Aldi's

sucks2beme

OK, who shops there?
Given how prices are rising, these guys have a lot of
stuff cheaper. Some of it is better. Selection sometimes
is a bit lean. We alternately shop there and normal grocery
stores. We just baked up some of these pastries from there.
Really good!

Viking64

There aren't any Aldi's stores where I live, but a friend brought me 4 bottles of their Burman's barbecue sauce. I thought they were all excellent.

sucks2beme

The area around here lacks grocery store variety.
Mostly Kroger's. And they're run poorly. So Aldi's
Is a welcome alternative. There are others like Fresh Market,
but it's pricey.

Gardenstater

I have become a regular the past few years. The limited stock is sometimes an issue and I have to go to a full fledged supermarket. Lately I've been disappointed with certain things simply not being available for weeks, or, last week they were out of eggs entirely, even though they carry them from 3 different suppliers! There was something like 10 items I regularly buy that they were out of stock on.

Emlyn

I've always got a kick out of their stores because it's like stepping into an alternative universe where everything looks sort of familiar but just a little bit different because they source similar stuff from food manufacturers that supply the common name brands but then they slap their own name brands on.

I also confuse Aldi and Lidl, both of which have sprung up in my area in recent years.

Emlyn

Viking64 wrote: »

There aren't any Aldi's stores where I live, but a friend brought me 4 bottles of their Burman's barbecue sauce. I thought they were all excellent.

I wonder if using three different ways of saying BBQ on four different bottles is a strategic decision.

marvda1

Try Winco

mhardy6647

Emlyn wrote: »

Viking64 wrote: »

There aren't any Aldi's stores where I live, but a friend brought me 4 bottles of their Burman's barbecue sauce. I thought they were all excellent.

I wonder if using three different ways of saying BBQ on four different bottles is a strategic decision.

oooh, good catch!
I mean, that's gotta hurt their gross margins on barbecue, umm, B-B-Q, umm, BBQ, ummm... spicy reddish colored sauce!

mhardy6647

... Besides, they forgot Audiophile Barb-EQ sauce!

msg

I do. Family pack chicken breastesses $2.49/lb. About $12-$13 for 5.5lbs. Six nice size non-steroidal looking pieces of chicken. I butterfly them, coat in olive oil, season, and put on the grill. Samwiches for a week, 4oz. serving.

Side plug: butterflying possible and fun! due to @pitdogg2 's recommendation on Work Sharp belt sharpening kit.

Big box of organic greens for smoothies, avocados, romaine lettuce, and Kefir are a few of the other things I specifically pick up there bc they're inexplicably significantly cheaper.

pitdogg2

Scott just don't end up like 3 finger Bill.....
Honey we now have chicken fingers to go with our breastesses ....

msg

pitdogg2 wrote: »

Scott just don't end up like 3 finger Bill.....
Honey we now have chicken fingers to go with our breastesses ....

I'll admit, I've almost done some stupid stuff! and then I remember how easily those cheap knives of mine slice through meats. Almost stabbed myself in the stumitch last weekend! (Don't ask. This is the same schitt I yell at my parents for these days lol)

Jstas

I've found that the biggest thing I would go to Aldi for is fresh meats and vegetables, frozen or fresh. We don't get too much pre-packaged stuff so there's no benefit for us at Aldi's. Aside from that, we go to BJ's Wholesale Club and get meats and vegetables there. I can get better prices on meats because I get the whole cuts and do the rest of the butchering myself.

That said, there's a few Aldi markets near me and they are always packed. There's a Lidl opening nearby soon as well. But we also have supermarkets like Shop Rite, Acme and Wegman's but the three Targets near by all have markets in them and there's two Super Walmarts near by as well. Additionally, there's a couple of Save-A-Lot markets as well as the more esoteric Trader Joe's, Sprout's, Whole Foods and a local deal from a meat packing company called Rastelli's Market Fresh. There's the local markets too like Deterding's, Meat Shopper's (not as cool as it sounds), Murphy's and a number of Hispanic markets. There's even a couple IGAs still around.

So there's a ton of competition for Aldi and Lidl here. We've already lost Shop-N-Bag, SuperFRESH and Geunardi's chains here and Aldi hasn't been nearly as aggressive here as other places.

GlennDog

I just picked up a case of Wagyu Kobe burgers from Rastelli's . .. good stuff

https://www.rastellis.com/

btw, they run specials. Wait for them. Then pounce!

Jstas

I, literally, get the mail ads from them every Thursday with the circular pack. There's a Rastelli's location about 4.5 miles from house. They're just...expensive. The quality is good but a guy could go broke shopping there. There's other local butchers that are just as good for better prices. But if you're not in the area, they are a good source, especially for imported stuff. Another good one for that kind of stuff from my area is DiBruno Brothers.

