37 reviews for Trader Joe’s New England Clam Chowder Reviews
Rated 2 out of 5
Lizz –
I just picked this up at the store last night at the Woodward and 11 mile site. Had it for lunch at work. The flavor/seasoning was great. I liked the thickness of the broth but when I chewed the meaty clams…lt was tender but also had sand in it. That’s new to me. I’ve eaten clam chowder for decades and I’ve never had sand added so it took away from the meal. I mainly put aside the clams and drank the soup.
Rated 4 out of 5
N –
Grabbed this Clam Chowder last night and had it for lunch today with some TJ’s sourdough artisan bread. Was very very happy with everything. The broth was delicious (I do wish it was just a hair thicker though, I would’ve given it 5 stars if it were.) I didn’t have any sand issues as previous reviewer experienced, just a nice hearty chowder that I will definitely be buying again!
Rated 4 out of 5
LuAnn –
I totally agree with N’s posting, just a tiny little bit thicker will be perfect but not too thick though. I was nice enough to save 1/3 of it for my husband to try. I have no reservation to recommend to my friends and family.
Rated 5 out of 5
Renuea –
Awesome! After trying many clam chowders that are premade this is one of the best for taste, portion and price. Find it serves two of us We have this as often as we can obtain it! Chewy pieces of clams, felt the thickness of the chowder was good. Much better too than that which is offered at Sprouts. Balanced combination of potatoes, cream, and clams with a touch of pepper. yum! Thank you Trader Joes.
Rated 3 out of 5
Erica –
I also had the issue of a sandy or gritty feeling when biting into the clams. Which was disappointing because the flavor of the broth was very good! But like pp the chewing on sand feel was odd putting enough for me to not enjoy the whole container
Rated 1 out of 5
CHARLES SCHWARTZ –
As of around November 2018 Trader Joe changed the recipe on their clam chowder. It’s now “cheesy”. The older recipe was MASSIVELY better and is what the previous reviews here speak to. I HOPE they go back to the old recipe (supplier ?). The older recipe was a true classic. I’ve eaten a lot of clam chowders in my day. It just excellent. I’ll be looking for another chowder if Trader Joe sticks with this new funky cheese recipe. Pepe Le Pew !
Rated 3 out of 5
Ray Saulnier –
I live on the Maine coast an know GOOD CHOWDER. I really have been very satisfied wth Trader Joe’s products BUT the clam chowder was a somewhat big disappointment.
Upon opening the seal, an pouring into a pan to heat up, I didn’t see any real solids in it. Looked again when heated an saw there was next to NO solids in with the broth. I gathered up 3 pieces of clam, along with 4 small pieces of potato. That was it………
My real disappointment was that, after melting a pat of butter an a touch of salt, the broth was delicious. It had a wonderful creaminess to it, and probably the best I’ve had in my 69 years.
I just can’t understand how this is. Someone failed, and makes me now think twice about any of your other soups.
I never write reviews, but nothing will ever change if you don’t speak up. I’m trying……….
Rated 5 out of 5
John Fiedler –
I bought the NE Clam Chowder again at the end of this May (2019) and it seems that the OLD recipe is back! The soup tastes great again, there are more chunks of clams and perfectly cooked potatoes, the creamy broth is thicker again. I hope that it stays this way for a long long time now….
The latest negative comments (like above) and I am sure in the stores – but most likely much lower sales of the product since last November – have worked!
Rated 5 out of 5
Sheila B. –
I bought the NE Clam Chowder last month for the first time, I thought it was delicious and plan to buy more when I am in Nashville again. The consistency was exactly what I was expecting and the ingredients delicious.
Rated 3 out of 5
Alan Wray –
Very good flavor! But the sand in every other bite killed the experience.
Rated 2 out of 5
WB –
Tastes like vinegar! I’ve had this before and liked it but just thought it had too much black pepper. This container had visible black pepper again, but the taste was like salad dressing. If you love vinegar buy this! Not much clams or other chunks either. Hopefully this was just a mistake…
Rated 5 out of 5
Barry Robertson –
This clam chowder is so good, it will turn a conservative into a kale-eating liberal. Maybe a little to thin texture, but excellent taste.
Rated 4 out of 5
Jx –
Bought`some today; liked it. Delicious, thick broth. Clams tasted like clams, good chunks of potatoes, and a nice level of pepper.
