Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Original poster

I know that Mumsnetters tend to hate Aldi...

92 replies

CurlewKate · 07/09/2023 07:38

....for reasons that escape me. But PSA-the macarons are absolutely delicious. Better than the super posh ones I've had.

I may have just had the last raspberry one for breakfast.

OP posts:
lightinthebox · 07/09/2023 07:45

I love Aldi, will give those a try. Their cola is great too.

There are posters who complain about quality and one who weirdly complains about stuff being greasy.

Wellhellother · 07/09/2023 07:49

I did a small shop in Aldi yesterday for the first time in probably a year. The shelves were bare and what they did have in the fruit/veg/salad area was not fresh - a lot of it was soft and mushy

jollygreenpea · 07/09/2023 07:49

I love Aldi, I don't like macarons, but love a lot of their versions of things better than the more expensive brands.

Beaverbridge · 07/09/2023 07:51

Aldis diet cola with lime only 55p. Love it!.

Ifailed · 07/09/2023 07:53

Aldi is like all the other supermarket chains, some of their stuff is great (value and quality), some of it's average and some of it's crap.
There's really nothing special about it now.

DappledThings · 07/09/2023 08:00

Never seen any Aldi hate in here. Is there a MN anti-Aldi vibe?

JeminasPuddle · 07/09/2023 08:02

Well I am a MNetter and I love Aldi, never had the issues that people seem to have on here. Thank you for the recommendation. I will have a look when I am back in.

pickledandpuzzled · 07/09/2023 08:16

I generally like Aldi and Lidl, but go for specific things rather than a general shop.

Yesterday I realised Aldi doesn't do a lot of things I get elsewhere- dried pulses, chi seeds and various other slightly random stuff. It felt much more limited than it used to.

Every section seemed small. Except maybe meat- there was a lot of meat. Very odd.

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 07/09/2023 08:19

I love aldi- I don’t understand the venom towards their stuff- also they are significantly cheaper than the other supermarkets (baring Lidl)

Stroopwaffels · 07/09/2023 08:19

Haven't tried their cola - must give it a go. I have seen a lot of posters say that stuff goes off before you even get it home which isn't something i've come across either.

TerfTalking · 07/09/2023 08:23

I don’t have any brand loyalty, there is nothing better than changing supermarkets every week if you can afford it so you can buy the best that each has to offer.

I don’t mind Aldi, their large battered fish in the freezer are exceptional and their continental products but their toiletries and laundry stuff is shite and the cat won’t eat their food.

All supermarkets have good stuff and not so good.

I don’t see hate for Aldi on MN.

smilesup · 07/09/2023 08:23

My two favourite things about Aldi are the fact it cuts our shopping bill by about 20% from Tesco. And it's small so I can get there, shop for the week, and get home in about 25 minutes.

Resisterance · 07/09/2023 08:24

I love Aldi!

I think quality is pretty good on the whole though I wouldn't buy meat from there but it's my main supermarket so I buy everything else pretty much.

I love the randomness of it ( i bought a wooden toilet seat there the other day when popping in to buy cat food) but I actually think some of the stuff is really good.. the speciality cheeses are great, artisan beer, the wine, olive oil etc.

It's good to supplement it with stuff from elsewhere but I'm very happy with it and it's so much cheaper than elsewhere.

00100001 · 07/09/2023 08:28

We do 98% of our shopping at Aldi. Never had the reported issues of dodgy veg etc.

Only things we tend to buy from Tesco are the slightly more hard to find things, or stuff they just don't do, like nutritional yeast, branded snackajacks, gluten free bread etc

Winteriscoming12 · 07/09/2023 08:28

I like Aldi and think their aisle of randomness is better than Lidl's (school uniform-wise, the quality is far higher). However for fresh food, I prefer Lidl. Their meat is good, plenty of fruit and veg and a bakery, which is great.

Also, the Lidls round us feel cleaner and tidier somehow. May just be location specific though.

ssd · 07/09/2023 08:30

I dont see much aldi hate on mn, i feel its more people saying how much they love it when they can afford to dip in and out as it suits them.

ShirleyPhallus · 07/09/2023 08:31

MN loves Aldi. It’s somehow woven in to any thread as the answer to anything.

