Going to aldi for the 1st tomorrow, what do you reccomend?

terra_ferma

spacey2012 wrote: »

Take a stop watch, some only allow you one hour now to enter the car park, park up, get inside, look around, queue 50 deep at the till, put it in the car and get out of the car park.
This is not a joke, read the parking signs and remember the timer started when you drove in and ends when you drive out.
Get it wrong and they will let the parking company loose who will want £60 and £100 if not paid quickly.
I would decide if you think shopping to a stopwatch is worth it.

agree, my local aldi doesn't, but lidl does, so I don't shop there
an hour including parking, loading the car etc it's not a lot of time, considering that they also have a lot of non-food stuff that I like to look at, and there are always queues at the till.
If the car park had been full and it had been difficult to park before these restrictions I wouldn't have minded, but that was never the case, any day or time the car park was always half empty. Whoever owns the land may well get a commission on the parking charges (I knew someone who was getting a commission, a few years ago).

AliBee16

when I first went to my local Lidl, the cashier shouted 'we have a Lidl Virgin here' to the whole shop, because I hadn't taken any bags with me - I have never felt so middle-class in my life. So - take bags. Their cream cheese is delicious and sliced chicken is very cheap for sandwiches, pasta salad etc.

Floss

I don't buy much from Aldi, mainly because I shop online, but when I do I always buy a whole free range chicken - at £5 each, they are half the price of Tesco, and taste delicious.

TheThriftyScrumpers

Things I always stock up on are - Kids cereals, racer bars (just like snickers), tin foil, cotton wool pads, strawberries and blueberries are so much cheaper, wine, biscuits (especially the cookies), crisps, the flowers (I got some lovely roses for £2). The special offers are fab too. I got some waterproof ski type gloves for ds for £2.99.

shoperholicnot

just done my first Aldi shop the other day, these are the things I can recommend so far:
The Belgium chocolate ice cream £1.99 for 1ltr...tastes very close to green & blacks..lovely.
Chocolate cookies 200g 69p
Ginger nuts 25p
COD fish fingers pack of ten
Their brown batch loaf 95p
soft cheese 200g 49p
Magnum washing up liquid 59p and much better than Fairy!
My cats love their pouch food

DawnW

They do own brands of most things, like mayonnaise, tomato ketchup, sauces etc, which are all good. Their skin products are good too, serum for £3.99 is as nice to use as the expensive ones I have bought in the past.

The bread is a bit boring, super 6 fruit and veg worth looking out for, meats can be very good, and the continental products, such as ham and cheeses are cheaper than elsewhere and very good quality.

Cleaning products are all good, also loo & kitchen rolls, washing up liquid won an award apparently - it lasts ages.

It isn't a particularly nice shopping experience, it can feel a bit stressful when they throw the shopping at you through the checkout :eek:.

The staff are nice, just local people (I live in a small town where you see the same people everywhere), there are no timing issues with the car park here - maybe this is just in some areas? Ours don't take credit cards.

If you don't like it, try Lidls! I tend to alternate, as we have both

See what you think, give it a go

BookWorm

The things I tend to stock up on there is:

- Tinned tuna steak (Ocean Rise Pole & Line caught) - better value and tastier than the chunks
- Gin (their own brand is tasty)
- Flapjacks - can't get enough of them

I agree the checkout can be a bit bewildering when you haven't been before but you get used to it

