Who loves Aldi?

Merapi on 28/09/2013 - 13:56
Last edited 29/09/2013 - 10:04

I started buying groceries from Aldi maybe 6 months ago and never looked back. The products are great quality and heaps cheaper than buying from Coles and Woolies. The best thing I like about Aldi is that most of the products come with satisfaction guarantee. So if I don't like them, just return it the next week when I do the grocery run. My shopping bills have gone down by $20-$40/week (for 2 people) and we got plenty of food. The only downfall is that I still need to go to Woolies just to buy a few things that are not available at Aldi (Luckily, the shopping village that I go to has Aldi and Woolies so it's not a big issue).

So who else love Aldi and what's your favourite item?

General Discussion

Related Stores

ALDI
ALDI

Comments

  • snappy1234 on 28/09/2013 - 14:26
    +9

    Need self serve checkouts…too many retirees where i live :)
    they definitely have forced colesworth to drop certain ranged prices, easy to see that happening when they open nearby :)

    • kwaker on 29/09/2013 - 09:05
      -1

      yeah get rid of more jobs

      • snappy1234 on 29/09/2013 - 16:05
        +2

        @ kwaker

        yeah get rid of more jobs

        No offence but have you ever looked inside an Aldi store and seen anymore than 5 or 6 staff ?
        i rest my case. (if you were worried about jobs you would not shop at Aldi !)

        • YTW on 29/09/2013 - 21:28
          +8

          At least Aldi tries to give it's staff better conditions than Woolies/Coles.

          It surprises me that Aldi doesn't have self-serve checkouts, but maybe that is anti-theft? Aldi is the only place that actually checks my pram when I leave. Everywhere else seems to have given up checking bags/prams etc.

          There are no queues if you find the quiet time for your store - I had to interrupt the staff from their dancing (with mops…they were bored) to get them to put my stuff through the other night. Night times on a weekday are pretty good for our local stores.

        • kwaker on 29/09/2013 - 21:28
          -3

          so your point is you look in aldi and see people working?

          what is it that you want? only 2 to 3 people working there?

          I don't see why you think it's any different from other shops. I don't see people in Coles serving packet noodles. so how do you figure that out?

        • [Deactivated] on 30/09/2013 - 20:22
          +13

          Self serve!? Surely you jest. Then they wouldn't be able to catapult your items at you 3x faster than you can put them in the trolley - even when there's NO-ONE else the store.

        • snappy1234 on 30/09/2013 - 20:56
          +2

          That is a weird setup Aldi have -why provide such a tiny area for sold products ? (ie: where you pay)

        • Bilbo Bargains on 24/10/2013 - 20:56
          +2

          Lol!! My challenge everytime i go to aldi is to beat the checkout person in putting items in my trolley!!!

      • G5 on 30/09/2013 - 16:46
        -1

        Broken window fallacy

        • mskeggs on 01/10/2013 - 13:48

          Sure, except the cqapital cost to buy self-serve goes to NCR or Diebold, both overseas companies, and any savings goes to Aldi, from Germany.
          Whereas staff wages are paid to local people.
          The broken window fallacy says meaningless economic activity doesn't bring benefit, not that there is no difference between preferencing one community (local) versus another (multi-nationals) for your spending.

    • sparkles on 29/09/2013 - 16:00
      +4

      Agree, the worst thing about Aldi is the checkout queues. And finding something you like, which you will inevitably never ever see stocked again.

      • tonyjg on 29/09/2013 - 16:51
        +2

        I would suggest that you give ALDI at Hurstville a try : where line jumping has become an art form. The sheer rudeness of the ilk that have migrated there makes it a shop to avoid at ALL TIMES. Thankfully Miranda has two ALDIs - one in the soon-to-be-2hr-parking Westfield and one outside. Choose your times and u get thru quicker (or make sure u jump into a queue before a packed trolley family rocks in line.

        • Shamdog on 30/09/2013 - 10:40
          +1

          haha, @tonyjg, I think you can extrapolate your Aldi example to the entire Hurstville Westfield shopping complex. It takes me on average 45 minutes to find a parking spot and when I finally get myself inside I am confronted with thousands of people, who, for the most part, aimlessly meander around. I tend to avoid that place at any cost.

      • Janko on 30/09/2013 - 19:09

        This is where the free Amazon kindle books come in handy.

