The German grocery store chain Lidl, has opened a new store in Park Ridge , Nj. (197 Kinderkamack Road, Park Ridge, NJ 07656). The chain opened in 1977 in Ludwigshafen, Germany. They have 11,200 stores in 32 countries and opened their first one in America in 2017. They have taken the East coast by storm and already have over 100 stores from Virginia to New York. They are competitors with Aldi’s which is also another German supermarket chain. The two share many things in common and are both styled in a much different way than American stores.
The layout of the Lidl in Park Ridge, is modern and open. Like Aldi’s they leave much of the products in the boxes in which they are shipped. The one thing I noticed right away is they sell products from other counties and you can tell which country by a little flag symbol on the label. This is a fun gimmick as it makes you feel very international. I certainly felt like I was shopping somewhere else other than New Jersey! Another thing you’ll notice is Lidl sells their own brands of food, about 80% of the merchandise is their own label. This is tough for some shoppers as we’ve become use to finding our brands and looking for the labels we know. I think given time shoppers will find many things they like at Lidl’s and the lower prices will keep them coming back.
I wasn’t impressed with the meat section because it wasn’t fully stocked so I’m reserving judgement until the store has had a few weeks to get the hang of things. I also found the meat section’s coolers hard to get use to, as they didn’t seem like they could keep the meat cold enough the way they are shaped. The produce section looked nice and all the vegetables had bright vibrant colors. I enjoyed the cheese section as they had cheese from all over the world, as well as charcuterie to go along with it.
The bakery section had in house baked pretzels and other yummy goods like eclairs or french breads. The prices of the baked goods were also very affordable, 4 pretzels were $3.15 and they were large and fresh. The salted caramel from France was $2.95 and the mini Stollen cake from Germany was $1.98. This is where I feel Lidl shines for me, it’s sweets. I love that in one store I can grab Stroop Waffles from The Netherlands, Chocolates from Belgium and spiced cookies from Germany. The sweets section was so big I’ll have to come back many more times to try it all.
The dairy section was also deep in variety, they even carried Almond and Oat milks which you can’t always find. The frozen section had affordable prices on many items especially the frozen pizza. The toiletries were not as varied as you would find in an American supermarket but they had all the basics. You’ll have to be willing to go with a brand you don’t know…yet. The other thing that many people like is that they sell odd objects you wouldn’t expect in a grocery store like men’s watches or a turkey fryer and women’s winter coats. This must be a German thing as Aldi’s also does the same. I like that because you can find some interesting things and the quality is usually very good.
At the check out there is another efficient gadget, a two lane conveyor belt. This allows them to check out more people faster. They also don’t bag your groceries so you’ll be bagging your own (bags provided) while they are sending the next customers items down the conveyor belt next to yours. I’m not sure this is a great idea in the time of Covid, but it certainly is inventive and very different from American markets.
Overall the draw of Lidl is it’s lower prices and modern look. I think most American’s are always looking for a great deal and the prices will certainly keep many coming back. When you try a new store you have to give it a little bit of time to get that familiar feeling. I’m always trying new foods and loving some and not liking others, but I give them a try. I’m sure I’ll be going back to Lidl again at some point. I’ll be very interested to see what goodies they sell from other countries around the holiday’s.
If you’ve been to Lidl and have something to share with us please do so in the box below. If you have any questions please leave them in comment box and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. Thanks for stopping by and until next time, Boone Appétit!
