Good and bad buys from Aldi and Lidl

the_mackem

Been told the lidl scampi is nice forgot the brand name any thoughts please.

Doc_N

Feral_Moon wrote: »

Have been using aldi brand toothpaste for a couple of weeks now and I'm not happy with it. My teeth feel as through they've developed a permanent film of plaque over them despite brushing twice daily. It also leaves an unpleasant aftertaste in my mouth. One I won't be buying again.

And yet I've found it better than any of the branded toothpastes - at a fraction of the price.

WhiteRabbitAlice

Recon I know the ins-and-outs of both Aldi and Lidl, having previously lived across the road from Aldi for 2 years, followed by a flat 5 minutes away from a Lidl for the last year!
When I lived by Aldi i did all of my shopping there and rarely went to the "big" supermarkets. I'm still really impressed with the quality and price of their items, and if i have the time i will go there over the my nearby Lidl to shop.

Aldi's "super 6" fruit and veg deals are always great value and good quality (fresher than tesco), food and household items are always as good if not better than the leading brands as well, and significantly cheaper. The two years I spent living across the road from one was whilst i was a student, so I did a fair bit of sampling their drink ranges. Their own-brand "Clarkes Special" bourbon is a good competitor for Jack Daniels at almost half the price and doesn't have the chemical aftertaste of most cheap supermarket bourbons. I also loved their "Outlander" Australian white wine, they haven't had this in stock for the last 6-8 months however...really hope they get it back as it's my favourite white wine!

Knowing it as a fellow "cheap" supermarket I was expecting much of the same when we started shopping at Lidl but I've been really dissapointed - as a vegetarian I really struggle to shop here - their fruit and veg is always close to going off and generally only lasts a day or two (particularly soft fruits) and extra care needs to be taken in checking the freshness and dates on products as they never reduce products. I have rushed through a shop before and came home to discover mould on bread and cheese (as well as rotting fruit and veg in multipacks) which they are unwilling to refund. They are terrible generally too for anyone who doesn't eat meat - all of their sweets and (strangely!) yogurts contain pork gelatine for a start!).
As a plus their fresh bakery is great, better than most supermarket bakeries and cheap too, and the fresh squeezed orange juice at around £1.20 a litre is beautiful. According to my meat-eating partner, their cheap smoked sausages and pepperoni are good value too, they don't sell pre-cooked frozen chicken breast however which is a big thing for him as I can't deal with the idea of raw meat in my fridge or freezer.
Alcohol is not as cheap as Aldi and the quality is just awful. A few of their wines are passable (but you'll find better at the big supermarkets for a few pence more), and don't even think of buying their spirits!

I would avoid Lidl altogether to be honest if it wasn't conveniently close by - if you have the option i'd recommend doing your main shop at Aldi and topping up on more unusual ingredients from a speciality shop or larger supermarket.

Feral_Moon

Someone mentioned the frozen salmon steaks being as good, if not better than the fresh ones. Is this the twin pack or pack of 5 please? I notice on my app they do two frozen packs.

Also, does anyone know whether the cashier will happily stop at £45 to checkout with a voucher then continue putting the rest of the shopping through using a second voucher? My OH is away this week so I'll be doing the shopping on my own. We usually split the trolley between us in two separate lots. Thanks

ProudMumMaggie

Feral_Moon wrote: »

Also, does anyone know whether the cashier will happily stop at £45 to checkout with a voucher then continue putting the rest of the shopping through using a second voucher? My OH is away this week so I'll be doing the shopping on my own. We usually split the trolley between us in two separate lots. Thanks

I heard the woman after me ask the cashier to do that, she said it was fine because it wasn't busy.

Cornucopia

Feral_Moon wrote: »

Someone mentioned the frozen salmon steaks being as good, if not better than the fresh ones. Is this the twin pack or pack of 5 please? I notice on my app they do two frozen packs.

That was me, I think. It was the twin pack. Bought another one today.

I will try the 5 pack at some point. Unfortunately, my freezer is quite small.