    • skillet on 14/01/2015 - 15:59

      Aldi would be losing money too many shop lifters, not enough staff. I have seen many times shoppers ripping parts out of packaging and put them into their pockets. It's not just one suburb but happening over a few. Yes I am nosy I watch what suspicious people do.

  • Marble250 on 28/09/2013 - 14:29
    +3

    Aldi just like most of 'em…some good…..some bad!….Woolies blow them out of the water for groceries and their loyalty card deal with petrol.
    I use both…more Woolworths though. Just used their delivery service the other day(free on a deal from them!)…pretty fast and accurate.

  • StewBalls on 28/09/2013 - 17:03
    +24

    It's the only one-stop-shop I know where I can grab essentials like bread, eggs, milk & a jackhammer! :)

    • kiitos on 29/09/2013 - 10:14
      +10

      The pinnacle of Aldi buyer weirdness was reached when I saw violins on sale next to water ski tow ropes.

      • cloudy on 29/09/2013 - 16:28

        Aldi reminds me of garage sales before ebay was around to be quiet honest, cheap stuff that no one wants sometimes, but other times fantastic deal if you want it. But who goes to garage sales anymore? No one, so why would I go to aldi.

        • [Deactivated] on 30/09/2013 - 20:30

          I can't believe people the other stuff (non-food). The tools in particular are absolute rubbish. I priced some quality (made in UK) screw extractors at Repco. Aldi had some a couple of weeks later at the same price. I had a close look at could tell they were very poorly machined. The tips wouldn't have bit into the screw head to remove it. And the metal itself looked like it would snap with a small amount of torque.

          Against my better judgement we took a risk and bought two mushroom kits that were marked down because they weren't selling. We soon found out why. Followed the instructions to the letter - not a single mushroom reared its head.

          Food and toilet paper only now. Skip the middle "junk" aisles.

        • antzz on 03/10/2013 - 11:03
          +2

          beg to differ. i buy lots of cooking ware which are fantastic. compare to buy similar thing at Myer/vic basement/peters kensington is almost always 60% saving or more. some of their ski gear is also a good quality. It is fun to have different products twice a week and it helps me with the impulse buying disorder as 50% of the items ended up returned once i realized i dont need it. All in all, the refunded money ended up in my saving and i got the satisfaction of lots of new items with no buyer remorse

  • kcyw on 28/09/2013 - 18:01
    +1

    The weekly fruit/vege special is great. There is usually something for $1 or $2 on Monday/Tuesday and you can walk out with box full of groceries for $10-15, sometimes may be even less depending on what's available. More than that, it's the competition forced on the big two, there are even specials at coles/woolworths worth looking at, compared to before when everything there were vastly overpriced.

    • RedHab on 01/10/2013 - 14:42
      +1

      Their meat and frozen food is good.

      My local Aldi fruit and veggies are not fresh at all - typically a day away from the compost heap.

  • c64 on 28/09/2013 - 18:13
    +4

    not being able to check stock levels at stores REALLY annoys me though

  • YTW on 28/09/2013 - 18:14
    +1

    Meeeeeee! As you say, it is just your luck with your local. We have had 2 locally for a while, a third just opened and another is due next year.
    I am currently enjoying the new one being very quiet, parking is so easy and undercover. No crazy elderly people coming up the one way system the wrong way and shouting at you for being in the way (yes, it has happened to me more than once - I avoid that Aldi).

    Their fruit and vege lasts far longer than what we get at our local Woolies. It's cheaper too.
    Favourites;
    Avocados
    Mushrooms
    Salad leaves

    Favourite groceries;
    Chocolate mousse
    Free range eggs (significantly cheaper than Woolies)
    Tissues (as good as the Kleenex family packs, but less than half the price)
    Toothbrushes (cheap and not made in China)
    A2 milk
    Ready-made meals; Cannelloni, Quiche Lorraine - not particularly cheap but the quality is great for the price.
    Mince
    Chicken breasts
    Ham
    Cheerios and party pies were good quality for the price - everyone at my DD's party seemed to like them.

    Haven't liked their lamb chops, their rump steak is ok but not the best I've had.

    I've been making an effort to slowly try new things so that I'm buying more and more there. I still shop at Woolies but less and less. I don't mind doing both as I'm usually up at Woolies multiple times a week anyway, so substituting a Woolies trip with an Aldi trip isn't a big deal.

    I also love all the random crap you can get each week. Picked up a licensed kids bike with helmet the other week for $19.95 :)

    • bajillionaire on 30/09/2013 - 09:23
      +6

      … What is this double-Ds party you speak of?