VR3

Aldi is good for some stuff in our area, fresh vegetables and fruit are definitely a hit or miss

We recently tried Agridime beef...

41 x 10oz NY strips (grain fed which I don't mind) + 10 pounds of ground beef... 250 shipped, no taxes

Beef is excellent quality, tender and have no complaints!

stangman67

We shop pretty much exclusive at Aldi except for a few items we go to Costco or Harris Teeter for. Never had any issues and the prices are hard to beat

Mike Reeter

Does Aldi' still require CASH for payment? I haven't been in one for years, but thinking of stopping into a new one that's currently being built, when it's completed.

Years ago you paid with CASH, they had Cashiers that had to memorize the price of every item in the store this was pre Barcodes/Scanners, and more than likely before Credit and Debit cards. They would check out items and enter that price into the Cash register, from memory, while you loaded up your items in another cart.

Aldi's used to be a German owned company (not sure if they still are) that would take the cash collected every day, from every store and wire it to Germany that evening.

stangman67

Nope cash not required. Everything is modern

Emlyn

Aldi stores in the US are still part of a Germany based multinational company. The US market is very important to them. Lidl has a much smaller presence in the US market although they are about on par with Aldi stores in Europe.

Gardenstater

Fastest cashiers of any food/supermarket store I have been to. I believe there were two brothers that parted ways over a disagreement. In the U.S., Trader Joe’s has been owned by Aldi Nord since the late 1970s, while ALDI stores in the U.S. launched under the ownership of Aldi Süd in the mid-70s.

Mike Reeter

VR3 wrote: »

Aldi is good for some stuff in our area, fresh vegetables and fruit are definitely a hit or miss

We recently tried Agridime beef...

41 x 10oz NY strips (grain fed which I don't mind) + 10 pounds of ground beef... 250 shipped, no taxes

Beef is excellent quality, tender and have no complaints!

There is nothing much better than quality Grain fed Beef, Grass fed is nothing more than a cost cutting measure, marketed as 'Healthy'

VR3

I could believe it... Grass fed is pretty bland.

I have been pretty blown away by Agridime... The NY strip and the filet mignon and is much much higher quality than my local grocery stores.

Gardenstater

Cows were not supposed to eat grains any more than people are. They are unhealthy cows. That said, even thought the type of fat is more unhealthy, it is more fat and more marbled and is much more enjoyable to eat. I have almost never had a tender grass fed (not just grass finished) cut of beef.

I wouldn't say grass fed is a cost cutting measure by any means because grain fed puts on the weight and beef is sold by the pound, made up of fat plus lean muscle mass.

Mike Reeter

With the cost of Corn close to $7.00 a bushel, it's certainly less expensive to let Cattle graze on grass pastures. Might take them a little longer to get to marketing weight, but still less $ invested in the final product. Prime Beef is more expensive for a reason.

Grass Fed was promoted by the Beef Industry as a healthier choice for those that demanded leaner products. Now some of those demands are met by 'Imitation' Beef/Pork/Chicken. A lot of the population have never experienced a good cut of meat.

Gardenstater

Grass fed beef costs the farmer more per lb., which is reflected in the price. There are more than just feed costs involved per unit time to keep a cow healthy and alive and they take longer to get to marketable weight and weigh less when they are marketed:

"NPR reports that grass-fed cattle are sent to slaughter later than conventionally-fed cattle because their diet contains fewer calories, meaning they take longer to reach optimal weight for slaughter. And, as a result, more money is spent over time to care for them. When slaughtered, grass-fed cattle generally weigh about 1,200 while grain-fed cows weigh closer to 1,350 pounds, per NPR, which means that a farmer will not get as much meat to sell from a grass-fed cow.

Ultimately, the cost to care for and raise a grass-fed cow or steer is reflected in the price per pound you'll be paying in the meat section at your grocery store."

I'm sure it is a lot more healthy due to the lower fat content and greater Omega3 and lesser Omega6 but I don't really care for grass fed beef. I don't know for sure, but I seriously doubt that any restaurant grade Prime Beef could possibly be fully grass fed to make that grade.

Read More: https://www.tastingtable.com/898677/the-real-reason-grass-fed-beef-is-more-expensive-than-regular-beef/?utm_campaign=clip

Kex

Interesting discussion.

