Something good from Germany, even though they banned poppies! (Aldi)

Member Name: lellagrace

Product:	Aldi
Date:	13/08/07 (427 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap prices, reasonable offers

Disadvantages: No well known brands

SUPERMARKET SNOB

Against my better judgement, I visited Aldi supermarket recently. I had passed Aldi many times but always thought it was a cheap supermarket that had low prices but also sold inferior products. Perhaps I am a supermarket snob, who only shops at the more major shops - at least that is what my friend said about me when I exclaimed "Aldi! You don't shop there do you!"

CARDBOARD BOXES

I have only been in Aldi once before and that was several years ago. It appeared like a warehouse, with all the goods in cardboard boxes and the checkout operators had to memorise the prices of everything. They didn't supply carrier bags, or at least not unless you paid for them. And who wants to advertise they shop at Aldi anyway?

REASON FOR GOING

The reason for us going to Aldi was because I had eaten some delicious cheese biscuits at my friend's house and asked where she had got them. "I will take you to get some" she told me, hence our trip to Aldi!

To say I was surprised was true! The cheese twists were really cheesy, crispy and better than any I had eaten before, so I really was amazed that they were from Aldi.

So off we went - I found the cheese twists - 69p a packet of 150g! "Gruyere Cheese twists" they are called, and they also have other varieties - salted or cheese and chives. I have not tried the others but I can vouch for the cheese ones. Forget the other more well known brands, these will do for me.

OTHER ITEMS

So what else did I buy? Well, they have a wide range of pasta sauces, mustards, oriental foods and my friend assured me these are just as nice as other well known brands. She informed me that the pesto we had eaten with our pasta for lunch was from Aldi, and I have to say it was very tasty.

They sell cakes - a delicious chocolate sponge sandwich for only 89p, a pack of very large bakewell tarts for less than a pound, not to mention a wide selection of other cakes and biscuits.

I am not keen on Aldi cereal - for breakfast my friend had offered me Aldi Benefit flakes. These tasted stale and dry with a bitter flavour, so I will not be buying any of those.

WINES

I was very impressed by the selection of wines available in Aldi, prices ranged from as low as 2.99 and they had a good selection of both old and new world wines.

FRESH FRUIT AND VEG

The fruit on offer was very cheap compared with other major supermarkets, a pineapple for just over a pound and melons for 50p! I was not so impressed with the quality of the vegetables though, some of them looked well past their best.

TINNED GOODS

Old ladies were stocking up their trolleys with tins of luncheon meat and corned beef. Not sure I would want to try any of these, if I have to eat tinned meat it has to be best quality and somehow at the prices Aldi charge I don't think it will be.

Tinned fruit was cheap though and again the old ladies were stocking up. I would check the sugar content though before buying tinned fruit of any kind.

FRESH/FROZEN

I did not take too much notice of the fresh and frozen meats etc as I had no intention of buying any, but judging by the number of people who were buying I would guess the quality is reasonable, and certainly cheap.

HOUSEHOLD

I found their household cleaning products, washing up liquid, toilet rolls etc to be very good value. I cannot see the sense in paying a fortune for things that are used for cleaning the house etc. I bought a packet of 40 dishwasher tablets for 2.99 which is a big saving on my usual brand and I am sure they will do the job just as well.

Sponge cleaning cloths, polish, disinfectants etc are all much cheaper than the well known brands and they have a good selection.

SPECIAL OFFERS

In the middle aisles of the store there were lots of special offers. These included tools, car accessories, children's books and some clothing. My eye caught an electric toothbrush - for only 6.99 and it had 8 heads. I was in two minds whether to buy it or not, but in the end decided not to.

CHECKOUT

There were lengthy queues at the checkout and unless you take your own shopping bags, you have to buy an Aldi carrier or take your trolley to the car and unload into the boot.

I found it quite annoying that there was no space at the checkout to pack my items and they had to be reloaded into the trolley. Fortunately I had only bought a couple of things so that was not much of a problem, but I can imagine it would be very awkward if you had a lot of stuff to pack.

A few yards away from the checkouts there are shelves where you can pack your goods into your own bags, but to me it is an inconvenience having to unload your godos onto the conveyor, then reload the trolley after they have been scanned then have to unload them again into the bags.

TROLLEYS

Aldi charge a one pound deposit for trolleys so if you are planning a visit make sure you have a pound coin, or take a wire basket instead of a trolley.

STORE LAYOUT

The store I visited was not very big and it was well laid out with everything easy to find. The aisles are quite wide and the general displays were much better than I remembered from years ago.

CONCLUSION

Although I know I will enjoy my cheesy twists, I am not sure I will return to Aldi more often, except maybe to see what they have on special offer or to buy household cleaners.

Aldi have a website www.aldi.com so check this out if you want to find out more information.

If reading this review has encouraged you to pay a visit to your local Aldi store, you might be surprised at the goods on offer and the savings to be made, but remember to take your own shopping bags.

SAVING GRACE

Refusing to supply plastic carrier bags is the saving grace of Aldi. At least they are doing their bit to help save our planet.

However, I have just remembered another reason I have only been there once before. Some time ago Aldi banned the British Legion from selling poppies on their premises on Rememberance Day. Aldi is a German owned company and that was the reason apparently. Banning the sale of poppies did not do Germany (or Aldi) any favours in helping rebuild good international relations, which they have worked so hard for since WW2.

Summary: Not sure I would shop here regularly