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Anyone Shop at ALDI?

WeberWho
WeberWho Posts: 11,008
We just had an ALDI open up here in town about a month ago.  Any must purchases?
"The pig is an amazing animal. You feed a pig an apple and it makes bacon. Let's see Michael Phelps do that" - Jim Gaffigan

Minnesota
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Comments

  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    Hit or miss for me.  Good prices but you must be selective.  No must purchases I've found but good luck shopping!
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
  • RRP
    RRP Posts: 25,880
    edited July 2015
    WeberWho? said:
    We just had an ALDI open up here in town about a month ago.  Any must purchases?
    TRUST ME>>>this will come across as a real nasty comment and yet I don't mean it to be...go there and then you decide how often you want to be an ALDI shopper. Rather than for me to bash them then take a score card to mark down how many brands you recognize. BTW no need to take a large sheet of paper for that score sheet! They carry foreign products which may or may not suit your food consumption expectations. Get my drift? 
    Re-gasketing America one yard at a time.
  • Scottborasjr
    Scottborasjr Posts: 3,494
    I've got a buddy that shops there regularly, I personally haven't bothered to set foot in there. Any place that wants a deposit to take a shopping cart I really don't have time for, no matter what the prices are. 
    I raise my kids, cook and golf.  When work gets in the way I'm pissed, I'm pissed off 48 weeks a year.
    Inbetween Iowa and Colorado, not close to anything remotely entertaining outside of football season. 
  • NPHuskerFL
    NPHuskerFL Posts: 17,629
    We had one open about 3 months ago. I'll stop there one day. Heard ya pay a quarter to get a shopping cart and then refunded when you return it. My Mother went there and she wasn't at all impressed. I'll make my own assessment. But, something tells me I should listen to Mom on this one :wink: 
    LBGE 2013 & MM 2014
    Die Hard HUSKER & BRONCO FAN
    Flying Low & Slow in "Da Burg" FL
  • LadyGT
    LadyGT Posts: 109
    I went there and was disappointed in that they do not use familiar name brands. To charge for using a cart is ridiculous. Been in there once and never went back.
  • caliking
    caliking Posts: 18,727

    Aldi owns Trader Joe's from what I recall. They don't charge you for using the cart - you get the quarter back when/if you return the cart.

    I've been inside a couple of times to check it out, but not frequently enough to be familiar with the brands or what's good to buy there regularly. I've heard that certain meat brands are decent, and that some things like chocolates are imports. Some google fu might get you more useful info.


    #1 LBGE December 2012 • #2 SBGE February  2013 • #3 Mini May 2013
    A happy BGE family in Houston, TX.
  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    Pretty much the response I'd expect.  "Hey, dey ain't got no Dean's breakfust sausage!!!  Wut?!  I have to put a quarter deposit to git a cart?!  F-dis, I'll go to Wal-Martz!!!!!!!!"  F-brands. Try it, explore, and keep in mind food standards are much higher with regards to BPA, GMO and pesticides from the sources they sell, overall.
    ______________________________________________
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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    "Where da Fruit Loops be at?!"
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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    I just heard on the news tonight we're getting a Trader Joes.  I'm excited.  Hey, the brand on most stuff is Trader Joes, I know of them, so they must make it all.
    ______________________________________________
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  • fljoemon
    fljoemon Posts: 757
    Aldi wants to be the "low cost" supermarket. Most of the stuff they sell are off-brands that you would have never seen in any other stores. However they do sell organic stuff at reasonable prices. Selection is very small. They only take cash or debit and they charge you for the grocery bags or you bring your own. You need to deposit a quarter to unlock the chain that holds the shopping cart and when you take back the cart to the same place you picked it up and lock it with the chain, the quarter pops out. This ensures that you put the cart back in the right place and they do not need to employ people to manage shopping carts and this cost benefit is passed to you in their food prices.

    I do shop there once in a while and while not as extensive as Publix, I can find things I need.
    LBGE & Mini
    Orlando, FL
  • Hokie_Smoker
    Hokie_Smoker Posts: 662
    We have started shopping there regularly for many items but if you have to have named brand specific items you will be disappointed. Things like milk, eggs, yogurt and many canned goods are way cheaper than even Wal-Mart. We've found some items that have the same packaging as named brand items just with a different name. If I can stretch a buck on some items I don't mind depositing a quarter for the cart.

    _________________________________________________________________________________________

    Johnson, Navin R... Sounds like a typical bastard.

