Lidl....

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

I am seriously considering ditching my £7 a month delivery saver with Tesco and doing my main shop in Lidl. One the one hand I will miss the convenience of home delivery, but on the other my shops are getting more and more expensive and it has to stop somewhere....
A new Lidl has opened near us and my two DS conveniently have a one hour class nearby, so I'm thinking

1. Grown up meal planning head on
   
2. Go to Lidl once a week
   
3. Save money
   What do you reckon? Can I get most things there?
   Disclaimer: I am notoriously bad at budgeting/meal planning/planning ahead. Sigh.
   Any advice/tips? I feel sure I can do this Thanks

[gryffen]

Hiya and totally.

Fruit and veg are great and the kiddies range is buy 3 save 20%. Lots of jars of sauce are about 65p, fresh meats are great value and many come in xxl packages at weekend deals. Bread and bakery is good, juice selection are good with a mixtures of squashes/fizzy and branded etc. Freezer foods are good and many offers there too. Prepared salads are lovely, sweets, snacks and sealed bakery goods are good too.

Alcohol section is good too if you drink and has a wide range.

We buy lots of stuff from Lidl and a few things from Tesco/asda etc if they ran out.

Lots of bargain!

[shoopshoopshooooop]

Yeah, do it! I love Lidl. They can have weird shortages though, so be flexible with your meal planning.

However, if you're anything like me then you'll spend every penny you save on treats from the in store bakery doughnuts.

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

Ooh thank you for your replies, I think you are convincing me!
@gryffen everything you've listed would be on my list. So that's a very good start
@shoopshoopshooooop I may occasionally be tempted by a bakery item... yum yum
OK that all sounds good, I'm gonna do it.

[parrotonmyshoulder]

We switched from 10+ years of waitrose to Lidl. Have never regretted it. I agree that flexibility in meal planning is sometimes necessary, but it’s worth it for the surprises you can get.
Some fruit and veg great - but does go off very quickly. I buy seasonal and supplement with local from market and elsewhere.

[donajimena]

I usually shop in lidl but was passing a tesco extra today so nipped in. I wanted to buy some batiste dry shampoo and was shocked to see in Tesco it was 3.00 as opposed to 1.59 in lidl. Everything else was more expensive too.

[applecatchers36]

Nappies and baby / toddler stuff is good.
All continental products like e.g. French cheeses, German ham, fresh pasta, pasta sauces are really good.
The Turkish yoghurt in a big pot is very good.
All the little packets of nuts, dried fruits are great, Inc kids sized raisins.
Their fresh bakery stuff has large range.
Agree fresh fruit and veg is excellent.

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

That's really helpful thank you @parrotonmyshoulder
To be completely honest I have never meal planned in my life so felixibility would be fine I just need to break the habit of top up shops and buying rubbish we don't need, and stick to one weekly shop. DH really needs to leave his well paid but extremely stressful job for the sake of his physical and mental wellbeing, and so we will be facing a significant drop in income, and I am happy to rise to the challenge but feeling somewhat hopeless about it

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

And thank you everyone for the positive replies. Tesco are starting to annoy me with their prices.

[AnnaMagnani]

I can buy 99% of my weekly shop in Lidl and 100% most weeks. I meal plan and plan what I like.

You have to be prepared to give up brands and choice and just pick the Lidl choice - I personally like this and now find it stressful to go to Waitrose and see 44 different types of rice.

Also not everything is in stock every week - but might be in stock in a themed week. So French mustard will be in French week, cooking chorizo will be in Spanish week, ricotta will be in Italian week but not otherwise and so on.

After you have been round the cycle you pretty much know what you get in each week, have bought all the crap and know what bits of Greek week you like and what you don't, that American week is rubbish, when to stock up etc. There will be random things like BBQ week in the summer if it's hot and Christmas goes on forever but is lush but otherwise you know what weeks there are.

