Which own brand/budget products are good?

Mo2012 · 10-10-2012 11:22pm

asda's powder curry sauce its like curry sauce from chip shops- very tasty!

nowuckenfurries · 10-10-2012 11:33pm

CH3OH wrote: »

I actually think it is made by Donegal catch for Supervalu
As far as I can remember the EU plant codes are the same on the packaging for both products. (I was looking at breaded whiting recently)

Here's link to the food safety authority website where all the plants are listed
http://www.fsai.ie/food_businesses/approved_food_establishments.html

For example: Tesco own brand milk and fresh cream have a plant code of 1403 on the lid. Tesco try to hide the info by not having a distinct plant code label on the product. They have a note "see lid"

1403 from "Milk and Dairy establishments..." spreadsheet is Glanbia so the milk and cream is (imho) the same as Avonmore

Quote is GG 123 etc... all processed in Grimsby in the UK by http://www.fivestarfish.co.uk/ Donegal Catch isn't made in Donegal!!

wmpdd3 · 10-10-2012 11:47pm

Aldi Colombine (sp) coffee, €1.99 a jar and the best stir about around.

K-9 · 10-10-2012 11:59pm

The Lidl fair trade coffee is very nice, find Aldi and Lidl Orange juices basically the same and a match for Tesco and others. Fallon's gold blend tea in Lidl is the business, they also do a nice fresh baked Irish scone.

Hoof_Hearted · 12-10-2012 1:08pm

I find Dunnes tinned chopped tomatoes are top notch, and their mature cheddar, and their porridge. All three are cheaper than their branded alternatives but just as good in my opinion.
Incidentally, I know someone who worked for a well known yogurt maker and they made Dunnes brand yogurts - exactly the same recipe, just different flavours.

mada999 · 12-10-2012 1:13pm

vicwatson wrote: »

It is defintely from Avonmore as i had a complaint before and had to complain to Avonmore

aye if you place a Tesco and Avonmore pack side by side they have all the exact same nutritional information

paddy147 · 12-10-2012 1:20pm

Lidl/Parkside DIY tools are good and very well priced.

Bought a fully adjustable cross cut mitre saw for 50 euro recently.
Fantastic quality and has the same features as a 200 euro big brand name saw.

Also bought a lazer guided/straight edge Parkside Jigsaw with quick change blade system for 15 euro too.

Parkside SDS Hammer/Impact drill with various masonary drill/chisel bits for 35 euro.

Parkside Electric Sabre saw for 30 euro,complete with 5 different blades.

Again fantastic quality.:D

Freiheit · 12-10-2012 1:38pm

Tesco own brand diluted orange squash,72 cent,not good though

branners69 · 12-10-2012 3:46pm

The beans in Aldi are better than any beans around and the Putinoff vodka in Lidl knocks socks off of Smirnoff!

Gormal · 12-10-2012 4:27pm

Aldi's - mayo (Bramwells?) is good... well the full fat one, don't like their reduced fat one at all.
- the soft cheese spread is nice
- Frozen breaded cod/haddock (Northern Catch) the battered ones are greasy.
- Potato wedges are ok too
- Smoked fish is good as is the tinned stuff, eg. Tuna chunks in brine or Pink Salmon 99c

Lidl/Tescos/supervalu own brand tinned sweetcorn good but Aldi's is rank (think they add sweetener).
- Marrowfat Peas from aldi/lidl

et101 · 12-10-2012 6:07pm

Aldi's baked beans are really good not watery and not too sweet like some of the cheap beans. Also their frozen pizzas, salads, pot noodles (curry flavour and only 31c), yoghurts are great really creamy. They also do a vegetable burger 4 pack in the freezer which are great

Do-more · 12-10-2012 7:33pm

LavaLamp wrote: »

Lidl loo rolls get my vote too.

We used to only ever buy the Lidl 2 ply loo roll but they must have changed the supplier fairly recently and now the plys don't stick together properly and we've stopped buying it.

el diablo · 12-10-2012 7:40pm

Aldi's Specially Selected fresh ground coffee. Better than Robt. Roberts etc. and half the price.

wmpdd3 · 12-10-2012 8:48pm

Also Aldi Finest (?) oven chips in the black and silver bag are lovely. €2 a bag, much better than Home Fries

Glenbhoy · 13-10-2012 9:29am

wmpdd3 wrote: »

Also Aldi Finest (?) oven chips in the black and silver bag are lovely. €2 a bag, much better than Home Fries

Dunnes finest crinkle cut oven fries €2 for 1.5kg are my favourite for the price, but Aunt Bessie's crinkle cut which can hit €4 for 750g are the nicest (I only buy them when they're reduced though).

