ALDI — Local services in Leominster

4-5 stars usually; 1 star today. 4-5 stars for a clean store, good prices, much better quality than a few years ago, huge cuts of Norwegian salmon, great deals on brioche, and a generally chill staff.

But 1 star for the really lame check-out experience and getting chewed out by the cashier for what exactly I’m still not sure.

The cashier was in a bad mood and was freely taking it out on customers who were being polite and just looked confused. I had a box to put my groceries in. I put it in the empty cart like always. The cashier began by tossing the items anywhere but the box. I was trying to pick them up quickly and put them in the box and she was agitated. She threw her hands up saying, “I can’t, I can’t!” and some stuff I couldn’t understand. I said I didn’t really know what I had done wrong and she said something like that I wasn’t allowed to box my things there. I said I was sorry, no cashier had told me that previously, so I didn’t realize I was doing something wrong, but I was sorry about it. I stopped handling my groceries right away. She kept going on, “no, all the cashiers say that every time.” I was literally apologizing and being calm and she basically seemed like she wanted to call me a liar and have a fight. I only had a few items and she was done scanning but she kept going on. She held up her finger which had a bandaid on it and said I made her bump into me (???) and it had made her slice her finger. I had NO clue what she was talking about but I apologized that her finger was hurt. Then she just walked away. So I waited for my card transaction to complete, took my receipt from the printer, and pushed the cart to the side to box my stuff up. She returned to the register and started complaining to the next person about customers who try to bag their items. As I was leaving, she was criticizing the customer at the register for having a bag of clementines but also one single, loose orange. He looked totally confused. I think if I go to this Aldi in the future and she’s the only one on register, I would just leave...

My go to grocery store when looking for something different that won't break the bank. Especially at Christmas - many different things, candy, gifts, decorations. Lots of specialty cheeses, spreads and meats - Black Forest Speck and Schinken, Prosciutto, gourmet deli selections with pepper salami, hit capacollo & hot calabrese also not hot selections. Got some super yummy puff pastry appetizer bites! Great sales on cream cheese, eggs, sour cream, etc. Fresh meats and lots of good frozen fish and shrimp for good prices.

Regular weekly shopping might have to be supplemented at another grocery store. I can't always find everything I need. But the basics are there and will get you out of the store faster

Wide variety of bread, rolls, bagels, etc. Standard offerings for produce - used to not be very good quality but better now.

The brands they carry are not the ones you are used to seeing. You will see some items with brand names but most are Aldi's brands. Most of them are comparable to name brands. Coffee creamers, fruit juices, crackers, snacks, canned fruits, condiments, yogurt, etc. are as good as other grocery stores and usually much cheaper. More consistent with prices, as well.

There are Aldi specials which are here today, gone tomorrow types of items. If you are interested grab them when you see them because they might be gone by the next time you shop.

Oh! The most important thing... don't forget a quarter. You get your cart by inserting a quarter into the slot to release it from the next one. You get your quarter back when you return your cart. And bring shopping bags. Boxes are available for free or you can buy reusable bags there if...

Since visiting my first time about 3 or 4 years ago, it's quickly become my favorite store. It's cheaper than Market Basket on most items. The quality is pretty much the same, or better, for their store brand items. (try the generic fig bars, there's one example of a better item at a better price than national brand) Aldi carries a smaller selection, but what they do have, is generally cheaper and of the same or better quality compared to other stores.

You will want to bring a quarter to unlock the cart (you get it back when you return the cart). The cashier rings up items and puts them back in the cart for you to bag at the counter (they keep overhead low, and are able to offer lower prices this way)

The bags cost money, so you will want to bring bags or a sturdy box. Sometimes you can get leftover boxes, but usually...