Shopping at Aldi makes me feel rather rich.
How so?
Well, there are a couple ways that Aldi makes me feel like I'm living a life of luxury.
I can buy as much produce as I want.
In our very lean days, it was tough to afford a lot of produce, especially when it came to pricier produces like strawberries, blackberries, pineapples, baby spinach, and avocados.
But since Aldi carries these things at such great prices, it's easy to expand beyond cheap stuff like bananas, apples, and carrots.
Having fresh pineapple around all the time feels pretty darn fantastic.
I can buy fancy foods.
Before Aldi came around, items like fresh mozzarella, prosciutto, and wedges of Parmesan cheese were a little out of my price range and I just never bought them.
And now I do! I feel like I'm living extravagantly, except I'm totally not. 😉
While Aldi originally started as a store that carried the very basics, they currently carry a whole lot of items that go beyond the basics (goat cheese! quinoa! Jasmine rice! marinated mozzarella!), and they're all super affordable.
I love it.
(This is especially handy if you are hosting an hors d'ouevres party. So many great crackers and cheese and such to choose from.)
Ooh! Another item that still feels luxurious to me: gallon containers of apple cider. These are frequently $5 at the regular grocery store, and they're about half the price at Aldi.
I can afford natural and organic products.
Items like plain shredded wheat, real maple syrup, almond butter, 100% fruit strips, and organic greens are totally within my budget at Aldi. Whee!
I'm not a servant to the sale cycles.
Before I became an Aldi shopper, I worked hard to make my meals fit around what I could get cheaply. I stocked up when things went on sale and skipped buying non-sale items.
This worked pretty well, but it took a fair amount of thinking and was also rather restricting.
"Can I make that chicken pasta salad this week? Hmm, nope, red peppers are too expensive right now. And my freezer stash of sale-price chicken is gone."
Since things are the same low price at Aldi every week, I don't have to bother stocking up.
And I don't have to plan my menu around sale items; instead I can make whatever I want to make, which feels rather luxurious.
I don't know that "luxury" is the first word that comes to people's minds when they think of Aldi, but shopping there definitely makes me feel like I'm living the good life.
And the fact that I can eat luxuriously while still keeping money in the bank? That makes me feel even more fabulous. 😉
This post was not underwritten or sponsored by Aldi. I just really dig Aldi!
I am excited that an old bowling alley is now being renovated into...an Aldi! I have never been in one, but your blog certainly makes me welcome the store. I agree that luxury is being able to make fresh meals of choice with little worry about price. What more could we want as a food-centered family? We all need to eat, so being able to do it in a way that we enjoy is a guaranteed three times a day treat.
Thanks for your blog.
We live in Canada, but travel a lot to the US (being retired and my family lives there). Food prices in the US are generally higher than where we live (and the current currancy exchange rate makes it a double ouch), but the first shopping place we look for in the US -- ALDI! The prices are like shopping at home, and sometimes cheaper. We love that the stores are much smaller than places like Wal-Mart, but the selection is great. We always plan to get our basics there. Wal-Mart is only for beer (and sometimes gas station convenience stores have cheaper beer prices).
We eat a lot more fresh fruit and vegetables since I discovered Aldi's. Another thing that I consider a luxury item from Aldi's is uncured bacon. I think theirs is very good. Keep doing Aldi's posts. That's why I went there in the first place. Maybe there's someone else out there who doesn't know about them.
All I can say is 'Amen' to your Aldi's post!
I have discovered Aldi fairly recently and I love it! In fact, the are remodeling the one near me to look like the new style of stores. I agree with the word "luxury" too. Anytime you can get the foods you want when you want is a luxury!
Wahhhh! I still don't have an Aldi anywhere near me, unless one counts "4 hours away" as near. My nephew's wife recently went to their new Aldi (the aforementioned one that is 4 hours away) and posted photos of her many big bags of groceries captioned "All this for $142!" for her Facebook page. I'm glad for her, but sad for me!
Its so unfair that we have no Aldis way up here in northern NH : (
I just moved from northern NH... Gorham to be exact. Food shopping there was so limited we always stocked up when we made it down state. I understand your pain.
I hear you, there are no Aldi's in Alaska either, well, actually at least we have Costco, when I came here in 1993 there were no Costco's or plenty of other lower priced chains. When Kirsten mentioned getting apple cider for "half the other store's price of $4.00 or $5.00 I had to laugh, I just paid $7.00 for a 3/4 gallon of cider (I was sooooo craving apple cider) ....
