Looking for input on Aldis, No Frills Discount Grocery Stores and Grocery outlets

[snelson]

WE HAVE A WINNER! Actually, all of these posts were winners and I appreciate the input. Even though we've randomly awarded our $25 rest.com certificate to Bargainfinder, if you have input and tips on discount stores please continue to post them here.

I like shopping at Aldi's for non-coupon items, and wondered if any of you have positive or negative experience with Aldi's.

I'd also like to hear about other discount stores, outlets, no frills grocery options that you like. Names vary by region of the country so please put the name of the store you are talking about in the subject line.


If you have a URL for a specific store chain's website to include, that would be great. Any specific savings stories or price comparisons on specific items is great too.

Thanks!
Stephanie

[Kristinemomof3]

You know, Aldi's can be great for some items, but the problem that I have going through the store now is, I notice all of these things in peoples carts and think, yep, I can get free frozen veggies and I paid .40 for a jar of peanut butter. Also, the lines seem to be terrible and I get tired of bagging my own groceries. Maybe it's because I do our church's daycare shopping and I am trying to save them money too, but I also am not getting paid and my time is valuable, so I'm doing the best that I can. I just decided for that, it's easier to go to Walmart where the bag the items for me.

I have noticed that Dollar General can be a great place to get bargains with coupons. Band-aids have been free there with the $1.00 coupons, there have been other deals posted lately too, so don't rule out Dollar General.

[momto3kittiess]

I think Aldis is a wonderful store. Even though you can't use coupons you can still be frugal. My Aldis has lots of nice produce that is always fresh. I love their frozen food. My husband loves their french bread pizza and at under $2 a box, that is a DEAL! I also find milk and eggs are also cheaper there. So not only do we save on food, but they also have toys at cheap prices as well! Also, Aldis does not provide bags for you. You must bring yours or purchase theirs. I think this is great and 'green' because they recycle their bags. I think the store is great!

[shoppingsnyder]

I love ALDI's for staples, produce, and their chips.

Often times their oil, sugar, and flour are cheaper than any brand name or store name (even with a coupon.)

They have weekly specials on produce and I have bought a 5lb of Yukon Gold Potatoes for $1.99, a 3 lb. bag of onions for $.99, and a three pack of green peppers for $.99.

My DH and Kiddos are addicted to their Nacho Cheese Tortilla Chips and at $.99 a bag - that is a bargain. We are also fond of their tortilla chips (also $.99), Cheese Puffs and Curls ($.99) and BBQ chips ($1.19).

I can honestly say that I have never been disappointed with anything I have bought at Aldi's. I think their staff is friendly and quick at checking you out. I don't mind bringing my own bags, because I do that anyway when I shop. And only taking cash helps me stay on budget - extras are rarely thrown in the cart.

[go falcons]

Stephanie,
I use Aldi's to buy a months worth of meat at one time. We use a lot of ground turkey and they have ground turkey chubs @ 1.19 a pound. I also buy other items like shreaded cheese, crackers, onion soup mix there because it is often hard for me to find coupon deals on those items.

[Catlanta]

Aldi's is my first stop on grocery shopping days because there are never guarantees on what you'll find or what prices you'll find on unadvertised items in the produce and dairy sections.

Armed with my other grocery store lists and prices, I shop Aldi's first. I've been very happy with the produce and it's often cheaper than the sale prices at my other stores. So I usually end up crossing out many of the items on my other lists.

Aldi's is also my basic comparison pricebook. I know what their prices are on staples - broth, coffee filters, canned tomatoes, ground turkey, fresh spinach - stuff like that that I need on a regular basis. Most of those are cheaper than the other store's sale prices.

I really like their Fit&Active products and their frozen food items. The only thing I've been disappointed in are their Dole bananas. I don't know why but they don't seem to last as long as the ones I buy in other stores.

As for the self-bagging - it doesn't bother me a bit. I like to use those cardboard file boxes with built-in handles. I either put two in the empty cart which the cashier fills as she checks me out or I just bring my unbagged groceries to the car and fill them there - putting any frozen/refrigerated items into the cooler in my trunk. I do see most people self-bagging inside the store itself but that's too cumbersome and time-consuming for me.

[bugweena]

I like Aldi's for the produce--their bagged spinach is a great buy. I hardly ever see coupons for produce so if I am buying a lot of produce I head for Aldi's.

I like their prices on dairy and eggs. Some of the name brand stores have deals on these but if I don't have time to check prices I just get milk at Aldi's.

The fresh flowers are also a good buy if you're feeling like treating yourself!

I don't mind bagging my own groceries (seems like I often have to bag at the major stores, too). I take my own bags and bag at the counter if the weather is bad. Otherwise, I bag it as I put it in my car.