meritaten

as others have said the biggest shock is the checkout system. you load the belt just like any other supermarket, then wheel your trolley through (and you will need a pound coin or token) and place it handle out against the till area, then be prepared for the items to come through at the speed of light! They take cash and debit cards all over the UK, and also credit cards in Wales and Scotland. NO CHEQUES. I just pile everything back in the trolley in no particular order (I make sure heavy items are put through first and crushables go last).
our local store is lovely - I really like shopping there. am on first name terms with most of the regular staff. the store is also very well managed and its rare to find the aisles clogged with boxes. The fruit and veg are very fresh and the choice is good.
but, this doesn't apply in every store - the one just a couple of miles away isn't as well managed and always looks slightly 'tatty'.
I can personally recommend the Cereals - they are all nice - I cant tell their Weetbisks from real Weetabix. or their sugar puffs and rice krispies.
The square jars of 'preserves' are gorgeous - the grandkids just nicked mine off me to take home to put on the scones and pancakes they made. even the 'cheaper' jam is nice - much better than comparative 'value' ones from the big four supermarkets.
The sliced meats etc are lovely. The fresh meat is good value too. Their chicken is lovely you get a much larger bird for much less than in other places. and it does taste like chicken! We had the 'outdoor reared pork leg joint' for sunday lunch and it was soooooo tasty and melt in the mouth. I am a fan of their cheese and onion quiche, the huge lasagne and the family chicken pie from the chilled section.
Their cod fish fingers from the freezers, the Norwegian prawns, cod or haddock in batter, frozen salmon fillets (um, all their fish products actually) are really good. and they do Basa and sometimes fish I didn't even know existed.

I like their cleaning products and think the Almat washing powder is as good as any branded product.
when the grandkids were babies - the mamia nappies I bought to keep at my house impressed their mums so much so they converted to them. along with the baby wipes.
we like their fruit squashes - seem highly concentrated and a bottle lasts us ages. their pop is nice - seen cheaper in the supermarkets but you can only taste soda, where the Aldi one tastes of lemon?
Previous cat and dog loved their pet food - my superfussy Persian doesn't - but then, he doesn't like many brands either! But the cat litter is purrfectly acceptable to him - and he has refused to use one high priced brand!
their desserts are lovely - my favourite is the cheapy crème caramel, but I like the tiramisu one as well.
all the cheeses are good - but the parmesan reggiano.............its the best I have found in ANY supermarket and the cheapest! love their Brie too.

I do my main shop in Aldi and have done for years now, I only have one gripe - they sometimes stop doing a product very abruptly. one week its there, then its gone and it doesn't come back! annoying as hell if you like it!

so go along tomorrow and give it a try. not all products will be to your taste. but I find Aldi is always worth a browse anyway. you never know what you will be able to pick up there.

Actually Thursday is a better day - I think the daily mirror voucher is printed that day and Thursday is a 'SPECIAL OFFER day, along with Sundays. take one of the leaflets at the checkout or packing shelf to see what special offers are coming. I think they have a website too. but I haven't been on there.

here https://www.aldi.co.uk/

worth a browse before you go.

sooty&sweep

Hi
I do my main shop in Aldi & top up in others if I need.
My closest Aldi is next to a small but busy high street so parking their is a problem & they've introduced time limits there. I only go in if I'm on the high street & need something. The one I tend to use is out of a town centre so no problem parking and although it's busy it's not horrific. I also find because they're smaller & more focused on the essentials I shop alot faster and I'm not tempted by all the non essentials. They don't trh & confuse you with lots of bogofs etc.
Jen

thehappybutterfly

Ooh, I love Aldi! Staples for us are:

Frikadellen - a herby meatball in the chiller cabinet
Bratwursts from the chiller
Cranberry juice cartons - better then Oceam Spray, perfect with vodka!
Tortilla chips plain - great for topping chilli with some grated mozza
Naan breads and pitta pockets
Fresh chicken breasts
3 or 4 bird roast - from the freezer
Washing up liquid
antibac wipes
Marmalade, jam and honey
Packs of cold meat like garlic sausage and honey roast ham - nice and meaty. And dry. Not plumped up with water
Whole chorizo sausage - the bent one, not sliced
Some of the biscuits are nice like toffypop lookalikes, oaties and choc digestives
Tinned toms
Jars of pesto

I personally dont like the fruit and veg. It seems to go off quite quickly. I dont buy pasta and rice as the bags ae too small.