Also on my Aldi trip today, I picked up Reduced Fat Hummus(sp?) at 49p which is both cheap and delicious.

And "5 green traffic lights" Chicken Tikka Masala ready meal - £1.49. This was very tasty, and had a very authentic tasting sauce (not the bright red stuff you usually get with ready meals) with nice fruity, aromatic characteristics but not much heat. There were at least 6 large chunks of nicely marinated chicken, and the rice was decorated with bay leaves.

It was also a proper sized portion (not the half-sized you often get with low fat/low calorie meals).

Easily up to basic takeaway standard, and not swimming in grease (which is a bonus).

PLRFD

WhiteRabbitAlice wrote: »

. Their own-brand "Clarkes Special" bourbon is a good competitor for Jack Daniels at almost half the price and doesn't have the chemical aftertaste of most cheap supermarket bourbons.

I was told in store about 6 months ago the Clarkes was discontinued and wouldn't be back,it worked out about £1:20 cheaper than Jim Beam from Asda.

shammyjack

WhiteRabbitAlice wrote: »

Recon I know the ins-and-outs of both Aldi and Lidl, having previously lived across the road from Aldi for 2 years, followed by a flat 5 minutes away from a Lidl for the last year!
When I lived by Aldi i did all of my shopping there and rarely went to the "big" supermarkets. I'm still really impressed with the quality and price of their items, and if i have the time i will go there over the my nearby Lidl to shop.

Aldi's "super 6" fruit and veg deals are always great value and good quality (fresher than tesco), food and household items are always as good if not better than the leading brands as well, and significantly cheaper. The two years I spent living across the road from one was whilst i was a student, so I did a fair bit of sampling their drink ranges. Their own-brand "Clarkes Special" bourbon is a good competitor for Jack Daniels at almost half the price and doesn't have the chemical aftertaste of most cheap supermarket bourbons. I also loved their "Outlander" Australian white wine, they haven't had this in stock for the last 6-8 months however...really hope they get it back as it's my favourite white wine!

Knowing it as a fellow "cheap" supermarket I was expecting much of the same when we started shopping at Lidl but I've been really dissapointed - as a vegetarian I really struggle to shop here - their fruit and veg is always close to going off and generally only lasts a day or two (particularly soft fruits) and extra care needs to be taken in checking the freshness and dates on products as they never reduce products. I have rushed through a shop before and came home to discover mould on bread and cheese (as well as rotting fruit and veg in multipacks) which they are unwilling to refund. They are terrible generally too for anyone who doesn't eat meat - all of their sweets and (strangely!) yogurts contain pork gelatine for a start!).
As a plus their fresh bakery is great, better than most supermarket bakeries and cheap too, and the fresh squeezed orange juice at around £1.20 a litre is beautiful. According to my meat-eating partner, their cheap smoked sausages and pepperoni are good value too, they don't sell pre-cooked frozen chicken breast however which is a big thing for him as I can't deal with the idea of raw meat in my fridge or freezer.
Alcohol is not as cheap as Aldi and the quality is just awful. A few of their wines are passable (but you'll find better at the big supermarkets for a few pence more), and don't even think of buying their spirits!

I would avoid Lidl altogether to be honest if it wasn't conveniently close by - if you have the option i'd recommend doing your main shop at Aldi and topping up on more unusual ingredients from a speciality shop or larger supermarket.

Its the other way round with Aldi and Lidl where I live. Aldi is dirty , the fruit and veg is tired and limp and the staff are pig ignorant and unhelpful. Lidl staff are great , the store is clean and all the fresh produce is good

highlandlady72

Ep007 wrote: »

Ditto crisps and snacks...all look and taste the same as the originals for a fraction of the price...hula hoops, kp skips etc

Agree about the crisps. Love Aldi version of the kp skips. And 99p for a pack of 10. Even better :-)

VfM4meplse

Feral_Moon wrote: »

Also, does anyone know whether the cashier will happily stop at £45 to checkout with a voucher then continue putting the rest of the shopping through using a second voucher?

Oh yes, voucher this Thursday?