It's common for Aldi stores to be crowded, but try the one on Clybourn by Costco. There are tumbleweeds rolling through the aisles...

Cogito wrote:

keli1203 wrote:

Marmish wrote: Maybe they're trying to make it as fancy as the new one next to Value City on North Ave. in Melrose Park. That one is really nice.

Keli

I've been there, but it seemed like a typical Aldi to me. Why do you consider it "fancy" and "really nice?"

It seemed to me & my husband that it was a lot larger and had more refrigerated & frozen space. If you go to the Oak Park Aldi and then the Melrose Park Aldi, they seem worlds apart.

Keli

keli1203 wrote:It seemed to me & my husband that it was a lot larger and had more refrigerated & frozen space. If you go to the Oak Park Aldi and then the Melrose Park Aldi, they seem worlds apart.

The newer stores are adding a LOT more refrigeration and upgrading some of the fixtures. The new store in Woostock is a lot larger and has 75% more freezer space and 25% more refrigerator space than the old store in Crystal Lake.

Saint Pizza wrote:It's common for Aldi stores to be crowded, but try the one on Clybourn by Costco. There are tumbleweeds rolling through the aisles...

The one by Dominick's? That's my "usual" Aldi and it can be *packed* on Saturdays! They do, however, have the nicest cashiers I have ever encountered in my life...

From my Alderman's website - For those interested - the aldi's broker/develper is going to be at Site Plan today at 3:30 Site Plan and Appearance Review Committee, Agenda September 24, 2008 @ 2:30 p.m. Civic Center, Room 2404 I don't know if I should go or not?

I didn't go, after all - but there's apparently going to be a meeting planned to gauge resident's interest.
City wants supermarket design changes

Thanks for the info... hopefully it works out.


I'm glad Aldi started selling frozen spinach and bagged fresh jalapenos.
I'm sad Aldi stopped selling fresh garlic and bagged coconut flakes.

I go to the Aldi in Geneva, IL on roosevelt road and this week they were selling the bagged coconut. Cashiers there are pretty surly bunch. But in my recent grocery store experiences that is pretty typical at many retail chains (even non-grocery). Dominick's by us is actually the friendliest although I don't like the store much.

Is it too much to ask for a "thanks for shopping at XXX" or "have a nice day"... after I just blew $125 at the store?

I like the apple cider they are selling at Aldi now.

gardener34 wrote:... after I just blew $125 at the store?

Whew, that must have been hard work!!

I like the apple cider they are selling at Aldi now.

Thanks for the rec, I'll check it out.

Oh, I finally found where the bagged coconut was - I'm not sure if it just wasn't at that one store I was at (Montrose) or if they moved it or what. But another thing I was looking for was nutella...where did that go? I thought it was by the peanut butter. Hmmm.

Saint Pizza wrote:Oh, I finally found where the bagged coconut was - I'm not sure if it just wasn't at that one store I was at (Montrose) or if they moved it or what.

I couldn't find it in the MP store. BTW, I tried some frozen pork tamales that looked like they might be authentic since they were in corn husks. But don't let that fool you.

I heard a rumor that they sell Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, so I called my local shop. It was an akward conversation that did not warrant a definitive answer.

Any truth to the rumor? How are their cheeses in general?

I buy their Havarti on a regular basis. It is excellent, creamy, full flavored, and one of my favorites. I also buy their cotijo cheese in blocks to be shredded into my elotes casserole.

Their pre-shredded cheeses (cheddar, mozzarella, etc.) are nothing special, but no worse than anything that Kraft is putting out for twice the price.

Buddy

Mak7185 wrote:I heard a rumor that they sell Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, so I called my local shop. It was an akward conversation that did not warrant a definitive answer.

Any truth to the rumor? How are their cheeses in general?

I think the confusion might stem from the label for their grated parmesan, which has the generic brand "Regano" or some-such but is just like the ubiquitous green Kraft can in the non-refrigerated shelves of any grocery. I haven't ever seen block parm there.

I have seen packages of shrink-wrapped parmesan wedges at Aldi - however, if you go to the one on Oakton and find that it isn't Reggiano (they do carry a lot of quality products, but somehow upscale parmesan doesn't seem to me to be their style,) Marketplace on Oakton often carries it (call first) and is right next door.

Aldi Skokie
4833 Oakton St
Skokie, IL 60077

Marketplace on Oakton
4817 Oakton St
Skokie, IL 60077-2954
847-677-9330

I was in Aldi the other day perusing the frozen foods in search of lunch for me and mom. The pot pies caught my eye. At 4 for $6 I thought they were a bit pricey but hey they were 10 oz pies. I thought they were pretty good, assuming that the word is applicable to frozen pot pies. They were pretty equivalent to the Stouffer/Marie Callender variety as opposed to Swanson/Banquet.
I've noticed that many Aldi locations out here in the burbs are pretty well hidden, especially the Elk Grove Village store. I can see the benefit of not paying premium rent/prices but this is ridiculous.

For reference, I checked and didn't see any fresh parmesan of any kind today (the label on the cotija includes the word parmesan, which doesn't exactly boost their credibility)

jeffs wrote:I was in Aldi the other day perusing the frozen foods in search of lunch for me and mom. The pot pies caught my eye. At 4 for $6

Yeah, that doesn't seem right.... I thought they were about 55¢ apiece?!

Aldi sells cans of coconut milk now...and the garlic is back.

I remember seeing the wrapped parmesan wedges a few months ago, but haven't seen any lately (at Montrose & Western).

The pot pies that are 4/$6 are basically the same as Marie Callendar that usually cost $4+ each at the "regular" grocery store; Science Boy loves them!