     

    Belmont, NC

  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    Definitely a budget store, but better than similar places in my area. When they first started around here, the slogan was "The stock up store." Lots of people then buying whole cases of canned goods.

    My family used it for awhile. My 4 kids ate a lot, and there were staples that we used continually. The prices were always the same, so once my elder son was driving, I could make up a list, and give him the exact amount he would need to pay for the purchases.

    At that time, there was almost no produce, and very little unfrozen meat. That has changed. My late father and uncle, being retirees on a tight budget shopped there almost exclusively. A lot of the products are of surprisingly good quality, but some of those are not always available. There's a good selection of produce, and while the meat selection still isn't very impressive, it is better. Very few places can match the prices for what they sell.

    It is something of a hassle having to rent the cart, and pay for bags if you haven't brought your own. Loading the food onto the checkout conveyor can be hectic, and packing the food up awkward, but I still go there once in awhile to see what specials they might have, and pick up a few of their always available for a few dimes less than anywhere else.
  • SmokingPiney
    SmokingPiney Posts: 2,282
    Aldi's prices are very good and the overall quality of their merchandise is good. The wife and I are regular shoppers, mainly for pantry items and staples. Some of their inventory is seasonal and not always available. As far as the shopping carts go, you won't see any Aldi carts jamming up the parking lot - that is precisely why you put a quarter deposit on them.



     


    South Jersey Pine Barrens. XL BGE , Assassin 24, Weber Kettle, CharBroil gasser, AMNPS 
  • We shop there for selective items. We're very happy with quality and prices. We don't buy meat there. 
  • tarheelmatt
    tarheelmatt Posts: 9,867
    Many people I know go there often and love it.  I just keep forgetting to go by there honestly.  Plus, I hate store jumping most times.  
    ------------------------------
    Thomasville, NC
    My YouTube Channel - The Hungry Hussey
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  • MrCookingNurse
    MrCookingNurse Posts: 4,665
    Ours actually doesn't do the shopping cart quarter thing but I've been to ones that do. My wife goes there maybe once a month or when a friend tells us they have something we use. I don't do any of our shopping, but when the wife does go, it's always a good deal. I wouldn't mind checking it out sometime. 

    So Why bash a discount store for being a discount store???? And the name isn't "Smiths" it's Aldi..... Kinda expect a different selection in my eyes. 


    _______________________________________________

    XLBGE 
  • tarheelmatt
    tarheelmatt Posts: 9,867
    Ours actually doesn't do the shopping cart quarter thing but I've been to ones that do. My wife goes there maybe once a month or when a friend tells us they have something we use. I don't do any of our shopping, but when the wife does go, it's always a good deal. I wouldn't mind checking it out sometime. 

    So Why bash a discount store for being a discount store???? And the name isn't "Smiths" it's Aldi..... Kinda expect a different selection in my eyes. 
    Some people have too much pride.... 
    ------------------------------
    Thomasville, NC
    My YouTube Channel - The Hungry Hussey
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  • Fred19Flintstone
    Fred19Flintstone Posts: 8,168
    edited July 2015
    Bananas are always cheap there.  I don't know much else except their carts are not the ones used to haul belongings around in the City of Flint.  There must be something about that quarter thing.
    Flint, Michigan
  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,671
    edited July 2015
    if you like the bacon wrap strip in the regular market its half price at aldis, two small ho hum strip steaks wrapped in bacon for a dollar fifty each, cheap breakfast (they are what they are). racers candy bars are snickers, again half price. vegetables are fine and inexpensive there, eggs 1.05 a dozen last time i was there. the hams are a steal, maybe one in ten are too fatty, i googled the hams there and they had good reviews. lots of spanish woman in tight spandex and yoga pants =)  unfortunately ours doesnt have the inexpensive wine.  its the only place up here that has the ingredients to make a corn tortilla. i may not recognize the labels but its not like the asian style markets where i have to get someone to walk me thru the place. they have spaghettios, just dont know who makes them, just like our local market basket that sells them under the market basket label, its like putting royal oak in a bge bag and charging less for it =)
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
  • DieselkW
    DieselkW Posts: 894
    Must buy: Triscuits. Or whatever the Aldi name for square wheat crackers is. Half the price and I can't tell the difference except for the box.
    Fresh produce: Peppers come in packages of 3, green yellow red. Big and fresh and really cheap.
    The rest is just "stuff", if you need canned cranberry it won't be Ocean Spray, but it will be a can of gelatin cranberry "stuff" at about half the price of the name brand.