  • Miss Dior on 28/09/2013 - 20:13
    +2

    Aldi is great! I wait for their catalogue each week and it gives me more joy than a magazine (cheaper too!). Love that they have items on special that I can't buy elsewhere or are heaps cheaper. Family has just discovered their vanilla sponge cake mix - at about 78cents its better than those at Woolies and Coles and cheaper too, so what's not to love?

  • Kevan2 on 28/09/2013 - 20:21
    +3

    Aldi is also good for chasing up the undersold markdowns. If you waite for discount you may miss out. It is neally as good a the Mans toy shop [ie bunn….] lol

  • victorwilson on 28/09/2013 - 20:43

    Aldi's checkout is a major letdown though. At Baulkham Hills and North Rocks (NSW), usually only one or two checkout lanes are open (around five in total) even if there are clearly enough customers to warrant another one or two. Maybe a lack of staff but then again, you get what you pay for.

  • BluebirdV on 28/09/2013 - 20:59
    +6

    Aldi has the best coconut cream. Much better taste than any other brand and only costs 89c.

    • Merapi on 29/09/2013 - 09:36
      +1

      I second that. Great coconut cream!

    • antzz on 03/10/2013 - 11:06

      second that. and easy to open can

  • Janko on 28/09/2013 - 21:02
    +7

    A2 milk $4.59 Aldi versus $4.99 Woolies/Coles.

    Really good stuff at Aldi:

    Paper towels - (the more expensive ones)
    1L icecream - double choc chip FTW.
    Lebanese bread - always sells out quick.
    Thick raisin toast

    Really bad stuff at Aldi:

    Pet food - my dog has been known to eat his own faeces but he wouldn't touch this stuff.
    Tomato sauce, peanut butter - disgustingly sweet.

    • kwaker on 29/09/2013 - 09:09
      +1

      even flies won't lay maggots in aldi dog food did you notice? I haven't found a dog that does like it

      • Janko on 29/09/2013 - 10:11

        Nope, I didn't notice :)

        • Macgyver on 29/09/2013 - 13:36
          +1

          I can understand why the peanut butter tastes bad. It's product of China… Not sure why we buy peanut butter from there when we make a nice one right here in Australia.

        • bajillionaire on 30/09/2013 - 09:24
          -1

          But Chinese peanuts are awesome! Farmer brand FTW!

      • diondai1 on 04/10/2013 - 19:50

        My dog loves the canned stuff aha. Mind you the both the stuff sold in Coles and Aldi are hardly proper food anyway.

    • Orgazmo on 29/09/2013 - 09:48
      +3

      Nothing wrong with their American peanut butter in my opinion

    • cloudy on 29/09/2013 - 16:30
      +1

      Seems to me ur dog has a better sense of quality than you lol.

    • cannedhams on 30/09/2013 - 10:11
      +4

      The Chinese peanut butter at Aldi is terrible. The American style stuff is better but as you say, quite sweet.

      The soy milk at Aldi would choke a brown dog.

      Not to peddle stereotypes, but the Germans do run hot and cold, they are either good at stuff or terrible. For example, Germans know nothing about tea. Lo and behold, I bought the Aldi tea and it tastes like crap. It must be left over from when they gave tea to the British POWs in Stalag 13 or wherever.

      Likewise, peanut butter, what would Germans know about that?

      On the other hand, I bought a unicycle at Aldi and it is a triumph of German engineering. I have face planted on that thing many a time and it is still in perfect working order.

      • retiredfeline on 30/09/2013 - 16:59

        I agree with you about the peanut butter, the current offerings are hopeless compared to the Aussie made stuff they once sold so I get a friend to buy US peanut butter from Costco, but I fear you are trying too hard to impute explanations on their poor choice. No need to bring Germans into this, just a bad product manager will do.

        That's one problem with shopping there, good products may not continue to be sold but that's more or less true everywhere.

  • Euphemistic on 29/09/2013 - 08:22
    +6

    We shop at aldi first, then top up at woollies for the stuff you can't get at aldi (not much).

    I especially like aldi because they only have one of each item type, or sometimes two different sizes. Makes it so much quicker to get the shopping done because I don't have to search for the best value item like in woolies.

    Not to mention the occasional jack hammer essential item!