Oh wow...that makes apple cider a serious treat, then.
I agree with you! Okay, everyone will probably think I'm crazy, but one of the things that feels luxurious about Aldi to me is this (with a little backstory): My husband is an author and I'm a theatre director, and so right now we're struggling with getting enough income to make ends meet. My kids will sometimes beg for store-bought Fudge-Stripe cookies, and I never, never will buy them - except at Aldi! They think it's an awesome treat, and even though they don't get them all the time, it's something extra. (Although, I have to say, I am rarely tempted by pre-packaged cookies, whatever the brand.)
Yes! I thought about that when I was writing this post...for me, it was fig newtons that came to mind. They're $4-$5 a package at my grocery store but are only $0.98 at Aldi!
I completely agree about the "lean days" and having to choose what fresh fruits and veggies we eat. Right now we are living our "lean days" with two in daycare! Bananas and sometimes grapes are the staple fresh fruit we keep in our home on a weekly basis. We do also stock up on canned fruit. My hubby is in food services and has been to conferences and learned about the healthful fruit in those cans. I never thought about it before, but canned fruit is canned at the point of freshness and though it is preserved, it is still a healthier option than other cheaper food options. Oh, to have pineapple around all the time =(
I was just having the conversation with someone yesterday - that "fresh" produce sometimes isn't, and that frozen or canned is processed as soon as its picked (I can't call it the peak of freshness, sadly) and in some cases, the processed-when-fresh produce is more nutritious than the "fresh" produce.
Pity that so much of it is canned in sugar syrup. My solution is to not just drain the syrup but to rinse it. Then I wonder, every time I watch the syrup go down the drain, how I could have resused the syrup. Jam? Poached fruit?
In place of honey or maple syrup in your baking; instead of simple syrup in cockails or punch...
I have popsicle molds and I pour the syrup into them for free popsicles. Sometimes I will mix up the syrups from different fruits and even add some of the fruit itself. My youngest will eat a whole box of the fancy all-fruit popsicles in a weekend (loves the cold crunch) so this free option is a major moneysaver and treat wrapped into one. We alwats have plenty of canned fruit because the kids take their lunches and I give them fresh fruit and then the canned fruit in lieu of dessert. I use Konserve stainless containers, they never leak.
I really like Aldi too, but since moving to a different area, I have found the meat off and the produce section pretty bad as well. They are currently remodeling the two closest Aldi stores which is a huge pain to me, especially when shopping with my daughter. I've given up on Aldi for a little while. I've been shopping sales and using good coupons that two stores sent out (one a remodeled store, and another a new store), to get good deals. My freezer is filled with meat because of the great sales combined with store coupons.
Maybe your local Aldis will be better once they're remodeled! I sure do hope so.
Tammy, I hear you! I love Aldi and shop there 3-4 times a month, BUT I have to be so very careful with the produce. If it's not something I'm going to eat with a couple days, I don't buy it. I've heard the produce quality can vary widely amongst Aldi locations and these comments are confirming that. All I can say is our store near Fort Worth, TX, does NOT consistently have good produce. But I'm still a fan of all the other food categories!
Gahh, I'm jealous. I still haven't been to an Aldi! 🙂 I do agree that food is super expensive any way you slice it! I think the key is to stockpile and to only buy produce that's in season (aka on sale). That's been our strategy for slashing our food costs. I'm excited that we're moving into a house now, which means we can use a six-foot reach-in freezer to reaaaaally up our stockpile game. Woohoo!
It's true; it's a bummer for those of us with no Aldis around - but maybe Aldi planners will see all our comments and know we're interested! What I would appreciate most is the point you made about not being tied to sales cycles. I don't so much mind planning and choosing appropriately but I do find it a hassle to try to "stock up." There's only so much room in small house and there's a limit to how much fresh stuff we can stash. Would love to just feel free to buy what we're going to use in the next week or so... I agree - no sales cycles (+produce, fancy, organic) = luxury!
I am so jealous! My mom travels to Aldi in a nearby town once a week because the prices are so good. I hope we get one nearby some day soon. I love reading about all your great scores on fancy food.
Out here in Southern California, Aldi is new to our market. And, I LOVE them! I tell as many people as possible about Aldi. When I first started shopping there, the store was fairly quiet with few shoppers. Now, the parking lot is full and lines have definitely gotten longer. I especially enjoy the "special sales" when they clearance out seasonal items. I've gotten great deals! Keep them coming!! 🙂
We got an Aldi last fall about 40 minutes from us & I have been trying to go at least once or twice a month. I am not impressed w/ all the produce but able to get a lot more than just the cheap produce. The strawberries this spring were awful every time I went. so disappointing. Overall thankful that we have a store pretty local.
