OT? Aldis

Gulfcoastguy · October 2018

My town is receiving an Aldis grocery store soon. That will be in order of distance from me: Rouse’s, Aldis, and Walmart. All on the same highway and all within 1 1/4 miles. I imagine one of the two existing will have to give up and hope it is Walmart.

Any idea what type of store Aldis is?

TEXASBGE2018 · October 2018

It’s similar to Trader Joe’s. My brother just sent me an article that shows they are the number 3 best rated grocery chain behind Publix and some other one I can’t remember. You will have to bring your own bags or pay them for theirs. Also you have to pay a quarter for a cart. But don’t worry you get it back when you bring it back inside

HeavyG · October 2018

I hear the cashiers are nice.

Gulfcoastguy · October 2018

Worth trying. Of course I seldom grocery shop at Walmart so my preference is that Rouses survives.

alaskanassasin · October 2018

We shop at aldi. All I can tell you is our experience at our local store.
Great prices, not much name brand stuff, store is a bit unorganized, but it is not a huge store so no problem doubling back in search of a item. Great produce, most the time you can find what your looking for but one time they didn’t have any cabbage, last week they had Boston butts but non bone in etc.
We think of it as a discount grocery store with a great selection of the necessities, bring your own bags or boxes and you put a quarter in the shopping cart to unlock it.
I have been into one Trader Joe’s and it was what I would consider high end groceries compared to Aldi, however I know there are different grades of the same store.

Bottom line Aldi it saves us about 20-30% on groceries

Gulfcoastguy · October 2018

I think that this will cannibalize the local work force. Pretty much all willing low skilled local people are employed.

alaskanassasin · October 2018

Our Aldi store usually seems to only have two people working the whole grocery store!

WeberWho · October 2018

I like Aldi. 90% of the products are off brand names. It doesn't bother me any but to some it might. A few years ago I brought my Blackstone with me to accompany the BGE at the local Eggfest. I made pancakes from a box that came from Aldi. One of the tasters said, "Oh my gosh these pancakes are amazing. Where did you get the mix from?". I said, "Aldi". You should have seen her face. A shock of disappointment and disgust. It was hilarious! Some people need to have all the brand names and labels. Not this guy.

Don't think it as a full grocery store. It's limited on what they have. So you need to familiarize yourself on what they do/don't have. Hard to beat $1.37/gallon of milk. I don't do a whole lot of meats from there. Not that I don't think it's good but the selection is pretty scarce. I leave that for Sams Club. It's mostly dry goods and snacks that I grab there.

It's worth stopping in and checking out at least.

kjs · October 2018

Like others have said, mostly “off brand” products. Great prices on everything. I personally prefer to get my produce and meats elsewhere, but could get everything else there.

I would not say Aldi is similar to Trader Joe’s.

Carolina Q · October 2018

I love Aldi! Not a full service store, but they get most of my grocery dollars. Mostly no brand names, but what they sell is good stuff. I go there first. If they don't ave everything on my list, I go to another store.

sumoconnell · October 2018

Aldi's is rebranding its US presence. It's larger outside US, I think EU. My daughter did a summer semester in Ireland and told me it was a high quality place... blew my mind!

When I grew up outside Chicago, Aldi's was a value shopping place. We went there and there was only seconds there, from a quality and price perspective. They charged 4c per bag, no real shelf stocking strategy other than 'get it on a shelf'. I'd think there are many Aldi's in the US that are like that in poorer parts of towns.

StillH2OEgger · October 2018

It's not my primary or even second or third option, but Aldi has it's place. It's cheaper than almost anywhere else, but the product quality is definitely hit or miss. Some of the things suit my taste or are similar to the name brands, but some stuff most assuredly does not.

milesvdustin · October 2018

We shop a lot at Aldi, foods good and price is right.

GoooDawgs · October 2018

They have awesome hamburger buns. Good stuff!

The Cen-Tex Smoker · October 2018

sumoconnell said:

Aldi's is rebranding its US presence. It's larger outside US, I think EU. My daughter did a summer semester in Ireland and told me it was a high quality place... blew my mind!