  • kwaker on 29/09/2013 - 09:13

    yes love aldi. their ham and chicken loaf is better than the others, I like their noodles and their soy sauce. most of their products are unique and cheap but not poor quality unlike some homebrand/smartbuy items.

  • Merapi on 29/09/2013 - 09:53

    My favourites are:
    Golden Vale Muesli
    Dairy Dream Yoghurt - Mango (Omg so nice and so cheap $2.79 for 550g)
    Lean mince
    Expressi coffee and chai tea pods (not the extra rich hot chocolate - not nice)
    Random weekly crap - I picked up 2 beautiful bedside tables for $25 each

    Some Aldi tips:
    If you forgot to bring your own shopping bag, you can pick up empty boxes from the shelves to use

    Use Eftpost to pay as using credit card will incur 5% extra. If you use Paywave, with Visa/Master debit, it's also considered credit payment.

    • kwaker on 29/09/2013 - 10:12
      -2

      on if you press the credit button. if you press cheque it does not

      • Merapi on 29/09/2013 - 10:25
        +1

        I meant if you use touchless payment system (Paywave), it automatically treats the transaction as a credit transaction. With the Paywave, it doesn't give you the option to press credit/savings/cheque.

        • kwaker on 29/09/2013 - 21:42

          ah ok I didn't know what paywave was I always insert or swipe I assumed it was a new type of card.

    • kiitos on 29/09/2013 - 14:39
      +2

      I thought the credit card surcharge is only 0.5%, not 5%.

      • Merapi on 29/09/2013 - 16:22
        +1

        Ops my bad, thanks for that. Yes, 0.5%

    • Merapi on 29/09/2013 - 16:23
      +1

      Correction: The surcharge is 0.5%

  • DarrylD on 29/09/2013 - 10:28
    +1

    I'm surprised no-one has mentioned fruit and veg. My local Woolies currently has bananas at $3.90/kg, Aldi $1.49 although they're unwashed (big deal, most of us don't eat the skin). Capsicums half the cost at Aldi. Only problem is you don't get the variety.

    Woolies isn't too bad if you only shop specials in the fruit and veg section.

    • Marble250 on 02/10/2013 - 12:31

      You've been caught with the Woolies "predatory pricing" mechanism - where they send their little agents out to check "local" pricing and set their pricing accordingly. I would say that you don't have any competing green grocers in your Woolies store-area. I bought bananas at Woolies Bankstown for $1.89 per kilo last Saturday.

      • DarrylD on 02/10/2013 - 21:13

        I'm referring to the Macquarie Centre Woolies in Sydney where the rents are ridiculous, and the green grocers in the complex is equally expensive.
        I got bananas for $1.99/kg from Aldi at Top Ryde a few hours after my above post and they were very green. They ripened quickly at home but are a terrible, powdery texture and not very nice tasting. It's not a bargain if they sit in the fruit bowl and you don't want to eat them. Who knew you get what you pay for in banana world!

        • Marble250 on 03/10/2013 - 13:41

          I've got the answer!!…just buy a kevlar jacket from Aldi and move to the beautiful shooting gallery of the South West. You may not live long, but the bananas are great!

        • retiredfeline on 03/10/2013 - 13:53
          +1

          Banana quality is variable everywhere, even greengrocers sometimes sell duds. After a while you learn to recognise the features of bananas that don't taste good and avoid buying those from any shop. Good bananas have a smooth texture and a clear green yellow colour.

  • NightFlight on 29/09/2013 - 13:32
    +1

    Absolutely love Aldi, but was really sad to see some of my favourite products being discontinued: most recently the flavoured cream cheeses… can we start a petition to get them back?! :)

    Some of the best Aldi stuff IMO: ground coffee, chocolate spread, cluster muesli, Haribo, flavoured tuna, mixed nuts, cup soup, paper towels, cleaning products, fruit juice, fruit specials, frankfurts, yoghurt, cheese, eggs, ice cream, olives - roughly in store layout order as you might have noticed ;)

  • Macgyver on 29/09/2013 - 13:39

    Most of Aldi stuff is quite good but some of it can be quite bad. I had the butter chicken from there and it was awful.
    And some foods there isn't a Aussie made equivalent which is a bit disappointing.

  • kiitos on 29/09/2013 - 14:49
    +3

    My faves are:

    • Palazzo thin butter biscuits with dark or milk chocolate on one side with stamps of German monuments - delicious.
    • Ocean Rise tuna - a big plug of tuna taken straight out of the fish, rather than minced up little flakes. Probably rebadged Sirena. The chili one is great.
    • Soft blue cheese - rich and creamy. Made in Denmark so probably rebadged Blue Castello.

