This past weekend, we did a little grocery shopping at Aldi in Springfield near the Eastfield Mall. Neither of us had been before, but we had heard raving reviews from friends and family. Our trip was successful. We left with three large bags of groceries and spent $30.00. I was exceptionally surprised at how clean the store was.
Some things to know about Aldi before you go:
1.) You will need to put in a quarter deposit to get a shopping cart. (Since you have to return your cart to get the quarter back, they don't have to hire people to collect the carts).
2.) They don't have name brands. Almost everything in the store is a store brand.
3.) You have to pay for bags. Expect to pay 6 cents for a paper bag or 10 cents for plastic. (Or save the earth and bring reusable!)
4.) You have to bag your own groceries. (Again, savings from hiring baggers translate to cheaper grocery costs).
5.) They take a limited number of payment options. I forget exactly what they were but they included Cash, Food Stamps and Debit/ATM. Credit was not an option.
Because almost everything is store brand, and the store in Springfield is pretty small, they don't have a lot of reduced fat options for crackers, soups, etc. The dairy products, such as yogurt and milk, do come in low-fat varieties. Additionally, there were lots of healthy cereal options mimicking the name brands (FiberOne, SpecialK, etc.). We mostly stocked up on the basics: crackers, cereal, pasta, granola bars, chips, canned tomatoes, tomato sauce, frozen veggies, yogurt, cheese, seltzer water, and more! If you need a very specific spice (though we did buy some spices too!), or ingredients for a complicated recipe, this is not the place to go. If you want affordable groceries for everyday eating and snacking, definitely check it out!
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