My first ever Aldi shop - WOW!

richardw

Should some of the 'special' food and grocery items be stocked more regularly? I'm thinking things like black bean sauce, grated hard cheese and magnum dishwasher cleaner, or does this depend on the store?

Halifax81

richardw wrote: »

Should some of the 'special' food and grocery items be stocked more regularly? I'm thinking things like black bean sauce, grated hard cheese and magnum dishwasher cleaner, or does this depend on the store?

I'm sure my store has them in all the time maybe ask the manager about them the next time you are in?

sweetilemon

I am the only person who can't take to it? I did try the other day but i just dont like having little choice from the ranges, I don't like the dark and dingy atmosphere, I dont like being ordered about at the til or paying for bags if ive forgotten them or having to go to the side to pack. Some things are certainly cheaper but some just arent and I end up having to go two places. I enjoying shopping in T or S but dislike the whole experience in Al & Lid :-(

ska_lover

Doc_N wrote: »

Isn't the main point, though, that you're buying the same grocery items (with a different label) for around 30% less?

It depends where you live, I suppose. My Aldi has a large, free, untimed car park, it's right next door to a Tesco, and quite close also to a Waitrose. I know of another town with a Lidl, an Aldi and a Waitrose all with untimed free car parks and all within five minutes walk of each other.

Our scruffy old Tesco has lost such a large percentage of its sales to the Aldi that opened next door to it that it's had to revisit the rebuilding plans it decided to scrap (before the Aldi opened). They had the planning permission to rebuild, then decided not to bother, thinking the customers would still go there. Then Aldi opened, took a large chunk of their trade. Now they're rebuilding after all.

Trouble is, it's too late. Why would anyone go back, just to add a third to their grocery bills?

If you look at their prices and compare them to Supermarkets own brands they aren't cheaper - it only appears cheaper if you compare their stuff to Heinz and other so called top UK brands.

I'm pretty sure that the foreign stuff they sell in Aldi is not top branded stuff, even in the country it originates from, and the times I have tried them have found them of poorer quality than supermarkets own brand. I am not fussy about having top branded, we always get own brands or downshift to value lines, depending on the product.

You are totally right about it depending where you live, In our town Aldi is miles away from anywhere, but even if it was next door to Waitrose I wouldn't go there as I find Waitrose possibly the most expensive place to buy food, other than M & S food hall. There is also the time factor too, I would never find the time to spread my shop over more than one shop, just finding the time to do one shop is a big enough ball ache

Lieja

I think the biggest savings for me purely comes from the fact that Lidl is about a fifth of the size of the Tesco next door. I'm tempted far less to fill my trolley up with rubbish, because they don't have the selection to tempt me! Works for me

paulineb_2

Jue_xx wrote: »

Thank you for all the kind comments and tips! I admit, I found the checkout experience "interesting", but then I told myself it's a no-frills supermarket, so at least I'm not being charged extra for a luxury checkout experience! And I hadn't realised the checkout assistants were timed.

I will also read the parking signs carefully next time, there was a sign there but I assumed it was a 2-hour limit so didn't take much notice of it.

Re: wine: even Aldi can't save me money on that, I make my own from kits at £45.00 for 30 bottles, and it really is better than the stuff you pay £5 a bottle for! :T

I will try as many of the cheaper brands as I can, and if necessary will top up from elsewhere if we really don't like them, but so far so good, we tried the milk chocolate last night (89p) and OH and the kids said they preferred it to our usual Dairy Milk (£1.50)!

I used to make my own from kits, from a site called the art of brewing, you get about 30 bottles for 30 quid on there.

ska_lover

Lieja wrote: »

I think the biggest savings for me purely comes from the fact that Lidl is about a fifth of the size of the Tesco next door. I'm tempted far less to fill my trolley up with rubbish, because they don't have the selection to tempt me! Works for me

Definitely, that is what it is, the lack of choice / temptations has been my biggest savings when I have shopped in Aldi or Lidl.

I am quite strict with myself these days, and meal plan and go armed with a list and stay blinkered to most of the stuff on offer in the bigger supermarkets. I still do deviate if there are offers on at the time, on a well used (in my house) item, it does work for the most part, it has to when you are on a strict budget

Doc_N

ska_lover wrote: »

If you look at their prices and compare them to Supermarkets own brands they aren't cheaper - it only appears cheaper if you compare their stuff to Heinz and other so called top UK brands.

I'm pretty sure that the foreign stuff they sell in Aldi is not top branded stuff, even in the country it originates from, and the times I have tried them have found them of poorer quality than supermarkets own brand. I am not fussy about having top branded, we always get own brands or downshift to value lines, depending on the product.

I think we have to agree to differ.

On prices, I'm comparing with supermarket (not Waitrose) own label products. I'd say they're on a par with the value lines, but with hugely better quality. For example, the Lidl washing up liquid outperforms Fairy Liquid in Which? surveys, and their tomato soup recently outperformed Heinz in a Which? tasting test - at less than half the price. It was reckoned to taste almost as good (72%) as the top two (Tesco (74%) and Sainsbury (76%)) but the price was a third lower.

Incidentally, their Stilton cheese comes from the same dairy that supplies M&S.

As to what you term the 'foreign stuff' my experience has been very positive indeed. The quality is every bit as good as Waitrose (I know, because we use both) but the prices are dramatically lower. And as for Tesco - the meat's awful (much poorer quality than Aldi), and given yet another mislabelling incident (foreign meat sold as British) and a fake pricing prosecution I no longer trust them on anything.

ska_lover

Interesting reading that, Doc N.

Totally agree re Tesco, I wouldn't trust them either, never go there..it is almost as if they have become a cult haha!

ThinkPink

I tend to just pop into Aldi on my way home from the gym and buy just a couple of things, but I think Im going to try and shop there a little bit more. I find there offers on fruit and veg great- so will definitely making more effort to pop in and stock up on these.

I find their Museli and biscuits good value- also bread seems good value. I will be keeping an eye on here for your suggestions on what to try.