I've Done The Grocery Shopping For The Last 15 Years

[Coolgoober]

Yes, prices are up and we all feel it. But yesterday, yesterday, THE COOKIES, Through the roof! Man oh man, five six and seven bucks for a package of cookies? I don't know if I can cut back, it's winter.

[LakeVermilion]

1. Sad news for TSF...

Prices aren't going to drop significantly. Grocery stores have always operated on a thin margin. I think they like this new model.

[SheltieLover]

2. Shop at Aldi. Prices are 1/3 to 1/2 of even wal hell

Cookies under $3.

[Intractable]

6. Eggs are $1.20 at Aldi. I'm back to eating eggs.

[KS Toronado]

9. Keep wishing Aldi's would open a store in my hometown.

Did my shopping there when I lived in Wichita. Population here is 21,000 and the college adds another
10,000 to 12,000, I'm sure the college kids with limited income would all be customers. All we have
is Dillons and Wally World and they have no competition.

[SheltieLover]

10. If you have a freezer, it might be worth the drive once a month, if not too far

[KS Toronado]

17. 90 miles away so $20/$25 in gas, not worth it for the wear & tear on my vehicles.

But I do stop in Salina every time I pass by there on either interstate, 70 or 35.

[SheltieLover]

20. Sorry to hear it's so far for you.

Hopefully, Aldi will open in your town soon!

[TBF]

18. Not everyone has their own vehicle.

[SheltieLover]

22. True.

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

14. They make you bag your own stuff!

[KS Toronado]

19. I always take boxes and make sure I've got a quarter in my pocket.

[SheltieLover]

24. If you show up quarterless, they will give you one

Don't tell kraznov or he will be going from store to store for shiny quarters.

[TBF]

21. That's actually a plus for me - I prefer to bag my own groceries

I'll make 2 stops at HEB a week so I can stay under 25 items per visit and bag my own.

It was the incident with the cardboard container of milk that they destroyed by putting something heavy on it ...

But, anyway, the point is that the costs are a lot higher than they were under Biden. And for some reason republicans, and some on this site, are defending that.

[SheltieLover]

25. Costs are way higher with kraznov at the helm

[SheltieLover]

23. Yup they do

Which I prefer.

[DFW]

29. For the record

It’s Aldi, not Aldi’s, since there is no one named Aldi. Actually, few in the States seem to know what “Aldi” means. It was originally a store started by a family in post-war Germany named Albrecht. They started a low-cost store that grew into a mammoth chain, splitting off into Aldi Nord (north) and Aldi Süd (south). The “di” part is just short for “Diskont,” or “discount.” So, “ALbrecht DIscount.”

Kind of an unexciting revelation, sorry!

[Diamond_Dog]

35. My son tells me exactly this.

Four years top of his class in German back in high school. He knows common words and phrases in about 6 languages. Did I mention he’s very smart? 😁

Many people around here add an “apostrophe s” to any store name, such as to say “Walmart’s” which is not correct, either.

[Lifeafter70]

37. You are correct

And may I correct another misconception. Trader Joe's is not owned by Aldi in the states. The brothers split before Theo Albrecht bought Trader Joe's

[KS Toronado]

39. Everyone in Wichita called it Aldi's, old habits die hard

And that was an exciting revelation DFW, had me on the edge of my seat.
Sometimes I can't help myself!

[SheltieLover]

42. Thx for sharing

[Trailrider1951]

31. I want one too

The closest one to Tacoma is Las Vegas, Los Angeles or Denver.

[get the red out]

41. Aldi is wonderful!

I am amazed they are permitted to have stores in the US since they don't rip people off. It's the only place that I can afford breakfast cereal. I am not paying $5 a box for store brand somewhere else.

[SheltieLover]

44. I prefer many of their house brand items

Cookies, for example, have a lot less sugar in them.

[get the red out]

47. Me too

High quality stuff.

[SheltieLover]

49. And they know it. Hence their double guarantee

They let you choose a different item of equal or lesser value and give you a refund.

[Maru Kitteh]

43. For fun I decided to see how far Aldi's is from me. 1,320 miles.

So I guess ice cream is off the list. There’s food deserts, and then there’s western Montana . .. .

[SheltieLover]

45. Sorry to hear, Maru

[MarineCombatEngineer]

4. Welcome to DU. nt

[TBF]

5. Perhaps you are vegan?

The price of beef right now is outrageous

[SheltieLover]

11. I'm not vegan, but rarely eat beef due to high cholestrrol

Just checked my Aldi. Instacart price for 85% lean burger is $5.39/ lb. 96% lean is $7.49/ lb.

