boroughs sadly remains at zero. more ›

Will the standard Hawaiian shirt uniform of Trader Joe's employees soon be hitting Chelsea? Reportedly the store is in discussions to open a shop at the Mattel Building, located at 675 Sixth Avenue, between 21st and 22nd streets. That's only 11 blocks from the flagship TJ's in Union Square, but we doubt this will help with that laborious line. more ›

It's not uncommon to hear New Yorkers complaining about how overwhelmed they are by the lines at the Union Square Trader Joe's that most hours of the day tend to snake through the store—often leading to a journey just to find where the end of it is. So passers-by on 14th Street must be feeling relieved now that they've spotted a "Trader John's" moving in just down the street in the space that a regular old Gristedes had been, right? Not so fast. more ›

Even though the area once home to the House of D is now better known as the House of TJ's, City Councilman David Yassky and Controller William Thompson are still trying to block the city from the reopening and expansion of a jail in Downtown Brooklyn that has been closed since 2003. The two filed a lawsuit against the city trying to stop $430 million deal planned by the Bloomberg administration to add 720 beds to the the Brooklyn House of Detention in a move they say is a "waste of taxpayer money and would have a destructive effect on the local economy.". The suit claims that the city "secretively and illegally" re-populated the jail when it sent 31 prisoners there over the weekend in order to claim that it never closed. The Dept. of Corrections says it would like to have the jail reopened by early next year. more ›

Have you heard? Everyone is so excited about the new Trader Joe's coming to town! Brooklyn's first branch of the grocery store opens up this Friday, and if you thought that in a city like New York it would take a little more than reasonably priced organic milk to get people excited, then you'd be wrong. OTBKB has a source deep inside the establishment who reports back that the Court Street store's opening will include prizes (yes, prizes!) for the first 100 people on line, a Caribbean band soundtracking the exciting day, along with tastings and probably Marty Markowitz making an appearance in a Hawaiian shirt. Having trouble picturing it all? Gersh Kuntzman from the Brooklyn Paper gives you a sneak peak at the store. Spoiler alert: the inside contains salmon and 18 cash registers! One question no one can answer yet, however, is how and if this will impact Fresh Direct's Brooklyn business. more ›

This weekend the Daily News explored the idea of Brooklyn as a luxury destination, with one area resident saying it's "a little difficult for people to live like they used to" in the borough—what with all the pricey places popping up. However, the paper also takes a look at the opening of Brooklyn's Trader Joe's, opening on Friday. One Carroll Gardens local says of the Court Street store, "This is going to be cool. The people here are lucky to have something like this, especially since they take food stamps, because a lot of fancy stores don't take them." The shop's shelves are stocked with healthy, and many organic, choices—and prepared meals will go for $3 or less...while one can pick up a six-pack of beer for only $4.99! But don't even think about drinking them on your stoop. more ›

It seems like just yesterday that Marty Markowitz was standing there in his Hawaiian shirt, announcing the borough's first Trader Joe's. Now, the Brooklyn Paper reports it will be opening in the landmark Independence Bank building as soon as next week! September 26th, to be exact. "The supermarket will open at 9 am and the festivities will feature giveaways, live music," and of course, more Markowitz. But be warned winos, this location at the corner of Atlantic Avenue and Court Street will not have Two-Buck Chuck, or any wine at all. more ›

The notorious Brooklyn House of Detention – immortalized by everyone from the Beastie Boys to Jonathan Lethem – has been closed since 2003, but plans to reopen the jail at twice its previous size are still moving forward. Last year many newcomers to the steadily gentrifying neighborhood decried plans to bring back the detention center, located at the intersection of Atlantic and Smith. more ›

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a double stabbing at 14-19 31 Drive in Queens, a double shooting at 138th St. and 59th Ave. in Queens, and a commercial robbery on East 12th St. between 3rd and 4th Aves. in Manhattan. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is committing millions of dollars to residents of the South Bronx, pleasing some, rankling others, and infuriating the Mayor of Caracas, which is Venezuela's desperately poor capital. Marilyn Kaytor, who... more ›

The NY Times is hinting that Brooklyn may be so over, a theory that seems to be based around Heath Ledger leaving the borough.

What if Brooklyn’s recent cachet as the locus for what’s next is little more than a thin and fragile crust of chic, hiding the insecurity of people who constantly measure the social currency of their ZIP code by Manhattan standards? The number of trendy boutiques, bistros and music clubs in Brooklyn may have spiked in the last five years, but its infrastructure of cool still represents only a fraction of that found in Manhattan. Its new identity is moored to a finite number of shops, restaurants, luxury condominiums and, yes, celebrities. If even one leaves, a void is created. Could the borough’s new status vanish as quickly as it ascended?

Last week Racked reported that there's word of an Apple store opening in Brooklyn. The question is, which neighborhood will iNvite them in. Dumbo NYC reports that Two Trees has reached out to Apple in the past, but they "weren’t ready". If they're ready now, their options in Dumbo would include the 6600 sq.ft space at 70 Washington Street and the 6700 sq.ft space across the street at Washington and Front Street. more ›

The NY Times takes a look at Smith Street and the corporate companies creeping into the area and setting up shop. The most recent big announcement is that Trader Joe's is taking over the old bank on Atlantic Avenue and Court Street. How long until more big fish come to feed? more ›

Yesterday we mentioned London designer Anya Hindmarch's I'm Not A Plastic Bag was finally arriving at Whole Foods today. The canvas tote was made popular by a combination of things including celebrity and unavailability. Hindmarch told the NY Times “To create awareness you have to create scarcity by producing a limited edition. I hate the idea of making the environment trendy, but you need to make it cool and then it becomes a habit.” more ›

After many false starts, Trader Joe's announced this week that the grocery store chain would be finally arriving in Brooklyn. The news was heralded by Brooklyn Beep Marty Markowitz, who was decked out in one of the store's highly visible Hawaiian print shirts and leading a steel drum band at Court St. and Atlantic Ave. The Brooklyn Paper reports that while the grocer will soon move into the landmark Independence Savings Bank building at Court and Atlantic, Brooklynites will be required to trek to Manhattan if they want their "Two-Buck Chuck" wine. more ›