Let’s share current Lidl product recommendations and cautions here.
(I had somehow completely missed that they now have multiple stores in NYC now, all more easily accessible than the single Aldi).
Qualified YEA for the Maryland crabcakes – this was an impulse purchase, but at under $6 I figured it would be no great loss if they’re terrible. They really weren’t, though – they were quite good. Not $20 restaurant jumbo lump crabcake good, but with crabmeat as the first ingredient, they were much better than I expected.
MEH for the corned beef point (had planned to get a flat, but they were way bigger than I wanted) – not a full fat cap, so maybe that’s better value, but if you’re buying a point, you’re not looking for almost no fat either.
YEA for the surprising availability of Faroe Island salmon. Not cheap, but cheaper than anywhere else. Also steelhead trout that looked very good.
And they have cubed, organic butternut squash, which was a surprising find. Not too many other organic vegetables, though, unlike TJ’s.
NAY for the terrible store layout, upkeep, and stock. This and Aldi in NYC really make me not want to be in their store. I will check out the other location to see if they are better stocked and better kept – this one did not have many of the things I had on my list.
Nonfat Greek yogurt - good, but not as good as Trader Joe’s.
Cottage cheese - watery, not great.
Sour cream - fine.
Cheetos - bad, too aerated, not cheesy enough.
Eggs - thinnest-shelled eggs I’ve ever seen in my life. You can break them by breathing on them, practically.
The layout at my local store is fine. I was surprised by how not cheap some things were, like hair conditioner.
Kips Bay? I’m going to take a look there soon, because a lot of things online showed as in stock there but weren’t in Harlem.
Oh - YEA for 49c butter croissants. Quite good, and even better warmed up at home.
(I was too late to see the other bread, but seems promising.)
Speaking of eggs, the white eggs I got at TJs last have the thickest shells I’ve ever encountered.
I had not thought much about shell thickness until then.
Grand Street. It replaced the Rite Aid.
I make a lot of boiled eggs, so shell thickness is a concern! Don’t want any leakage to mar my beautiful soba bowls or deviled eggs.
Wot! I didn’t see there was a third one.
Well, TJs white eggs then.
Whereas I like an egg to crack instead of having to hammer on it with shards falling into the pan.
Somewhere in the middle is balance.
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We have one in Yonkers too - opened last fall, I believe. We’ve been a couple of times, but I haven’t been keeping track of what I bought or whether it was good. I’ll start next trip!
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They had some interesting pate, cheese, and things like that when I looked online, but the store I went to didn’t have any of it. Will check another location when I’m in the neighborhood.
Can’t believe I didn’t know that they opened several years ago 
.
In a three block stretch, we have Fine Fare, Metro Acres, Lidl, Trader Joe’s and Target. Let’s see who survives, 'cause I can’t imagine they all will.
Good for customers.
I can spend an entire afternoon comparison shopping.
Lidl’s has most excellent muesli - 10x better than anything of the run-of-the-mill grocery store stuff, even the ‘organic’ offerings. their ‘brand’ Preferred Selection. two variants, Fruit&Nuts and Honey&Nuts. (imported from Germany)
I always pick up some real bratwurst . . .(imported from Germany)
the butter croissants are excellent - they also freeze well, and thaw quickly.
DW is a crab cake fiend - we’ll give that a go.
other (frozen) seafood - shrimp, scallops - good bargain and good quality.
product availability is better than Costco, but indeed can be spotty.
it’s not a safe bet that what you want for dinner will be there . . .
MEH for the frozen mussels. They scratch the itch if you can’t get to the real thing, but that’s about it.
YEA for the bargain price avocados – every single one has been perfect so far.
At least one of the other stores was in much better shape than the first one (which makes me sad about the implications regarding the location of the first, but that’s another discussion).
Their restocking seems similar to TJs – out of luck until the next truck arrives, which is usually after store closing.
Anyway, on to products.
Frozen octopus is a measured YEA – great price, though I’d have preferred a vacuum pack to the tray pack.
YEA for organic ground beef pricing.
YEA for atlantic salmon (cuts and sides) and steelhead trout.
YEA for the “prime” charcuterie and cheese selection so far (and pricing).
YEA for inexpensive condensed milk and evaporated milk for baking.
They have a plethora of Greek products featured this week, at very attractive prices, from jarred to refrigerated to frozen. The frozen puff pastry bites with cheese or greens look great – I’m going to pick them up on my next trip for Easter apps.
This is more of a specialty shopping trip than for staples, though, as they really don’t have everything, and it’s an odd selection of some things (eg yogurt – no whole milk plain greek yogurt, for example).
I’ve checked out all 3 Manhattan locations at this point, and Kips Bay wins my vote for best stocked, though Grand St is the easiest to navigate (but was missing all the specialty stuff).
Lidl won’t replace my regular shopping stops, but I’m enjoying stopping in for their weekly regional specialty features and some unusual items.
This week is Spanish – they had croquetas de bacalao that were quite good even pan-fried (deep frying was the instruction), manchego croquetas were out of stock when I went. They also had octomari / giant squid tentacles that do a pretty good imitation of octopus. In cool jarred stuff, I picked up piquillo peppers for $1.49, pickled piparra peppers and minced piri piri for 2.99, and marinated anchovies too (to make your own gilda with the piparra).
Their frozen samosas (from India) are excellent – they are the kind with thin, crisp wrappers (patti samosa, pictured here). Tasty filling of potatoes and peas (much better than the TJ’s mixed vegetable samosas, and the original pastry vs. the ones at Whole Foods).
They also have some interesting specialty stuff – truly jumbo scallops, both plain and in garlic butter on the half shell, more than one type of salmon wellingtons, stuffed clams, escargots, 3-year aged parm, several kinds of spanish charcuterie and prosciutto, jarred white asparagus for $2, turkish pide, a couple of types of tarte d’alsace, frozen tuna trimmed of blood lines and in equal portions (as opposed to TJs, neither trimmed nor proportionate pieces), and more.