Steaks are outrageous, imo.

But that's everywhere.

Thanks to kraznov.

I eat a lot of chicken & turkey burgers.

[TBF]

15. Yes - for me beef is once or twice a week at most

I just noticed because I was making chili this past weekend & I do buy lean cuts (90/10) - not the beef full of fat. Still, the cost has gone up significantly over what it was say a year ago. I shop at HEB, which is the best quality for the price in my area (we do have Aldi, but I am shopping for a family and they don't have half of what I need).

[SheltieLover]

26. Costs are way up

[SheltieLover]

30. True, Aldi carries the basics, generally

Some of what they carry though, for instance, wild caught Norwegian salmon, I cannot buy anywhere else. I am very picky about the source of my seafood.

I've often made 2 stops at different stores, & in many instances just shifted consumption habits to align with what Aldi offers.

For example, rather than buying deit pepsi or rootbeer, which Aldi does not carry, I switched to Waterloo fruit flavored sparkling water. Not only much cheaper, but healthier.

Now I avoid the magats & order it all on Instacart. Lol

Happy shopping!

[berniesandersmittens]

8. 9$ for a gallon of off brand orange juice yesterday

Over $20 for a box of cake mix, frosting, and pint of milk for a bday cake.

[SheltieLover]

12. Cripes. Shop Aldi

Cake mix $1.25, milk $3% gal, frosting $2.

[TBF]

16. I am in a metro area so we do have Aldi, but it is very sparce

a small store. Many areas of the country don't have it so that is not a solution for everyone.

I just did the search and this was the AI description -

"As of late 2025, ALDI has over 2,600 stores in the U.S., with specific reports citing figures like 2,624 locations across 38 states, and the company plans to reach nearly 3,200 stores by 2028, making it one of America's fastest-growing grocers.
Key Details:
Current Count: Around 2,624 stores.
States Covered: Operates in 38 states and territories.
Growth Plans: Aims to add 800 new stores by the end of 2028, reaching almost 3,200 locations.
Top States: Florida, Illinois, and Ohio have the highest concentration of stores.

[SheltieLover]

27. Good to know. There are 4 within 20 mi of me

But not every area has Aldi.

Thx for sharing!

[berniesandersmittens]

61. There's not one close

Wish there was though I love Aldi's!

[SheltieLover]

62. Sorry to hear that, BSM!

I got 4 times the amount of food today as when I ordered from Kroger a week or 2 ago.

The Kroger food lasted 3-4 days.

The huge Aldi order today will last about 2 weeks.

I hope Aldi builds a store near you soon.

[Irish_Dem]

32. $20 dollars for a birthday cake from a box mix.

Unbelievable.

I guess we are going to have to down size to one cupcake for the birthday person.
The rest of us can only watch them eat it.

[berniesandersmittens]

38. Instead of 37 cupcakes, we only need two right?

I got Betty crocker brand but still ..dayum

[Irish_Dem]

40. You only need one cupcake for the birthday person.

And one little candle and match.

You could make the whole batch and freeze all of them.
Take one out at each birthday party.

Tell everyone they have to eat before they come to the party.
And be too full for any party snacks which will not be provided.

Trump did this to us.

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

56. wow

[ProfessorGAC]

13. In July, Old Trapper Beef Jerky Was...

...$13 for the 10 ounce bag.
Yesterday it was $22. Nearly 70% higher.
At least that's not a necessary item, so I only buy it once in a while.

[SheltieLover]

28. Kraznov's pootinization of the USA

[Irish_Dem]

33. I bought a roast for Christmas Eve and don't even want to say what it cost.

But I thought about calling my bank first to make sure I had a line of credit available prior to purchase.

[Vinca]

53. I looked at one a couple of weeks ago, just for the 2 of us. $70.00. I waved goodbye.

[Irish_Dem]

55. My family has their heart set on a certain kind of roast for Xmas Eve dinner.

It was more expensive than $70, but I did get a smaller than usual piece of meat.
And did buy it at Costco.

I told the kids it is part of their Christmas present.

[DFW]

34. There is one near my brother in Virginia

Their selection isn’t huge compared to Safeway or Giant, but they are indeed cheaper. I had no idea they had so many stores in the States. Here in Germany, I think they must have a store every 150 meters. The Albrecht family is one of the richest families—if not THE richest family—in Germany.

