Supermarket Chat 2023

GinAg (39)

GinAg (39)

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An ongoing favourite conversation, which probably deserves it's own topic.

We've been dabbling with all kinds of shops over Christmas and had some excellent food, but New Year comes and we've defaulted back to Aldi. They had so much brand new vegan stuff, if that's your thing. We indulged heavily and plan to try more next week.
 
Just chowed down on a delicious cauliflower dal lunch pot.
 
I really need to get back to Aldi as they have some cracking stuff. It’s just as they don’t do home delivery or even have smart checkouts, I always default back to Sainsbury’s for that and the Nectar deals.
 
I have to say I was delighted that our town centre Sainsbury reopened recently. It's great for 'everything else' when Aldi don't come up trumps.

I even enjoyed a recent trip to the big Tesco. Just so much more expensive!
 
The Aldi price match thing, just reminds me that I should be in Aldi.
 
Ag said:
The Aldi price match thing, just reminds me that I should be in Aldi.
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Yes. I did notice Tesco were doing a strange Clubcard deal last week where almost all vegetables were insanely cheap. A whole broccoli for 19p! I really have no excuse not to eat healthily.
 
Ellie said:
Yes. I did notice Tesco were doing a strange Clubcard deal last week where almost all vegetables were insanely cheap. A whole broccoli for 19p! I really have no excuse not to eat healthily.
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I keep forgetting the Clubcard thing and being outraged when I get to the checkout.

Aldi do cheap veg as standard. Although a bag of apples was £2 today!
 
I often find that the produce in Aldi and Lidl doesn’t last anywhere near as long as some of the bigger supermarkets but I do like the tubs of ready cut mango and pineapple that Aldi use which I can use for an easy fruit salad.

I don’t really have a supermarket I regularly visit, we have pretty much all of them close by, so I like to go to a different one each time as they all have different things. For vegan ranges I think Sainsbury’s is the best, followed by Tesco. Asda is the worst.
 
I live 5 mins walk away from a Tesco so do pretty much all my grocery shopping there by default. The Clubcard savings can be very good for those being frugal.
 
On one hand I’m always pleasantly surprised by the amount I get in vouchers, on the other I think how much do I fucking spend on here to get so much?
 
I have a massive Sainsbury’s, Aldi, M&S and Asda nearby and one shit Lidl. No Tesco apart from a tiny Metro.

I only really consider Asda when I’m a bit depressed and feel like stocking up on cheap junk food as they have a better selection of sweets there.

The M&S Foodhall in Stratford is right as I get out of the station to go to work and it’s generally really great. I wouldn’t even say it’s overpriced as they do some great deals, so a lot of the time I stock up on things as and when I see them.
 
I tried Lidl a few times. We just ended up sticking with Aldi. The bakery was just NOT ENOUGH.
 
Ellie said:
I have a massive Sainsbury’s, Aldi, M&S and Asda nearby and one shit Lidl. No Tesco apart from a tiny Metro.

I only really consider Asda when I’m a bit depressed and feel like stocking up on cheap junk food as they have a better selection of sweets there.

The M&S Foodhall in Stratford is right as I get out of the station to go to work and it’s generally really great. I wouldn’t even say it’s overpriced as they do some great deals, so a lot of the time I stock up on things as and when I see them.
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Yes, I think as I have something so convenient to me I spend more by popping in and firing things in the basket ad hoc every couple of days rather than planning a weekly shop list.
 
I have a lidl close to work and home so tend to pick up bits from there, but I agree that the fresh fruit doesn't seem to last as long which is annoying. My weekly shop is done at tesco because their click and collect is a life saver and I get a staff discount there. Sainsburys I find super expensive these days!
 
We've lost our town centre M&S to much local and personal disgust. It was great to just POP IN and grab something.

There's now a giant out of town M&S, with terrible public transport links and ONE CAR PARK shared between Aldi, M&S and B&Q.

Don't get me wrong the Food Hall is FABULOUS, but what an effort. I was glad to see it wasn't busy when I've been.
 