    My unfaves are:

    • Their version of Honey Smacks - I think it was around 50% sugar!
    • Haven't had much luck with their fruit and veg - maybe it's just my local store, but it tends to be not as fresh or tasty as the local greengrocer or Coles.
    • rawm on 29/09/2013 - 16:16
      +1

      I'm a big fan. Use ALDI as a supplement to the duopoly. Their canned tomatoes are excellent, pitted prunes 1.99 for 500g and amazingly their ripoff Vegemite (it IS made in AUS) is excellent, and only 97c per 100g as opposed to woolies which is $1.57 per 100g. As you can tell I'm a massive advocate of unit pricing. Anyone else try the brekkie mite?

  • rilebags on 29/09/2013 - 16:16
    -7

    Aldi has some of the worst tasting knock off products but it's cheap. I have always preferred buying the best brands at the biggest discount rather than straight aldi junk.

    • Forgot69 on 29/09/2013 - 17:21
      +4

      I've found most Aldi products to be compilable, if not much better than their 'branded' counterparts. Add this to the fact they are usually significantly cheaper and Aldi comes out a clear winner in my book!

    • [Deactivated] on 29/09/2013 - 23:43
      +4

      Best brands? Or best at advertising??

    • antzz on 03/10/2013 - 11:12
      +2

      Aldi brand is consistently win out in product satisfaction all over the world and they dont charge arms and leg for it. Aldi is the best thing ever happened to Australia in this decade!

  • Merapi on 29/09/2013 - 16:29

    I've been to 3 different Aldi stores and I find that the quietest one is situated within the suburb with the majority of the residence are uni students. Maybe uni students can't be bothered doing groceries/cooking? (that's just my assumption).

  • onlyletters on 29/09/2013 - 17:32

    If you don't like an aldi product, complain about it and they'll do something about it. Simple.

  • LSGH on 29/09/2013 - 18:13
    +1

    we buy all the basics there, milk, bread, cleaning stuff, diapers, fruit veggies, yoghurt,….then whatever specialty stuff we cant find there we go to woolies..

    who cares about saving 4 cents per litre in petrol when I save tens of dollars in Aldi…

    I really liked their $19 tennis shoes…comparable to my $119 adidas barricade shoes…

  • [Deactivated] on 29/09/2013 - 18:58
    +4

    I use Aldi for the products that are cheaper than the cheapest generic products at Woolworths and Coles. We got used to the taste of the Aldi Wheat Biscuits so we've stuck with that brand. I get paper towel, toilet paper, laundry liquid, spreadable butter, solid butter, milk($2.89 for 3 litres is better than $3 for 3 litres), eggs and occasionally cucumbers if they are cheaper than the big 2. I don't like the taste of their bread so I get the $2.30 bread from Coles.

    I tried a lot of their other food but didn't really like the taste. We used to get frozen products like oven bake chips, potato jewels(gems), chicken nuggets and fish fingers but after a while we just didn't enjoy the taste and went back to a mixture of WW/Coles generic products with the occasional brand name if it was on super special. I used to buy sweet bisucuits there but now I can get better prices from WW/Coles when they are on special. I liked the triple choc biscuits which were imitation Tim Tams.

    I don't like the checkout procedure and the fact that they charge more for credit cards. I like collecting credit card points but it's not worth using the credit card with the surcharge added to it. I do use cash occasionally so I use Aldi as my bank and get my cash out there.

    I don't chase after the special buys due to lack of stock on the really good bargains. We have a couple of Aldi's near us but none are in a really good location so I only go there every 2 or 3 weeks when I run out of a couple of items.

    Does anyone know whether Aldi sell jelly crystals? I used to buy the Woolworths and Coles cheap generic boxes for 39cents or thereabouts. Both WW and coles discontinued these products and I don't like the taste or colour of the premium generic brands that sells for 70-80cents.

    • [Deactivated] on 29/09/2013 - 21:39
      +2

      I forgot to mention we also buy nappies there, and I've never seen any signs saying "diapers".

  • aripper on 29/09/2013 - 21:06

    Completely agree with you obiwan… but diapers!… I thought they only had them in America! Is that what Aldi sells nappies here as? Another "americanisation" point perhaps?

