What the heck is an Aldi anyway…

So why should I or anyone care that Aldi is coming to town and what the heck is an Aldi anyways? I finally got my answer today.

The kids and I decided to take Mom out to breakfast at her favorite place, Denny’s, and were thwarted by excessive lines as everyone (and their mother) apparently had the same idea. With no hope of getting a hungry toddler and infant to understand the concept of waiting to be seated we decided to head up the Silas Dean highway in search of Mitchell’s which I’ve heard is supposed to offer a good (and cheap) breakfast to those in the know. As we cruised up Silas Dean we spotted the new banner proclaiming Aldi was now open at Kohls Plaza. Being curious we turned in to see if the legends of 25 cent grocery carts and sub-WalMart pricing were really true.

Now, we had a little scare initially as we scrambled to locate a just in case cart quarter. Fortunately the ash tray had done it’s job and held onto our loose change for just such an occasion. As we approached the store a couple of things grabbed my attention. First, the company offers $52,000/year as a starting training salary for store managers and second, the lot had about 5 cars in it. I’ll attribute the latter to the fact that it’s Mothers Day and the last thing a mother wants to be doing on her morning is grocery shopping.

As we got to the door the quarter question proved true enough. The carts are equipped with an ingenious device which locks all the carts together and can only be released by the insertion of a quarter. When the quarter is inserted the gadget releases the chain, the cart is free and your quarter is captive. The captive quarter is ransom to ensure that you or another entrepreneurial individual return the cart to it’s proper locked state.

Upon entering the store I was immediately reminded of Save-A-Lot only the color scheme seemed warmer and friendlier. In most ways the two stores are very similar. Both offer custom brands at below super market prices, charge you for groceries bags if you weren’t gifted with the foresight to bring your own and require you to bag your own groceries. In both cases the cashier puts the items in your cart so that you can easily wheel them to the community table for bagging.

Despite their similarities I think ultimately Aldi has the advantage. At Aldi milk was just $2.49/gallon for any type with shredded cheese coming in at about $3.50/pound. Both a good bit cheaper than Save-A-Lot. Over all the selection is not as extensive as you would find in Stop & Shop, Shaws or Big Y but what you give up in selection is made up many times over in pricing.

As we walked the aisles picking up breakfast items so that we could attempt to duplicate the Denny’s breakfast fate denied us we were surprised by the savings. Wheat bread was just $.99/loaf bacon was $1.99 per pound (in actual slices with economy grade also available for cheaper) and corned beef hash, ever a beacon of inflation, was priced at $.99/can. All these things are also available at our normal grocery store Save-A-Lot but not as cheaply.

Hamburger is available just as at Save-A-Lot for $1.79 per pound for 73/27 and in frozen chubs of 75/25 for $1.66 per pound. Salmon pre-frozen in 16oz bags was available for $3.99/lb a dollar cheaper than Save-A-Lot’s regular price which is also the sale price at most grocery stores.

I suppose I could go on most of the day pointing out all the favorable price differences but suffice it to say the over all savings is great enough for me to consider running across the river to Aldi for my weekly grocery pickup until our very own store opens up on Silver Lane. How did the residents of East Hartford ever get so lucky to have two of the cheapest grocery stores I have ever seen (Aldi and Save-A-Lot) come to town. Woe be to the supermarket chains when the average citizen decides the cost savings are more important than having an unenthusiastic teenager bag their groceries for them.

Today our normal shopping experience consists of Sams Club (Milk and general goods), Shop-Rite (Sales items) and Save-A-lot (Staples) each shopped competitively and without mercy to meet our $250/month grocery budget. I foresee a close future which eliminates both Sams Club and Save-A-Lot as they are replaced by the less expensive Aldi store providing a bonus benefit of less fuel consumption to boot.

Tags: Aldi, Groceries, Sams Club, Save-A-Lot, Shaws, Stop & Shop