went to aldis. shouldn't of bothered.

Carrot007

cattom said:

thanks for the reply. my butcher has worked in his shop since he was 14,he now nearly 60.so I think he knows what he's about. he carried on the business when his dad died. the hardware store is also a family owned business, and has been there as long as I can remember, and I moved here 40yrs ago. the bakers is a relatively new addition to the village. been there about 6 months. 

Just a matter of knowing what shops sell I guess.

I love a nice bit of chicken liver. I don't expect htem to sell that either. Sainsburys. Tesco. Morrisons Yes. Aldi No.

pumpkin89

You're right that there is no point going to Aldi for a specific product.  Even if they do sell it, it may well not be in that week and, because their range has no duplication, there won't be an alternative from a different brand.

Aldi and Lidl are best approached by just going and choosing from what there is.  That works well for some people, not so much for others (myself included).

Cornucopia

I'm not sure that their range does have "no duplication".   If you want (say) Ham, there are at least a dozen different types and pack sizes to choose from (probably more than that).   If you want Potatoes or Sausages, it's similar (maybe 6 of the former and 15 of the latter).   There's only one type of Brie Cheese, maybe, and one type of small, seeded Bread.   And one type of Sweet Pickle (and that one isn't Branstons).   But we kind of know all of that, and probably respond almost subconsciously to build a shopping list from what they have.

The level of duplications (or the breadth of range) does vary enormously, and I think what it boils down to is that there is prior knowledge required for shopping there.   

Carrot007

Cornucopia said:

 There's only one type of Brie Cheese

2 the last time I was there. 1 cheap and the proper one in the french mixed cheese box. (and I do think their odd mixed box nonsence lets them down though, as often there are 6 boxes with the one you don't want in and none of what you want! (for example when you want shortcrust pastry)).

One thing that would annoy me though (should I actually ever want bread which I don't). The small and big loaves have the same no of slices in. This means the big loaves have ridiculously thick slices and no reason to purchase. (I mean the proper bread not the (even more) pointless stuff. But who wants bread anyway?

Teapot55

We’d probably go to a local co-op shop or a Waitrose for a S & K pudding but very occasionally we’ll treat ourselves to the real homemade one & the nearest place to buy ox kidney loose (ie not a packet that’d feed ten people) is the halal supermarket butcher’s counter.

An acceptable & delicious compromise is a readymade S & K pie from Morrisons. They’re ‘lush’ as Stacey would say. 

cattom

Carrot007 said:

Cornucopia said:

 There's only one type of Brie Cheese

2 the last time I was there. 1 cheap and the proper one in the french mixed cheese box. (and I do think their odd mixed box nonsence lets them down though, as often there are 6 boxes with the one you don't want in and none of what you want! (for example when you want shortcrust pastry)).

One thing that would annoy me though (should I actually ever want bread which I don't). The small and big loaves have the same no of slices in. This means the big loaves have ridiculously thick slices and no reason to purchase. (I mean the proper bread not the (even more) pointless stuff. But who wants bread anyway?

well I certainly want bread for my sandwiches.and toast.

Rosa_Damascena

cattom said:

Carrot007 said:

Cornucopia said:

 There's only one type of Brie Cheese

2 the last time I was there. 1 cheap and the proper one in the french mixed cheese box. (and I do think their odd mixed box nonsence lets them down though, as often there are 6 boxes with the one you don't want in and none of what you want! (for example when you want shortcrust pastry)).

One thing that would annoy me though (should I actually ever want bread which I don't). The small and big loaves have the same no of slices in. This means the big loaves have ridiculously thick slices and no reason to purchase. (I mean the proper bread not the (even more) pointless stuff. But who wants bread anyway?

well I certainly want bread for my sandwiches.and toast.

I love bread.

I love it even more when Ald isticks a 75% off sticker on it

maman

Usually the biggest complaint about Aldi (and Lidl) from people who don't shop there regularly is that they can't do a full shop there. Most people who do shop there know that and buy all the things they can and then go elsewhere to pay over the odds for a few other items. I find that a very mse way of shopping.

To be fair to Aldi, they have a far wider range now than in the past. I used to do about 50% of my weekly shop there. Now it's more like 90% and the majority of what I need elsewhere isn't fresh stuff or a regular item like more unusual spices. 

pumpkin89

Cornucopia said:

I'm not sure that their range does have "no duplication".   If you want (say) Ham, there are at least a dozen different types and pack sizes to choose from (probably more than that).   If you want Potatoes or Sausages, it's similar (maybe 6 of the former and 15 of the latter).   There's only one type of Brie Cheese, maybe, and one type of small, seeded Bread.   And one type of Sweet Pickle (and that one isn't Branstons).   But we kind of know all of that, and probably respond almost subconsciously to build a shopping list from what they have.

The level of duplications (or the breadth of range) does vary enormously, and I think what it boils down to is that there is prior knowledge required for shopping there.   

This obviously depends on how you define a product.  To me, "ham" is not a product.  Free range honey roast wafer thin ham (for example) is a product.  And I would expect to have more than one option for that (different brand, different pack size, prepacked vs service counter etc.)

To take one of OP's examples, Aldi doesn't sell Victoria Sponge cake.  If they did, it's highly likely they would only sell one type.  Whereas other supermarkets will have multiple options, which makes it more likely you'll be able to find what you want.

briskbeats

Two years ago I was in Aldi and asked about spinach. They said it’s a seasonal item!! Funny how Lidl and the others can sell it!

Another thing that I don’t like about A&L is the lack of variety of flavours in certain items. Such as squash, yoghurts and cappuccino sachets. Which I get when they are on offer elsewhere.