Getting groceries on a budget - Aldi

I am a woman who likes a good deal. A deal isn't a deal unless it's for something I need. We all need to eat and as an adult woman with a good job, I don't want to eat ramen 3x a week like a college student. Ok I hadn't ever tried ramen until well after college, but you get my drift.

I drive 10 minutes to Aldi almost every week instead of going to the Harris Teeter grocery store that is 3 minutes drive from my house and I'd drive farther if Aldi was farther away. I do this because every thing is so much cheaper at Aldi. You don't need a coupon, a store bonus card or to comparison shop Aldi is just cheaper. It is usually cheaper than the sale price at Harris Teeter, or almost the same except at Aldi it's that price all the time. I tried Costco early this year and I think it's around the same prices as Aldi, but at Aldi I don't have to buy in bulk or have a membership. Since I'm in a 2-person household with limited storage, buying in bulk isn't for me.

Normally for a week's worth of groceries for two people I spend about $70, this is for a very fancy diet with meat, cage free eggs, organic lettuce, lots of vegetables and fruit.

If you have never been to Aldi, here are my top tips. Give it a chance and if you like a deal, you will love it!

Aldi has a few quirks that makes it unique, so prepare yourself:

1. Bring a quarter. You need it to unlock your shopping cart but you will get it back when you return your cart. This is really common in Europe and I got used to it when living in the Netherlands, but it's unusual in the US. I keep an "Aldi quarter" in the cup holder of my car so I'm always prepared.
2. Bring your own bags. They do not provide any shopping bags at Aldi. I actually like this because it's much better for the environment and I always bring my own bags anyway, but if you aren't used to it, it might be a hassle for you. You can also take empty boxes from the Aldi shelf if you need them for packing.
3. They don't always take credit cards. My local Aldi started taking credit cards about 6 months ago but they didn't previously and I've heard that some locations are still cash and debit card only. 
4. They don't have everything. There are some things they don't have which can be annoying. For example, for a long time they didn't have lasagna noodles but had everything else to make lasagna. They also only recently started stocking cage-free eggs, which are strongly my preference. I will occasionally go to another store to get all the things Aldi doesn't have but I am always shocked by how much I spend there compared to Aldi. Many things are also Aldi brand, but if brands are important you, you might be in the wrong place :-)

So what do I routinely buy at Aldi for low prices? Here is a list of my favorite items!

1. Not from concentrate orange juice for $2.19. I believe they actually have one slightly cheaper but I like this one because it has pulp, yes I'll splurge .40 for pulp :-)
2. Cheese, 8oz blocks for $1.89
3. Fresh pineapples for $1.99 - these are 2.99 on sale at my other local store!
4. Organic spring mix for $3.59 for a large container, I believe it's 4.99 for the same size container at Harris Teeter.
5. English muffins for $.99 compared to 2.00 on sale elsewhere
6. Nuts - almonds, cashews, sunflower seeds, I buy tons of them. It's $4.89 for a bag of whole cashews (I love the honey roasted ones but they are basically coated in sugar, so tread lightly.)
7. Cherry tomatoes for $1.89, again less than the sale price elsewhere.
8. Mini-peppers, multi-colored for $1.79 or 3 pack tri-color peppers for $2.99
9. Multi-grain or blue corn tortilla chips $1.69
10. Basic spices (garlic, onion power, Italian seasoning, etc) for $1.19
11. Chocolate cake for 2.99 - this is the BEST chocolate cake. Our past roommate and I would trade off buying one and the two of us would devour it in a couple of days. Sometimes they also have seasonal ones like pumpkin spice in the fall.

They will also routinely have berries for sale in the summer for $1 per pack. There is an area where they have rotating items that are often delicious but short-lived, they tend to be a vice for me because I wasn't planning to buy them but I still save a lot so I let myself indulge.

What are your favorite items from Aldi?