When I’m in Monterey I guess I ‘get’ why people love TJ’s. When I’m in SF I can easily grab any southeast Asian ingredient 2 min from home, and I never really have to go to a grocery store. The lack of diversity in Monterey grocery store options is something new to me.
Luckily I can still order stuff from Weee online, or if I have time I like to go to the Korean stores in Seaside. But for ‘I need a grocery run for food in the next 15 min’ TJ’s is a godsend for price and convenience I guess.