Pro - Does anyone else's nest boxes get soaked in rain?

[BeckyBoo]

Whilst collecting some Freecycle stuff yesterday I discovered a big Aldi and a big Lidl opposite each other not 10 minutes from where I live ! As someone who is perpetually broke and is search of a bargain I'm fairly keen to have a look but which is best? Is any one better than the other? Anything particularly I should look out for when I go, anything brilliant, or is it al like that discount supermarket there used to be where nothing was labelled and all in boxes?

 

BeckyBoo

[Space Chick]

They both have their merits.

 

Lidls sometimes has bottles of Pepsi on the cheap (not as cheap as Morrisons at the moment who are doing a buy 1 get 2 free)

 

Aldi's do some lovely parsnip crisps.

 

Both have some bargain veg which is perfect for the girls

 

Good luck!

[Chickvic]

The closest to us is an Aldi but we use it for lots of shopping, good value and good quality. It's certainly reduced our shopping bills

[ali-s]

Lidl sell British whole free range chickens at a reasonable price. If you bake your own bread their bread flour is good and cheap. DS Jack says their high juice apple and blackcurrant squash is the best he has tasted. Lidl is very good for tinned tomatoes etc.

 

I like Aldi for their fresh fruit and veg especially the monhly specials. I love Aldi Parsnip crisps and the vegetable crisps. They have a good selection of speciality cheeses.

[Mrs Webmuppet]

I like Aldis but I'm not so keen on Lidl. Our Aldis is a nice bright supermarket but Lidls is always dark and seems slightly grubby as a result, Lidls is always cluttered too. I use Aldis several times a month as it's just down the road from where I have my piano lessons.

[MadMitch]

I prefer Aldi to Lidl. They have a good selection, its just finding the things that are similar to what you usually get. Veg is good too. Plus they have the quickest checkout people ever.

[Charlottechicken]

Hmm, good question.

 

Both are good for very reasonable fruit and veg, and the tinned stuff in Lidl is comparable to quality supermarket stuff. Lidl also do the best and cheapest cloudy lemonade, without aspartame Aldi have the edge I think with a better delicatessan range and very cheap herbs and spices, but Lidl have a range of meat which, I think, is better. They both have interesting non food offers all the time!

 

I would try both, you can alternate your shopping trips and get the best of both worlds, and pick up some great offers too

[Snowy]

We get most of our shopping from Aldi. Great for cheap cereals and cereal bars, plus cooked meats for the kids sandwiches. I can load a trolley at Aldi and it's rarely more than £50 whereas the same trolley at Tesco would be £100. I also get cheap vodka and gin for the sloe gin etc

[BeckyBoo]

I can see a trip to Aldi tomorrow when I am child free! Might just saunter across the road to Lidl's too, thanks for the suggestions, I'm such a saddo, I love bargain hunting specially if it's for stuff I need rather than stuff I want!

 

BeckyBoo

[craftyhunnypie]

I think both are very very good. Don't be put off by brands you don't know, as they are fine! Aldi lamb shanks (frozen) are beautiful, as is the fish. Most of the veg is brilliant too.

I have diet pink lemonade from there & it's really nice - a change to cola.

Lots of nice chocolate bits in for children at the moment.

I like some of the weekly offers they have too - I've had some good bakeware from Lidl.

 

The booze at both is good too!

 

I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

 

Take your own bags, as they don't give you any - you have to buy them (I like that).

 

Emma.x

[ClaireG]

Aldi is nearer so i tend to use it more. If they have any in try the sour cherry lemonade, it's in a glass bottle and is lovely

[jess]

i LOVE both but lidl wins as it has these ridged salted crisps in a big blue bag that are exactly like ruffles and i LOVE them. also their pepperoni pizzas are INCREDIBLE!!!!

 

WEIRDLY and this is going to sound like im making it up but its cheaper to do my shop at asda :C so thats where i have to go.

[Valkyrie]

OH likes both - I don't like either.

[Chucky Mama]

I love Lidl, can't comment too much on Aldi as my Lidl is much closer. Get great fruit and veg (organic carrots & bananas), pomegranates cheap at the moment and did have sweetcorn for 25p a few weeks ago. Yoghurts and parmesan also cheap and very good. Bought loads of non food items at great prices too like a power washer and smoothie maker - really good quality.

[Kirstine]

OH does our shopping - 'cos he does all the cooking, so it makes sense.

He loves Lidl, although ours doesn't seem to have the free-range chickens. He's been to Aldi once and hated it, but it was newly open so maybe they didn't have the hang of it, I will ask him if he would try it again after reading this thread.

 

Kirstine

[Leicester_H]

I discovered a big Aldi and a big Lidl opposite each other not 10 minutes from where I live BeckyBoo

Hi

I THINK they're owned by (rival) brothers (one owns Lidl, one Aldi) - when one builds a store, the other builds one near by to try to out do the other !

Hence you often see them close together!!

H

[docsquid]

OH likes both - I don't like either.

 

No, I don't like them either. I worry very much about how the food is sold so cheaply. At some point, somebody is going to suffer - be it the producer, the people who work in the packing factories, the animal welfare etc. I know some of the stuff is bought and sold on as short-dated or end of line, or due to cancelled orders, or bankrupt stock, but I really think somewhere, somebody must be being exploited or environmental or animal welfare standards must be suffering.

