Discover Aldi's and Save $$

I discovered the unbelievable grocery savings at Aldi’s a few years ago. Once I “got it” I couldn’t believe that I had passed up the Aldi’s experience for the first couple years that we lived near one. Once you “get it” you belong to the Aldi’s fan club. I told my friend Colleen that I had finally shopped at Aldi’s after hearing her rave about it for some time and she said, “I TOLD YOU.” I was officially a member. Let me explain how awesome the savings are at Aldi’s even if you don’t track the price of every item you buy. You know that sick feeling you get in your stomach when you check out at the regular Piggly Wiggly/Giant Eagle/Stop & Shop/Krogers when you hear your total? It just seems that you can never get over the fact that you spent THAT MUCH on harmless little necessary grocery items. Well, you get the complete opposite feeling at the Aldi’s check out counter. You can’t believe that ALL those groceries you bought only added up to the total the smiling clerk tells you. It’s unbelievable the difference you experience at the check out.

What the heck is Aldi’s anyway you ask? It is a small grocery store that sells the best quality items it can at the lowest possible price. It does not try to be a full service grocery because of it's size. Aldi’s started in 1976 in Iowa and has grown to over 1,000 stores from the East Coast to Kansas. They attempt to eliminate the bells and whistles that increase price. You’ll see how they do that by visiting a store once. Be sure to take a quarter with you because you will need it to access a grocery cart. You’ll get your quarter back when you return your cart. Don’t be afraid, it’s simple and intuitive. You’ll figure it out. When you enter the store you will instantly sense that something is different but you may not be able to figure it out. It’s the lack of music, (which I believe large grocery chains insert subliminal messages into to get you to buy more and I am only ½ kidding). The products are shelved in the bulk box cases that they come in rather than placed neatly on fancy shelves by store employees. Aldi’s does not supply grocery bags or a bagger. You will bag your own groceries with bags that you either bring or purchase there (paper for 5 cents or large heavy duty bags for 10 cents each). Aldi’s does not accept credit cards but you can pay by debit card or cash. So, the Aldi’s experience is a little different from your typical large chain grocery store but the differences allow for savings that are passed on to the consumer.

Unfortunately you can’t get EVERYTHING at Aldi’s. And a few things I feel may be lacking in quality but there are some really good finds at Aldi’s that you simply can not go wrong with. Here are some items that I have had consistent good luck with at Aldi’s:

Milk
Yogurts
Sour cream/butter/cottage cheese/cream cheese and other dairy goods
Refrigerated Shredded Parmesan/Romano and other premium cheeses such as feta and blues
Spinach
Blueberries
Lettuce leaves of all kindPeppers – red/yellow/orange are always great
Bananas – sometimes a little browned so they go right into the freezer for smoothies
Oranges, strawberries, grapes
All tomatoes, including grape tomatoes
Cucumbers
Beans – pinto dried and canned refried beans
Flour & corn tortillas
Tuna
Pepperoni
Brown Sugar/Flour/Sugar/Vanilla/salt/pepper/baking powder
Honey
Pickles
Corn Meal
Oatmeal
Oat O Cereal
Generic Cereals: raisin bran, rice krispies, cheerios
Tortilla chips & other chips like generic doritos
Frozen berries
Frozen orange juice
Fruit popsicles (yummy)
Ice creams

I would love to add to this list of things that other people regularly buy at Aldi’s so please post here and I will keep adding to it.