.

A new grocery chain opened its first store in Maine last month and the hysteria was off the charts.

.

.

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…

.

.

(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.

.