Aldi roasted winter veg (frozen) are pretty decent, saves the hassle of buying up a pile of different veg for roasting. Just pop it in the oven with a little bit of extra olive oil and honey to perk them up and it's a great side dish (I think it may cost less than a euro.
Aldi frozen mash is about 99c for a pack too, also pretty tasty and much nicer than Mash Direct who have really went off the boil recently (pun??) in terms of flavour (and price of course).

mattjack · 13-10-2012 9:48am

Dunnes sell a two litre bottle, own brand lemonade for 49 cent.The parasiteskids are drinking it without complaint.

chris1970 · 13-10-2012 2:15pm

Aldi rock shandy
Aldi potatoe wedges
Aldi mayonaisse ,garlic one not nice
Aldi lidl tesco organic milk/eggs lovely
Aldi torro red wine Fab for a fiver
Also lynches brown sliced buttermilk bread
Aldi beans / pea grand

Celly Smunt · 13-10-2012 3:40pm

aldi snack noodles are the very same as pot noodles.

fillefatale · 13-10-2012 6:14pm

Tesco value tinned tomatoes are just as good as the cans for 80c (they cost 45c), also love their kidney beans, 17c a can, good for bulking out meals!

Tesco value tortilla chips, good value and taste good

Tesco value bran flakes and weetabix, and their Tesco rice crispies, can't taste any difference in comparison to the branded ones, which are so expensive I can't imagine myself ever buying them!

I love those Aldi "curly fries", €1 or so for a bag, compared to the miser portion from McDonalds

daytob · 13-10-2012 7:51pm

Anyone like haribo gold bears?

just bought a packet of Sugar land Gummy bears from aldis 99c and bigger then gold bears. and I think they taste the exact same. bigger bag as well

kilco · 13-10-2012 11:08pm

Well here's my suggestions ,this is a great thread that I've onlyjust found pity theres not a vote to rank things make it easier to read quickly

Burgers
Dunnes have burgers called steakhouse char grilled quarter pounders, absolutely love them they stay lovely and moist even after cooking in the oven.Think they are about €2 for 4
Fish
Dunnes frozen breaded haddock about €4 much nicer than premium brand.
Milk & Butter
Dunnes, tesco , centra own brand all fine no difference
Coleslaw
Tesco finest creamy coleslaw lovely
Toilet Tissue
Always get the Dunnes luxury one and the price is good.
Firelighters
Tesco value ones better than Dunnes cheap ones
Orange Juice
Dunnes or tesco not from concentrate both taste great
Pasta Sauce
Tesco chunky vegetable I think is nicer than Dolmio

I absolutely love yoplait hazlenut yoghurt does anyone have an alternative that's cheaper ?

shaddupayaface · 14-10-2012 8:54am

kilco wrote: »

I absolutely love yoplait hazlenut yoghurt does anyone have an alternative that's cheaper ?

Aldi have a range of yogurts that are the very same as yoplait and only 39c. They have all of the yoplait flavours too, apple. Melon and orange and hazelnut.

Do-more · 14-10-2012 9:16am

We buy Lidl's frozen pizza margherita in the box of 3 and then add extra cheese and toppings to suit everyone in the house. Everyone gets exactly what they want, there is little waste and it's a fraction of the price of buying preprepared pizza to suit everyone.

bluecherry74 · 14-10-2012 9:41am

Supervalu Supreme frozen pizzas are gorgeous. Only around €3, they beat every branded pizza hands down. I'd say they're the closest to an "authentic" Italian style pizza you can get in a supermarket.

I've recently started doing most of my shopping in Aldi and I can't get over how good their food is and how much I'm saving.

dfbemt · 14-10-2012 9:47am

Over the past few years Aldi has taken over as our weekly shop location with a few items in Tescos or Lidl.

I find the Lidl quality to be a bit less than Aldi. Tesco is too damn expensive.

Full trolley in Aldi for less than €100. Full trolley in Tesco pushing towards €160. Trick in Aldi and Lidl is to stay away from the middle aisles where all the bargains / tools etc are.

The honey in Aldi is cheaper than anywhere else. Their Benefit cereal tastes better than Special K. Stackers instead of Pringles. Their pancakes / crumpets cheaper than Tesco. Yougurts loverly and creamy. Relish yes. Cooked ham in packets yes. Pretty much everything.

Tesco gets our money for brand names which are nearly always cheaper than the same branded product in Aldi or Lidl eg Coke, Tayto, etc.

Main thing is to go to a shop for the special offers eg Cadburys Drinking Chocolate 1/2 price in Dunnes, Lidl's Super Saturday, etc and stock up on those items. Last time Lidl did Weetabix on the Super Saturday we bought a whole box (24 boxes) and have only just finished them. With 3 savages (agree with earlier poster - parasites

) watching the prices is the only way to shop.

