Local Biz: Goodie Tuchews and Benny J's

Goodie Tuchews (known to me as "Cookie Lady") and Benny J's Express ("Jenny B's"), are two locally-owned businesses I'd like to see people frequent. 

Cookie Lady sells her excellent cookies on 10th Street, between J and K.  Her chocolate chip, chocolate-chocolate chip, peanut butter and peanut butter chip cookies are freshly made, soft and chewy and only cost $1.00.  I accidentally left a peanut butter chip in my desk drawer overnight.  It was STILL GOOD the next day.  MMMMmmm.........peanut butter chiiiiiip.  Mrs. Fields Cookies in Downtown Plaza charges $1.79 for a similar-sized and inferior-tasting cookie.  Cookie Lady is open from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, but has been known to close up shop for a week at a time to go on vacation.  If she's closed when you get there, go back.  All you people waiting in line at Mrs. Fields seriously need to give the Cookie Lady's cookies a try.

Benny J's, located across the way from the Downtown Plaza food court, sells one of everything: coffee, smoothies, sandwiches, fruit cups, banana bread and so on.  Every morning, there's a big line at Starbucks on the first level of Downtown Plaza.  I'm not going to say Benny J's coffee tastes better, because the problem with coffee is it tastes like coffee.  I'm just saying Jenny B's is there, you won't have to wait or learn fancy Starbucks lingo and it's probably less expensive.  Every day at lunch, dozens (hundreds?) of people line up at Panda Express in the Downtown Plaza food court.  (Seriously.  People line up at PANDA EXPRESS.  Blech.)  Just outside the door, Jenny B's offers excellent teriyaki chicken wraps, fresh spinach salad, a mushroom chicken sandwich and other good stuff.  Every afternoon, 20 or 30 people line up at Jamba Juice while Jenny B's offers eight or ten different smoothie flavors with little or no waiting.  Jenny B's has good stuff, the owners are super-friendly and there is rarely a line. 

I think it's a good idea to support local/small businesses whenever possible.  Every day, I see dozens of people pass up these perfectly fine, locally-owned businesses to spend their money at big chains.  I recommend giving both the Cookie Lady (Goodie Tuchews) and Jenny B's (Benny J's Express) a chance.

Side note: A few months ago, after hearing me blab about how much I liked Cookie Lady's cookies, my wife decided to stop and buy me some cookies during the day.  My wife is just nice like that.  Wifey is literally driving around downtown Sacramento looking for a store called "Cookie Lady's".  After circling for a while and not finding anything, it dawned on her that I can't call anything by its proper name.  After figuring out that there was no store called "Cookie Lady's," she found Goodie Tuchews and bought the cookies.  She's THE BEST.  Thanks, wife.

Comments

[Jeanette]

I agree Benny J's is a great place to go and eat. The workers and enviroment are friendly and the food tastes great.

[Carl]

Tony,

I'll make sure to say hi next time I stop by. You'll probably recognize me, as (before the new job, where I don't get breaks) I came in all the time.

Carl

[Tony]

I hate those mega chains like Jamba Juice,
Starbucks, and Walmart. They are putting the squeeze on us little guys.

We offer better service, product, and at times price. However, we struggle to stay in business against those corporate giants.

It's hard to achieve the American dream to run your own business when you get screwed by big name chains.

--Oh well, Nonetheless, we are making it because there are real people out there who want to buy real coffee from real people, like us at Benny J's.

Please support the small businesses like Benny J's.