How much is that bag of apples in the window? At Aldi, it's cheap!
When it comes to grocery shopping, I am not what you might term a "bargain hunter." I tend to spend far too much time in Central Market, trying to justify my $23.99/pound purchases of tuna and my addiction to $4 bottles of vegetable juice. I tell myself that by eating higher-quality, healthy products I’ll inevitably stave off heart disease or cancer or some such death season.
But, really, there is no justification. I just enjoy shopping there.
Still, like any proper home chef, I couldn’t help but be excited by the arrival of a new grocery chain in Fort Worth called Aldi, which swung open its doors at six Tarrant locations on Thursday morning. My friends warned me: "You do realize it’s a discount grocer, right?" "You’ll have to bring your shopping bags, otherwise they charge you extra." "Remember to bring along a twenty-five cent deposit for a shopping cart."
What kind of snob do my friends take me for? I brushed aside their concerns and headed out to the location on south Hulen.
First, a gripe: When I hear the phrase “grand opening,” I think smiling faces, balloons and -- most importantly -- free samples. Not at Aldi, where I wandered the modestly-sized store searching and searching for a pepper jack cheese cube. Nothing. Nada.
These people take their discount mission seriously.
So what do you need to know about the grocery? It’s an Illinois based chain which offers discount brands and fewer options. The philosophy runs counter to most grocery stores, which specialize in offering endless options and services. Here it’s no frills or fuss -- and pass those savings along to the consumer. (Also worth knowing: The same company owns Trader Joe's, and according to my bestie Carla, wherever an Aldi turns out, a Trader Joe's is likely to follow in a couple of years' time.)
For a single person who isn’t trying to feed a family of seventeen and can afford to splurge on grocery (i.e., me), Aldi is useful only to a point. Yes, I was able to get walnuts, raisins and cauliflower at prices considerably cheaper than I would pay elsewhere. But I certainly wasn’t going to find my favorite flavor of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, much less that brand of sea salt flavored crackers ($5 bucks a box!) that make me reach for my wallet every time I’m at Central Market.
Still, I stumbled upon some useful bargain: $3 for a 16 oz. bottle of extra virgin olive oil. As someone who tries very hard to taste the difference between medium- and high-end olive oils, but simply can’t, this will do just fine. I was also happy to stock up (pun intended) on cartons of chicken broth ($1.69), the price of which amounts of highway robbery at most grocery stores.
Will I be back to Aldi? Eh, maybe. Can’t say I loved the checkout process, which was so rushed and confusing I thought I was being pickpocketed on the subway in a foreign city. Also, call me pampered, but I really like when people bag groceries for me. At Aldi, the cashier pointed to a lonely looking counter against the wall and told me, "You can bag your groceries there."
Oh, and I forgot to retrieve the $.25 deposit when I returned my shopping cart. (They get you coming and going at these discount shops!)
But who knows? In the middle of a recession, you never know when you’ll need to cut back. In which case, it’s nice to have a place like Aldi where you can go slumming. (Did that come across sounding snobby?)