[cebmom97]

We have an Aldis about 45 minutes away that I have never been to and I was wondering if the savings would be worth the drive? The only grocery stores that we have closer by are wal mart, krogers and sav a lot. Thanks!

 

[MamaWindmill]

Aldi has some good and some not-so-good qualities, IMO. Most of their products are very cheap, and can be significantly cheaper than the average grocery store and most Walmart prices - but not all. Some of their products are comparable in price to other places. Some of their store brands are good, and some are not good at all - for example, I found their Aldi brand cereal to be very poor quality. I have an Aldi about an hour away, and I have determined that it's a good place to stock up on certain staples - flour, sugar, cream of whatever soup etc - but for us, it's not for monthly shopping. So anyway, it's definitely worth checking out, and your mileage may vary! <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/orngbiggrin.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="orange big grin">

 

[kittywitty]

I used to shop at Aldis. I thought the cereal was good, but I would stay clear of the meat and maybe dairy.

 

[KariM]

Our Aldis has great prices on some produce. I don't buy their canned/packaged foods because we try to cook from scratch.<br><br>
For our family I wouldn't drive 45 minutes to shop it, but I'll occasionally pop in if we're already in that part of town.

 

[Tilia]

I shop at Aldi every once in a while. I don't buy any processed or canned food from there. If you like off-brand, then you might like Aldi. I found that it was just about the same price as the off-brand at a regular grocery store. And like pp said, sometimes the quality isn't as good.<br><br>
Sometimes I get good deals on cheese or meat.<br><br>
I did buy a cool stainless steel stock pot with steamer. Its great! I have also found some nice white serving dishes there too.

 

[2 in August]

I love our Aldi's. You have to sometimes watch their produce, but when it is fresh it is a great deal. For example, avocados are on sale for $1 at Meijer, Aldis price is $.78. English cucumbers are about half price. We are in MI so until warmer weather we have to get fresh food at a store. They do have lots of processed food. So if you don't eat that it might not be worth it. I'd say go once (they have a flier as soon as you walk in the door that lists all the items and prices that you can take home) and see what you think.

 

[Daisie125]

I shop three places (four in the summer)<br>
Aldi<br>
SaveALot<br>
Meijer/Kroger<br>
Farmers Market (summer)<br><br>
In that order. I get what I can at each of the stores. Aldi has some wonderful prices and you just cannot get some of the produce they carry any cheaper.<br><br>
That said, I don't know that I would drive 45 minutes. There prices aren't THAT much cheaper than SaveALot to justify the gas money.

 

[Leylla]

We don't have one, but I went to one in Ohio when visiting.<br><br>
I was kind of amazed that you had to put a quarter deposit for a buggy. Once you bring it back the clip on the buggy gives you your quarter back though. But this was totally bizarre to me!<br><br>
They also have the buy our bags or bring your own policy, which I've never seen before. Our local save-a-lot doesn't even do this.<br><br>
I find that save-a-lot/Aldis (pretty much the same to me) are better deals on canned goods and SOME frozen foods. For instance, their mixed sliced peppers for 99 cents is a good deal b/c it'd cost me more to buy 3 individual peppers to get the slices. However the 99c lb of broccoli isn't a great deal b/c I can get that cheaper elsewear.<br><br>
Steph

 

[Dar]

We go occasionally and stock up. If you can combine it with another trip to somewhere else near there, it could be worth it. We get breakfast cereal, chocolate chips, cream cheese, walnuts, and a few other things, plus produce sometimes. I love their Asian Curry Sauce, which they only have periodically.<br><br>
Dar

 

[cebmom97]

It sounds alot like sav a lot to me. We live rural so to get to any store is around 30 min. so I may check it out and see if I like it. You have to bring your own bags?

 

[Tilia]

Yep, its like a European store. You bring your own bags or boxes to pack your groceries. You also have to deposit a quarter into the cart to use it. If you bring it back, you get your quarter back.<br><br>
In Europe, it costs 1 Euro to rent a cart, which is about $1.30. If you want a flat cart to pick up cases/furniture, its 5 Euros. The Aldi in Germany is about the same as ours, except it had a nicer selection of candy.

 

[catholicmama]

I think it is totally worth it. We had been shopping at Aldi's for a few years and then for some reason stopped. I went on Sat. for the first time since Dec. and I realized I am definitely spending less there than at Walmart(where I had been shopping). I really made an effort to buy healthy stuff, and their healthy choices have grown a lot over the years. And the produce prices are AWESOME but definitely hit or miss sometimes on what I can get there. I wanted bananas and avocados but they were out on Sat. But the prices on their apples and strawberries were amazing. Plus they used to only have frozen meat at our stores but now have a fresh meat department where I buy ground turkey. I would at least go check it out!

