Interesting point about the prices differences above. We mostly buy supermarket own branded goods so didn’t see a saving of anywhere hear 25%. But yeah Aldi is good for booze as well.

I walk past Aldi Süd (Aldi South), which is the other Aldi to the UK one, to get to a different supermarket. Lidl requires a drive.
But I’ve been meaning to drop in some time to see how the beer range is.

Both are good. The Wife interchanges week to week. Some things are preferred from one store etc.

If you like brand names then neither will get you everything you may want. You can shop in either and there’s no need to go elsewhere, unless you buy artisan balsamic vinegar or single estate olives from that quaint place in Tuscany, but then you’d be in the wrong shop if you went to Tesco or Asda.

The Lidl own brand beer is exceptional, Green Gecko IPA. 😆

Local town has an Aldo which I use sparingly. If the town had a Lidl I would definitely shop there in preference. However, I am currently taking lambs to the abbatoir in Merthyr once a week and they have a Lidl there which has just been rebuilt and it is by far the nicest supermarket around. Well laid out, bright and airy, modern feel, spacious…. it even has customer toilets. I just prefer Lidls for the baked goods, the greater range of UK brand names (Baked Beans in particular!), less tat in the weekly bins, and especially for the greater range of proper German specialities that Aldi no longer seem to stock like they once did. I just wish they would open a store in Abergavenny

We have not been able to do a complete shop in Aldi, there are some things our local shop doesn’t have but we just stop at the Teco on the way home for them.

this has killed it for us – it adds on so much time to do two shops – even in one run. We pay the extra and just do sainsburys.

Maybe try them both

Seems to be the consensus. Maybe I should have asked, “which first?”

All very helpful, folks. Thank you. Keep ’em coming.

Aldi for me, I find their fruit and veg better quality than my local Waitrose or ASDA.

We have not been able to do a complete shop in Aldi, there are some things our local shop doesn’t have but we just stop at the Teco on the way home for them.

This.

I hate having to go to another shop just to get regular food items. I’m not fussy in my food habits, but you can’t get coffee beans from any of them that I’ve seen, small thing but it means I have to go “somewhere else” and it’s not odd stuff, it’s regular bits and bobs, and as a singleton the veg and fruit is invariably sold in bags I want a single onion…no, you can’t…and I’m a veggie, so the meat quality is irrelevant. Mostly OK, but it’s like shopping in the 70’s or 80’s, fine if you want a bag of spuds, not so fab if you want a jar of harrissa.

Whether you can do your weekly shop in either depends on what sort of thing you eat. I’ve never managed to do a whole shop there but in my straitened finances post college used to start my shop in Aldi and then fill in the gaps at Kwiksave. Now I buy avocado’s from Aldi because they’re huge, cheap and genuinely ready to eat and thats it really – then I do the rest of my shopping elsewhere.

Unfortunately for us the nearest Lidl is 11 miles away & the nearest Aldi is even further. We do however have those robbing barstewards from Bradford just 500 yards away. Wish Aldi or Lidl would build near us.

Aldi for us,as our other choices are Tesco or Supa-value here.

Veg is good,but we grow fair bit ourselves so only fruit ,bananas,exotics .
Craft beer promo at present so working through those.

Not tried Lidl yet although a new one is opening nearby soon.

I was a bit snobbish about Aldi at first but I’m a convert now. Still pop to Asda for freezer stuff now and again but generally stick with Aldi.

What we can’t get in Aldi (closer than Lidl) we get delivered by Occado.

Except Lobster cycling gloves in large. Neither seems to have any left in stock.

I generally only shop at Lidl now. I live on a city centre street and Tesco, Lidl and 24 hour coop are a couple of minutes walk.

Not working just now so watching the cash

Rarely go into the Tesco. Lidl bakery, herbs, veg and various staples (cans of beans etc) are significantly cheaper.
Fixed the stairwell buzzer today and one of the old boys upstairs gave me £3 which I’ve spent on some Italian red which is nice.

Queues can be long which is a pain. Very occasionally can’t get what I want so stop in Tesco. Also to buy single onions etc which Lidl don’t do.

Alsi seems better for beef and beer but none near me – needs a few miles cycle

Aldi for us. Mrs JMS wasn’t originally sure about doing weekly shop there but it’s what we always now use for main shop. Helps with our £247 spend per month on food and household goods, i.e. kitchen rolls, etc. for two adults and 10 year old as mentioned on other thread.

Lidl is brilliant for fresh fruit & veg, those huge tubs of Greek yog, tinned staples, snacks, cleaning products, olive oil … Most stuff really. Bulk shop there then Waitrose for treats! 🙂

I’m not fussy in my food habits, but you can’t get coffee beans

Yes you can.

Sorry, haven’t read previous posts as it not the most engaging of threads.