    • LSGH on 01/10/2013 - 19:31

      sorry aripper, I meant to say nappies…(i grew up in america so just got used to calling them diapers) :P

  • [Deactivated] on 29/09/2013 - 21:45
    +1

    I'd prefer it if more staff worked at Aldi. It's really hard to find a staff member to help you find something or answer questions about a product. I also haven't seen an Aldi with a customer service desk. I've had to delay the checkout operators if there has been a problem with the price on a product.

    Other members have mentioned their satisfaction guarantee on their products. How on earth do you get your money back when there's no official desk to go to? I don't think Aldi are signatories to the scanning code of practice either. If a product goes through at the wrong price then they try to just give back the difference in the price. Last time there was a scanning error I had to ask a couple of times before they would refund the whole cost. They claimed that the wrong sign was on the shelf. Their solution was just to remove the sign. Luckily I eventually got a full refund.

    • [Deactivated] on 29/09/2013 - 23:56
      +4

      You go to a staffed checkout?

      And no they do not have to refund the full cost - not members of anra…

    • YTW on 30/09/2013 - 07:46

      It can be hard trying to get a hold of someone. The poor staff must be run off their feet some days trying to respond to everyone.

      My husband recently returned a laptop under the guarantee with no problems at all, they happily refunded the money. Meanwhile, I've had issues returning genuinely faulty products elsewhere (with a receipt)…I'd take a decent staff policy awareness over a piece of furniture any day.

      Their policy is to refund the whole cost on regular items, but only the difference on special items. Fairly reasonable I'd say - the special items are usually large-ticket items and more likely to be mis-priced due to them being changed every week. They can't go giving away big ticket things all the time. That's why Big W doesn't have the scanning policy either. I've never had a scanning error so far, but get them all the time at Woolies. That said, I have bought far more items from Woolies than Aldi so I guess it's only a matter of time before I have an issue there.

  • akula on 29/09/2013 - 22:44
    +2

    i love Aldi..used to love it more for the reason that they didn't sell coke and advertised that whole Aldi stores are free of artificial colour additives. Its reasonably priced and quality is good. But i don't like their greek yoghurt.

  • c64 on 29/09/2013 - 22:55
    +1

    $3.99 greek yoghurt which tastes fine vs $6.5x for gippsland stuff

  • MelbBargainChaser77 on 30/09/2013 - 00:34
    +1

    I love Aldi Greek Yogurt, and their tuna and their salad leaves

    • Cheaparoo on 30/09/2013 - 01:32
      +1

      The Brooklea branded 1kg yoghurt for $4.49 is the Jalna product, but at least $1.50 cheaper than Coles/Woolies.

  • SupeNintendoChalmers on 30/09/2013 - 14:45
    +2

    I love Aldi for the funky German food they bring from time to time. Plus their spiced Christmas biscuits rock.

    I'm still waiting for the food smoker to become available again.

  • lisss on 30/09/2013 - 16:42

    I did the bulk of my shopping at Aldi when I lived in Canberra for 2 years. It rocked, and I can't wait till they open up in Perth because I'll be back there. I still popped into Coles or Woolies as you say to get things they didn't stock, plus sometimes their fruit was iffy.

    Fav products:
    - German chocolates
    - Aldi own brand 'healthy' museli bars
    - Xmas ginger biscuits
    - Aldi 'deluxe' own brand ice cream
    - Frozen veg mixes (eg asian stir fry), always cheaper than Woolies/Coles
    Also love their weekly specials and just seeing what's there….

    The only products I have tried and not liked:
    - Aldi brand dental floss
    - Aldi brand Nutrigrain equivalent

  • Vomo on 30/09/2013 - 18:33

    Low salt rye bread only 200mg per 100g. Tastes great and very healthy, especially for those who have to reduce their salt intake.

  • scloh1 on 30/09/2013 - 18:41
    +1

    We have their Expressi coffee machine at work ($80) which we all chipped in about $10 for. $0.35 a cup of coffee with milk versus $3.50 - $4.00 from the local cafe. The taste is about 60-70% of the cafe's latte but a billion times better than the instant stuff they have at the tea-point.
    I've bought the Baun brand wireless headphones from them too about a year ago which was a dissappointment but I've been reading some comments online about getting them to work better, so gonna get them out again for another try.
    Of note they have a white chocolate block which tastes like it has stale cornflakes mixed in. I love it.
    I suppose when they have cheap beer, they have cheap beer. Saw a guy pick up 2 cases to the counter. After the scan he and the cashier both looked puzzled. She went off to check the shelf sticker price. After confirming the price he put another 4 cases into the trolley. I think the total was under $100.
    The Ferntree Gully store staff always look like they've lost the will to live. Their coffee capsules always seem to run out of my flavour/strength but they don't stock up until the rest deplete (which is never because nobody likes those flavours). They also ran out of the USB power brick just as I got there.
    I wish they had stock levels you could check online.