There are definitely times when our Aldi's is crowded and generally only 1 or two lines open, but the employees are very nice.

[lemkamom]

Before I started couponing, Aldi's was the place where I saved the most. Since couponing, Aldi's still has a prominent place in my weekly grocery strategy. I too use an Aldi price list as my basic price point. If I can't get it lower than Aldi's price I usually won't get it coupon or not. I am very rarely dissatisfied with their quality as many of the brand names we know are at Aldi's, just "undercover" .
I always have a quarter ready to set a shopping cart "free" and will often leave the coin in the slot for the next shopper.
I prefer to bag on my own, since I can sort my bags to suit my needs. Some bags I know are going right to the basement to the stockpile.

[angela2678]

My favorite discount/no-frills grocery store is Bottom Dollar (part of the Bloom/Food Lion chain of stores). Before I started couponing, it was my primary store.

For most items, the Bottom Dollar price is the absolute rock-bottom you'll find in the area. They do accept coupons, but they don't double/triple. So I don't shop there for most name-brand items, because if I have a coupon I'd rather get it doubled/tripled at Shoppers' or Giant. But for 1) generic items (sold under the Food Lion label), 2) brand-name items that rarely have coupons, or 3) items I need immediately because I've run out, Bottom Dollar is unbeatable.

Here are a few examples:

Graham crackers are $1.64/box every day; the generics everywhere else are more than $3.

Lactose-free milk is $2.98/half-gallon every day; everywhere else it's at least $3.38.

Skinless/boneless chicken breasts, sold frozen in a 3-pound bag: $4.98 on sale (and they're very good quality). They're individually flash-frozen, so you don't have to break the pack down into smaller bags or anything--you can just pull out however many you need for the meal. And they're already cleaned/trimmed. For me, it's a lot easier than buying those huge"big buy" packs of fresh ones at other stores).

Toaster pastries $1.87/12-pack every day

Prego pasta sauce $1.98/24-ounce jar every day

Bananas $0.41/pound every day (everyone else is at least $0.58/pound)

Clementines $5.99/crate (everyone else typically $8.99)

Kraft Mac & Cheese $0.50/box on sale (everyone else roughly $1/box)

Mrs. Edwards' frozen whole pies $2.50/each on sale (with the $2 Q, almost free--other stores have them on sale at $5 each)

Lean Cuisine meals $2.47 every day (more than $3 everywhere else)


You will have to bag/box your own groceries, and they don't provide plastic bags (you can purchase them if you need to). They do have huge bins of free boxes, though. For me that's good, because I sell a lot on eBay and need boxes all the time. When I'm packing up my groceries, I purposely choose several small boxes instead of the larger ones; then I "recycle" them by using them for eBay shipments.

You'll get Catalinas, too. When I was still buying a lot of baby food for my youngest, the register would give me coupons like $3/$15 baby purchase.

Now, for the exceptions: I don't buy fresh meat at Bottom Dollar, because I've had some bad experiences (the meat looked fine at the store, but when I opened it there was a terrible odor and it clearly had gone bad). You also have to be careful with the produce, because it sometimes is very close to going bad. Occasionally I've seen produce that is very, very ripe--you just know it will go bad before you can eat it. So check produce carefully before buying.

No, you won't buy everything there. But who out there using coupons only goes to one store?! Overall, it's a great store--absolutely worthy of being added to your repertoire. Hope this info helps!

[couponPT]

I know that many would not consider Trader Joes a discount store but I've found many of their prices better than anywhere else (we don't have Aldi's in CA).

Since I tend to buy as much fresh, healthy, and when it's affordable organic food as I can, Trader Joe's is my price comparison store. It's definitely got the best prices on cheese if you want something other than the standard cheddar, swiss, jack. Even if you do want these but prefer something with more strong/different flavors than Kraft/Sargento can offer (TJ's has probably at least 10 different kinds of cheddar!). Other standards I usually buy there include 100% whole wheat bread, eggs, milk & milk products (sour cream, yoghurt, etc.). These occasionally go on better sales at the regular grocery store but considering these items tend not to freeze well I need to buy these items regularly regardless of sales!

Produce (both the organic and non-organic stuff) and flowers are also good deals- I don't know what TJ's does with their flower distributor but their flowers tend to last weeks (yes in most cases more than one!) where many competitor's flowers fade in days. Most of TJ's items are store brand but for the other brands they carry they do take coupons which usually makes them cheaper than the grocery stores sales with q's. Also love the samples which they always have out- it keeps my son busy without having to buy him anything and I get to try some of their products as well. (BTW they also have a no questions asked return policy- don't like it return it for your $ back- haven't done this often but when I have there have never been any problems). I know this post is long, but I have to say, 80% of my items are cheaper at the big brand stores but for the other 20%- Trader Joes ROCKS!!!!

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