Rated 4 out of 5
Stacy –
Best (pre-made) Clam chowder! Excellent flavor, meaty clams! I would have given it a 5 star rating, but it is a little thin. I prefer soup that is thicker. Definitely worth a try!!
Rated 3 out of 5
Rabies Rat –
It was okay. Way too much black pepper and the broth tasted like butter and not chowder. I did like the creaminess though and I felt like the clams were perfect!
Rated 3 out of 5
Toby –
As was pointed out by Alan Wray in January, TOO MUCH SAND. The clams really need to be cleaned better. Maybe it was a bad batch? I am just now adding my review but it has been several months since I ate it and could have been back in January.
Rated 4 out of 5
Cheryl –
Pretty good
Rated 4 out of 5
John A Rejniak –
2 months ago the clam chowder was chock-full of clams and potatoes with some onions. Last month the clam chowder had very few clams and potatoes in it. I agree if it were a little thicker that would deserve a five-star. Trader Joe used to have canned concentrated clam chowder where one could add enough milk suitable to their own thickness.
Rated 2 out of 5
Natalya –
Soup tastes great but every bite has SAND!!! I won’t buy it again. Sand killed it for me :/
Rated 5 out of 5
Lisa Griffin –
I bought the clam chowder today for the first time, delicious! Better than any restaurant chowder I’ve had , I saw on previous reviews (from a few years ago) people found it gritty, not us! Just wish we had a Trader Joe’s closer to where we live
Rated 1 out of 5
Peter James –
FISHY, FISHY, FISHY.
I don’t return food but this is going back.
People need to know how fishy it is.
Nasty!
Good seafood doesn’t “smell fishy” or taste fishy.
The phrase “Somethings fishy about…”
Refers to something being wrong or “off”.
Correct???
Rated 5 out of 5
Susan Stephens –
Bought it for the 1st time last week and was amazed @the taste – really, really delicious! Could have been a bit thicker but was the real deal & I know my chowder, brought up on it in New England. Just wish we had a Trader Joe’s nearby.
Rated 4 out of 5
Joyce Colagiovanni –
I am from New England and found this clam chowder tasty. It was seasoned well and had enough clams and potatoes , but I do like my chowder a little thicker. I did find a bit of sand in one spoonful but I know that can happen sometimes with fresh chowder. I will try again.
Rated 2 out of 5
John McLellan –
Excellent taste, but clams have to be swallowed mostly whole as it is impossible to chew them up. I have had other clam chowders where the clams could be chewed up before swallowing and I personally like that better. Can’t beat the rest of TJ,S recipe though.
Rated 2 out of 5
Levzabarsky@sbcglobal.net –
Very disappointed. Taste as usual was delish, but not even one clam in my portion. Lots of potatoes though, which is not the same as clams. Used to be much better
Rated 1 out of 5
M.D. –
Awful. There is mostly broth and not even a good one. If you don’t want to add more clams then at least add more potatoes, or something to take up all of the broth. I appreciate the fact that it’s not thick enough to stand a spoon up in, but add some substance. I am a New England gal. Maybe I was expecting way too much, but the legal seafood chowder is so much better. I find Trader Joe’s adds more heat instead of flavor or substance. I find most of their products
are spicy and lack substance and flavor. I
am slowly losing faith in Trader Joe’s.
Rated 2 out of 5
Anonymous –
I miss those days when this soup actually contained clams, now it’s mainly a thick broth and just potatoes. sad
Rated 1 out of 5
Joy K –
Sandy. Yuck. The soup had a lot of sand in the clams.
Rated 5 out of 5
Cita –
I will say that there could be more clams, but as for flavor and texture? It’s incredible! People complaining that it tastes “fishy”? It’s clam chowder! This briney broth is exactly what it should be – and is the best by far of any canned or prepared chowder. And because I love chowder, I’ve tried many. It has rave reviews on other websites. Not sure what’s going on here. I wish I had some right now. Yum.
Rated 4 out of 5
Stef –
Delicious. The flavor of the creamy broth base is spot on and there is fairly good ratio of clam and potato chunky bits. I have enjoyed four containers of this soup over the last few months. Yes, there could be more clams, but I have never eaten a store-bought chowder with more. An occasional piece of sand, but again, nothing that other chowders don’t contain.