I love Aldi so so much!! It does feel good to be able to buy healthier things for cheap, especially now that I have a 2 year old. My Aldi is also very family-friendly and feels like a safe place for me to venture out with a 2yo and a 2 month old. Have you tried their cookies that taste like Girl Scout thin mints? Amazing and so affordable! And their sweet potato chips... Oh my stars... OK, I need to stop. 🙂
We just got back from Aldis, I have been spoilt that the store is only about 3-4 miles up the road, close enough that we can drop in there once a week if we feel like a treat, it beats ordering take out on a friday night.
I'm moving soon and the closest one is over an hour away, it's giving me cold feet! I am really going to miss that store.
FG wrote: 'I stocked up when things went on sale and skipped buying non-sale items. This worked pretty well, but it took a fair amount of thinking and was also rather restricting. “Can I make that chicken pasta salad this week? Hmm, nope, red peppers are too expensive right now. And my freezer stash of sale-price chicken is gone.” Since things are the same low price at Aldi every week, I don’t have to bother stocking up.'
Sounds like the core of a marketing campaign to me. "Low prices every day simplifies your planning: buy when you want, not just when there's a sale."
Hi,
I could write this exact post but about Trader Joe's instead, so I was wondering how you felt compared to Aldi when you visit a TJ? I know the ownership of these stores is related within one family, and they seem to share some of the same operating systems, but TJ is just so much better stocked in the things we buy (nuts, oils, cheeses, natural and organic products in general). Our Aldi feels pretty bare in the produce aisle and many veggies are old, but luckily TJ is much closer and more conveniently located.
Thanks!
There are definitely similarities between the two stores! I like Trader Joe's as well, but their prices are a bit higher, and more importantly, there's no Trader Joe's locations really close to me. If Trader Joe's was close and Aldi was far away, I'd probably frequent Trader Joe's. But since Aldi is so very convenient for me and TJs isn't, I'm more of an Aldi girl.
We have a Trader Joe's an hour from here in a town where I often shop for groceries, but they price nearly all their produce by the piece, not the pound, then don't have any scales in the store. I have no idea if I'm getting a better price or a worse price than the other stores, all of which price by the pound and have scales. Am I the only one who's really turned off by that?
We have TJ's, but not Aldi. And, yes, it does bug me that produce is either pre-packaged of you pay by the piece, not the pound. Since they have such good prices on other items and even on the packaged produce, I did an experiment. I bought the largest apples I could and the largest bananas ('cause that's what I needed that day). My reasoning was that it was going to cost me 89 cents (or whatever) regardless of size. When I came home, I weighed my produce to figure out what it would have been if it had been priced per pound, and the TJ's price was still the best. Another thing I've done is to hold something w/ a marked weight in one hand and price per piece stuff in the other, which gives me a general idea of how much it weighs and then I can decide if I want to buy it or not. More often than not, though, I buy things with a posted price & weight (like onions or potatoes) which does help.
You do have to be careful with some of their produce pricing. Sometimes it's nice to know exactly how much you will pay for one thing like a bell pepper, but I agree, I rather buy a bunch of bananas from a regular grocery store. The produce I like to buy at Trader Joe's are greens such as fresh English peas (not frozen, not canned!) and arugula, spinach, etc. Also organic potatoes and apples. We shop weekly at a regular grocery store and bi-weekly go to either Whole Foods (365 foods are a pretty good deal) or Trader Joe's, depending on what we need. For paper and cleaning products, I throw in a monthly trip to Target or shop from Amazon or another online place.
I was reading through the comments because I was going to ask a question right down this alley - if one wasn't blessed with an Aldi's, is Trader Joes similar. Thanks for both for asking and answering the question.
I live half way between Aldi and a TJs. Both are on notoriously congested roads. For some reason in my mind TJs is super expensive. I'll have to brave that awful insertion it's by far far away from rush hour and try it again.
My experience with Trader Joe's is that it's a good "second" supermarket. I wouldn't want to get my basic there (flour, cereal, most produce) but it has excellent prepared foods and interesting ingredients. So I'll buy snack foods, chocolates, wine (good selection of inexpensive wine), soups and simmering sauces, frozen dumplings or meals (TJ has an unusually broad selection of Indian, Thai, and Chinese).
