Aldi wins !

One of the big attractions is the lack of the banal music you get in other stores. They also sell per unit not the multibuys seen in M & S etc. Why do M & S insist on selling multibuys on perishable goods thus being one of the contributors to food waste.

I love Aldi for many reasons. The quality of the goods, lack of frills (which must cost us the consumer more in the long run). lack of multi buys, friendly and efficient staff to name but a few. I rarely shop anywhere else now.

So do Aldi have a fresh meat counter, fresh fish counter, deli? Do they have a comprehensive wine selection?

David

Aldi and Lidl have been one of the best things to happen in this country in terms of supermarkets. 

A great deal of the products sold in the main s/m comes from the same factories, just labelled differently. Some foods come from the same factories, but may have slightly different ingredients stipulated by different supermarkets, or maybe for a premium range at that supermarket. My sister had the job of visiting M&S head office in London to send them samples of yoghurts and desserts produced at a big dairy firm in our home town. They were exactly the same as other products going to other s/ m's, but the prices were higher. Folks who shop at M&S, Waitrose, Ocado think that the products may be nicer, but this isn't always the case. 

Some Aldi and Lidl foods are definitely different. Some is much nicer, some is not. Probably linked to more European taste preferences? I don't like Aldi's tomato pasta sauces in jars, yet their chocolate brands are superb. Lidl's instore bakeries are very good.

I needed Lavazza coffee, Leffe beer, some Chinese five spice powder, and an odd sort of light bulb. Aldi and Lidl had none of them but Tesco did. 

Our Aldi sells lavazza coffee! But it's done as a special, at a special price! My sister bought a few samples for us at Christmas. This can be one of the frustrating things about the smaller supermarkets, they stock things for a few months, then suddenly it disappears. But on the plus side, there's usually something new to try!

But I get your point, A &L don't stock anything like as many products on a regular basis. But neither do they have lots of "different" makes at different prices all made in the same factory!

I also understand where DK is coming from above as well. No fresh butchery or fish counter (being a veggie it academic to me). But their wines and beers have won numerous awards.

Dried pasta is one of my little foodie niggles. I like quality bronze dyed stuff, rather than cheap pap. Saw same brand, same size packet in both Tesco and Aldi. One was for sale at £2.99 per bag, other at £1.45 per bag. You can guess which I bought and where from!

never been in either

We tend to find that we are unable, or unwilling, to do a complete shop in any one supermarket but our S/ms are located quite close to each other in our market town.

Aldi's is for coffee, chocolate (agree with TTDA), dried apricots, mayonnaise, welsh cheddar cheese (because it's half the price than the same cheese at Tesco), some everyday drinking wine, and fruit and veg .They have also started selling Cod loin, albeit in packet, but it's excellent quality and half the price of the S/ms.

Lidl have the best Smoked Salmon by far, Mustard Ham, Serrano Ham, Tinned Mackerel and Nuts.

DK - I was in Tesco and Sainsbury the other day and I wouldn't have touched their "fresh" fish or meat with a bargepole. Dreadful.

Very different to most supermarkets. They have changed display units in a lot of instances, fruit and veg is now displayed different to early days. Lots of stuff is in basket type stalls, so can look a tad untidy at busy times, and the tills are totally different. You are moved along very quickly, expected to pack behind tills. This doesn't suit the elderly or those who like to linger, but is brilliant if you are a fast packer and very organised. I can do a big shop and be through till in same time as it takes just to go through a conventional till at other supermarkets, which suits me. There are some very quiet times though, and a good browse pays dividends for finding some real good value bargains. They do a couple of "touring" specials each year, great for stocking up on loo blue and other quality caravan products. But not all stuff is nice admittedly. 

If I were you HD, I would have a look around when it is quiet, and have a good browse. We have tried lots of products over the last two years or so, and found lots that we like, others that we wouldn't try again. But the difference in price on a big shop is noticeably different. We just top up on other products now at other supermarkets. 

Quite agree Ttda. I quoted the Colliers Welsh Cheddar Cheese in my previous post. Bought some lat week at Aldi, a 350g Pack cost me £2.09. The very same cheese and size at Tesco costs £4.00. This is typical of the saving that can be made. 

If certain people wish to continue to pay £4.00 just so they can get "points" or just look down on so called cheap stores because they don't have the cache of other more famous outfits then good luck to them.

My one indulgence is to buy certain Wheat Free items from M&S as they are excellent and they are one of the few large supermarkets that go out of their way to ensure their Sausage range doesn't have any wheat added. Quite a lot of the other S/ms sausages do contain it. I need products I can rely on.