Rated 2 out of 5
Sal Belleci –
Ive Started Shopping at Your Monterey Ca Store Great Products and Prices are Great. I saw You Have NE Clam Chowder. I Brought it Home Microwaved And Tried It My Disappointment was that it was Watery not thick and creamy Tho The Broth Is Good. Then I Noticed Not Enough Clams, Onions Potatoes. Ive Been To Restaurants That Have It That Way Ill Never Buy it Again
Rated 3 out of 5
sandi –
I love NE Clam Chowder and when I saw this in the TJ’s fresh food section, I wanted to give it a try. Upon opening the container, it looked nice and thick with pieces of clams and potatoes. The taste was great and there were lots of clams and potatoes. Unfortunately, there was a ton of sand in the clams. TJ’s products are usually excellent, but this one, not so much. I will give it one more try to see if, maybe it was just a bad batch. Hopefully that’s the case but I see others complaining of the same thing. It’s too bad, because if it weren’t for the sand, I will give it 4 or 5 stars. So we shall see after I buy it again.
Rated 4 out of 5
Peter –
Pleasantly surprised as a former New Englander for 20 years, and maker of my family’s own Chowda for the past 55 years. Is it perfect? No, but to get perfect means to make your own or to find generally overpriced restaurant Chowda. Yes, you could catch a little more sand when “flushing” the clams, but it’s real. As to thickness of the broth, I prefer a moderate, thinner broth, than a thick, generally over thickened, flourly tasting broth. A little more clam and potato would be nice, or the same wt., but smaller pieces. Missing ingredients- pork crackling ir well cooked bacon bits (keeping the grease). At your price point, there’s room to individualize the Chowda with additional clams, clam broth and/or cream or half n half if you want to thicken it. Don’t want to spend $ or change taste, then mix a couple tablespoons of corn starch or flour in minimal water, heat the Chowda to just below boiling and stir the mixture in for a few minutes and you have your thicker Chowda.
Rated 1 out of 5
Jennifer M –
There’s nothing in it? Lots of pepper, little else in the way of flavor. I think I have 3 chunks of potatoes and two bites of sandy clams. Maybe it was a bad batch but I doubt I’ll be giving this another try.
Rated 1 out of 5
Kimberly Koehler –
One hour after eating the clam chowder my brother got violent food poisoning and threw up.
Immediately told the store (SE Portland) but they didn’t remove it from the shelves. The manager
said she had to talk to corporate first. I just wanted to prevent someone else from getting sick.
Rated 1 out of 5
Alicia –
SANDY! I usually never leave reviews but this was disappointing, especially seeing as how the reviews seem to complain about the sand for over 5 years now.
Rated 2 out of 5
Jonathan –
Rich creamy broth that tastes good. Simply not enough clams. Could use some more potatoes too. the price is relatively inexpensive but I would prefer it if they charge more and add more clams and potatoes
Lizz –
I just picked this up at the store last night at the Woodward and 11 mile site. Had it for lunch at work. The flavor/seasoning was great. I liked the thickness of the broth but when I chewed the meaty clams…lt was tender but also had sand in it. That’s new to me. I’ve eaten clam chowder for decades and I’ve never had sand added so it took away from the meal. I mainly put aside the clams and drank the soup.
N –
Grabbed this Clam Chowder last night and had it for lunch today with some TJ’s sourdough artisan bread. Was very very happy with everything. The broth was delicious (I do wish it was just a hair thicker though, I would’ve given it 5 stars if it were.) I didn’t have any sand issues as previous reviewer experienced, just a nice hearty chowder that I will definitely be buying again!
LuAnn –
I totally agree with N’s posting, just a tiny little bit thicker will be perfect but not too thick though. I was nice enough to save 1/3 of it for my husband to try. I have no reservation to recommend to my friends and family.
Renuea –
Awesome! After trying many clam chowders that are premade this is one of the best for taste, portion and price. Find it serves two of us We have this as often as we can obtain it! Chewy pieces of clams, felt the thickness of the chowder was good. Much better too than that which is offered at Sprouts. Balanced combination of potatoes, cream, and clams with a touch of pepper. yum! Thank you Trader Joes.
Erica –
I also had the issue of a sandy or gritty feeling when biting into the clams. Which was disappointing because the flavor of the broth was very good! But like pp the chewing on sand feel was odd putting enough for me to not enjoy the whole container
CHARLES SCHWARTZ –
As of around November 2018 Trader Joe changed the recipe on their clam chowder. It’s now “cheesy”. The older recipe was MASSIVELY better and is what the previous reviews here speak to. I HOPE they go back to the old recipe (supplier ?). The older recipe was a true classic. I’ve eaten a lot of clam chowders in my day. It just excellent. I’ll be looking for another chowder if Trader Joe sticks with this new funky cheese recipe. Pepe Le Pew !