Been to both, Aldi being my go to for food basics. Aldi for most basic cheap stuff but limited choice. Lidl appears to be a step up in food choice. When buying absolute food basics Aldi is cheap, haven’t food shopped at Lidl enough to compare. Aldi appear to have more tat none food and a good 3yr guarantee on some stuff, Lidl none food tat is more limited, not sure about their guarantees. Both have plenty of Euro food, dried sausage, stollen etc. You have to be a bit careful with Aldi (and I presume Lidl), they’re not always that cheap on some stuff. For example a few years ago, real coffee at aldi was £1.99 for 200gms, Waitrose own brand real coffee was £3.95 for 400gms, so about the same price per gm. The basics are however very cheap at Aldi, or they were a few years ago. You should probably do a price/weight/size comparison against your usual shop, as other grocers are actively competing against Aldi/Lidl now.

LIDL for us on the basis of: 1) better choice of fresh fruit and veg, 2) better instore bakery goods, 3) significantly wider array of world food items.

At this time of year there is also the added need to keep topped up on mini stollen. It’s more addictive than most Class A’s!

Depends which ones best near to you. Weve been using lidl and aldi for so long now going to tesco or any other super market leave me wondering why anyone would need a choice of 20 types of baked beans? Cheap or not so cheap done. Toilet roll same story an isle dedicated to wiping your arse with different flavour paper, or this one or that one?

I use both occasionally but by **** the quality can be shite at times. I tried picking a bag of peppers up last week and over half of the bags squelched to the sound of rotting fruits inside. Minging. (ALDI BTW).

Whilst there are good bargains I increasingly find issue with aldi.
There is far too much sugar in some products like the muesli and desserts.
The dishwasher tablets are cheap but leave a scum around the door seal whereas more expensive brands do not.

I tend to go to get certain things in bulk, cheese, wine and cured meats for example.
I can’t do a full shop there any more as its too joyless.

We should have an Aldi in Aviemore sometime next year. I’m quite looking forward to having an alternative to Tesco and Co-op. Any variety would be an improvement.

Aldi near our house and one by work as well so we use Aldi. Wine is great, the Argie Malbec, the NZ pinot noir, the Gavi are the best ones, toro loco isn’t worth it since they blended it rather than all tempranillo. occasionally you get a duff veg/fruit because they don’t blast chill them but they taste better as a result. meats are good, just go in with a plan and don’t buy all the crap in the middle isles

The dishwasher tablets are cheap but leave a scum around the door seal whereas more expensive brands do not.

Not something I’ve noticed.

Bank’s bitter is 89p for half litre bottle at Aldi, very nice it is too. Golden Goose isn’t much more at Lidl and it is even better. I happened to be in Booths at Settle at weekend (not a direct comparison, I know), and a bottle of Cocker Hoop was 75p more than at our German outlet. I know Booths has its qualities but that is taking the michael

I just have three words to add to this thread.

Aldi Caramel Shortcake.

Last time I went to Aldi I went to look at cycling gear and bought a chainsaw !!!!

Waitrose for treats!

Lidl or Aldi tiramisu or profiteroles for treats
Also Lidl gooseberry fools

Aldi FTW. Better overall quality and choice of fruit, veg and other stuff overall.

Lidl for seeds, whole foods, dried figs, dates etc., occasional one off deals on electrolyte tabs – and massive net bags of tomatoes.

FWIW I love this kind of Euro shopping, the lack of choice, silly physiologically placed special offers and slick visual merchandise marketing, means that I only ever buy what I need. And the weekly shop gets done in 15 mins, costing £25-30.

Excellent.

Yes you can.

Neither of my local Lidls or Aldi sells individual fruit and veg or coffee beans, although I’m aware other branches do both of these things, seems to be more variance in stores than say what Tesco or Co-Op would do.

Coffee beans tend to surface about 3 times a year. They are in stores this week. Tend to buy as and when they are in store.

I was a bit snobbish about Aldi at first but I’m a convert now. Still pop to Asda

ASDA customers being snobby about Aldi. 😯

Whichever one you go to it won’t be as nice as the ones in Majorca.

I just have three words to add to this thread.

Aldi Caramel Shortcake.

Any my three words….

Aldi stollen bites

We only had our first Aldi here a few months ago here in WA! No sign of Lidl… Yet!

We’ve been using Aldi for the majority of our shopping for the last 7-8 years , when we first started going there were no queues at the checkouts and the car park was devoid of Range Rovers and Mercedes. There’s still a few things we get from Asda or Morrisons but over the years it has reduced.

A guy who goes into the cafe/bar my wife works at repairs machinery in food preparation plants around the country. He reckons that most plants have a separate line for the Aldi/Lidl products that runs at a higher quality than for other supermarkets and quoted that the Germans demand Tesco finest as a minimum standard.

Aldi stollen bites

The best bit of Christmas. EVER!

But like Woolies, Christmas starts in September 🙂

So true about stollen being like crack. But if the shelves are packed high in early September, I do wonder how long in advance stollen is made, and how long they have sat on a shelf either in the warehouse or the store.

So true about stollen being like crack. But if the shelves are packed high in early September, I do wonder how long in advance stollen is made, and how long they have sat on a shelf either in the warehouse or the store

Bloody ages, but then Stollen is something that keeps anyway. Xmas cake is the same

I used to work at nestle in halifax during uni summer breaks. We’d be dong the xmas prep for quality street etc and the easter eggs for the following year. I don’t buy easter eggs now