So this weekend I will visit an ALDI supermarket for the first time. Any particular suggestions for me? I know very little about it except they are owned by the TJ family and are very inexpensive, but I have no idea about the quality or the best products/most SB friendly products to buy. Any and all suggestions welcome!
Take cash or a credit card. They don't accept checks.
Bring your own bags because they charge for them.
Take a quarter to get a cart, you'll get it back when you return the cart.
If they have fresh fruits and veggies in a bag really check the bags to make sure they are good. And always check the expiration dates on everything you put in your cart. But that's just common sense for any grocery shopping. You probably already know all that.
I don't have one close to me now but my parents shop there all the time. When I lived in the midwest it was were I bought a lot of my staples. I'm not sure how much SB friendly foods you'll find. If your familiar with TJ-it's as completely opposite as you can get. Selection is very limited. That's how they keep the prices low. Honestly it's not a store I would go out of my way to get to. Unlike Trader Joes, where I would drive an hour once a month to visit.
And also take lots of patience-there is generally only 1 or 2 checkers and the lines can get pretty long when they are busy.
I shop at Aldi's all the time. There is a line of food they have called "fit and active" with a lot of different options. They have 100 calorie snack packs, soy milk, light soups, light hot pocket thingers, and a bunch of other things! I love all of them and are so much cheaper than some of the name brand diet things. Also they have specials on name brand foods too some time you just have to keep you eyes open!
I mostly go there for skim milk $1.99/gallon, fresh and canned veggies, beans, fruit, oatmeal, flavored water. I dislike the long lines. If I go early in the day, it isn't so bad. The first time I shopped there years ago I had no idea they didn't take checks (before we had debit cards). I was horrified when they told me it was cash or food stamps. I left a whole cart of groceries there and left.
I'm getting pretty fed up with their increase in prices and spoiled carrots and onions. BUT they are much cheaper than the major supermarket chains out there. Luckily I live close to a ton of European markets that care about their quality and keep their prices low.
I use to love Aldi even though shopping there feels like being in a Russian market after the fall of Communism. Oh the memories of when their products weren't rotten. :O(
BTW, they don't publish any phone numbers of any stores, so when you do wind up with a spoiled bag of baby carrots, there is nobody to complain to.
I still shop there for pantry staples such as flour, sugar, veg. oil, things like that and have yet to run into issues with rotten foods. Oh, and sponges... those are a steal :O)
I love ALDI. There is one about 2 minutes from my house and I shop there often. *CAUTION* the selection is limited! However, they have TONS of great things. I found this awesome Indian curry sauce that is ALL NATURAL and low in calories and tastes delicious. One thing about Aldi is that since I found it there this week, chances are, they won't carry it next week. Their "special" products change from week to week. I grew up on Aldi, just be mindful that it is a discount store. Even with that being said, I don't feel as if I have to sacrifice quality when shopping there.
I've always been happy with the quality in our local Aldi store. Aldi has a double your money back guarantee, that we have had to use twice. Once about a broken seal on a jar of mustard (we weren't even sure if we had broken the seal), and we did go in to complain (the store was on our way home). The clerk not only gave us our money back and a new mustard (we could have taken the "double" guarantee in either all money, all product, or one of each. We took the money and another jar) she also pulled the entire box from the aisle to be checked manually later. And the second time it was for a yucky avocado (it looked nice, but when I cut into it, it was very dark).
We've been able to avoid long lines by avoiding Wednesdays and Saturdays (Wednesdays are when SSDI checks are direct deposited).
Most of our monthly shopping is done at either Aldi or Wamart. Walmart has more variety, but unless we want to shop at 3am, the lines are longer than Aldi. I've found that we really can use Aldi as our primary grocery store, if we have a flexible list. We supplement our regular shopping with visits to stores such as baking supply stores, bulk stores, wine and cheese makers, health food stores, small meat or fish markets, asian groceries, and overstock stores (like Big Lots). We shop once a month for staples, and about once a week will have a shopping-for-fun day where we'll go to thrift stores, dollar stores, and specialty food stores.
Even though we buy a lot at Aldi, we rarely buy produce except for onions, potatoes, and lettuce (for produce, almost everything else can be found cheaper somewhere else in town). In the summer and fall we use the farmers markets.
OK, questions: how is the quality of the meat? Do they sell frozen veggies? Do they sell any nut milks (like almond milk)? Are there any organic products? Just because I know you all can't wait for my blog :smile: a review of ALDI will be my first post.
Our store periodically gets in organic produce and products, but not many. I've seen soy, almond, and rice milk, but not as regular products (but then again I'm not looking for them, so they may carry them more regularly than I'm aware of).