Ray Saulnier –
I live on the Maine coast an know GOOD CHOWDER. I really have been very satisfied wth Trader Joe’s products BUT the clam chowder was a somewhat big disappointment.
Upon opening the seal, an pouring into a pan to heat up, I didn’t see any real solids in it. Looked again when heated an saw there was next to NO solids in with the broth. I gathered up 3 pieces of clam, along with 4 small pieces of potato. That was it………
My real disappointment was that, after melting a pat of butter an a touch of salt, the broth was delicious. It had a wonderful creaminess to it, and probably the best I’ve had in my 69 years.
I just can’t understand how this is. Someone failed, and makes me now think twice about any of your other soups.
I never write reviews, but nothing will ever change if you don’t speak up. I’m trying……….
John Fiedler –
I bought the NE Clam Chowder again at the end of this May (2019) and it seems that the OLD recipe is back! The soup tastes great again, there are more chunks of clams and perfectly cooked potatoes, the creamy broth is thicker again. I hope that it stays this way for a long long time now….
The latest negative comments (like above) and I am sure in the stores – but most likely much lower sales of the product since last November – have worked!
Sheila B. –
I bought the NE Clam Chowder last month for the first time, I thought it was delicious and plan to buy more when I am in Nashville again. The consistency was exactly what I was expecting and the ingredients delicious.
Alan Wray –
Very good flavor! But the sand in every other bite killed the experience.
WB –
Tastes like vinegar! I’ve had this before and liked it but just thought it had too much black pepper. This container had visible black pepper again, but the taste was like salad dressing. If you love vinegar buy this! Not much clams or other chunks either. Hopefully this was just a mistake…
Barry Robertson –
This clam chowder is so good, it will turn a conservative into a kale-eating liberal. Maybe a little to thin texture, but excellent taste.
Jx –
Bought`some today; liked it. Delicious, thick broth. Clams tasted like clams, good chunks of potatoes, and a nice level of pepper.
Stacy –
Best (pre-made) Clam chowder! Excellent flavor, meaty clams! I would have given it a 5 star rating, but it is a little thin. I prefer soup that is thicker. Definitely worth a try!!
Rabies Rat –
It was okay. Way too much black pepper and the broth tasted like butter and not chowder. I did like the creaminess though and I felt like the clams were perfect!
Toby –
As was pointed out by Alan Wray in January, TOO MUCH SAND. The clams really need to be cleaned better. Maybe it was a bad batch? I am just now adding my review but it has been several months since I ate it and could have been back in January.
Cheryl –
Pretty good
John A Rejniak –
2 months ago the clam chowder was chock-full of clams and potatoes with some onions. Last month the clam chowder had very few clams and potatoes in it. I agree if it were a little thicker that would deserve a five-star. Trader Joe used to have canned concentrated clam chowder where one could add enough milk suitable to their own thickness.
Natalya –
Soup tastes great but every bite has SAND!!! I won’t buy it again. Sand killed it for me :/
Lisa Griffin –
I bought the clam chowder today for the first time, delicious! Better than any restaurant chowder I’ve had , I saw on previous reviews (from a few years ago) people found it gritty, not us! Just wish we had a Trader Joe’s closer to where we live
Peter James –
FISHY, FISHY, FISHY.
I don’t return food but this is going back.
People need to know how fishy it is.
Nasty!
Good seafood doesn’t “smell fishy” or taste fishy.
The phrase “Somethings fishy about…”
Refers to something being wrong or “off”.
Correct???
Susan Stephens –
Bought it for the 1st time last week and was amazed @the taste – really, really delicious! Could have been a bit thicker but was the real deal & I know my chowder, brought up on it in New England. Just wish we had a Trader Joe’s nearby.
Joyce Colagiovanni –
I am from New England and found this clam chowder tasty. It was seasoned well and had enough clams and potatoes , but I do like my chowder a little thicker. I did find a bit of sand in one spoonful but I know that can happen sometimes with fresh chowder. I will try again.