I know it's fashionable to be pro Lidl and Aldi

But Lidl's fresh produce is GHASTLY. Most of it is already rotten on the shop floor. And now one has middle-aged metabolism, one simply can't diet solely on their lovely bakery apple turnovers.
 
I have a Lidl on the way home from work so do 95% of my shopping there. The nearest supermarket to my flat is a co-op which is absolutely DREADFUL and needlessly expensive. I also have one of those hipster spas which once charged me £4 for a bag of kale.
 
I’ve never walked in to a Lidl and found anything of worth other than the regular brand stuff. I agree about the “fresh” produce. Also, my local one literally opened at the END of 2020 and their Covid compliance was appalling. It’s been filthy from day one.
 
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Lidl also seems a bit more expensive than Aldi, which all things considered isn't really WORTH IT
 
I'm a supermarket whore in that I'm not loyal to any of them and I actually like food shopping and mixing it up several days each week.

Location means the ones I use most are Lidl and Tesco though. And I agree with what people have said about Lidl fresh produce. You have to be a lot more selective than you are at the others, and I still am only really inclined to buy fruit and veg there if I know I'm going to be using it in the next couple of days.

We also lost our city centre M&S almost exactly a year ago, and I still miss it. It was perfect for those days when I hadn't planned anything for dinner and was happy to get something preprepared from there. And how I miss their lemon curd Whitby buns :(
 
And their cheese topped rolls :(

And no supermarket has a range of hot cross buns like them :(
 
Co-Op QUITE RIGHTLY BOTTOM of the list. Although NO WAITROSE?

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I note Aldi are now the fourth biggest supermarket in the UK by market share.
 
We have an Aldi and a Lidl near my house, but I haven’t been to either yet
 
RJN said:
We have an Aldi and a Lidl near my house, but I haven’t been to either yet
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Dunno what they'd be like in the US. I know they've taken off in the US in the same way other European ones have not.

The branding and products are extremely British over here, you forget it's a German shop.
 
I kind of miss the days when Aldi and Lidl first came to the UK. They were a lot scuzzier and middle class people wouldn't touch them.

Although I'm not sure if they have necessarily got much better, or just dragged the other ones down.
 
I remember going to one in Brighton and it was horrible.

I then went again here about a decade ago and was pleased by the prices and general Eastern European styling. Some time since then it's become insanely popular. I reckon we could host another three or four in the town (city) and they'd still thrive.
 
Ag said:
I remember going to one in Brighton and it was horrible.
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That wouldn't be the one on London Rd, would it? I remember going there about 8 or 9 years ago and it was rough as a badger's arsehole.
 
We have a Co-op, and Iceland and a Waitrose locally, and always end up in the Waitrose because it’s always the cheaper option(!). We do a weekly Lidl shop for most things though.
 
lolly said:
That wouldn't be the one on London Rd, would it? I remember going there about 8 or 9 years ago and it was rough as a badger's arsehole.
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Yes! But then London Road is an absolute shit hole full of shitty horrible cheap shops. Obviously I loved it.
 
They demolished the old market and replaced with one marginally less shit. Never change London Road.
 
I mainly shop in Sainsbury's as it is the nearest to home and do lighter shops from the Tesco near work.

Aldi have some bits I really like but is a twenty minute walk away so is more of a summer weekend wander. They have just put in self service checkouts though, which will make going in for a basket less of a faff at least.

Lidl I haven't really investigated but they have just opened a second store within walking distance.

We lost our town centre M&S years ago so were ahead of that curve The council refused permission for a food hall in a retail park to try and keep them in the town centre and M&S called their bluff.
 
My mother will not believe me that Waitrose is cheaper than Co-op. Co-op is our nearest, and by their standards it's a big shop, but I only ever go in there if it's evening and they may have their reductions on. The bakery stuff often goes stupidly cheap.
 
Kalabaliken said:
I often find that the produce in Aldi and Lidl doesn’t last anywhere near as long as some of the bigger supermarkets but I do like the tubs of ready cut mango and pineapple that Aldi use which I can use for an easy fruit salad.
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buying pre-cut fruit in a plastic tub is hideous for the environment. there are so many fruits in plastic that don't need to be and certainly not FRUIT. buy some unpacked fruit and cut it yourself!
 
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