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A new grocery chain opened its first store in Maine last month and the hysteria was off the charts.
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I’d never shopped in an Aldi before and had no idea what to expect, but everyone was raving about how much money you could save so after waiting a few weeks for the craziness to die down…
.
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(Actual picture of how happy people were to shop there.)
The husband and I drove to Portland to check it out.
Marketed as a discount grocery, I expected no frills and that’s exactly what I got.
This was a brand new store…but the first thing I noticed when we walked in was how dirty and disorganized it was. Apparently their cost cutting measures include a lack of brooms and dust pans and employees to operate them.
Starting with produce, which was stacked haphazardly in it’s original shipping boxes, I was hard put to find a banana, apple, pepper, tomato or cucumber that wasn’t heavily bruised, browned and looked ready to toss.
There was no deli, no bakery and no seafood counter. No frills, for sure.
There was also no rhyme or reason to product placement… cheap fake flowered wreaths were next to the mayonnaise. Plastic outdoor thermometers were next to the crackers. And did I mention you have to “rent” a shopping cart? They’re out front where you pay a quarter to unlock one and get your money back when you return it.
I was unaware that 95% of the products are their own versions and not brand name. Having been burned one too many times with tasteless substitutes I had no desire to fill a cart with mystery cereal or soup.
We walked out of there with nothing. And it’s a good thing, because there were only two registers open with no DIY kiosks and the lines to check out were insane.
I seriously doubt I’ll ever go back, so if you’re an Aldi shopper? Please tell me what I’m missing, because I don’t understand the allure.
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River's world..... 
We have a couple within driving distance, but I have no desire to explore. Thanks for the report.
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I wasn’t impressed, but maybe it’s just me.
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There’s some activity in a vacant commercial spot. A lot of people around here say they hope it’s an Aldi’s. I won’t bother.
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I’m with you. They put one very near the grocery story we shop at (utterly screwing the parking lot/entering-exiting situation) and I’m not a fan. The appeal is lost on me, too. Plus, if you find something you DO like, there’s no guarantee it’ll be there next time you shop. Annoying.
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They lost me with the half rotted produce.
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i don’t get it either. went once left with nothing and don’t think i will go back. and yet people rave about????
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I understand wanting lower prices. But not by substituting their lower cost brand.
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Thanks for the review! I haven’t been to one either, and had been thinking about a shopping trip. I don’t think I will even bother.
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Maybe their store brand is fabulous, I don’t know. But the shopping experience definitely wasn’t for me.
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We don’t have an Aldi near where I live either. It’s more hype than anything and by what you saw, I don’t believe we need one over here. I’m happy with where I shop and at the farmers market.
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The produce was truly atrocious. I doubt a soup kitchen would have even wanted it.
🥴
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Weird. Over here Aldi is famously clean, well-stocked and well organised. They do require a pound to unlock the trolleys – which you get back when you return it – but so does everyone else here. Too many people just walk home with them otherwise. Too many of them in the bottom of the canals. I can tell you two things from over here with any degree of personal knowledge 1. The fruit and veg is fresh and sound and 2. they do a very passable own-brand malt whisky. Clearly a different beast in America. Shame. Over here they have forced all the big chains to lower their prices a little in order to compete. Over there, I guess, you just cross it off your shopping list 😊
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