John McLellan –
Excellent taste, but clams have to be swallowed mostly whole as it is impossible to chew them up. I have had other clam chowders where the clams could be chewed up before swallowing and I personally like that better. Can’t beat the rest of TJ,S recipe though.
Levzabarsky@sbcglobal.net –
Very disappointed. Taste as usual was delish, but not even one clam in my portion. Lots of potatoes though, which is not the same as clams. Used to be much better
M.D. –
Awful. There is mostly broth and not even a good one. If you don’t want to add more clams then at least add more potatoes, or something to take up all of the broth. I appreciate the fact that it’s not thick enough to stand a spoon up in, but add some substance. I am a New England gal. Maybe I was expecting way too much, but the legal seafood chowder is so much better. I find Trader Joe’s adds more heat instead of flavor or substance. I find most of their products
are spicy and lack substance and flavor. I
am slowly losing faith in Trader Joe’s.
Anonymous –
I miss those days when this soup actually contained clams, now it’s mainly a thick broth and just potatoes. sad
Joy K –
Sandy. Yuck. The soup had a lot of sand in the clams.
Cita –
I will say that there could be more clams, but as for flavor and texture? It’s incredible! People complaining that it tastes “fishy”? It’s clam chowder! This briney broth is exactly what it should be – and is the best by far of any canned or prepared chowder. And because I love chowder, I’ve tried many. It has rave reviews on other websites. Not sure what’s going on here. I wish I had some right now. Yum.
Stef –
Delicious. The flavor of the creamy broth base is spot on and there is fairly good ratio of clam and potato chunky bits. I have enjoyed four containers of this soup over the last few months. Yes, there could be more clams, but I have never eaten a store-bought chowder with more. An occasional piece of sand, but again, nothing that other chowders don’t contain.
Sal Belleci –
Ive Started Shopping at Your Monterey Ca Store Great Products and Prices are Great. I saw You Have NE Clam Chowder. I Brought it Home Microwaved And Tried It My Disappointment was that it was Watery not thick and creamy Tho The Broth Is Good. Then I Noticed Not Enough Clams, Onions Potatoes. Ive Been To Restaurants That Have It That Way Ill Never Buy it Again
sandi –
I love NE Clam Chowder and when I saw this in the TJ’s fresh food section, I wanted to give it a try. Upon opening the container, it looked nice and thick with pieces of clams and potatoes. The taste was great and there were lots of clams and potatoes. Unfortunately, there was a ton of sand in the clams. TJ’s products are usually excellent, but this one, not so much. I will give it one more try to see if, maybe it was just a bad batch. Hopefully that’s the case but I see others complaining of the same thing. It’s too bad, because if it weren’t for the sand, I will give it 4 or 5 stars. So we shall see after I buy it again.
Peter –
Pleasantly surprised as a former New Englander for 20 years, and maker of my family’s own Chowda for the past 55 years. Is it perfect? No, but to get perfect means to make your own or to find generally overpriced restaurant Chowda. Yes, you could catch a little more sand when “flushing” the clams, but it’s real. As to thickness of the broth, I prefer a moderate, thinner broth, than a thick, generally over thickened, flourly tasting broth. A little more clam and potato would be nice, or the same wt., but smaller pieces. Missing ingredients- pork crackling ir well cooked bacon bits (keeping the grease). At your price point, there’s room to individualize the Chowda with additional clams, clam broth and/or cream or half n half if you want to thicken it. Don’t want to spend $ or change taste, then mix a couple tablespoons of corn starch or flour in minimal water, heat the Chowda to just below boiling and stir the mixture in for a few minutes and you have your thicker Chowda.
Jennifer M –
There’s nothing in it? Lots of pepper, little else in the way of flavor. I think I have 3 chunks of potatoes and two bites of sandy clams. Maybe it was a bad batch but I doubt I’ll be giving this another try.
Kimberly Koehler –
One hour after eating the clam chowder my brother got violent food poisoning and threw up.
Immediately told the store (SE Portland) but they didn’t remove it from the shelves. The manager
said she had to talk to corporate first. I just wanted to prevent someone else from getting sick.
Alicia –
SANDY! I usually never leave reviews but this was disappointing, especially seeing as how the reviews seem to complain about the sand for over 5 years now.
Jonathan –
Rich creamy broth that tastes good. Simply not enough clams. Could use some more potatoes too. the price is relatively inexpensive but I would prefer it if they charge more and add more clams and potatoes