    I'm self employed, so my income is feast and famine. I go there when I'm in a famine. I don't mind letting them borrow my quarter for a half hour. I don't mind bringing my own bags, I do that at Kroger also. (Feast mode). I don't mind the "generic brand" look of the packaging.

    I do NOT buy meat at Aldi, feast or famine. I've become a meat snob and in the last couple months I buy all my protein at a butcher.

    Indianapolis, IN

    BBQ is a celebration of culture in America. It is the closest thing we have to the wines and cheeses of Europe. 

    Drive a few hundred miles in any direction, and the experience changes dramatically. 



  • piney
    piney Posts: 1,478
    I'm an Aldi shopper I like the idea of putting a quarter in for use of a cart you get it back when returned and it's not in the side of my truck and less labor=more savings. The quality of their products is way above other store brands and made by the same places as national brands. A lot of people on this forum has commented on Dukes mayo, try Burmans (Aldi brand) tell me the difference. I'm just saying that a lot is rebranded from the brands you have known for years. I have loaded produce in California and other products to the top grocers and a truck in the next dock load the same product with different label to Aldi. I'm not suggesting you buy all your groceries there but try things I think you will be impressed.
    Lenoir, N.C.
  • northGAcock
    northGAcock Posts: 15,164
    I shop at two stores today, one for food staples, detergents, cleaning supplies etc..... and another for meats, cheeses and dairy products. I have been to Aldi on occasion but honestly, can't juggle a third store for my shopping needs. There are some good prices there and my neighbor shops there and loves their produce. The Aldi in my area is also not in my normal traffic pattern so I have to say that I don't have any must purchase advise....or wealth of shopping knowledge & loyalty for them.
    Ellijay GA with a Medium & MiniMax

    Well, I married me a wife, she's been trouble all my life,
    Run me out in the cold rain and snow
  • Sea2Ski
    Sea2Ski Posts: 4,088
    Not a bad place for things like shampoo, paper plates, plastic cups and other similar consumables; however, the produce and meat at my local store often looks questionable. 
    --------------------------------------------------
    Burning lump in Downingtown, PA or diesel in Cape May, NJ.
    ....just look for the smoke!
    Large and MiniMax
    --------------------------------------------------

    Caliking said:   Meat in bung is my favorite. 
  • Focker
    Focker Posts: 8,364
    Huge Aldi fan here.  You can stretch a dollar and not sacrifice quality.  Really helps when trying to run 80/20 Paleo.  You cannot buy everything, but it is worth the additional trip in savings. 

    Cheap produce, organic options too.
    Cheap beef jerky, nuts.
    Grass fed organic ground beef.
    Nonenhanced no GH no ATB fryers are a new item at my location, $1.49/lb....all day baby!  
    The frozen salmon is cheap even though they are the tail end tapered pieces.
    Found lamb in season from New Zealand.  Been wanting to rotis one of their frozen ducks.  
    Brandon
    Quad Cities
    "If yer gonna denigrate, familiarity with the subject is helpful."

  • chaschat99
    chaschat99 Posts: 17
     So let me get this straight...they sell shopping carts for a quarter.  :o Awesome! 
  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 14,602
    I've never been in an Aldi, I only know of them from their purchase of Trader Joe's and what I read at the time was that it is a very well run, family owned business in Germany that is very popular and successful.  I was impressed by their hands off approach to the TJ acquisition, they've not changed anything visible - the model, the service, etc.

    I would have no problem with going to one, buying non-familiar brands or anything.  The days of going to one store for everything are long gone for me, we cycle through at least five stores to stock our freezer, pantry, etc., we just don't go to them all every day or even every week.
  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,671
    for the aldi meat haters try their appleton farm hams, as good or better than the store bought hams like cooks brand, carando etc
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
  • Focker
    Focker Posts: 8,364
    for the aldi meat haters try their appleton farm hams, as good or better than the store bought hams like cooks brand, carando etc
    Good info fish.
    Brandon
    Quad Cities
    "If yer gonna denigrate, familiarity with the subject is helpful."

  • ads75
    ads75 Posts: 391
    Never been, but the quarter is so you return the cart. I hate lazy ass people that can't walk 20 feet to return a cart. I hate my car being subjecting to carts moving on windy days, carts randomly left in spots. The exception is if you are truly handicapped, not handicapped so you can get good parking. Other stores do the quarter thing also.
    Large BGE, Mini BGE
    Morgantown, PA
  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    Even if people are too lazy to get their quarter back you know there will be someone noticing a lone cart that will park it for 0.25.

    Less door dings.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..