I don’t know about anyone else out there, but I find something completely therapeutic about the grocery store. I enjoy going, and call me out if I am crazy, but I love the grocery store.
One of the grocery stores I have been going to more often is Aldi. We have one legitimately in walking distance from our place up in Arlington Heights. I have never really been an Aldi shopper until now and I had to share my Aldi must-haves with y’all.
In the past Aldi kind of had a bad reputation. I was so not about having to pay a quarter for a cart, bagging my own groceries, and Aldi had a stigma for not having fresh/quality products. Boy was I wrong. I know Aldi did a whole brand re-boot a few years ago and the store’s reputation I feel has done a complete 180. Fun fact: Aldi’s headquarters are in my hometown of Batavia, IL.
I still can’t find myself doing all of my grocery shopping at Aldi, but I have grown to find so many things there that are WAYYY cheaper, and just as good of quality as other grocery stores in the area. Therefore, I have compiled 5 of my Aldi favorites, that I pick up weekly.
Wine & Beer
GUYS! Aldi has the best wine and beer selection. You probably didn’t know this, but Aldi is full of award winning wine from all over the world. I find myself picking up a least a few bottles every week. My personal favorites are the Winking Owl Pinot Grigio, Trestoria Rosé, and of course the mimosas. With all of the bottles going for under $7. The quality of wine is great. I mean I am not wine snob, so if you are cool with saving money and drinking wine that is less than $10, then be sure to hit up their liquor section.
Now onto beer, my personal favorite. Aldi’s draft beer selection is out of this world. Carrying different breweries from all of the country big and small, I always find myself cruising the beer section to select some new goodies. After Mitch and I went to Goose Island the other week, we fell in love with their beer “Summertime”, low and behold Aldi had cases of Summertime for under $15! Mitch and I both enjoy trying new beers, and Aldi has such a good selection.
Benton’s Cookies
Get ready to get your mind blown. How would you feel if I told you I found the most amazing Girl Scout cookie dupes so you can enjoy Tag-a-longs all year long? Well I did. Benton’s cookies taste exactly like Girl Scout cookies. They have them in Tag-a-longs, Thin Mints, and Samoas. These cookies are so good, it is hard to not eat a whole sleeve in one sitting. The best part is, is that they are half the price of Girl Scout cookies. Now I am all for supporting the local Girl Scouts, but when it is not Girl Scout cookie season, you can find me stocking up on these.
Cheese
A few of you have asked how Mitch and I make our cheese boards every Monday for the Bachelor. Aldi supplies us with all of our cheese. Aldi’s cheese selection is better than most grocery stores I found. With cheese from all over the world, it is a cheese lovers heaven.
Our personal favorite, and something I pick up every week is the mozzarella balls in olive oil and herbs. Let me tell you Mitch and I eat the entire tub during one episode of the bachelor.
Aldi has all kinds of cheese from brie to smoked gouda, to feta, to cheese I have never even heard of. It is fun to explore all of the different kinds. I highly recommend next time you are making a charcuterie board, head to Aldi and all of your guests will be very impressed by your cheese selection.
Salad Dressings/Marinades
Mitch loves to grill, so we pretty much use our grill every night. I am someone who cannot eat the same thing every day, every week even, so I love experimenting with different marinades for our proteins. I have found Aldi has some of the best. We stock up on these – no joke I think we have about 6 in our pantry as we speak. Aldi has a lot of unique flavors that will spice up any dinner. I usually defrost our protein in the marinade so it can collect all of the flavor, then we pop it on the grill for a yummy dinner.
My personal favorite is the strawberry poppyseed salad for our salads. It is so summery, light, and refreshing. It is a great summertime salad dressing. We also made a delicious chicken that was marinated in the white balsamic peach dressing, and WOW- so good.
Healthy Ice Cream
Now I don’t know if I believe that there is a healthy ice cream, because when the label says 320 calories for the whole pint, I find myself indulging in the whole carton so I defeat the purpose. However, I was always a fan of Halo Top because it was a healthy alternative for normal ice cream. However, Mitch and I stumbled upon these and I think they taste better than Halo Top. My favorite is the peanut butter cup, but they have so many more flavors for us to try. Ice cream is one of my favorite treats, and with Mitch being on such a strict diet this lets him even treat himself to ice cream every once in a while. So it is a win win for both of us.
Aldi has quickly become a regular grocery store for us, and I am not mad about it. Our grocery bill has been cut in half by adding Aldi to our grocery store rotation. I find that their produce is good quality, dairy products are good, and of course the fun random aisles are always a hit. I love walking down the miscellaneous aisles seeing what we find. The other day I found the most amazing smelling candles.
So I encourage you to give Aldi a try and be sure to pick up these 5 things and you will be thanking me later! Just remember your quarter and your own bags and you will be an Aldi shopper in no time!
[…] is one of my favorite grocery stores. I wrote a whole blog post about my favorite Aldi products here. However, I have found more and more items that I love from […]