# What should I look for at Aldi? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 4, 2012, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163 "2012-07-04T00:56:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Zjestika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8edcca/32.png) [@Zjestika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zjestika)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/21 "2012-07-05T17:09:53Z")
> [@August\_West](#): > > Orange Chicken! > > If it isn’t the same as the famously [well reviewed](http://www.viewpoints.com/Trader-Mings-Mandarin-Orange-Chicken-reviews) TJ’s Mandarin Orange Chicken, I’d be very surprised. > > I’ll go to Aldi just to buy this item and nothing else It’s not, but it’s about as good as take-out. The sauce is much more gingery than TJ’s and the breading on the chicken is different. It’s something I’ll get again for sure. Aldi has excellent frozen pizzas. The spinach and goat cheese is amazing, and the 4 cheese is great too. They’re imported and they remind me of TJ’s pizzas. They had a potato and haricots verts sautee that was exactly like something from TJs. Other than that I haven’t run across many crossovers. There’s lots of things I love at Aldi though. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2012, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/22 "2012-07-05T18:38:57Z")
I consider Aldi a hidden gem. The one I used to live near was kind of small and trashy but now I’m near a newly built one and it is spacious, clean, has friendly checkers, and and it’s never very busy. Kettle chips and pretty much any snacky stuff Take and bake pizzas (fresh not frozen) Cheese (as mentioned, and yeah, that blue-jack is great!) Chocolate (anytime, not just Christmas) Greek yogurt (just like Choiboni, cheaper than Costco price) Fruit/Veggie juice (just like V8 fusion -$1) Mustards Salad dressing (some don’t have HFCS) Beer and wine is pretty good Produce can be hit or miss but the prices are good Weekly “featured” items. Aldi’s weekly specials seem to feature themes, so for instance, this last week had all sorts of outdoor summer fun stuff like slip-n-slide, yard games, etc. In the spring they have a lot of decent gardening stuff. I’ve seen small Lego kits, tools, fitness stuff after New Years, etc. Most things seem to be of OK quality and decent price. If I ever lose power for an undetermined amount of time, my first stop would be Aldi because it seems like there is always a portable generator or two sitting around. Let everyone else fight over the ones at Home Depot. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Bird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Little\_Bird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Bird)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2012, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/23 "2012-07-05T18:41:33Z")
I dunno guys… Our Aldi is creepy, small, and dark, and seems a lot more like a Sav-a-lot than a Trader Joes. Maybe we just have a bad one. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/24 "2012-07-05T18:50:57Z")
> [@Little\_Bird](#): > > I dunno guys… Our Aldi is creepy, small, and dark, and seems a lot more like a Sav-a-lot than a Trader Joes. Maybe we just have a bad one. I my experience there is a very wide variation in store quality from one location to another. There used to be one in my home town that was truely disgusting untill they mercifully closed it down. The one in the next town over is fantastic. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2012, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/25 "2012-07-05T22:52:22Z")
One thing I forgot to mention - their sugar-free fruit drink. Made with Splenda, it’s $.69 for a one-liter bottle. ---
**Author:** ![Zjestika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/8edcca/32.png) [@Zjestika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zjestika)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2012, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/26 "2012-07-05T23:11:32Z")
> [@Little\_Bird](#): > > I dunno guys… Our Aldi is creepy, small, and dark, and seems a lot more like a Sav-a-lot than a Trader Joes. Maybe we just have a bad one. Yeah, I’m a little ashamed to say that I only go to the Aldi stores in the suburbs, and I’m more likely to go to Aldi now that I live near a pristine, brand new suburban store. The ones in the city near where I used to live were nasty and crowded. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2012, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/27 "2012-07-05T23:40:56Z")
While TJs is owned by Aldi Nord, it is done through a trust. TJs is run by a different set of people. Aldi stores in the US are run by Aldi Sud (basically, a company run by the brother of the guy who runs Aldi Nord) and are very much like their European stores. I actually like that they will charge you extra for a bag. It makes you think twice before grabbing more bags than you need. I was not impressed the few times I have visited US Aldi stores. I do shop at Trader Joes though, probably once a month. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163/28 "2012-07-06T00:00:21Z")
The ‘s’ that so many people think belongs at the end of their name. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-look-for-at-aldi/627163.md?page=1)