Run a business with my partner, designing, crafting and selling alternative clothing and accessories...
Run a business with my partner, designing, crafting and selling alternative clothing and accessories. You can check it out at www.freakclubwear.co.uk Vicky
Member since:06.12.2000
Reviews:41
Members who trust:52
Aldi sell very cheap food. However unless you are on a very tight budget I would advise you only use it in the following way to get the most out of it without compromising on taste.
What to buy
As a student I use Aldi to bring my overall food bill down. However I do not use it as my main supermarket. Most of the food at Aldi is not of the best quality and does not taste fantastic. However there are some items that taste just as good as higher priced items from other supermarkets. Unfortunately I cannot give you a run-down of items definately worth buying because everyone’s tastes are different. I will however give you a quick list according to my personal taste:
Worth getting: Baked beans, bread, cakes, biscuits, tinned fruits and vegetables, fresh fruits and vegetables, milk, pasta, pasta sauce, cereals, and fruit juice.
Ones to avoid: Chinese stir-fry sauce, deodorant, yogurts, and choc-ices.
Basically I would advise you buy one of any item you might be interested in buying from Aldi and leave it at that for your first trip. Then you can take these items home and see which you like. Then next time you can stock up on things you like, knowing you will not be left with 10 yogurts you can’t bring yourself to eat!
At this stage I would also advise you look at the products you are planning to buy and see if your main supermarket does these products in their economy range and compare the prices with Aldi’s. This is because many of the items at Aldi are similar in price to economy rages at Tesco and Sainsburys. If they are the same price and just as nice you may as well buy them from your main supermarket to save yourself 2 trips to supermarkets and the petrol and time costs involved.
How to shop there
Take cash as they often only accept this method of payment (although I think most branches now accept switch too).
Take a pound coin with you as you will need this to release the trolley, but you get this back when you return the trolley.
If you use their carrier bags they charge you 1p each so take your own or take empty boxes from the shelves and stack your items in those.
Avoid lunchtimes if possible as they get hectic at this time and check opening hours as they are generally not open late or much at weekends.
Look out for items on special offer. However if you are stocking up for the next month check the sell-by date on such items before buying lots.
At the checkout the assistant will run the things through the till at an incredible speed and really just shove them into your trolley unless you are quick enough to bag them up and into your trolley. This requires preparation. Basically the best way to do this is have bags already opened and ready or boxes lining the bottom of the trolley. Also to avoid items getting crushed put the heavy things on the conveyor belt first and the lighter things on last.
I still remember when I went with my mum and we didn’t realize what we had let ourselves in for when the checkout assistant asked if we were ready and we said yes! Suddenly we had items flying at us from all directions – it must have looked very comical to all the regulars :)
I would recommend that anyone who has to think about their budget gives Aldi a go, and if you use the tips above it will save you some hassle and save you wasting money on a lot of food you find inedible.
WARNING: When opening the canned products use extreme caution as the metal used is very cheap and therefore very thin. This means it is a lot easier to cut yourself on the sides of Aldi cans once you have opened them than your average can. I learnt this through experience - giving myself a pretty deep wound in one of my fingers. Ouch!
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