TJ's also really means their policy of if you don't like it, you can return it. When I was a weight-lifter I bought several dozen different protein bars to try; TJ's encouraged me to return the half-eaten ones I didn't like and was thoroughly pleasant when I did so. Which is why I bought my protein bars there for years.
Yeah, I'd agree with that assessment. They do have some good basics, like cheese and other dairy products, but they really shine when you're buying ready to eat foods.
I am forever greatful for you & your Aldi post ohhhhhh so many years ago (8yrs?!?) when we were transitioning from a 2 income family to a 1 income family (very unexpectedly and not warranted). I had stubble across your website while looking up "frugal ways". I wasn't sure what "frugal ways" things I was looking for, but I knew that on one income I needed to learn something quick and fast! Our Aldi's here in PA is super small and at that time new to the area. It was like a super secret society . After reading you meal plans and your detail. Aldi shoppers guide, I felt at ease going in to our new normal. I could feed my family on our smaller budget, healthy options and know that if the food on our table that was good everything else would fall into place.
Since then I can't even tell you the amount of $$$ I have saved there over the years and the impressive dinner parties we can hold again with "fancy" food.... Since then I try to convert as many people as I can to shopping there and read your post on a more simple livingâ¤ï¸â¤ï¸â¤ï¸
And to end on a higher note, our community has embraced Aldi's so well they are opening up what I would consider a "mega" Aldi's come November 7 2016. Soooooooooo exciting!!
Xoxo
I am green with envy!! We have had an Aldi everywhere we have lived but here! There are no Aldi in this are of Coastal Georgia. Love them though!
Please let Aldi know that we need them to open up in Los Angeles. I do go to Trader Joe's but they don't carry all foods so I end up going to Kroger, after Trader Joe's.
I get a little frustrated when people with an Aldi nearby gloat because it makes me jealous. But this post today made me realize that I have a similar experience shopping at Winco. I Keri an eye on sales at other grocery stores, but the prices at Winco are typically the same or still cheaper than the sales at other stores. So we still buy a lot of fresh produce and I rarely meal plan around what is on sale! Love Winco!
I love WinCo too!!! My food budget goes so much further there.
I have tried a few times to become an Aldi lover and I just am not feeling the love. I have many friends who adore it like you do but every time I go I feel like the produce is lacking in quality. I went to one store just a few weeks after it opened and was again disappointed. I tried their string cheese once and it was so oily it slipped out of the wrapping and fell to the floor. I have to wonder if it is just our location (metro Atlanta) as your pictures show food that looks like it is in excellent condition. Your post has me wondering if I should try them just one more time.
I know they do vary some from location to location. There's an Aldi not super far from me that is really quite creepy and I try never to go there. But my Aldi is newer and I love it.
Is the one you go to an older Aldi?
I'm in ATL too and find our Aldi disappointing. We go for 3 or 4 things and only when we happen to be near and need those things. Produce, yuck, selection, not so much, organic, maybe if I look at every item, twice, I might find some.
I live in Wisconsin where, admitedly, we have a pretty big drinking culture (lots of breweries and wineries here). I love that our Aldi's have a small liquor section. Their wines and beers are on par with national brands but at a fraction of the cost. Even if you just need wine for cooking, their prices can't be beat.
When Aldi's first came to our area, they very prominently displayed that they accept WIC (our state's foodstamp program) so a lot of people described them as "the store for welfare people" i.e. a store for poor people that would probably sell crap. I am so glad their reputation is improving. I think they're proving a lot of folks wrong with all the organic, nonGMO, and gluten free offerings that they have - at a fraction of the cost.
WIC is NOT food stamps. WIC is available nationwide. WIC stands for Women, Infants and Children.
I saw last week that Aldi is opening a store here (Plymouth MA) in January! The closest one to me was 45 minutes away so I only stopped there when I was headed in that direction. Not really sure I understand their location site because they are between a super Walmart and a Market Basket (prices not quite as good as Aldi but pretty good compared to the other grocery stores) all within easy walking distance of one another.
Interestingly enough, Aldi actually likes to build stores close to other grocery stores. That way customers can buy the bulk of their groceries and Aldi and then easily hit up a regular grocery store for the other foods they need.
We don't have an Aldi.
Never heard of it till I started reading your blog.
I hate walmart and don't have a membership to costco.
Our Aldi growing up was kind of gross. My father still preferred shopping there because it was cheap and because he's European so it was more like what he was used to.
Right now they're tearing down the natural foods store in the town next to ours and putting in an Aldi. It will be interesting to see what people think about it. Aldi definitely seems to be a lot more chic these days than it was back when I was little. I bet the new one will be clean and rodent-free too!
