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I only have the chance to go to Lidl when I am in Europe. I lived on their cheese & crackers, for lunches, on one trip
there are none where I live, I wish there would be.
As noted above, Aldi Nord owns Trader Joe's while Aldi Süd owns Aldi US. Aldi Nord sells Trader Joe's-branded products in its European stores.
But I don't understand why anyone paints a huge gulf between the two Aldi chains. Yes, TJ's specializes in the same sorts of higher-end, organic, specialty stuff WFM does, but IME Aldi's quality compares favorably with regular supermarkets, and they follow the exact same business model.
And they do experiment with interesting and innovative products. I went to Aldi this evening, and in their bread section, they had net-zero-carb (IOW, keto-friendly) whole wheat and multiseed bread (9g carbs + 0g sugars - 9g dietary fiber = 0 net carbs). I'll let you know how it tastes once I've finished the Dave's Killer Bread I bought on my last trip to MOM's Organic Market (5g dietary fiber, the most I've seen on any bread prior to the loaves I bought at Aldi*) and start on these.
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Trader Joe's is COMPLETELY different than Aldi's, here. Not even comparable.
Dave's Killer Bread and Wegman's Marathon bread are the only two brands of sandwich bread that I buy.
Trader Joe's is COMPLETELY different than Aldi's, here. Not even comparable.
Dave's Killer Bread and Wegman's Marathon bread are the only two brands of sandwich bread that I buy.
Dave's Killer Bread is excellent.
It's also expensive.
I'm willing to pay more to get things I want, prefer or would like to support (like this farm in North Jersey that grows apples for its own Newark cider as well as a great variety of vegetables, including genuine old-school Jersey heirloom tomatoes for $5/pound; the farm has as its mission providing employment opportunities for the chronically unemployed and returning citizens, and about 25% of the workforce commutes from Newark to the farm and another 25% live on it). But I'm not made of money, and if I can find something I think is just as good for less, then I'll buy it.
I'm willing to try the L'Oven Fresh net-zero-carb bread at least once. I'm not as worried about status, nor am I wedded to any particular style of eating or type of food (though I recently read something about earing organic and reduced risk of several diseases that might make me willing to pay more for that too; however, I'm not there yet).
Sure, the stores look nothing alike, and the products on offer are also different. But basically, Trader Joe's is an upmarket Aldi.
I've never liked Aldi. I just think cheap when I think of it. AND there's the too limited selection for me.
I've been to a couple of Lidl's, and they're OK. Not near enough to me or wide enough selection. Couldn't be my one-stop-shop for example.
That said, I love, love, love Trader Joe's. And that's not my one-stop-shop either...and farther than Lidl. So I guess I'm a sucker for atmosphere and advertising. Trader Joe's doesn't advertise. So I'll say atmosphere, image and messaging instead.
I've never liked Aldi. I just think cheap when I think of it. AND there's the too limited selection for me.
I've been to a couple of Lidl's, and they're OK. Not near enough to me or wide enough selection. Couldn't be my one-stop-shop for example.
That said, I love, love, love Trader Joe's. And that's not my one-stop-shop either...and farther than Lidl. So I guess I'm a sucker for atmosphere and advertising. Trader Joe's doesn't advertise. So I'll say atmosphere, image and messaging instead.
You probably wouldn't set foot on a bus either, but will ride the train.
If TJ's isn't your "one-stop shop," then having one of those is clearly less of a priority than you claim in Aldi's case, and its selection is likewise limited — you'll find more items in any Whole Foods, and quite likely produce that's cheaper too. (I'm very pleasantly surprised by how affordable WFM produce has become since the Amazon takeover. No one beats WFM on the appearance of their produce sections; they have the "plastic" standard down cold. But the produce is also of high quality.)
I remember going to Aldi when it really was cheap. It's inexpensive now. I don't know when you were last in one of their stores, but I really recommend you overcoming your gut revulsion and giving them a try again. But hey, if you have the coin to drop on more expensive food, then whatever floats your boat.
BTW, about that zero-carb bread: At least the wheat bread could benefit from some sort of sweetener in the dough; the bread tasted like wheat-flavored cardboard. I don't know if any of the sugar replacements would produce the same taste in baking (though I understand that sucralose [Splenda] is very well suited for this purpose). I'll probably stick to Dave's Killer Bread going forward, or the high-fiber regular brands, and keep popping metformin.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by selhars
I've never liked Aldi. I just think cheap when I think of it. AND there's the too limited selection for me.
I've been to a couple of Lidl's, and they're OK. Not near enough to me or wide enough selection. Couldn't be my one-stop-shop for example.
That said, I love, love, love Trader Joe's. And that's not my one-stop-shop either...and farther than Lidl. So I guess I'm a sucker for atmosphere and advertising. Trader Joe's doesn't advertise. So I'll say atmosphere, image and messaging instead.
In 1960, Aldi split in to two seerate companies becoming Aldi Nord, headquartered in Essen, and Aldi Süd, headquartered in Mülheim.
In Europe the two companies operate in mainly separate countries, however in the US Aldi Nord owns Trader Joe's which it bought in 1979.
I love them both. I am glad we got a new Aldi in Livingston, NJ but still wish it were closer. Unfortunately, the closest Lidl is about 20-25 minutes away on Route 22 in Union. I know they are rapidly expanding so I am holding out hopes that either of them will make their way closer to me in Southern Morris County. I even submitted a location request on Lidl's website.
I think the Lidls in America have a bit too much "random crap" in the center of the store. Aldi is a bit more toned down, but is also a smaller store. The Lidl in Union had what seemed like an endless array of small home items which I don't think were super necessary. The European Lidls I have been to did not have as much of this.
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