When I grew up outside Chicago, Aldi's was a value shopping place. We went there and there was only seconds there, from a quality and price perspective. They charged 4c per bag, no real shelf stocking strategy other than 'get it on a shelf'. I'd think there are many Aldi's in the US that are like that in poorer parts of towns.

Fun Aldi facts (they are a big customer of mine)

they are the 5th largest retailer in the world with over 10,000 stores. (They are actually 2 separate companies but it’s all tangled up)

they have 2000 doors in the us and 100% of them will be new or updated to the much nicer new format by the end of this year.

They are opening around 300 doors a year in the US

They also own/operate Trader Joe’s stores.

The “off brands” mentioned are actually Usually very high quality products from all over the world. Many are house brands.

If you you don’t have an Aldi by you, get ready. They are coming.

They are good folks and run a great business.

Eggcelsior · October 2018

Aldi is actually 2 divisions(North and South) owned by some German brothers(one is dead). Both have a heavy presence in Europe but in the US, Trader Joe’s is owned by Aldi Nord and is their only presence here. Aldi in the US is Aldi Süd.

HeavyG · October 2018

And you can't really mention Aldi's without mentioning Lidl which is the other huge German owned grocery. Lidl is just starting to open stores in the US in the past year but I'm guessing they'll be entering and competing in the same areas as Aldi's.

I've visited both Lidl and Aldi and can't really say either is particularly noteworthy. Some good stuff, some meh.

The grocery chain Wegman's is finally opening a store in my area come summer 2019 and they are the best grocer on the planet so I'm super stoked.

MaskedMarvel · October 2018

Brandi loves — LOVES — our aldis

really good cheeses. Organic veggies.

I like the store because when I’m walking around looking for stuff, they have TOTALLY random things for sale cheap there that I suddenly must have. We’re running aldis solar lights in the front yard and have an aldis Japanese maple that we like a lot.

Acn · October 2018

For me, Aldi is, like Trader Joe’s, a nice secondary grocery option. I won’t do a full weekly grocery shop there, but the things we get there are very good and inexpensive.

Poultry and beef from there have been solid, pork less so because it is all prebrined. Our produce is very hot or miss, can be fine if you’re buying for that night, but if I’m buying Sunday to use Tuesday night, that won’t work. They have Dukes mayo cheap, and then mustard, cereal bars, dried fruit, nuts, their house brand saltines and cheez its, bacon and breakfast sausage are all really good there.

@heavyg is correct though - Wegmans is the best grocery store on the planet.

gdenby · October 2018

The Aldis nearest me recently remodeled. Somewhat more open space, a bit better organized, but perhaps a little less selection.

Years ago, they advertised themselves as "The stock up store." Many people bought whole cases of canned food. At that time, produce was almost non-existant, all meats frozen and/or pre-processed. Lots of very average canned food. Cheap carbonated beverages. I had kids who went thru snacks, sweets, lunch food like locusts, so Aldis was a standard.

It has much improved over the years. The produce section is substantial and the fresh meats are are generally at a good price, tho' the selection isn't very broad. Sometimes, some surprisingly good cheese and baked goods.

They have "specials," higher end pre-prepared dishes that appear at random, I've had some very pleasing spinach strudels, some frozen shrimp risotto, etc. that were really good for quick meals. They expanded the liquor section from 1 0r 2 brands of beer (a Mexican and a German) and a couple kinds of wine to maybe a dozen of each now. Some of the "Fit" brand low cal foods are good.

Still carry the same generic gallons of ice cream, pre-made burgers, frozen breaded chicken things, basic fill your face frozen pizzas. Lots and lots of chips of all kinds.

And yes, there may be 2 employees working the store, and going thru the check out is about like being on an assembly line.

