Aldi Newbie

[Pupsiecola]

Recovering Waitrose shopper here. Just paid a visit to the new, large Aldi store nearby. Felt like I walked around mouth open the entire time. Wow. Those prices! We're a family of 4 (including 2 teenage boys) spending around £1k a month in Waitrose. I'm hoping to get that down to £600 to £700. We're health concscious, and animal welfare is important. I'm curious as to how they can sell stuff so cheaply. I worry about this in relation to the meat, but also the labels I've not heard of. I wasn't expecting organic milk and eggs. I guess I need to compare labelling info with the usual brands?

What's good/what should I avoid?

TY

They have come along way. www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2017/03/21/aldi-follows-walmart-barcodes-and-the-productivity-of-shopping/

I like that they are doing away with 5p plastic bags too.

I cannot Aldi, it's a most uninspiring place to shop.
Very annoying too the way they put the stock out in groups rather than individually, I can guarantee the variety I want will be the one that's missing.
The fruit, veg and meat varies in quality vastly, I bought some apples in the super six thing that the kids loved, bought three more packs of the same variety that were declared disgusting- woolly, sour and full of bruises.
One lovely free range chicken, two subsequent ones were tough as old boots.
Staff are incredibly unhelpful, I left some thermals that I'd paid for at the till. Went in and spoke to cashier she just said "I've not seen any"- end of conversation.
DH left some steak in Morrisons, Customer Service Assistant went to the butcher counter and got DH two fillet steaks.

Second best thing about Aldi (after the prices) is how quick it is to get round. No more trekking through an aircraft hangar dithering over 17 different types of cous cous.

I'm not close to one but recently went to a party where the cheese and crackers were all Aldi. The crackers especially impressed me, proper gourmet stuff. Seasalt was one, rosemary another. I might have to make a special trip just for those.

How rude are some people on here? @LRDtheFeministDragon especially. What does your comment even mean?! Are we to gather from it that you're a bit skint and jealous if anyone who shops at Waitrose? Assumptions eh?

OP - I don't like Aldi much as just can't do a proper shop in there. Having said that, the cheddar is good, the goats cheese, the brioche, and the Graze type snacks - I can't think of anything else I like.

I split between Sainsbury's and Waitrose and probably spend £600 a month, I didn't notice huge savings at Aldi really but only because I just couldn't find what I wanted.

I have sensitive skin & find all Aldi's 'sensitive' products fine - washing powder, fragrance-free soap etc. They don't do tons of organic but their organic Kavanagh oats are lovely. They say the palm oil they use is from a sustainable source & their peppered oatcakes using it are nice. I buy lots of simple store cupboard stuff - passata, gnocchi, parmesan, mustards, dried herbs, coconut milk, cans of beans, quinoa - and think it's all good & save quite a bit on it. Frozen fish, peas, whole beans & spinach. Their big tubs of real Greek yogurt are lovely, as are their West Country flavoured ones. Their Canadian maple syrup & organic coconut oil are both bargains.

Oh, and look at stuff like plasters and painkillers too - 29p for paracetamol.

I love aldi and my local one is really good though it seems they can vary in terms of range of items in stock and quality of fresh fruit and veg. The fact that yours is new and large (and possibly competing with a nearby waitrose?) suggests it should be well supplied!

It's definitely worth trying the aldi version of whatever you normally buy. You may find you don't like some items but that's possible whenever you change brands no matter what supermarket you shop in and doesn't mean you won't like anything.

We find their laundry detergent good though it's not as scented as the more expensive brands. I personally wouldn't pay double for stronger scent though! Their household cleaning stuff is all pretty good in my experience and their magnum original washing up liquid and the dishwasher tabs are better than some of the well known brands..

We don't eat meat but family and colleagues have commented positively. Their fish cakes are lovely, much nicer than I've had from other supermarkets (I cba to make them). Their fresh food items such as prepared salads, stir fry, deli items, desserts etc are good. Yes, it's cheaper still to make your own from scratch but if you don't want to then they're much more affordable and as good as you'd buy elsewhere .

We also like their fresh juices, smoothies, yogurts, deli items, crackers, some breads, sushi, the occasional readymeal item for lunch for work. Their biscuits and chocolate are nice and they have some convenient frozen stuff - grain based, cauliflower rice as well as the usual frozen veg/meat/fish/pizza/ice cream. Any tinned stuff such as kidney beans, chickpeas, butter beans, corn, tuna etc have been fine.

I can't get everything I want there so still need to do a top up elsewhere but I think that's a small price to pay given what we do buy in aldi is @ a third cheaper.

I thought it was just me being sensitive Bat .

Anyway, thanks for all the tips. I did actually stock up on paracetamol and ibuprofen today. And the yogurts sound good. I saw the Greek yoghurt but already have some Fage in the fridge. Good to know it's a decent alternative though. Also got bin bags today, a couple of the West Country yoghurts, some tinned tomatoes.