Great thread OP.

kn · 14-10-2012 3:12pm

Dunnes Fruit and Fibre cereal 750g is decent value. Dunnes also have a range of own brand biscuits that are very good, particularly the chocolate biscuits at 69c I think. I note that in my local Dunnes that they cannot seem to keep their own brand chocolate biscuits in stock. They seem to sell very quickly. The Dunnes burgers that were pointed out by another poster above are also great value.

okiss · 14-10-2012 10:50pm

I was in Tesco recently and I was looking for Woolite for hand washing.
I found Tesco Non-bio Silk & Delicates Handwash for less than €2 and it works fine for less than half the price of Woolite

el diablo · 14-10-2012 11:10pm

Anyone know of any own brand coffee beans? None in Tesco, Aldi, Lidl etc.

dastardly00 · 15-10-2012 12:14am

bennyob wrote: »

Aldi's 'weetabix' are as good as the branded one. I have 2 most mornings. I didn't like the lidl ones when I tried them.

Supervalu's 'cornflakes' are excellent too. Got a good review here http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0410/1224314565135.html

I also have a soft spot for supervalu's breaded fish. Very nice and a fraction of the price of donegal catch.

I haven't tried Supervalu's 'cornflakes' but I really like Centra's version (both could be the same but just repackaged). Centra 'cornflakes' have almost the same nutritional values as Kellogs. I've tried Lidl's version, and they are very bland.

Do-more · 15-10-2012 6:00am

el diablo wrote: »

Anyone know of any own brand coffee beans? None in Tesco, Aldi, Lidl etc.

I used to find Ikea to be cheapest for whole coffee beans. Not sure if that is still the case since I emigrated.

Squ · 15-10-2012 6:16am

Superquinn sausages
Aldi Striploin steaks

ABajaninCork · 15-10-2012 6:32am

You can't beat Aldi for:

Sunflower/Olive Oil. As good as the branded stuff and much cheaper.
Marmalade - nom, nom!

Ham - As good as Denny's and much cheaper.
The cheeses are out of this world. Brilliant range, and excellent prices.
Bacon - Good taste and reasonable quality, even if it does have quite a lot of water. But for E1.89 for a pack of smoked back, who cares!
Herbal teas.
Peanuts
Hand-made sweets.
Wine range is good and reasonably priced.

Lidl's bakery are the greatest! We love their cheese/onion rolls, scones, pain chocolat, and panini rolls. Very good prices and excellent taste.
The bacon bits are very good. MUCH better than Dunnes/M & S which are very fatty and you end up having to drain the fat several times before you can eat it.

Amalgam · 15-10-2012 11:58am

ABajaninCork wrote: »

You can't beat Aldi for:

Don't forget Aldi's ground coffee.

They sell lovely French Blend Roast & Ground Coffee, much better (and cheaper) than many so called 'brands'.

They have three blends in this range, an Italian one and another, which escapes me at the moment. I mainly buy the French Blend. Very similar to Bewley's, 'French Blend\Breakfast' blend.

el diablo · 15-10-2012 12:09pm

Amalgam wrote: »

Don't forget Aldi's ground coffee.

They sell lovely French Blend Roast & Ground Coffee, much better (and cheaper) than many so called 'brands'.

They have three blends in this range, an Italian one and another, which escapes me at the moment. I mainly buy the French Blend. Very similar to Bewley's, 'French Blend\Breakfast' blend.

And half the price of Bewleys and Robt. Roberts.

The "Specially Selected" ground coffee in Aldi is good too.

sunbeam · 15-10-2012 3:52pm

+1 for Supervalu cornflakes.

I actually find that their Daily Basics firelighters are better quality than the other Supervalu own brand ones. Unfortunately they doubled the price of them during the summer, so they both work out at roughly the same price now.

Our fussy felines actually prefer Supervalu cat food pouches to Felix and Whiskas. However, not even the stray in our garden who tries to sneak food from their bowls will touch the Supervalu dry cat food.

upinthesky · 15-10-2012 6:00pm

http://www.google.ie/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&rlz=1T4ADFA_enIE450IE450&biw=1366&bih=554&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=h84L-tLg3_qALM:&imgrefurl=http://www.cyberladyonline.net/p/best-buys.html&docid=Lg9502EkOZYObM&imgurl=http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EpBLuHlYNBA/TwNL7StV1jI/AAAAAAAACmM/hkmQiCTYGpk/s1600/IMG_2107.JPG&w=1072&h=1292&ei=-EJ8UInMHs65hAeo7oGwBQ&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=63&sig=117815697463249954426&page=1&tbnh=109&tbnw=100&start=0&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:12,s:0,i:105&tx=-125&ty=-87these are yum from aldi they microwave in about 7 minutes

Cats.Whiskers · 15-10-2012 6:02pm

Thanks for the recommendations ~ I normally buy the Bewleys French Roast so I'll definitely be trying this one.