Griffin · October 2018

I've only ever been in one once and they didn't have what I was looking for. Can't remember what. That's not why I don't go, I just really haven't. I need to check it out. I found this article yesterday interesting.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/21/what-groceries-32-dollars-buys-at-acme-aldi-trader-joes-and-whole-foods.html

gamason · October 2018

They have a good cheap wine selection and some good cheese selections. Their meat on the other hand leaves a lot to be desired. I'm a snob when it comes to certain things and I will not buy their meat or produce. To each his own.

fishlessman · October 2018

more and more name brands are showing up, ours is selling cabots cheese now. the grass fed burger and the hams are great, the hams show up at different times of the year then disappear but they are as good as the top supermarket hams like cooks, carando etc. the bread is really good now since they updated the store. the cash register girl is really hot even though thats a joke here on the forum

the halloween candy is a no-brainer, the racer candybars taste like snickers.

JRWhitee · October 2018

There Mediterranean salmon is fantastic.

johnnyp · October 2018

Both Aldi and Lidl are great, as long as you walk in with the right expectations. It's a lot of curated, private label merch (similar to Trader Joe's). They have limited selection and reduced overhead with low staffing, but what they do, they do reasonably well.

Photo Egg · October 2018

Aldi St. Louis ribs I cooked Sunday.
On sale for $1.48 pound.

Really good but I did rinse them and pat dry before seasoning.

TEXASBGE2018 · October 2018

Photo Egg said:

Aldi St. Louis ribs I cooked Sunday.
On sale for $1.48 pound.

Really good but I did rinse them and pat dry before seasoning.

Those do look like ribs to me.

fishlessman · October 2018

did not know aldis had recipes. this looks authentic

CHILI

Ingredients:

2 dried ancho chili peppers

1 cup hot water

15.5 ounces Dakota's Pride Garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

14.5 ounces Dakota's Pride Black Beans, drained and rinsed

10 ounces Casa Mamita Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, undrained

8 ounces Happy Harvest Tomato Sauce

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon Stonemill Essentials Ground Chili Powder

2 teaspoons Stonemill Essentials Ground Cumin

Stonemill Essentials Iodized Salt, to taste

Stonemill Essentials Ground Black Pepper, to taste

TEXASBGE2018 · October 2018

fishlessman said:

did not know aldis had recipes. this looks authentic

CHILI
Ingredients:
2 dried ancho chili peppers

1 cup hot water

15.5 ounces Dakota's Pride Garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

14.5 ounces Dakota's Pride Black Beans, drained and rinsed

10 ounces Casa Mamita Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, undrained

8 ounces Happy Harvest Tomato Sauce

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon Stonemill Essentials Ground Chili Powder

2 teaspoons Stonemill Essentials Ground Cumin

Stonemill Essentials Iodized Salt, to taste

Stonemill Essentials Ground Black Pepper, to taste

If the objective is stew, they have a pretty good recipe there.

fishlessman · October 2018

TEXASBGE2018 said:

fishlessman said:

did not know aldis had recipes. this looks authentic

CHILI
Ingredients:
2 dried ancho chili peppers

1 cup hot water

15.5 ounces Dakota's Pride Garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

14.5 ounces Dakota's Pride Black Beans, drained and rinsed

10 ounces Casa Mamita Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, undrained

8 ounces Happy Harvest Tomato Sauce

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon Stonemill Essentials Ground Chili Powder

2 teaspoons Stonemill Essentials Ground Cumin

Stonemill Essentials Iodized Salt, to taste

Stonemill Essentials Ground Black Pepper, to taste

If the objective is stew, they have a pretty good recipe there.

being from the bean town area, never thought to put garbanzo beans in, never even thought of them as beans but thats texas

atleast they started with dried peppers and not a mix

In a small bowl, soak the chili peppers in hot water.
Pour the peppers and water into a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into a medium pot.
Add remaining ingredients except for salt and pepper. Simmer for 45 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

TIP: Top with shredded cheese or sour cream and serve with chips or crackers.

Carolina Q · October 2018

Photo Egg said:

Aldi St. Louis ribs I cooked Sunday.
On sale for $1.48 pound.

Really good but I did rinse them and pat dry before seasoning.

@Photo_Egg I saw those the other day, but didn't buy any. May have to reconsider - those look great and it's probably been a couple of years since I've had any ribs!

OT? Aldis

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