To think that Aldi isn’t the answer to everything?

[ShirleyPhallus]

On pretty much every thread here to do with food and drink within about 2 posts someone pops up with “I get mine from Aldi and it’s amazing”. On literally every thread like this it’s praised like it’s the best thing ever. See also Lidl.

Anyway, I went to an Aldi this week on the back of all the MN love and it’s just a cheap supermarket. Not the answer to my prayers. Am I missing something? Am I being unreasonable? (Answer is no fyi)

@TheHoptimist

the answer is 42

why isn't their a like button

Wasn’t it Aldi this year that sold lots of off turkeys?

My dad swears by Aldi but iv never found much worth buying The chocolate is good and salmon but the fruit and veg are rubbish and the eggs tasteless..

Used to love Aldi. I found they changed a lot of product recipes/ingredients over the last few years. Quality has gone down and prices gone up so rarely shop there now.
Most of the supermarkets more or less the same now, for me at least.

I'm a shop tart. I use Aldi, Lidl and Iceland. Now and again I throw Asda into the mix to keep them on their toes.

Got nice xmas wine biscuits. Fruit awful rotten quickly. Good prices yes. Wouldnt do full week shop there but I do get odd few things. Hand soap lovely rhubarb one

For those whose fruit goes off quickly, use the vinegar bath method. I use it for all berry fruits no matter where I buy them and they last for ages in the fridge. Gets rid of bacteria that cause the "fur" lol.

Fill a bowl with cold water, add a teaspoon or two of white vinegar. Steep berries in this for at least ten minutes, then rinse and drain with a sieve/colander and place in one layer on kitchen paper to dry off a bit. Better than throwing it out! You do NOT taste the vinegar at all BTW.

And because it's Saturday night, enjoy this hilarious song about Lidl and Aldi. I was in Listowel in Ireland in this bar a few years ago and had the most enjoyable night. I hope you can understand the accent!

@Peaseblossum22

Wasn’t it Aldi this year that sold lots of off turkeys?

No that was a supplier issue that hit the other supermarkets too- Sainsbury’s and Tesco’s were named too

@Peaseblossum22

I'm not a fan either , whenever I go I come out with a bar of chocolate and some jam and thats about it except maybe something random from the middle aisle. I honestly don't know how people manage to do a whole shop there or do you just adjust your menus to what they have in stock?

Err... They sell standard food there...

Bread, Beans, Fruits... veggies, herbs, rice.pasta.noodles.meat, sausages, bacon, smoked salmon, ready meals, cereals... salads, fish, frozen food, tinned food, pickles, sauces, pies, chips, humus, salsa, fish fingers, cheese, yoghurt, eggs, milks, chocolate, porridge, cleaning products milk, cream, jam, butter, medicines, nappies, toiletries, fizzy drinks, squash, wine, beer....

What is in YOUR menu that isn't covered by the stuff they sell??

I explained earlier some of the things I couldn’t get on a recent visit . Plus their allergy information is poor so if you have anyone in your family with nut or other allergies then other supermarkets have better labelling .I also think that a lot of their produce has added sugars and thickeners .

It’s our go to store, the only thing we can’t get on with is own brand toothpaste, otherwise it’s just food like any of the others and we will eat absolutely anything

I'm a supermarket slut, I get about a bit , and have plenty of supermarkets in travelling range so feel qualified to comment here.
I live roughly half way between relatively new and fair sized Aldi and Lidl, both are ok and have some good stuff but the fruit and veg at both goes off far quicker than other places despite looking good. I have also had meat that has shrunk to almost nothing when cooked from both so I tend to use them for cupboard and freezer stuff. Their cakes, sweets and chocolates rarely taste as good as I hope they will.
I also find anything I save I often fritter in the middle aisles
Asda and Tesco are cheaper than Sainsburys which I find has a smaller range of products
Booths and Waitrose are dearer. I prefer Waitrose myself and could spend a fortune as they have so much lovely stuff.
Cheapest of all here is Food Warehouse (it's like Iceland but bigger) but most of their stuff is processed and frozen

There are a few things that are worthwhile from both but not enough to make it worth a visit if I am not going in that direction anyway. My DP uses Aldi quite a lot but I rarely like the stuff he gets. Even if it was all decent there is so limited choice that I wouldn't be able to get everything I need without doing a top up shop in Sainsburys. We have a big Aldi and also a big Lidl within 5 miles but there just isn't a big enough range of products in them.

