> Excellent prices for most things. Some products are cheap and are great, while others are cheaper than in normal supermarkets. You can expend 100 bucks and will get a trolley fully packed with staples.
> Nice packaging and design.
> Aldi favours local manufactures and producers, so there are more chances of finding an Australian product that is actually Australian in Aldi than in other supermarkets.
> You can find first-class brands at discounted prices, a la Reject Shop.
> International goodies available at decent prices, usually cheaper than in normal supermarkets. Perhaps not cheap, but affordable.
> Seasonal and special goods are sold at incredible prices as well, from TVs, garage stuff, tools, Christmas or Easter seasonal products, and what is not.
> Aldi liquor are very small sections, I would say, but their prices are amazing, and you find from the local Australian one to French wines.
> Products I like are their dish-washing liquid, their serrano ham, their speck and smoked ham, wafer crackers, some varieties of instant coffee, some of their cheeses, and some of their rubbish bin bags.
> Very fast cashier lines. Their cash line are opened or closed depending on the number of people approaching, so more people cueing, more cashiers are opened immediately.
> If you are not happy with a product, they will exchange it and return your money, not problem.
THE SO-SO
> Aldi's organisation system is not the usual and will get you a bit to get used to it.
> The fresh veggies and fruit area is mediocre by all means.
> The meat section is mediocre by all means.
> Although they have the basics, the variety and quantity of products is limited. Sometimes I have found myself looking for a staple, and did not find it.
> Products you love disappear for long periods of time or never come back.
> The packaging of their generics is too similar to know brands, so its seems you are buying a known brand, but it is a generic. No problem if you give a dam about that you are buying.
> Some of their cheap prices are more expensive than the specials or every-day-prices in Woolies and Coles. So if you are on a budget study the prices beforehand.
> Although it varies from person to person, generally speaking customer service is never as good, friendly or attentive as in Coles or Woolies.
> Depending on the stores, you cannot take the basket outside the cashier, which forces you to pack your staff at the speed of light because nobody will do so for you, and they have a tiny space to move around, and the next customer is approaching dangerously.
THE BAD
> The warehouse feeling of their supermarkets.
> Their cold meat area. I have had some of their cold meats that, when fresh, are excellent. However, I have noticed that despite the expire date being quite long, some of them have grainy white dots that are not salt, they are something I don't want to see on any cold meat. It is not just once, it is many times that I found them. I even warned the manager in one of their supermarkets. Next time I visited they were still there. I think it has to do with the refrigeration chain being broken between the producer and the shop, or perhaps between the warehouse and the supermarket. I recommend you to inspect every single packet of cold meat you buy. I do so.
> Some products are cheap because they are crap. Period. I hate their gourmet chips, they always taste of stale and are way too salty and anything but gourmet.
> If you pay with a card, they charge you a tiny commission fee, pro-rate, so the more you spend the more commission they get.
> No express lines or cash-only lines.