I didn't hear of Aldi until the last 6-8 years or so, but I've heard horror stories of what it was like several decades ago. If that's what you know of Aldi then yes, I think you'll see a vast improvement once yours opens up!
The Dallas area has lots of grocery store options. I agree that Aldi's is more for basics and Trader Joe's has more specialty items. I have noticed that the stores around Aldi's and Winco seem to have lowered their prices because of the competition they are facing. I certainly appreciate all the savings my family gets because the stores are trying to get my business. I shop more at Aldi's and like the savings and the fact that I can get in and out quickly..
I love Aldi and gets lots of items there, but alas, not produce. The times I have gotten "fresh" produce there, it has gone bad very quickly. Although another Aldi across town seems to have lovely produce - it's just not worth the drive and time for me to go there.
I've shopped at Aldi's for too many years to count. My sister in law & I used to go when it was in an industrial area just open in Illinois. Her brother was in the grocery business & laughed they would never make it. We checked it out & it quickly became our go to for basics & snacks. Many many years later we still shop there. We have a few things we don't like but that is true of any store.
Hi Kristen, we live in Queensland, Australia, and we absolutely love our ALDI. I completely agree with you in that ALDI have made beautiful products affordable. We love their cheeses and all their good quality fruit and veg. I also buy our chia, quinoa and raw cacao there, at really inexpensive prices.
Have a fab Friday
Fi
Still no Aldi in Denver, sigh. I read an article earlier this year that they planned to go all organic. Made me wonder if their prices would suffer as a result. Have any of you Aldi shoppers noticed a change?
I have found the Aldi produce lately to often be less than optimal and the prices not as great as they use to be. Today all the organic bananas were over-ripe (soft) and the regular bananas not much better. The pineapples have been very small. Avocados have been $1.49 lately. I believe organic salad is cheaper at SAM'S Club as is maple syrup.
I love Aldi! We just got one convenient to us and it's the best! I've been so surprised by what it carries. And the quality is awesome! The Greek yogurt is better than Chobani. I'm so glad that Aldi exists. 🙂
My Aldi is less than a mile from me. Our produce is amazing and always fresh,but our trucks come in daily and I am sure that makes a big difference. Our store is super busy all the time so the all the fresh stuff is sold in less than 24hrs. I always ask when the trucks will be in and go a few hours later when they have refilled the refrigerators and produce. Milk and eggs come in daily. So maybe the problem with some stores is that the produce is not good etc is b/c the trucks do not come in on a very frequent basis. I only shop at Aldi for about 90% of our needs. I feel like a queen when I walk out with all my amazing food. Thanks Kristen for your amazing blog.
Frugal Girl -
Love Aldi : ) Love the fair trade coffee, the breads, cheeses, hummus, cereals, produce, etc.. So nice that it doesn't break the bank, but is also fairly healthy eating! Thanks for sharing and spreading the word on Aldi!
-Lanny
Aldi certainly gives me and my family a better quality of life. We eat well. We live well. And the money we save shopping at Aldi (vs those other over priced supermarkets) give us a better life.
A big shout out and thank you to A.L.D.I.!!!!
PS: And yes! Aldi has certainly gotten better over the years. YAY!
I've been an Aldi shopper for 20 yrs & I so agree with you. I used to have to drive quite a ways to our nearest Aldi so I only shopped once a month really stocked up. Now I go once a week & we always have fresh on hand. To me, buying what I want at the grocery store is a true luxury. I can do that at Aldi & still stay well within my budget!
So, I've followed your blog for five or so years (maybe more - Zoe was litttttle) and always been so jealous of your Aldi love. I have similar love for Trader Joe's and almost exclusively shop there and at Target (Cartwheel stacked on sales is the best). I'm happy to say an Aldi is being built in the same shopping center as my Trader Joe's. Yessssss! They are practically next to each other.
Oh my goodness, that's awesome! Both near each other? Heaven.
I make a trip most weeks to Aldi just for produce. I like that I can get in and out of that store in 10 minutes (I stick to a list). I love their seasonal items, never know what you will find. This is the only time of the year they put out their pumpkin pie spice. I use that for french toast, pancakes & applesauce. It's easier for me to buy that spice mix rather than make it myself.
Love their prices. I don't buy many boxed items but I do buy their mac n cheese. Its as good as Annie's.