ALSO Do they sell decaff ground coffee in Aldi? Thanks

Amalgam wrote: »

Don't forget Aldi's ground coffee.

They sell lovely French Blend Roast & Ground Coffee, much better (and cheaper) than many so called 'brands'.

They have three blends in this range, an Italian one and another, which escapes me at the moment. I mainly buy the French Blend. Very similar to Bewley's, 'French Blend\Breakfast' blend.

Graciefacey · 15-10-2012 10:45pm

Love aldi. Benefit cereal tastes better than special k. Lovely selection of cakes, pastries etc. Their eggs are lovely and fresh and yellow. Great value on kids yoghurts, smoothies, fruit juices etc. The standard in aldi is so much better than lidl. Also love their marinades, spices etc. Full weekly shop costs roughly 40 compared to up to 100 in tesco, very important for a young working family.

unkel · 15-10-2012 10:51pm

arch20000 wrote: »

The LIDL Arabica Espresso coffee in the medal tin in the dogs!!

+1

Better than the likes of Lavazza etc. which cost 2 or 3 times as much in Tesco / Superquinn

The price has been creeping up the last few years from €1.59 to €2.49 unfortunately. Still a bargain though!

dowtchaboy · 16-10-2012 9:22am

ABajaninCork wrote: »

The bacon bits are very good. MUCH better than Dunnes/M & S which are very fatty and you end up having to drain the fat several times before you can eat it.

Absolutely agree! Great for adding a bit of crunch to salads or omelettes.

fillefatale · 16-10-2012 11:54am

Aldi's chocolate, Moser Roth, tastes just as good as the more expensive branded ones, and I'm very particular about my chocolate. I used to buy Green & Blacks, but at €1.39 the 70% dark Moser Roth tastes just as good and at half the price.

chris1970 · 16-10-2012 2:21pm

fillefatale wrote: »

Aldi's chocolate, Moser Roth, tastes just as good as the more expensive branded ones, and I'm very particular about my chocolate. I used to buy Green & Blacks, but at €1.39 the 70% dark Moser Roth tastes just as good and at half the price.

I'll second that ,perfect with the Toro red wine for a fiver

vinlad · 26-10-2012 9:10pm

Aldi Cucina balsamic vinegar in the square bottle is just the best, haven't seen it in a while though, hope its not gone!

pms7 · 26-10-2012 10:57pm

paddy147 wrote: »

Lidl/Parkside DIY tools are good and very well priced.

Bought a fully adjustable cross cut mitre saw for 50 euro recently.
Fantastic quality and has the same features as a 200 euro big brand name saw.

Also bought a lazer guided/straight edge Parkside Jigsaw with quick change blade system for 15 euro too.

Parkside SDS Hammer/Impact drill with various masonary drill/chisel bits for 35 euro.

Parkside Electric Sabre saw for 30 euro,complete with 5 different blades.

Again fantastic quality.:D

Both Aldi + Lidl give 3 year warranty, which they more than stand over. Once had a broken €60 drill collected by courier and a new one delivered when couldn't fix old one. How many places would give you that service?

26-10-2012 11:15pm

ive always eaten dunnes branded food there american chips and mushy peas are yummy

snubbleste · 11-06-2013 2:13pm

Supervalu daily basics jaffa cakes are yum!
89c for 24 pack ~ 300g.

Dub12Dave · 11-06-2013 2:36pm

Dunnes own brand pasta sauce is much nicer than the dolmino sauce and costs just 65c, Aldi's washing up liquid Magnum is €1.09 and is better then fairy liquid, aldi also have a large bottle of malt vinegar for 39c as nice if not nicer than the top price range, also dunnes stores ginger nuts at 39c are the nicest tasting ginger nuts you can buy and the kids like the dunnes own brand cookies and actually prefare them to the much more expensive range, in aldi again their shower gels are 69 and 79c and are great and their head strong anti dandruff shampoo is 79c I think and is as good as head and shoulders, I know there are a lot more but I just cant think of them right now.

ColdTurkey · 11-06-2013 3:26pm

Dub12Dave wrote: »

I think and is as good as head and shoulders.

Have to disagree with you there, just switched back to h&s after a month of unhappiness with other products including head strong.

B0jangles · 11-06-2013 3:35pm

Aldi's sugar-free fizzy orange is the best I've ever tasted, far far niceer than diet club orange. Their crisps (Spuddies) are excellent too. I think they are made by the same company that make king and tayto.

I like their 5.49 budavar chardonnay too

OldNotWIse · 11-06-2013 3:36pm

tesco value beer - if you're designated driver. It's like 2pc alcohol or something lol

Which own brand/budget products are good?

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