I'm an Aldi 'big shop' fan but I'll top up from Waitrose or Morrisons as I don't like the Aldi dishwasher tabs or kitchen cleaners (also we like certain branded goods e.g Robinson's, Hellmanns etc) however I've switched to the Aldi Lacura caviar face creams (£7 instead of my previous creams that were approx. £30) and Aldi has fab charcuterie, cheese, and wines for far less than Waitrose. The steaks are also great. If you cook from scratch rather than relying on prepackaged meals, Aldi is brilliant.

I went for the first time last weekend. I was looking for the Jo Malone dupe candles but none in stock. I’ve ordered some online as I really want to try them although I know they’ve got mixed reviews.
I tried their maple syrup having read good things and it’s really lovely (it’s the real deal,100% maple syrup). About £2 cheaper than Waitrose equivalent

There is only two adults now at home ( empty nest syndrome) but shopping is now down to about £200 a month at ALDI. I strictly meal plan - for the whole month at once. It took a time to get used to it. We eat well... DH is a hungry Horace even though he is a skinny chap.
We love
In the chiller
Beef and red wine pies
Chicken ham hock and Chardonnay pies
Goats cheese pasta lasagna rivollo? Thing
Aberdeen Angus beef ravioli

Rosemary crackers for cheese
All cheeses
All hams
Mayo
Ketchup
All breads
Ground coffee
Basics - rice pasta etc

Tbh apart from baked beans ( we like Heinz) I get everything from ALDI now they have got Worcester sauce and risotto rice .

God, how could I have forgotten the chocolate? That is pretty much all fantastic. Worth trying a few. I also use the caviar extract moisturiser which is supposed to compare quite well with La Prairie & it's good.

I spend under £200 a month on food on aldi and Lidl.

Kids like the aldi own pepperami more than the branded. As do I.

Frozen fruit for smoothies like mango and such is cheaper in aldi than Lidl and the bags reseal.

The no disinfectant annoys me every time - even a standard pine one would be acceptable!

Almat washing powder smells lush.

I'll get bits and bobs from Aldi and Lidl but struggle with a full shop. The Danpak butter is as good as Lurpak but half the price. I find the fruit terrible so I don't bother from there. I think it's more the lack of choice, which obviously reflects in a good way pricing but there's just really not enough options. When we went to Germany two years ago the Lidl along from our hotel was far superior. Alcohol was for next to nothing, and the selection just seemed far better than the UK. Not that surprising as it's a German company though. I just think people get a bit excited with the pricing here when Tesco and Morrisons offer more choice for similar value.

The egg custards are yummy! I haven’t had time to look properly but the Christmas food looks delicious. There are some very nice hams & cheeses. Fruit & veg does seem to be a bit hit & miss

Definitely not worth it for fruit and veg tiger, air miles alone and then nothing lasts or tastes that fresh. We're lucky to have a cracking local grocer or failing that I pay the extra at M&S as it lasts and we never chuck it. I'd also look at your local butchers OP, we get a meat pack for £10-25 to freeze for slow cooker and it's all locally sourced. It can be a bit of a pain rather than a 'one stop shop. But if you're looking to save whilst not cutting quality it's a good option to split trips to supermarket/local small suppliers.

The xmas puddings are really good this year, Tigercub. Absolutely no way we were waiting til xmas day. And so is the apple stollen, though I can't get over the wonder of the Lidl poppyseed stollen from the other year.
The big custardy continental tarts are fab, too. All that stuff plays to their strengths.

Do you have a Home Bargain or B&M nearby? They can be fantastic for branded cleaning products (inc. Zoflora!) and the Nicky loo roll is excellent.

We do shopping at both Aldi and Waitrose.
At Aldi I like their single origin chocolate (no palm oil !), cheeses, chicken, fruit &oat butter biscuits, vanilla ice cream ( the expensive one), potatoes, shallots, bagged salads, apples, grapes, carrots, tomatoes. We also buy milk, eggs, bin bags, caster sugar, some baking stuff. Pizza and garlic bread were ok. I do agree that the quality of fruit and vegetables are not consistent. The flavoured tea is interesting, very strong flavour. I didn’t like their fake Baileys, too sweet for me but their florentines are great!!! We bought their panettone last year - delicious.
For some reason I too prefer basmati rice from Waitrose.

I dont mind aldi. Cleaning stuff in great and its the only place i can get Jaffa Cakes.
Tbe pasta is bland and the cheese is an oil slick when melted.

Also the lemonade is very good (not so much the rola cola). A six pack of 2lt's is nigh on the same as a bottle of branded coke. I got some bedding plants that took well in the summer and a few fruit bushes that are coming along okay, veg seeds for the allotment were 90% germination and cheap as chips this summer too. The Lidl hortus botanicals gin is very nice and Aldi prosecco is decent and cheap.

Well, the carrots in the third bin along are excellent, but I find sometimes the turnips are contaminated by peasant-hands from all the poor people who've touched them before you*

What a completely unnecessary comment LRD

We spend about 1k a month too, it’s got nothing to do with class, snobbery or eating caviar. Probably more like bad planning and time management in my case.

Highly recommend Aldi steak. Excellent, far better than waitrose. Don't know about their other meats.