They tell you what week it is next week in the store magazine or online on a Friday if you are mealplanning.

I stuff my freezer with the stuff we like when it's in - Alpine week is our favourite.

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

Fab thank you @AnnaMagnani I like the sound of all the themed weeks! Might actually help me break out of my boring meal rut.

[colditz]

It is so much cheaper than Tesco that your eyes will be out on stalks at the till.

If you are a scratch cook, and are prepared to get spices from a specialist shop or supermarker run once every few months, Lidl is perfect. Good meat, good veg, interesting "themed" weeks (Greek week, Polish week, American week, German week, French week etc) when you can buy interesting tidbits and puddings.

But

Beware the aisle of weirdness. Many a time I have gone in for bread and come out with a six foot plastic shelving unit

[AnnaMagnani]

I mainly buy herbs and spices elsewhere. Overtime I have just naturally adjusted my meal planning to stuff I can get in Lidl.

Beware the aisle of random in the middle of the shop. You go in with a nice shopping list and then start wondering if actually you need a food mixer, set of garden chairs and an arc welder

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

Ha ha to the aisle of randomness, I'm such a sucker for a random piece of shite! I may need blinkers for that part of the shop
I do usually cook from scratch but nothing particularly adventurous, just the usual standard stuff like spag bol, roast chicken, fish pie etc.

[starzig]

Not so good if you are poor at budgeting as you will have to do another shop elsewhere which might mean you spend more. Try writing a list and shopping when you don't have time to browse or take limited cash (Tesco scan and go tallies as you go)

[Tidypidy]

We shop in Lidl and find it's great. We tend to rotate a core menu of meals with some variation each week.
For example:
Monday risotto - chicken and chorizo, ham and pea, chicken and bacon
Tuesday stir fry - pork, chicken, salmon
Wednesday pasta - with meatballs, bolognese, turkey mince and sauce
Thursday freezer dinner - so chips and fish fingers, pizza, nuggets
Friday curry - chicken, beef, prawns
Saturday - chicken fajitas with wedges
Sunday - roast

I make 3 packed lunches a day so buy wraps and bread, fruit, crisps or popcorn, dried fruit.

I start with a weekly menu, write in the clubs and late nights then slot in our usual meals.

I try to keep something in the freezer so I can whizz up something quickly. Hope this helps you get started!

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

Yes @starzig I will need to take a list, as part of my new sensible grown up regime! Was hoping to get most things there and maybe top up at Asda.

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

@Tidypidy can I copy you please
I do make packed lunches every day but again only basic cheese and ham sandwiches, fruit, crisps, yoghurts.

[Tidypidy]

Absolutely! As long as you mix it up a bit you can cook basically the same meals every week!

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

Perfect! You sound like my kind of cook...
Fab advice

[Tidypidy]

Anything for an easier life!

[Topsyloulou]

I switched from Sainsbury's to Lidl & it's saved me a fortune. I can get pretty much everything in Lidl. The only thing I'm not keen on is the ham but everything else is great. They are limited on the herbs & spices & baking ingredients so I do pop to Sainsbury's every other week for those sort of bits. Tesco prices are ridiculous now, much more expensive than Sainsbury's even so I'd definitely give it a try.

They do great kids clothes & toys in the random aisle so always worth a look. I get a lot of presents from there.

If you do find something you like on the theme weeks stock up while you can. DP & DS love the French mustard they do in French week so I always have to buy numerous jars to get us through to when it's next in stock.

[BeeFarseer]

Lidl is brilliant, you'll be fine, honestly.

The Deluxe coleslaw is a thing of beauty.

[OnTopOfSpaghetti]

So glad I started this thread. Feeling enthusiastic now. Thanks again for all the top Lidl tips!

[starryeyed19]

@Tidypidy This is genuinely one of the best things I have ever read

[bullyingadvice2017]

Go every week and come out with a overflowing trolly. About 65£
I go in Tesco, come out with two bags and have spent 45£