I think, as other posters have said , that the quality varies between stores. In addition, i think personal circumstances come into it a bit. When I was working, I either wanted to be able to do my entire shop online and have it delivered or to be able to dash in and get everything I needed in one visit. Aldi and Lidl are no good for that, although Aldi does have click and collect. Now I am retired and have more time, I shop mostly in Lidl and pop over to the Sainsburys next door for things I can't get in Lidl. Its certainly cheaper that way. I also think it takes a while to figure out what you do like and what you don't. For example, I am not a fan of Lidl's cheddar - now I know that it always goes on the Sainsbury's list. If you're busy working or busy with a Young family you don't have time for that though.

I am with you OP.

Aldi fruit and veg are rubbish. They may be cheap but I have never bought perishables that go off so quickly. Bread is the cheapest, nastiest type available.

The knockoff products are just inferior imo.

Finally - having my groceries flung at me at the checkout is more than I can bear. I have had some terrible back issues and going to Aldi was a nightmare - trying to repack the trolley at comedic speeds is not fun.

Well of course it's just a cheap supermarket- that's the whole point. Whenever you compare a supermarket with other ones, there are going to be some products you like better, some you don't like as much and lots which you like the same. So Aldi has some fab stuff, some crap stuff, and everything else is just... normal, like in any other shop. The difference is, Aldi saves me about £30 a week compared with the others.

I'm a decent cook and there aren't that many ingredients I regularly use that I can't buy there. But in any case, some weeks I pop next door to lovely Booths to get the few bits and bobs I prefer from there or can't get in Aldi.

Personally I think Aldi is great/has fantastic products. I save approx. £40 a week = £2k a year.

YANBU, I don’t get all the Aldi and Lidl love at all.

I do all my shopping between Asda and Tesco and I find it similar value to the Aldi and Lidl.

If I ever drive past (they’re on the opposite side of town), I’ll pop in and see what’s on offer but invariably I just come away with Greek yoghurt.

I tend to pop in for a few bits but agree fruit/veg is generally rubbish, I don't like the meat either.

I used to do a split shop between Aldi/Sains (on the same shopping sq in my suburb) but since Sains have reduced a lot of prices to match them (or get close) I do the majority of shopping in Sains now.

I hope I’m not a snob and keep visiting both Aldi and Liddl after doing my regular shop in another supermarket, but there is nothing appealing in them for me. I look for something unusual , something I wouldn’t find in my regular supermarket
The choices are limited in both
Nothing inspires me there

I would love to be able to shop in Aldi or Lidl, but him either of my local ones does any gluten free stuff.

I’m time poor and if I can only shop for 3 of the 4 people in the household then there’s no point, so I go elsewhere where I know they have GF options.

I've been tracking my grocery expenditure for 15 months or so and I can tell you I save loads of money shopping at aldi & lidl. If I only shop there for my main shops I spend £100-£160 pcm less than if I do some shops at Tesco or Morrison's

Am I being unreasonable? (Answer is no fyi)

Our Aldi is very good, the fruit & veg is very fresh and much better than our Tesco’s equivalent. I can normally get 95% of my list in there, better than Waitrose which seems to be all gold-plated apples, mince, and weird ready made things. We’re not on a budget but in our area Aldi is the best for fresh stuff (meat from the butcher) and house items. I can do my big weekly shop in 30 mins which is a massive added bonus.

@knitnerd90 I don’t think that can be right - I thought TJ’s was supposed to be really good, more akin to Waitrose, and having lived in an Aldi Nord area of Germany I can assure you it’s crap, much worse than Aldi Süd and U.K. Aldi. Moving within Germany to the Aldi Süd area was a huge relief 😂

@Bagelsandbrie

Chocolate is the answer to everything.

their dark chocolate is very good