Yeah, Greg, works fine until one day your wife’s doing laundry and wants to know “What’s this red smudge on the crotch of your pants??”
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Can someone clue me in on “Aldi”? I’m sure I can find it, but there seems to be an “Aldi culture " I might want to know about. I don’t know of it in my little piece of " America”.
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It’s just a cheapo supermarket chain that originated in Germany. Same family that runs Trader Joe’s. Not sure a ‘culture’ is justified, but other people might feel more passionately about the subject. Our Aldi back home has great fresh fish, good cheeses, fabulous sammich bread, good avocados, super-cheap baby spinach, etc. etc. And they have the “aisle of shame” where you can find anything from leggings to humidifiers or kitchenware at ridic low prices.
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Originally a German grocer, started operating in US in the `70s. I wouldn’t have shopped there 20 years ago but now find it to have relatively decent foods at quite low prices. However, according to this, there are no Aldi stores in these states:
- Idaho
- Washington
- Montana
- Oregon
- Wyoming
- Nevada
- Colorado
- Utah
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- Hawaii
- Maine
I’ve never been to Trader Joes but my daughters say they’re similar, if you have that store in your area.
Edit - to Natascha’s point about TJ and Aldi, looks like we posted within a few seconds of each other - the brothers that owned Aldi Germany had some kind of disagreement about whether to sell cigarettes or not and ended up splitting the company into two separate entities, one having the Northern half of Germany and the other the Southern half. One of those corps owns US Aldi, the other corp owns US Trader Joes.
Edit2 - I can’t remember for sure but I think you’re from the Bay area? If so, the ~ 90 Aldi stores in CA are all quite a ways South of you, with the closest to SF being in Fresno.
https://www.aldi.us/stores/
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“quite a ways South of you, with the closest to SF being in Fresno”
Curious. Maybe because all the stores have avocados, good veg, and there’s a lot of good bread, good enough cheese. Not every store has fresh fish I would buy.
I’m getting that impression. That’s what made me think there might be an Aldi’s culture, like there is a TJ culture. ( what’s good, when to go, should you stand in line while your companion shops, ect.) I have one in a city nearby, but it seems to be valued for things that are on their way to prepared, and I’d prefer to just prepare something, rather than drive somewhere to buy it prepared.
I am technically in the SF Bay area, but heavily influenced by a Califonia central valley climate and culture.
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I wasn’t aware of any particular Aldi culture until today - Natascha commented on “aisle of shame” and that first link in my response above was from a website actually called “aisleofshame(dot)com” that says it’s a website dedicated to Aldi Finds For Aldi Fans. So it appears there is an Aldi culture out there.
I just use it because it’s conveniently located right across the street from my regular grocer. There are some things I won’t buy at Aldi (their milk, eggs, cottage cheese, fresh pork) and other things I think are equivalent to my regular grocer (all other dairy, most produce, fresh chicken and beef, frozen seafood, cheeses and sandwich meats). So my daily routine is hit Aldi first then go across the street for anything on my Aldi-no-buy (or Aldi-don’t-carry) list.
I’m not too clear on your things being prepared meaning. The Aldi here does have prepared snack foods (chips etc., and also cook-at-home pizzas) but otherwise most things are just at the ingredient stage. Or maybe there’s more pre-prepped stuff and I just pass it by unnoticed?
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I don’t think I’ve ever been to Aldi, although I think I’ve seen them the last time I was in Atlanta and Ral/Durham.
I was referring to my experience with a TJ’s in Nor Cal.
At least on the first and second aisle I see smallish portions of marinated meats and fish, assembled salads, cheeses etc that I would pick up if heading to an evening meeting after work, when I was hosting or expected to bring something.
Veg aisle might have cut up carrots, lettuce, apples, cauliflower. In New York my daughter takes a train there and back, “off hours” to get cut up cauliflower rather than cut it up herself. 
Next aisle had among other things, sauces, including “simmer sauces”, as well as procesed tomatoes. I value processed tomatoes.
Another aisle might be seasoned and plain packaged nuts, peas, beans, rices and seasoned rice mixes. I don’t remember all of it.
In the frozen aisle I remember ready to eat stuff as well, as well as frozen proteins like fish.
It was fine, and I get the puff pastry that begins with D when they have it. It’s fine, but just not what I’m used to.
I always pick up some wine!
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I don’t buy much in the way of prepared food anywhere, try to avoid snacky stuff like chips and adjacent, and I almost never buy produce at TJ’s but I do have a roster of staples from TJ’s that are high on the value-to-cost ratio, things like olive oil for cooking, chocolate, organic sugar, maple syrup, some basic condiments, frozen artichoke hearts, cheese, like that.
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Yeah that’s a 3.5 hour drive from SF. I wonder why they haven’t expanded to Northern California.
Not me. We don’t shop too often at Aldi - usually finding there’s more of interest to us in their rivals, Lidl.
Until a year or so back, both were quite a niche market for most people (except the poor) as overall quality wasnt great. Middle class folk, like us, might go every few weeks and snap up some bargains but that would be about it. But then, along comes the cost of living crisis and both chains start to market themselves as a place to go for “the full weekly shop”. So, now it’s possible to find free range pork and chicken in Lidl. OK, it’s pork and chicken that just scrapes through the legal definitions for “free range” but free range it is. If I had to do the main weekly shop in Lidl, then I could do it - although with little enthusiasm.
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LOL!!! I’d say it’s my feminine side coming through. Bed enough when the cappuccino lands down there.
“Did somebody have a boo-boo?” 
Surprising wines, there. I go there after I hit Woodman’s, which is amazing. Like Aldi, they only take cash or debit. But, Aldi produce is great for the $, love their mayo, and other condiments. So, I usually spend about $20-$30 at Aldi’s. Great seeded watermelon, hopefully coming soon.
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I have a friend who refers to it as the “aisle of crap”…but quick adds that it’s shorthand for "aisle of crap you hD nonidea you needed so badly"
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I almost never cruise that aisle but have gotten some great utility from it when my MIL bought me a large square-sided fry pan (actually not sure how to call it) nonstick. After using the thing the first time I quickly went back and bought 2 more, figuring (a) the nonstick won’t last any longer than any other nonstick and (b) they’re cheap as dirt. 15 months later I’m on number 3 and hoping they show up in-store again. An all-around great utility pan.
Also my MIL got my daughter an Aldi (“Crofton” branded) Dutch Oven and although I kind of scoffed at first (hey, it’s not exactly Le Creuset, ya know!), but it’s been quite serviceable, and I’m no longer scoffing at it. It’s fine, quite a bargain frankly.
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I have one of those ovens…it’s held up great to regular use (and at rhe price I don’t worry about damaging it as much)
In Europe they get high marks for the quality of their electric appliances.
I bought their iteration of an instant pot several years ago and it works like a champ
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Thank goodness the Lidl is closer to me, so we just call it ‘the middle of Lidl’. No shame here.
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Since I haven’t landed a decent ECI Dutch oven, maybe I should just invest. Can’t beat the price (I think it was $40). I have used a big Crofton sauce pan that I’ve had for some 20 years with no signs of degradation. Used to use it much more when the kids were home. My main brazing pan.
Thank you, CCE and Sunshine for the lead.
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Do it…yes I think mine was $40 and it’s sturdy. Even my chef pal was impressed (it gets used a couple of times a week jn the winter months)