 

To me, ethical is better than cheap, and I try and research things so I can be sure that food and goods are, where possible, ethically produced, and give a fair deal to the shop and the producer. I like to know where my food has come from, try and buy only short food miles and low carbon footprint.

[Alis girls]

Lidl's ham and bacon are great according to OH and the boys. Their yogs are fruity and lovely and Mozarella cheaper than Tescos and just as good. i buy their pasta, sauces flour and bread flour. the downside is the clientelle often rude, pushy and block the aisles. no Aldi near me so cant comment

[Charlottechicken]

No, I don't like them either. I worry very much about how the food is sold so cheaply. At some point, somebody is going to suffer - be it the producer, the people who work in the packing factories, the animal welfare etc. I know some of the stuff is bought and sold on as short-dated or end of line, or due to cancelled orders, or bankrupt stock, but I really think somewhere, somebody must be being exploited or environmental or animal welfare standards must be suffering.

 

Are you referring to Aldi and Lidl? They don't sell this type of produce

 

The stores near me stock mainly British sourced fruit, veg and milk/butter, the latter usually from little known companies, but generally the milk and butter is the same price as other supermarkets because it's a loss leader anyway.

[BeckyBoo]

To me, ethical is better than cheap, and I try and research things so I can be sure that food and goods are, where possible, ethically produced, and give a fair deal to the shop and the producer. I like to know where my food has come from, try and buy only short food miles and low carbon footprint.

 

Yup, I used to do that too. But I have £50 a week to feed me, three children, a dog a cat 18 chickens and two tanks of fish, so, sadly, ethical and organic has to go out the window. If anyone can tell me how to do the above on £50 a week and remain ethically friendly then I will very very happily convert. I used to be organic, free range etc, but circumstances changed and two packed lunches and a school dinner a day, unfortunately, have to come first in my house.

 

BeckyBoo

[Charlottechicken]

Beckyboo, have you also tried the following shops for foodstuffs:

 

Poundland (I've had Jordans muesli and OXO concentrated stock in a glass bottle, also Whitworths 1.5 kg of sugar)

99p Stores (they sell three small tins of branded Dolphin friendly tuna in springwater for 99p and often have large multipacks of Walkers crisps)

Home Bargains (I stock up on tubs of mealworms when they have them, but they have loads of branded stuff)

Poundstretcher (bedtime drinks like Horlicks and Galaxy chocolate drink are 99p)

 

The only thing to watch for in these places is make sure you know how much the product is usually, or you might get caught out

[Chucky Mama]

No, I don't like them either. I worry very much about how the food is sold so cheaply. At some point, somebody is going to suffer - be it the producer, the people who work in the packing factories, the animal welfare etc. I know some of the stuff is bought and sold on as short-dated or end of line, or due to cancelled orders, or bankrupt stock, but I really think somewhere, somebody must be being exploited or environmental or animal welfare standards must be suffering.

 

To me, ethical is better than cheap, and I try and research things so I can be sure that food and goods are, where possible, ethically produced, and give a fair deal to the shop and the producer. I like to know where my food has come from, try and buy only short food miles and low carbon footprint.

 

My Lidl sells free range chicken, eggs, fair trade bananas and fair trade chocolate. The sausages are much lower in fat that other supermarkets and the ham is not reconstituted like in most shops. What I don't pay for in Lidl is particularly good customer service and surroungings. Much of the meat that I have looked at is UK sourced - don't tend to buy it as I support our local butcher.

[docsquid]

Yup, I used to do that too. But I have £50 a week to feed me, three children, a dog a cat 18 chickens and two tanks of fish, so, sadly, ethical and organic has to go out the window. If anyone can tell me how to do the above on £50 a week and remain ethically friendly then I will very very happily convert. I used to be organic, free range etc, but circumstances changed and two packed lunches and a school dinner a day, unfortunately, have to come first in my house.

 

BeckyBoo

 

I'm fortunate to be able to do that. I know they carry a few "ethical" ranges, but they can only sell those at a cheap price because somewhere else they are cutting down what they pay for other things, and that concerns me about all supermarkets, not just Aldi or Lidl. Some have a better environmental and ethical record than others, and I shop at those, but I do appreciate I'm lucky to be able to.

[Snowy]

The one thing I hate about supermarket shopping is the interminable wait at the till, followed by having to stack evrything on a too short conveyor and stuff it all into bags quickly as it whizzes through.

With Aldi it is super super speedy! Perfect for shopping with kids! Unload everything onto a mile long conveyor. No conveyor at all beyond the till! Stack it back into the trolley as it speeds through the checkout then stack into boxes and bags in the back of the car at my leisure

I also worry about the provenance of some things - but it's a balancing act. My freezer is well stocked with half an organic, free range pig and lamb, and what seems like half a ton of locally produced minced beef bought in bulk from our local butcher. But I still need things like deli meats for kids sandwiches and cheap cereals (lower in salt and sugar than nestle and kellogs own) and thats where Aldi comes in.

[Alis girls]

I can see all sides here but cannot afford the ridiculous prices of meat boxes and other luxiories and I know the stuff is good. I buy free range chicken at Lidl and get the best meat I can afford. If I could I would Abel and Cole but cant afford it. I do get bits n pieces in waitrose but like to do my own. Also EU countries food often hs less slat, sugar and fat than Uk stuff, so its swings and roundabouts. If you can get your meat from a local farmer etc great but not everyone can.