Thanks all who responded about the Parmigiano....

I decided to stop in today, for the first time, and it was definitely just a rumor. I almost feel stupid for asking! I'm in in Indy for next couple months and the best price I've found is $17.99 a pound.

I noticed that Aldi has their Crofton ? crock pot on sale next week for $20. Does anybody have any experience with this item? I bought a brand new Farberware crock pot at a Service Merchandise that was closing, about 3 years ago and when I got around to trying it out, it didn't work properly. Unfortunately the store had already gone south. Anyway, now I have a shiny new crockpot that doesn't work, so I was wondering about this one at Aldis, but folks have mentioned that some of these Crofton appliances are worthless, while others are quite good?

We have the 4 quart Crofton crockpot and LOVE it. I use it often, especially as the weather gets colder... Is the one on sale a 4-qt or do they have a bigger size now?

Katharine, I'm pretty sure it's bigger. 6 or 7 QT, IIRC. What it it about yours that you like so much?

Cogito wrote: Anyway, now I have a shiny new crockpot that doesn't work, so I was wondering about this one at Aldis, but folks have mentioned that some of these Crofton appliances are worthless, while others are quite good?

We have had NO problems returning goods to Aldi's when the product did not work.

Cogito - thanks for the info. I may try to get a bigger one. I like this crockpot because it has always worked perfectly, the crock part removes for easy washing, and it was cheap - I only paid about $12. We've been using it for almost 2 years, on a fairly regular basis, and everything turns out well.There's no fanciness or bells and whistle - just a utilitarian appliance that works well and didn't cost much.

The one Crofton thing we bought that didn't work was a rice cooker. We returned it and got a new one. That one didn't work either but, as jlawrence01 said, we had no problem returning it again. We didn't have the receipt but they recognized it as their brand and gave me a refund the second time I brought it back. No fuss at all. I don't know if I have just been exceptionally lucky, but I have had good customer service experience at Aldi.

I currently have a love/hate relationship with Aldi.
I love the fact that their prices are DIRT cheap, the meat selection actually seems quite fresh, and the aisles are nice and wide with big clearly marked prices.
I hate that you eat whatever they have that week. Great if you don't care what's on your menu for the week, but I like making what I'm in the mood for, not just what they happen to stock on a whim. Also, I think their customer service sucks. Clearly I was not familiar with the practices. First of all, the two open lines were five or more people deep, clogging up the aisles, but no one opened another register. It took about fifteen minutes for me to get through, which I think is insane. I handed the cashier my one canvas bag to fill and she gave me a stare that could melt steel, as if to say, WTF am I supposed to do with that? I am easily amused, thus I love packing my own groceries, but there was no place like Jewel has to put the bags and fill them, thus the handing-off of the canvas. I thought maybe she had a shelf under the register or something. I explained it was in place of a paper bag, and she said, icily, "I need to put the items in your cart, ma'am." Sorry. Allow me to remove the stick wedged betwixt your buttocks whilst you ring me up. Then she grabbed the cart, yanked it over to the side, and I thought that she was just using the cart as a place to hold the bag, but no, she proceeded to dump everything literally inside the cart. As I said, I don't mind bagging my own, but having me take this cart of loose items to the windowsill to bag? The snotty attitude? Really, how about opening another register and having the clerks bag for you, or at least having a place to do it right there? Maybe I just don't get Aldi, but I found this practice to be really rude, and I don't remember it from the last time I visited.

It's not really rude. In plain English, they don't get paid to pack your grocieries. That's one of the reasons their prices are lower.

Mak7185 wrote:I heard a rumor that they sell Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, so I called my local shop. It was an akward conversation that did not warrant a definitive answer.

Any truth to the rumor? How are their cheeses in general?

Off topic question that I hope you don't mind if I ask - what's the difference between Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and parmesan cheese? Because Harvestime on Lawrence sells wedges of "parmesan cheese" for $6.19 a pound. I know they're not the same, but are they close enough that you would consider looking for your cheese there?

Parmigiano Reggiano is a trademarked name for a cheese that has to be produced in a limited area of Nothern Italy. Parmesan refers to cheese made in a similar style but can come from anywhere in the world, Wisconsin, Argentina, etc. Some are better imitations than others.

Like Rickster said, Parmigiano-Reggiano must be made in certain regions of Italy and go through a specific aging process. Therefore, it is produced in much smaller quanities and they charge a lot more money for it! The flavor is more intense, and it is true that a little bit goes a long way. There are many knockoffs of it, but once you have the real thing you are spoiled! Once bitten, forever smitten! haha. The cheapest I have seen PR lately is $19.99 a pound.

Pie Lady wrote: Maybe I just don't get Aldi, but I found this practice to be really rude, and I don't remember it from the last time I visited.

From the days when my mother would drag me to Aldi and I swore I would never embarrass my children by shopping there, to my now weekly visits--Aldi has never bagged groceries or boxed groceries. If you find a big enough box they have to "throw" the groceries in the box. The cashiers are always nice enough to put aside the bread, eggs and other delicate items so they don't get crushed. I like bagging my own groceries. This is why you also have to bring a quarter to get a cart. They don't want to pay someone to go out and round up the carts. I think it is brilliant. Not one cart left in the lot by someone too lazy to put it back in the corral. No charge cards, either. I find the cashiers at Aldi always to be friendly and cheerful. I am always offered a hello when I approach the register and a have a nice day as I finish paying. Then again, I know the system and am not expecting anything more than what they currently offer--extremely low prices with "no frills" or pretense.