  • DarthAntz on 30/09/2013 - 18:53
    +1

    I've got nothing but love for Aldi, great produce. Sunnybank just started selling pork belly too. Favourite stuff is
    Tuna in oil
    500g grass fed mince
    Aldi's Maxibon equivalent
    Good broccoli, mushrooms and bananas
    They might have a limited amount of staff on roster, but they get paid good money and they employ at a high standard. I've halved my grocery bill by buying food from Aldi. You do need how to learn how to shop there, as you cant expect the same out of the generic supermarket setups most of us grew up experiencing.

  • [Deactivated] on 30/09/2013 - 20:33
    +1

    Their ice cream ("Milfina" I think) is terrible. It's sickly, so must have a huge amount of sugar in it. So much so that it makes my teeth ache. It's the same price at WW, so we get it there - no aching teeth.

    • Koolbargain on 01/10/2013 - 11:40

      What about MILFina?

      • kiitos on 01/10/2013 - 22:59

        Makes something else ache?

        I tried their German-made ice cream in a blue rectangular tub. Tasted not bad, but the tub seemed very light, like it had been whipped and aerated to within an inch of its life.

    • antzz on 03/10/2013 - 11:19
      +1

      I love their deluxe range of ice creams.

  • qwerty on 30/09/2013 - 21:31
    +4

    If i go to coles with someone I can leave them shopping and walk out to go elsewhere or bring the car around.

    Same as wollies - no issues

    At Aldi its like escaping prison .

  • xyron on 01/10/2013 - 00:46
    +1

    Every time I see one of these threads (or an Aldi bargain on the bargains page) I get sad that we still don't have EVEN ONE Aldi in Adelaide. :(

    I was surprised to see them all over the USA when I was recently on a road trip through there. The US stores don't have the random TVs/unicycles/helmets and other trinkets in them though, only food.

    • Forfiet on 24/10/2013 - 01:49

      ….yeah pretty annoyed we still have none…. But they are still planning on putting an Aldi and Costco here. :) We more likely to get the Krispy Kreme first by the looks of it. :P

  • thepigs on 01/10/2013 - 09:14

    I'm not a huge fan of Aldi's general merchandise. It looks a lot like the cheapest crap you can buy off Aliexpress but badged with one of Aldi's homebrands and offered at twice the price. And their rasher bacon was horrible (haven't been there for a while). You can't trust a place with bad bacon.

  • pennae on 01/10/2013 - 09:14

    Reading this makes me wish Aldi would come to WA!

  • MrLeE on 01/10/2013 - 12:02

    My local independent grocer has a website like this: http://www.bananajoesfoodworks.com.au/

    They also offer free home delivery.

    I rest my case.

    • upsidedown on 01/10/2013 - 13:41

      I went to Banana Joes last week and bought ginger in a jar it was $3.65. The next day I saw it in Aldi for $1.49.

      I rest my case.

      • altomic on 01/10/2013 - 14:22
        +2

        my arms are tired from carrying my luggage.

        I rest my case.

        • MrLeE on 01/10/2013 - 16:36

          Banana Joes has Coconut Kimir Lime Leaves Chicken Sausages (The butcher invented them himself. Amazing Taste)

          Case closed.

        • Forfiet on 24/10/2013 - 01:51

          OBJECTION!!! Case overuled! Ace Attorney on his way!

  • RedRoo on 01/10/2013 - 12:19

    Their grass-fed eye-fillet is awesome! Vacuum packaging makes it last for ages without freezing.

  • Kamsi on 01/10/2013 - 13:26

    Well don't know about you I'm going to Aldi tomorrow for my bike accessories, hopefully I get there early otherwise it will be ozbargained :)

    Say I love to shop at Aldi, sometimes. The problem I have with Aldi is the checkout. Coles and Woolies have self checkout machines why can't Aldi have it.

  • Merapi on 01/10/2013 - 17:13

    It's great if you like Aldi, also great if you don't (less people in the queue). I think it's a win-win situation :)

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