OP: “can anyone give me some advice, I’ve been bitten by a shark and lost my arm?”
MN: “have you tried shopping in aldi?”

Surely2023IsTheYearForMyRainbowBaby · 07/09/2023 08:37

I like Aldi. I think out of all the fruit and veg I've had. Only 2 things went mouldy still in date. The biggest thing that lets it down for me is the lack of gluten free stuff. They have a whole fridge section full of vegan shite but nothing for those of us who can't eat wheat or gluten. I don't mind cooking from scratch but some days all I want to do is shove a pizza or gluten free fish and chips in the oven. I think all but 2 bags of chips in our store is coated in bloody flour.

jellytots18 · 07/09/2023 08:38

I like Aldi, agree their Diet Coke with lime is great.

The frozen pizzas are fab
And their chocolate waffles

And the sweets and chocolate (I do eat healthy things as well I swear 😂)

I like that it's small, can be in and out in 20 mins. I meal plan and every week there is always at least one ingredient I can't get in there though and have to go to Tesco for

BarbaraofSeville · 07/09/2023 08:41

There is a lot of Aldi hate. All the fruit and veg is rotten apparently and because they don't sell <insert name of niche ingredient that they couldn't possibly live without> it renders the entire supermarket useless.

I've been shopping there since well before it was socially acceptable and have never had any problems with the fruit and veg, and the savings make it worth the slight inconvenience of sometimes having to go to a different shop to get the odd thing.

But like a PP, I shop around anyway, so it would just go on the list to be picked up in the next shop. We cherry pick according to preference and best value from a wide variety of shops and stock up on non perishables and generally do a couple of medium sized shops a week instead of a big weekly shop of a standard list no matter what the cost, and a mid week top up of fruit, bread, milk, salad etc

BIossomtoes · 07/09/2023 08:44

I think their toiletries, cleaning and laundry products are the opposite of “shite”. I rarely buy those things anywhere else.

BarbaraofSeville · 07/09/2023 08:45

Surely2023IsTheYearForMyRainbowBaby · 07/09/2023 08:37

I like Aldi. I think out of all the fruit and veg I've had. Only 2 things went mouldy still in date. The biggest thing that lets it down for me is the lack of gluten free stuff. They have a whole fridge section full of vegan shite but nothing for those of us who can't eat wheat or gluten. I don't mind cooking from scratch but some days all I want to do is shove a pizza or gluten free fish and chips in the oven. I think all but 2 bags of chips in our store is coated in bloody flour.

Just to be clear, I didn't mean gluten free, and it's surprising that Aldi don't do GF pizza, because their range has expanded massively over the last few years, so the list of things they don't sell is ever shortening.

But in that case, every so often, I'd get those things elsewhere and keep a stock the freezer, if Aldi was otherwise the supermarket of choice.

Carpediem15 · 07/09/2023 08:47

I have been buying Chia seeds from Aldi for months. 200gms for £1.39.
https://groceries.aldi.co.uk/en-GB/food-cupboard/seeds-nuts-dried-fruits/nuts-seeds

Clefable · 07/09/2023 08:48

I love Aldi. I fully admit that up until about two months ago I was snobby about it. But then our local one started offering click and collect so out of curiosity I did it one week. We saved £20+ on a shop and have been there every week since. The only thing I've found I didn't like was their cheese Doritos dupe as it had a weird aftertaste. Otherwise everything is great, including the laundry stuff, dishwasher tablets, nappies. We are saving over £100 a month from what we were spending at Asda/Tesco.

I am a convert!

Bluevelvetsofa · 07/09/2023 08:49

It really must depend on area and management I think. Our Aldi is a new one with wide aisles and is generally pretty good. Lidl is also fairly new, but feels grubby. I think management is poor and that transfers to everything in the store.

It’s fine for basics and some of their speciality stuff. DH likes the beer, the Fevertree dupe tonics are good and the macarons are a third of the price of Waitrose or M&S. Some of the ready meals are as good as Charlie Bighams and half the price.

Of course the range isn’t as extensive, but for a main shop, with top ups at another supermarket, it’s fine.