Good and bad buys from Aldi and Lidl

PLRFD

I think Home Bargains have Bahlsen even cheaper.

FatVonD

kathie1101 wrote: »

I love the whole Aldi shopping experience; how they nearly always open a new till if there is a queue, there aren't usually any hold ups at the till (unless somebody is not used to how Aldi works & are taking forever & insisting on packing their bags at the till)

Now you've got me worried :eek: I'm planning my first trip to Aldi tomorrow, how does it work then??!

frugal_shopper_2

The Aldi/Lidl checkout procedure is straightforward. You empty your shopping from the trolley onto the conveyor as per usual, I would suggest placing heavier items on the conveyor first fragile items last (full cases of items can be left in the trolley you just hand the checkout operator 1 item from the case to scan). Checkout operator scans them very quickly & you put them back in the trolley, pay for them then move to the big shelf behind the checkouts where you pack your shopping into bags, check your receipt, leave the shop & return the trolley so you can get your quid back.

Some people struggle to get items back into the trolley as fast as they are scanned & every now & then you get someone who insists on packing shopping into bags at the checkout rather than at the bagging area behind the checkout which results in the queue ending up halfway up the shop.

Doc_N

frugal_shopper wrote: »

The Aldi/Lidl checkout procedure is straightforward. ................Checkout operator scans them very quickly..................

Just a further warning about Aldi in particular (not a problem we've had at Lidl) - the scanning is so fast that there are frequent errors. It's been mentioned in this thread before, I think.

How it happens I don't know, but items which you haven't bought find their way on to the bill for no apparent reason.

Check your bill. You shouldn't have to, but in Aldi it seems to be necessary.

DPJames

Pickled red cabbage from Aldi is absolute rank. Had one fork full then binned the rest.

Doc_N

DPJames wrote: »

Pickled red cabbage from Aldi is absolute rank. Had one fork full then binned the rest.

The problem with most of the Aldi pickled items is that instead of using vinegar, they use vinegar and water. It affects the flavour, and it means they don't last long. Cheaper, maybe, but poor quality.

sb44

Doc_N wrote: »

Just a further warning about Aldi in particular (not a problem we've had at Lidl) - the scanning is so fast that there are frequent errors. It's been mentioned in this thread before, I think.

How it happens I don't know, but items which you haven't bought find their way on to the bill for no apparent reason.

Check your bill. You shouldn't have to, but in Aldi it seems to be necessary.

Sometimes things go through under the wrong item and amount.

For example you may see a bag of onions on your receipt that you haven't bought. The price says onions 75p so you take it back to the till, they check it and find that the tomatoes that you bought for 99p are not on your receipt, they have gone through under the wrong code and are showing as onions so you actually owe them 24p.

This has happened to me a couple of times now so double check your receipt.

If that had happened at another supermarket they would probably not ask for the difference in money as it was their mistake but I have def had to pay the original price both times in Aldi.

So I would have been better off not bothering going to check on the error.

Do, def check your receipt that ALL items have gone through along with their price.

Jennifer_Jane

frugal_shopper wrote: »

The Aldi/Lidl checkout procedure is straightforward. You empty your shopping from the trolley onto the conveyor as per usual, I would suggest placing heavier items on the conveyor first fragile items last (full cases of items can be left in the trolley you just hand the checkout operator 1 item from the case to scan). Checkout operator scans them very quickly & you put them back in the trolley, pay for them then move to the big shelf behind the checkouts where you pack your shopping into bags, check your receipt, leave the shop & return the trolley so you can get your quid back.

Some people struggle to get items back into the trolley as fast as they are scanned & every now & then you get someone who insists on packing shopping into bags at the checkout rather than at the bagging area behind the checkout which results in the queue ending up halfway up the shop.

We have baskets in our Aldi, which means you have to pack into your bag (NB for newbies, you have to pay for bags so rather take your own; also no credit cards, just cash or debit cards). But the convention is that you pack your stuff very quickly then take it to the window where there is a shelf and just rearrange very quickly.

A very good tip to put the heavy items on the belt first, but the problem is that there is very very little space when the checkout has put your stuff through, so you HAVE to be quick. Also, if you want cashback, tell them as soon as you get to the cashier. It's so fast that you have to multitask!

Some of the cashiers are happy to make you wait in a long queue (despite Aldi policy), but then rush you through. I stopped shopping there for some months after a great muddle where I was told off for still having my blue Aldi basket at the cashier. A lot of this rush, rush, rush, is their training, but unnecessary.

I don't need stress in my little country town in the middle of the day at my age!

My regular buys: marinated salmon (enough for 2 people) with a dressing for £1.99; sun-dried tomatoes in a jar; their olives; their frozen duck legs in hoi sin sauce (my favourite food ever); any of their cheeses.

I dislike their fruit and vegetables, however.

PLRFD

You don't have to rush i don't they will wait,i also don't like how they ask if its card or cash when you only have a few things through the till.

vegasvisitor

I was a bit puzzled there when it said no credit cards - we used ours the other day in there. I googled it though and it seems they only take them in Scotland and Wales.