Aldi

Aldi is where I always go to do my grocery shopping. I moved to this side of town and this is my new «local» Aldi. This location is almost always busy no matter what day or time I go. As far as selection goes, I’ve never had an issue with getting any of the staples that I’ve come to love at Aldi. The staff here does a great job keeping the shelves stocked. They usually have a few people working the registers so the lines go fast.
Last time I was here, I had a sweet old lady stop me and ask me if something in my cart was any good. After I told her it would be the first time buying it, she proceeded to tell me how to cook it. Some might have been annoyed by this but I loved it. She talked about a pressure cooker — which I haven’t seen since I was kid and my grandmother would cook in one! Loved this.

In general, I like Aldi. I especially like that I can find a lot of my favorite items from Trader Joe’s for cheaper. I never do all of my shopping here (or at TJ’s), but it’s really good for odds and ends or certain seasonal items (baking ingredients, pumpkins, apple cider, etc.).
With the deals, however, come headaches. Without fail, you will see people who fail to notice the flow of the store and navigate every aisle in reverse, and you’ll see a plethora of other rude and clueless individuals. The employees, however, are friendly and ultra-​efficient.
Once you get used to its quirks, Aldi can be a good place to do some selective shopping.

This is A-​OK to me — my retired folks think it is superfantastic for veggie ranch dip and corn chips.
Dad: They taste exactly like Fritos, but are ¹⁄₃ of the price, I’m tellin’ ya, you can’t beat it.
Me: *wrinkles nose*
Mom: You’re a snob.
Me: *blank stare, with a duhhhh expression*
I work near the Aldi that is on Old Pineville, I have never been, with no actual desire to. I am kind of a brand loyalist when it comes to certain items, so I definitely couldn’t do my usual grocery shopping here. After taking my parents out to lunch, dad decided he needed some chips and dip to survive the weekend, so we swung by on the way back to their place.
Located kind of at the corner of where Monroe Rd ends and W John St starts and Hwy 51, this place was crazazy on a Saturday afternoon. there is a large marked off fire lane at the front and I asked my mom if this is where the cars pull up for online ordering. She gave me an exasperated look and asked if I had any shopping bags with me, as you have to bag your own stuff here. And as other reviewers have mentioned, it’s a quarter for a cart. Cash and debit card only for checkout, but the stuff is so cheap you will probably have enough change in your unused ashtray to pay (if your car is of a year where they still put ashtrays in cars).
Just a few aisles to look through, so it should be a quick trip. Lots of chip options including the holy grail of corn chips and some sweet potato chips that I may have to make another trip to try. Fruit snacks, cake mixes, cereals, rice, produce, frozen meals, etc. And all of the packaging will look very similar to it’s brand-​named cousin, so you should be able to spot items pretty quickly. There was a large dairy department that had some Fage greek yogurt, the dip we were in search of, very well priced milk, cheesecake by the slice (hello, lovely), eggs — pretty much every staple you could need. Everything seemed to be about ¹⁄₃ of the price of my beloved HT, so if bargains are what you need, you will find them here.
The cashiers sit to check you out. The one we went to didn’t speak except for the total. We got the chips, we got the dip, everyone was happy. And dad was actually right, the corn chips do taste exactly like Fritos but were only ¹⁄₃ of the price.

What’s cubic and crowded and alternately rewarding and frustrating?
Why yes, the answer is Aldi! 20 points for the gentleman in the back.
Don’t get me wrong: this is a nice Aldi, so far as Aldi goes. It seems like Buckingam Palace compared to the Monroe Aldi, for example. It does, however, come with all of Aldi’s quirks:
–Everything’s pretty dang cheap, although some stuff is really good and some stuff is really bad (avoid the peanut butter).
–You’ll find stuff you didn’t expect to find, and then be unable to find things you *did* expect
–You have to bring your own bags and put down a security deposit on the cart, but the cashiers are shockingly fast. They could get through 20 people in the time it would take a Walmart cashier to finish with one customer.
–Some of your fellow customers are extremely rude. I’ve been shoved and had my shopping bag stolen. It’s just food, people. There’s plenty to go around. Simmer down.
If your wallets pinched, Aldi is a worthwhile stop. Just make sure you shop defensively.

We’ve been down this road before. I hate grocery shopping. It’s a necessary evil, however, and it must be done. So I might as well save some cash in the process.
And there we have Aldi, another feat of German engineering (the same German food company behind Trader Joe’s, actually). These stores are no-​frills. You «rent» your cart for a quarter (keeps them from straying in the parking lot). Most items are displayed in stadium-​cut boxes. You bag and box your own groceries — and buy the bags to do it. You won’t find a large selection of items; they stock the «staples.» The aisles are small, there are usually a lot of customers in the store, and your odds of encountering all the rude, pushy shoppers are pretty high.
So why shop there? Because you leave with a shopping cart full of stuff for only $ 30 — if that. If you aren’t married to having recognizable brands in your cupboards, this is the place to shop. This particular Aldi is actually very well kept and surprisingly clean; they all aren’t this nice. So grab your reusable bags, a quarter, and get ready to shove your way to savings.

Good selection of food items for very low prices, lower than walmart in many cases. They have slowly started to add more stores which seem bigger and a little nicer, but remain harder to get to than a plethora of other options.
Their groceries are often all natural and sometimes organic and the corporate side of them is connected with Traders Joes who we love dearly.

There are times that it seems like Aldi is located in areas that are somewhat less than desirable. Just around the corner from our old house. Next to the light rail line off of South Boulevard. The list could go on and on. This is — probably — not because they target lower income neighborhoods (though it is possible), but more likely because the land is cheaper there.
In this case, however, the location is next to Matthews, of all places. When you think of Matthews, you do not really think of Aldi, yet there they sit. The store itself is just about the same as every other location — four rows of grocery staples at a very low price, no frills, which will serve to get you through the week.
Why did they choose to build here? I have no idea. But build they did, and compared to the big boys of grocery, shopping at Aldi can be a pleasant change. Sure, you have to have cash or a debit card. You need a quarter «deposit» for the cart. You are unable to use coupons. But you do not have to worry about sixty three types of a single variety of vegetable, the quality is almost always as good as, or even better than, other store product, and you can get in and out in a relatively short manner. And most importantly, for a lower price.
If you still need a few items, you can always stop in elsewhere and pick them up with the savings. That is the only downside — that you will still have to shop elsewhere from time to time for a few things.