Lidl

Tons of cheap, high quality stuff. A huge variety of things. And a bakery with very fresh bread. Come here for your grocery needs.

I’m not a huge fan of supermarkets in general, and I actually used to have a weird phobia about being in them. It was mainly to do with the all-​pervasive muzak that rotted your brain into something like an automaton from The Stepford Wives. Thankfully most places have stopped the muzak these days.
I wasn’t a huge fan of Lidl either, mainly because of their insistence that you enter at one door and proceed around the entire shop in an orderly fashion before exiting via the tills, which totally destroyed one’s innate desire to browse and possibly leave without buying anything.
That doesn’t apply in this Lidl, which is laid out pretty much like any other supermarket with interconnecting aisles allowing you to wander as you please.
There are some great bargains to be had in all departments, and it’s always worth a look at the ‘specials’ bins where you can find all manner of bargain stuff like DIY tools, toys and games that you’ve never heard of, shelving units and even clothing items.
Packaged goods tend to be OK if not the best quality that you might be used to if you shop at Waitrose normally, but the fresh veg and fruit is not such a bargain unless you like buying in bulk — you won’t find single onions here. It’s not always that fresh either — we almost bought a pack of oranges until we discovered at the till that one of them was completely green with mould — yuck!

Since refurbishing the store & increasing the size of it, they have a much better selection of stock. Also seems to be cleaner these days which is great. However, despite putting in more checkouts, they only ever have one open at a time.
My biggest gripe about Lidl (and many other supermarkets) is their requirement for you to buy fresh food in bulk for cheap «per kilo» prices. Sadly, I don’t want or need a kilo of carrots, I only need a single carrot!
I’m off to the local greengrocers now, in the hope they’ll sell my one carrot & one onion!

I do love Lidl for a bargain! They have a great selection of olives, German bread and cheap alcohol. That’s pretty much all I use Lidl for.
I don’t buy fresh produce here as it always looks sad and lacklustre. But usually they have teeny garlic bulbs, which are actually giant cloves, in a basket. I’m a sucker for food coming in it’s own basket.
Currently there is some work being done in the car park but don’t let that put you off.

I do love my local Lidl. If you look past the cider swilling jakies and angry barking dogs loitering in the doorway, you will reap the rewards and bag the bargains within.
As you enter, the offers of the week tend to be plastered on posters all over the walls and your eyes will be bombarded with them as soon as you walk in, so it’s pretty hard to miss them. Each week brings a new load of loveliness and a whole new set of bargainous offers: recurring deals tend to be 6-​packs of Muller crunch corners for just £1.44 and a decent selection of wine ranging from £1 to £10.
As well as the usual tinned goods (baked beans for 25p don’t you know), one of my favourite sections is the fruit and veg section, filled with lovely and often exotic offerings to fill my fridge with.
You can pick up candy copies such as peanut ‘choco hoppers’ which are just as tasty, if not tastier than the imitated brand. There are freezers full of tasty European Ice cream and an ever changing world foods shelf that brings goodies from around the globe to educate the most jaded of pallets.
Last stop, if you can carry any more, is the amazingly cheap 24p 2 litre bottles of water — why on earth would you go anywhere else?

Lidl is just awesome. Some people are embarrassed to shop there, but I just can’t understand why. Yeah, it’s cheap, but that just leaves you more money to spend on Ugg boots, or whatever it is trendy people buy nowadays. In Lidl you will always spot a lot of students, a lot of ethnic groups, and at least one or two jakeys (or old alky guys to non-​glaswegians) all piling their disobedient trolleys with cheap rubbish. Shopping at Lidl is a game. Spot the cheap brand names and grab them, but avoid all cereal — it’s just not worth the saving. This week they have 2-​litre bottles of Pepsi for 50p. I braved the hordes and bagged myself 2 bottles. I left with a wild look in my eyes (and in my hair) and the satisfaction of knowing that I, Liz, got a bargain.
They also have a couple of aisles of «random stuff», which has recently included clock radios, wine racks, garden tools, knickers, stationary and… A CUDDLY TOY! You get the picture.
I will leave you with my top tip… grab the chilled fresh lasagne, it’s surprisingly yummy.