[Diamond_Dog]

36. There's an Aldi right across the street from my local Walmart

And they are ALWAYS busy!

[SheltieLover]

48. Same here, DD!

Always busy.

[SheltieLover]

46. Their quality is exceptional, too

[Diamond_Dog]

57. It is!

I need to get myself there and pick up some of those fabulous chocolate truffles they sell at Christmas!

[SheltieLover]

58. I just got my $324 Aldi Instacart order

By comparison, a week or 2 ago, I ordered $276 in food from Kroger.

4 small plastic bags of food that lasted 3-4 days.

Today's Aldi order was 12 large paper bags, stuffed to the top, + 1 gal of milk. I guestimate this food will last about 2 weeks.

I don't mean to sound like an Aldi commercial, but there is no comparison in prices.

[Diamond_Dog]

59. You are absolutely correct!

[SheltieLover]

60. Great minds...

We only have crappy Kroger, wal hell & Aldi here. No competition.

[Diamond_Dog]

63. Here in the shit hole of NE Ohio

I *will* say we have decent choices for grocery stores … as usual, Wally mart …. Also Giant Eagle, Meijer’s, Shop n Save, Aldi, Marc’s …. Trouble is, not one store has everything I want, so I end up going to 3 or 4.

[SheltieLover]

64. I hear you.

I used to luve near a Caputo's Ital Market, a Jewel, Meijers, & a Dominicks in Chgo burbs

Very different here in this red shithole. 😓

[Diamond_Dog]

65. We actually do also have small Indian, Mediterranean, Italian, etc. specialty groceries here, too.

One of the larger Italian markets is owned by the idiot R congressman in the district in south of me and I used to occasionally shop there but no more! I refuse to support that moron’s store!

[SheltieLover]

66. Good for you! I wouldn't either!

[Cosmocat]

50. Over 10 dollars

Youngest is home for the break from college and I did a trip to the grocery store to stock up a bit more.

I knew hamburger was up, but thought I would do hamburger helper for a cheap meal.

That small pack of hamburger I use for it - over 10 dollars.

My rage at how the right wingers screamed about grocery prices and how it was ALL BIDENS FAULT for four years and the media going along for the ride, now all you get is "well this or that" and of course BIDEN! when you note how it has gotten far worse the last year.

Its getting unsustainable ...

[Ilsa]

51. Certain chips and snacks are also ridiculous.

Publix has weekly BOGO specials, and even at half-off, some chips are still outrageously expensive. Forget beef. I get my chicken and ground turkey from Costco at a fraction of supermarket prices.

[Zackzzzz]

52. Yes, cookies are big bucks.

We gave up cookies.
We have toast with jam, preserves or cinnamon[Ceylon] and sugar[google recipe].
Sometime, just unsalted, whipped butter. You can freeze sliced bread so you have it on hand.

[DFW]

54. My brother in Virginia makes regular Costco runs, too

It’s way out in Springfield, so a 30-40 minute drive from his house. But he does load up when he goes. When I’m there, I load up on stuff that is either WAY more expensive here, or else fully unobtainable. Finding roasted pecan halves is nearly impossible, and things like Neosporin just don’t exist. At Costco, you can buy a package of four tubes for barely more than one costs at CVS. Our neighbors here in Düsseldorf are VERY grateful!

My brother wisely bought his house several decades ago, and paid it off around the time he retired. He still has property taxes, but has Social Security, his pension, and his wife bought 2000 or so shares of Apple for almost nothing decades ago that, after several splits, are now 20,000 shares worth about $4 million (!!). They haven’t sold any of it, but even after capital gains taxes they’d have over $3 million left over. She is not in the best of health, so she might yet need it, and their house always needs something done. But he is very frugal, and shops as if he were on welfare, so they get by on what income they get, and keep the Apple shares as an emergency reserve just in case, or as something to pass on to their two sons if they never need it. Though politically we are virtual clones (our sister definitely is not, though that will soon change), he is far more conservative than I am when it comes to money. I’m hardly in a position to say he’s overdoing it. He’s retired and draws no salary, so I’d probably be the same way in his shoes. The local food sellers at our farmers market are usually more expensive than the grocery chains (except Aldi!), but they work their asses off to bring fresh food to market every day with punishing hours. We support them when we can. It’s a 900 year old tradition here, and it would be a sin to see it disappear.