Long time lurker here; first time posting. I have to jump in on the Aldi's post, because I just this week discovered yet another reason to love them - customer service! My son loves the whole wheat white bread, but lately, it's been stale around the edges. I wrote them a nice email on Sunday evening explaining the problem. They replied back by Monday morning with a personal reply stating that they would look into it and reiterating their refund/replace guarantee. But wait! On Wednesday, I opened my mailbox to find a personal letter from the local bread bakery that provides their bread, explaining that they had evaluated that particular process and made some changes on the spot to hopefully improve the quality. AND they included an Aldi's gift certificate. Every response was personal and referenced unique things I had said in my original email. And three days from my email to a response from the supplier. Wow! Great food, great selections, great prices, and now great service.
Wow, that's so great. Yay!
I completely agree! You can buy gourmet products and healthy products for a fraction of supermarket prices!
Unfortunately we don't have a single Aldi's in Colorado but I did in New York. Boy, do I miss them!!! My husband is interviewing for a job in Virginia next week and I've been very unsure of it (the majority of my family and my job are in CO then there is 1 of our children who is stationed in WA) I read your post and thought "WOW! I wonder if there is an Aldi in Roanoke?" Sure enough there is! Groceries are crazy expensive here and the cost of living is one of the highest in the country. I felt instantly better about the move. I may be further away but I can afford to visit! Lemonade out of lemons maybe? But I'll take what I can!
Geez I know! I love Colorado, but groceries ARE expensive here. We're behind the times... JUST got a trader joes, no Aldi (had no idea what this was til I read this blog) and only Sprouts really for anything resembling a bargain on produce(and even that is relatively new to CO, 5 years ago that wasn't a thing here either). It's the price we pay for living in the middle of the country where everything is trucked in! Way to put a positive spin on a move!
Kristen, I would guess you're not a huge fan of single-use gadgets, but this year we got the neatest thing that cores and slices a pineapple into a perfect spiral of rings so easily. It is great, and we've been eating way more fresh pineapple since we bought it (and fresh pineapple has been really cheap this year, was it always so cheap?) There are different brands & models out there, but ours is by OXO and cost about $11. at Target.
Back when I was a fresh-faced young woman and new yo the grocery-buying scene (but after college when I only bought milk, pasta, parm in the can, butter, cookie dough in the tube and peas because...well...college) I would trek to our Cubs to buy cheap food for my fiance and myself. It promptly closed and we were adrift in a sea of overpriced stores. There was a Sam's but we couldn't fit that kind of quantity in our tiny apartment. I began several years of just shopping at the closest store and muddling along. We had a bunch of kids and our groceries got crazy high so I discovered Aldi's and got them down to $435 every month (that's how we paid off all of our debt and our house) and THEN our son was dxed with autism and GI problems, the latter was also apparent in the younger brothers. Ruh roh. They needed a grain-free diet for 2 years (it worked, everyone started, um, going normally and growing properly again) and now a gluten free, lactose free diet. Both are expensive and require diligent menu planning/store flyer watching/creative shopping. I shop at three/four stores and two online sites to get everything I need at the best prices. Aldi's is part of the plan but most of it's gf stuff is sadly not very good. It's okay, though, because I can stock up on their produce (very good in our area) and the yum gf pretzels and cheap eggs and cheap hard cheeses and have plenty left for the sale prices at Kroger, Meijer, Whole Foods and Fresh Thyme. Fresh Thyme also has excellent produce prices every week and on Thursday the flyer from the preceding week and the flyer from the current week are both on sale. THIS IS AMAZING. Between Aldi's and Fresh Thyme I can afford higher quality meat and seafood, the almond flour and gf flour I use to make pancakes and treats, all bought at other places. We are a family of five with three teenage or almost-teen boys on special diets and our groceries are under $800 for the month. It is a miracle. In 2009 I was spending $1200 and the youngest was a newborn. We eat less nut flour now but not $400 a month less, maybe $50?? The 75%ish of our groceries is produce (I have 10 pounds of potatoes, 2 bunches of bananas, 6 piunds of apples and 3 pounds of onions at my feet...just for the coming week and more in the car and on the list) but I spend only a third of the budget on produce. Aldi's and Fresh Thyme for the win. And Kroger's for transferring our grocery spending to gas savings at Shell for my husband and our pest control business. It's helped a lot.
This is a late comment but I have scoured and devoured your blog for the last 3-4 months. Could you tell me if you get your shrimp at Aldis? I am going to give the store a try! We usually do our shopping at Lucky's and Trader Joes.
Thank you!
I do sometimes, although I can often get it a little cheaper if I watch a sale at a regular grocery store or buy it at Costco.