I exclusively buy grass fed beef. Not because I think it’s healthier (maybe it is) or tastes better, but because feed lots literally look like s h i t. Cattle walking around all day with no space to roam, tramping around in filth from dawn to dusk, somehow doesn’t seem like something I want to pay for. 🤷‍♂️

Mike Reeter

Gardenstater wrote: »

Grass fed beef costs the farmer more per lb., which is reflected in the price. There are more than just feed costs involved per unit time to keep a cow healthy and alive and they take longer to get to marketable weight and weigh less when they are marketed:

"NPR reports that grass-fed cattle are sent to slaughter later than conventionally-fed cattle because their diet contains fewer calories, meaning they take longer to reach optimal weight for slaughter. And, as a result, more money is spent over time to care for them. When slaughtered, grass-fed cattle generally weigh about 1,200 while grain-fed cows weigh closer to 1,350 pounds, per NPR, which means that a farmer will not get as much meat to sell from a grass-fed cow.

Ultimately, the cost to care for and raise a grass-fed cow or steer is reflected in the price per pound you'll be paying in the meat section at your grocery store."

I'm sure it is a lot more healthy due to the lower fat content and greater Omega3 and lesser Omega6 but I don't really care for grass fed beef. I don't know for sure, but I seriously doubt that any restaurant grade Prime Beef could possibly be fully grass fed to make that grade.

Read More: https://www.tastingtable.com/898677/the-real-reason-grass-fed-beef-is-more-expensive-than-regular-beef/?utm_campaign=clip

Kex wrote: »

Interesting discussion.

I exclusively buy grass fed beef. Not because I think it’s healthier (maybe it is) or tastes better, but because feed lots literally look like s h i t. Cattle walking around all day with no space to roam, tramping around in filth from dawn to dusk, somehow doesn’t seem like something I want to pay for. 🤷‍♂️

Good points by everyone. Being as I live in the Midwest, in the middle of farming country, I've been spoiled most of my life by the ability to purchase Prime Quality Beef directly from the farm. Not from overcrowded Feed Lots and Corporate Farms, Sam's Club or any Grocery Chain. Direct from the individual Farmer that takes good care of his stock, from birth to Market.

Nightfall

I buy grass fed milk. I like to think they're happy cows frolicking in a field and not nut to butt standing in piles of shat and can't move. Whether not that is actually the case I will never know.

GlennDog

GlennDog wrote: »

I just picked up a case of Wagyu Kobe burgers from Rastelli's . .. good stuff

https://www.rastellis.com/

btw, they run specials. Wait for them. Then pounce!

I know there are better deals to be had.
With the special/coupon/discount it’s less than 3 bucks for a tasty Waygu burger . ., . and convenient packaging and minimal fuss

For this burger ... all ya need is Tom’s MannKittchen fresh pepper dousing and some Himalayan salt....

Superb!

pitdogg2

Mike Reeter wrote: »

Gardenstater wrote: »

Grass fed beef costs the farmer more per lb., which is reflected in the price. There are more than just feed costs involved per unit time to keep a cow healthy and alive and they take longer to get to marketable weight and weigh less when they are marketed:

"NPR reports that grass-fed cattle are sent to slaughter later than conventionally-fed cattle because their diet contains fewer calories, meaning they take longer to reach optimal weight for slaughter. And, as a result, more money is spent over time to care for them. When slaughtered, grass-fed cattle generally weigh about 1,200 while grain-fed cows weigh closer to 1,350 pounds, per NPR, which means that a farmer will not get as much meat to sell from a grass-fed cow.

Ultimately, the cost to care for and raise a grass-fed cow or steer is reflected in the price per pound you'll be paying in the meat section at your grocery store."

I'm sure it is a lot more healthy due to the lower fat content and greater Omega3 and lesser Omega6 but I don't really care for grass fed beef. I don't know for sure, but I seriously doubt that any restaurant grade Prime Beef could possibly be fully grass fed to make that grade.

Read More: https://www.tastingtable.com/898677/the-real-reason-grass-fed-beef-is-more-expensive-than-regular-beef/?utm_campaign=clip

Kex wrote: »

Interesting discussion.

I exclusively buy grass fed beef. Not because I think it’s healthier (maybe it is) or tastes better, but because feed lots literally look like s h i t. Cattle walking around all day with no space to roam, tramping around in filth from dawn to dusk, somehow doesn’t seem like something I want to pay for. 🤷‍♂️

Good points by everyone. Being as I live in the Midwest, in the middle of farming country, I've been spoiled most of my life by the ability to purchase Prime Quality Beef directly from the farm. Not from overcrowded Feed Lots and Corporate Farms, Sam's Club or any Grocery Chain. Direct from the individual Farmer that takes good care of his stock, from birth to Market.

I'm in that realm as well. My personal family farm.
Our Belted Galloway's are not fed any grain.