Their salad dressings (Tuscan Valley, and Grandessa I believe) are awesome. The Mama Cozi whole wheat pasta is awesome (too bad I can't have wheat anymore), and their Mama Cozi spaghetti sauces are some of the best jarred sauces on the market (the 99 cent varieties are just as good as the $1.99 ones), in my opinion.
They do have "natural peanut butter" in a housebrand, which is awesome. I believe it comes in two varieties. A peanuts and salt variety and a peanuts-only variety.
Their no-sugar added FitandActive brand fruit spread (jam) is very good. It comes in several varieties. Strawberry, fruits of the forest, black currant, and a couple others.
The quality of meat varies. When we were in Illinois, we only bought frozen meats. In northcentral wisconsin the fresh meats have been great too.
Of the frozen meats, my favorites are the hamburger patties (especially the Angus burgers), the frozen chicken pieces, and the frozen shrimp (you cannot beat the shrimp prices anywhere else). I'm very, very picky about frozen fish and I love their Grandessa Top-crusted flounder (macadamia) and it's on special this week for 5.99 for a 12 ounce package and comes in tortilla, macadamia or coconut.
Their frozen stir-fries are also very good, and I think they're all under $4. They're very comparable to Bertoli and other "dinner-kit" frozen dinners that sell for $6 to $8 in the grocery store.
Their frozen fruit bars are really good, but I've noticed that the varieites with pineapple sometimes have a tough piece or two (maybe the machine cut a bit too close to the core).
They used to have a wonderful frozen gelatto that was awesome, but I've not seen it in Wisconsin. Their $2.99 Mama Cozi pizzas are very good for a frozen pizza (and reasonable calories for the portion size, with a really nice sauce).
They do have frozen vegetables, and they're very cheap and the quality is great. I have NEVER gotten a bag of vegies that was frozen in clumps - which I cannot say for any other brand even Birds Eye. I like the baby peas for salads. The frozen strawberries are very good too, and very cheap, often about half the price in other stores.
OK, questions: how is the quality of the meat? Do they sell frozen veggies? Do they sell any nut milks (like almond milk)? Are there any organic products? Just because I know you all can't wait for my blog :smile: a review of ALDI will be my first post.
The better half has a rule: If a butcher is not on site, we don't shop there for meat. This includes the Super Walmarts/Targets of the world. And Aldi definitely does NOT have a butcher on site. However, a friend of mine swears by the meat, and she's still alive, so I'm sure it's fine. I just don't find the prices to be that much better than other markets that have a larger variety.
Yes, I did! I bought some fresh produce (broccoli crowns for .99; 3 avocados for 2.99, baby carrots - for my son - .99 per bag.) I got coffee, cheese (lf string cheese - 2.29 for 12) my husband got some cold cuts and bread. I also got 3 Amy's vegetarian lasagnes for 2.99 each; turkey meatballs for 2.29, wild pacific salmon 2.99 for 4 fillets (!). Chicken broth and chicken noodle soup from their light and fit line for my son.
I'll definitely go back. I inspected the fresh produce carefully as others advised. The frozen fish was a great deal. I didn't get any fresh meat, but it looked very cleanly trimmed and fresh so next time maybe I will.
I haven't been around in a while, but thought I'd chime in here since I just did an ALDI experiment myself...
All things considered, I do not think there is much savings at ALDI, and the selection isn't great. I definitely could not do all my shopping there. I spent close to $140, still had to go to Shop Rite, where I spent another $60. Just about the same, if not a little more than I'd have spent if I just did all my shopping at Shop Rite. There are things that are cheaper, but it typically shows in the quality. (refrigerated biscuit dough- VERY cheap, but not too tasty either!) Much of the stuff that is really well priced are the junk foods- chips etc... And if I shop sales, I can get the brand names for similar prices at my regular store. I think produce IS cheaper, but not as cheap as the local farmer's market. I definitely will not be going back.
Hmmm, last night I made roasted salmon (3.99 for 4 fillets - wild caught) and roasted broccoli (.99 for 3 large crowns) all from ALDI and it was delicious. The salmon was actually very fresh even though it was frozen - I felt it had not been sitting around for a long time or had melted and been refrozen again and again like some frozen fish. I guess it depends not only on the day but also the store location.
I've never understoon when people say farmer's market has cheaper produce. Our farmer's markets are all very expensive, if you shop at Whole Foods then you could say it's cheaper but not a regular grocery store.
Is it better in the midwest? or someplace not close to a major city?
First visit to ALDI, need SB suggestions
