Do you shop Aldi's?

[LuxLiving]

It is to me - I generally go once every month or so and at about that distance - and stock up.

[mom-from-missouri]

I do. I combine it with another trip I take monthly. But, that trip I only make August thru March. After that I have to drive about 45 miles 1 way to get there. But, when I go, I spend about 200 or more. It fills up the suburban-about 3-5 carts full. I get stuff I can't buy locally (frozen whole chickens-all the ones here are fresh and run around $8-$10 each), I also get frozen dinners for about 88 cents each (kids lunchs-often can't pack them one for that), powered milk, all my baking ingredents, frozen juice, spices, canned goods by the case...stock up items. When I buy that much, it more than pays for my trip.

[Coleroo]

I love aldi's for buying what i consider "staples" - dry milk (best price around our city! 20 quarts for about 6 bucks), canned goods (33 to 43 cent a can), chicken quarters, great tasting shreaded cheese, yogurt cups (33c), baking goods... Im not a picky eater so generic stuff tastes as good as anything else to me (cept for rice krispees! dont mess with my cereal! ) I can go into aldi's and load a buggy full for less than 45 bucks. I did my shopping at Bi Lo the other night because i never had been in there to shop for myself - and i got sick looking at all the canned food "on sale" for 70...80..90 cent a can! I didnt buy not one canned item in BiLo.. i'd rather wait till i can get it at aldis!

[ozzy gurl]

I had never heard of Aldi before, but I just looked it up...so it's kind of like the German Ikea, except with more food! There aren't any close by, unfortunately.

[LuxLiving]

Ozzy gurl - try looking for a Save-A-Lot grocery instead, they are very similar.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by ozzy gurl

it's kind of like the German Ikea, except with more food! There aren't any close by, unfortunately.

Ikea is a furniture store. Aldi's is a grocery store. Not really much similarity there other than them both being foreign companies.

[fairy74]

I wish I could, but they have not chosen to grace the great state of California with their presence yet, grrr~!

[skinnybudget]

Our Aldi's produce section is...very lacking. I don't think it's a good one stop shop for us so I don't go very frequently, maybe once every 4-6 months. I find that the sale prices at the regular grocery store are the same, if not better so I don't drive all the way out to Aldi much. Maybe if it was closer I would go more often though.

[ozzy gurl]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

Ikea is a furniture store. Aldi's is a grocery store. Not really much similarity there other than them both being foreign companies.

Sorry...when I visited their website, they showcased furniture, with the food being a separate link.

Plus, Ikea does have a limited 'pantry'.

[sparkysgirl]

we don't have a aldi's close by , but we hit save a lot once in a while when we need to stock up on canned goods and even produce. they have a marked down produce rack that I buy everything they have on it when I go and foodsave it. ohio's produce is riduculously priced.

[baking23]

Originally Posted by LuxLiving

Ozzy gurl - try looking for a Save-A-Lot grocery instead, they are very similar.

Save-a-lot's can be very good, I don't have any complaints about the one by me.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by ozzy gurl

Sorry...when I visited their website, they showcased furniture, with the food being a separate link.

My apologies. I just checked out their website and was very surprised to see furniture. I haven't been in a store for a while but I don't believe they carry furniture. Perhaps their foreign locations do.

[ozzy gurl]

Originally Posted by baking23

Save-a-lot's can be very good, I don't have any complaints about the one by me.

No Save-A-Lot's near me, either...I did find out there are a few Aldi's in Atlanta, but that's a two hour drive....yikes! I always love to learn about a new store, though.

[ozzy gurl]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

My apologies. I just checked out their website and was very surprised to see furniture. I haven't been in a store for a while but I don't believe they carry furniture. Perhaps their foreign locations do.

No worries! I thought at first y'all had lost your minds about it being a grocery store when I first visited the link, lol. It looks like a great place to shop, though.

[threebeansalad]

I worked in Germany for ~3 months. The German Aldi's are cheaper than regular German grocers, but the selection is better than in the US. Some have furniture and household goods, but what I really miss was the fresh mozarella balls for ~ $0.65 USD. A fresh mozarealla ball in the US costs ~$3.99. Then again, I also gained weight while I was in Germany....maybe it's for the best to back in the land of expensive cheese!!

[threebeansalad]

I'm going to be in the vicinity of an Aldi next week, so I re-visited this thread to get some suggestions of items to look for. I know one thing I'll be stocking up whe I shop there will be their delicious (and low priced) European chocolate! Yum!

I also thought I'd share this link of Aldi prices: MotherLoad: The MomAdvice.com Blog

I assume Aldi prices are consistent throughout the country.

[anonymous_saver]

Personally I hate Aldi's. I went there once to buy an elliptical machine that they had on an EXTREME sale. First of all, it creeped me out that you had to put in a deposit just to use the grocery cart, you got the quarter back, but it just felt weird. They also charged for grocery bags, again, I'm not sure if I am against it, it just felt weird to me.

Also, they wouldn't take VISA. Seriously, who doesn't take VISA cards? I had to use their dang ATM and was charged $1 for doing so just because I was unwilling to put the heavy box back in the aisle. I NEVER use ATM's and I was quite annoyed.

In addition, I am pretty picky with my food. I am a strict vegetarian and buy a lot of organic foods. Thus, Aldi was not quite up to par for me.

[shelbylovesmelby]

I have a friend who is also discouraged by the borrowing a cart practice & buy or bring your own bags thing.

Though if you think about it this way partially why they can keep their prices down is by having minimal staffing. So there's no one to be paid & pay insurance to so they can go catch carts or bag your groceries. No to no liablity if a cart hits a car.

The bag thing I'm sure plays into again keeping the prices down and encouraging use to be a lil "greener" by reusing what we have from other stores or to pay for the luxury of having a "new" bag that again is figured into the markup @ your reg grocer.

I suppose if I was a vegitarian or a lover of organic items then they would definatly be a place I would buy minimal items from.

[Quynne]

I have to say I LOVE Aldi's. Everything I tried is just as good as national brands and better than some generic. I can get a cart full for $100 or less while at Kroger 1/4 of a cart is $50.00. You can't get everything there...but what you can get is worth it. They now have Mott's apple juice and Special K cereal and other national brands for way less than in other grocery stores. With a family of five, I have found the savings worth it! Instead of spending $200 at Meijers or Kroger, I spend $120 going to Aldi and then stopping at Krogers.

[divinemsn]

I just discovered Aldi's a few months ago. I love them for staples. Plus now that I cleam primarily with vinegar and baking soda (which is super cheap at Aldi's) I have relly cut down on chemicals and expensive cleaners.