As a european grad student at Caltech - I can say that the pasadena Trader Joe's bread and cheese is the only thing that allowed me to survive American (or at least LA) cuisine.

Uhhhhhh, I'm guessing that you were eating cheap. There's no reason that you'd have to "survive" LA cuisine unless you actually didn't spend money on it and just went to McDonalds. There are amazing restaurants in LA. Lots.

There's plenty of good cheap places to eat in LA too, especially if you broaden your horizons a bit. The range of cuisines here is quite extensive.

Well it was Pasadena, so Mexican or McD were the options.

Go into an American supermarket and there are dozens of types (or at least shapes) of bread - all the same oversweet soft wonderloaf inside, and dozens of types (or colors) of cheese - that all taste the same.

When I lived there, live cheese was banned, pot is being legalized but Brie is illegal !!!!

I think you missed the "grad student" part ;)

So you did not go to Europane on Colorado near Mentor for baked goods?