 

[BetsyS]

I like Aldi's. As with anywhere, it isn't for everything, but they do have good prices.<br><br>
I buy sugar, canola oil, cherries (an odd staple in my house! LOL), bottled lemon juice (another staple, for canning tomatoes in summer), candy, wine (suprisingly good for $3 a bottle), dairy (they don't have organic, but what they have is very, very good for non-organic), including butter, heavy cream, cheese, cream cheese, buttermilk, and occasionally some fancy cheese, like gouda or something. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/lol.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="lol"> They have frozen green beans, called "fancy" or something that I swear are the same as Trader Joe's haricot verts. Frozen berries, although these have recently gone up in price. We like their artichoke hearts in a jar, their olives, and their saltines. I don't buy cold cereal, but will occasionally buy their mueslix, which is very good. Their ketchup and mustard are good.<br><br>
This week is "mexican" week, so they have garbanzos and black beans for 39 cents a can. While dried are my most often used staple, I do like canned for some things. I'll buy a case of each, since they usually only have these 1-2x a year. Same with Rotel type tomatoes. A can is 45 cents, versus over 80 anywhere else.<br><br>
The only things I haven't liked at Aldi's were oyster crackers. They tasted like eating a box. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/lol.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="lol"><br><br>
For us, Aldi's is as cheap or cheaper than WalMart prices. I can do better sometimes with sales and/or coupons at regular stores. But, I love the small store, very fast, very efficient cashiers, taking your own bags (forcing me to do my part <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/redface.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="Embarrassment"> ), and the 25 cents for a buggy. (I like the quarter part, cause I can usually convince a little kid to take my buggy back for me, in return for the quarter, and then I don't have to drag the baby across the parking lot to return it <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/lol.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="lol"> )

 

[talk de jour]

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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>BetsyS</strong> <a href="/community/forum/post/7926281"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/community/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">dairy (they don't have organic, but what they have is very, very good for non-organic)</div>
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Well, they have organic <i>soy</i>milk... <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/wink1.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="wink1">

 

[velochic]

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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>Leylla</strong> <a href="/community/forum/post/7925121"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/community/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">We don't have one, but I went to one in Ohio when visiting.<br><br>
I was kind of amazed that you had to put a quarter deposit for a buggy. Once you bring it back the clip on the buggy gives you your quarter back though. But this was totally bizarre to me!</div>
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This is how they do it in Germany. Except it's a Euro there (about $1.30). It's to ensure that you bring the cart back. It's a GREAT system.<br><br>
We like Aldi because we used to live in Germany (dh did a sabbatical there and worked 3 years at their technical university in Munich). They actually have a few items that are authentic to Germany. But the Aldi here in the US is *totally* different than the Aldi in Germany (in regards to products).<br><br>
Otherwise, I stock up my emergency preparedness pantry from Aldi in the form of canned and dried food. I have about 3 months worth of emergency food that we have bought over time from there. I keep a detailed list with expiry dates and if something is within a few months of expiry, I'll donate the food to a food bank and replenish it from Aldi. For the day-to-day stuff, we like their salad mix, baking stuff, taco shells, their frozen vegetables, *the coffee* (oh, just like the german roast coffee we loved in Germany), and some of their fresh produce. I often find German foods there, too. The nice thing is that they have things you can always find there, and some occasional surprises, too.

 

[Sharlla]

I buy produce there (we have one 2 mins away), great price on that but not interested in anything else they have. IMO not worth 45 minute drive. Oh bring your own bags and a quarter for the shopping cart (I have a large wicker basket that I take in with me)

 

[cilantromapuche]

I don't think that it is worth an hour's drive. I like it for pretzels, tortillas, etc. but the savings isn't significant when you are spending so much in gas. You could go once a year and stock up.

 

[birthjunkie27]

If you have a Walmart that is closer and you aren't anti Walmart, I'd shop there instead of making that drive.<br><br>
I made a price list of items that we bought at Aldi and then went and compared prices on the same items at Walmart and the savings was minimal, if at all. Some things were even cheaper at Walmart. And things like flour and sugar were the SAME price, down to the penny. There are things that are cheaper at Aldi, but we still have to go to Walmart for certain items such as rice milk.<br><br>
I'm SO happy though, because we are having an Aldi opening up right in our town (less than 5 min. drive) in May vs. having to drive to the next town over, 20 min. away.<br><br>
I think another advantage to shopping at Aldi is that you aren't tempted by the mulititudes of STUFF that Walmart has. Aldi is nice and small and to the point.

 

[polyhymnia]

Anyone know - is it the same as Aldi's in the UK? I found the Aldi's in Scotland to be a good deal when they had what I wanted in stock but the stock was variable.<br><br>
Also the coin deposit for a cart is what they do in the UK, it's really handy, you use a 1 pound coin. A lot of people have "fake coins" that they keep on their keychain that are the right size to use as their deposit so you always have a coin on hand <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/smile.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="smile">

 

[cappuccinosmom]

For our situation, it's worth it. Our options are Giant Eagle, Aldis, and a "Community Grocery". G.E. prices are just outrageous, even if I could figure out couponing. The Community store has a few good deals every week, but not on everything I need. Aldis has consistently low prices and we don't mind the food. Ours at least generally has good produce, as well as the basics.