Trader Joe's Just Dropped a Brand New Dessert, But Shoppers are Divided

Trader Joe's

When it comes to desserts, it’s rare for a prepackaged rendition of our favorite post-meal sweets to come close to the quality that is generally expected from a nice, sit-down restaurant. And of course we all have our standards which depict what each of us deem as acceptable or not, but we can usually all agree when something has truly crossed a line.

Usually on the forefront of snack innovation and customer satisfaction, Trader Joe’s has recently found themselves right in the crossfire of some disgruntled shoppers pertaining to their recently released Italian Tiramisu. The generally adored dessert is a 13.05-ounce, 2-piece serving of the classic Italian delicacy that is pre-packaged and stored in the freezer aisle. And for those who love to enjoy themselves a few bites of tiramisu for dessert, at $4.49, this Trader Joe’s rendition is not a bad deal at all.

Related: Trader Joe's Cute New Holiday Items Has Shoppers Stocking Up

While plenty of shoppers have been singing their praises for TJ’s Italian Tiramisu, an alarming amount of people have been quite open about their bad experiences with the popular dessert. For starters, each tiramisu package contains two servings, with 400 calories in each, more 20 grams of sugar and 23 grams of fat as well. But that, of course, is just the nutritional value that we can all justify ignoring for a taste of our favorite desserts. What some customers have been experiencing, however, has to do with the quality of the tiramisu overall.

“First off, there is a TON of cocoa powder,” one shopper quickly took to the Trader Joe’s subreddit to express their disappointment. “Don’t take too deep of a breath while putting it in your mouth or you might choke on it,” they continued. “It was very wet at the bottom [and] the ladyfingers were basically mush.”

View the original article to see embedded media.

In response to the post shared to Reddit, another shopper described the dessert as having an “absolutely mushy base,” and even claimed that after not being able to sleep that night, she and her husband realized “it was because there was sooooo much espresso.”

Obviously this dessert is not going to be perfect, and it is unfair to expect perfection out of Trader Joe’s when it comes to a mass produced product. However, a lot of factors can come into play when preparing the dessert. For example, how well was it defrosted before it was eaten? And were the instructions followed carefully? This doesn’t excuse the excessive amount of cocoa powder, but it does affect the final enjoyment of the product.

Related: Trader Joe's Shoppers are Going Wild Over the Latest 'Must Try' Addition to the Frozen Section

One shopper exclaimed, “I hate something that requires EIGHT HOURS of defrost. That’s crazy.” And while their sentiment is very much relatable, an experienced customer did chime in to offer a useful alternative, stating that “90-seconds on the defrost setting of my microwave worked just fine.” However, the same customer still had to agree that “the dessert was lacking, though.”

In any case, customer feedback tends to come with the territory for Trader Joe’s, whether it be positive or negative. And in our modern world, as customers, we get the privilege of being able to vet a product before we even try it thanks to these wonderful online forums. An Italian tiramisu from Trader Joe’s may not be everybody's cup of tea, but for less than $5, just go ahead and try it out for yourself and find out which side of the fence you end up on.

Up next: The 14 Best Christmas Bark Recipes