New Aldi and Costa drive-through

[Alan]

Quite unusual place for an Aldi and I think this is Reading's first drive-through coffee shop after the planned Costa at Forbury retail park didn't happen.

http://www.tvproperty.co.uk/news/aldi-s ... iness-park

[h3mp]

I'd prefer a burger-king drive through

Not a bad location for a supermarket.. the site was Rockwell Collins' warehouse but they've moved to Winnersh Triangle recently..

[buseng]

Are Aldi trying to do a Tesco's?
We have the original one at Horncastle, one by TGI's in Vastern Road, a new one in Whitley I believe. Now this one.

[C8H10N4O2]

There's no other method but replication for increasing market-share in FMCG, bus.

[OLDMAN]

Are Aldi trying to do a Tesco's?
We have the original one at Horncastle, one by TGI's in Vastern Road, a new one in Whitley I believe. Now this one.

This is the Whitley one - unless you are thinking of Lidl?

Edit to add - and they are all a few miles apart, unlike Tesco at a few yards!

[eddieed]

Are Aldi trying to do a Tesco's?
We have the original one at Horncastle, one by TGI's in Vastern Road, a new one in Whitley I believe. Now this one.

This is the Whitley one - unless you are thinking of Lidl?

Edit to add - and they are all a few miles apart, unlike Tesco at a few yards!

This is on Suttons Business Park next to Brakes - there a new one next to Morrisons as well!

Plus the other 2 as mentioned.

I think they make quite a lot of sense in their Market Strategy for Reading - 3 main routes into town and one pretty much in town. They also locate near Lidl a lot which this achieves due to the one in Woodley.

[OLDMAN]

Are Aldi trying to do a Tesco's?
We have the original one at Horncastle, one by TGI's in Vastern Road, a new one in Whitley I believe. Now this one.

This is the Whitley one - unless you are thinking of Lidl?

Edit to add - and they are all a few miles apart, unlike Tesco at a few yards!

This is on Suttons Business Park next to Brakes - there a new one next to Morrisons as well!

Plus the other 2 as mentioned.

I think they make quite a lot of sense in their Market Strategy for Reading - 3 main routes into town and one pretty much in town. They also locate near Lidl a lot which this achieves due to the one in Woodley.

oops - didn't check the link as it didn't work for me yesterday, and I thought we already had a thread or mentioned the Suttons one as its been on the cards since last year

Still a distance between each!

[Avis]

I read the title wrongly, and was wondering just how a drive-through Aldi would work??

[C8H10N4O2]

I read the title wrongly, and was wondering just how a drive-through Aldi would work??

Same; I was looking forward to Click & Collect !

[Fed-up]

I read the title wrongly, and was wondering just how a drive-through Aldi would work??

It's been tried before but without much success:

http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/4134346 ... am_raider/

[Fed-up]

More details about the proposed development:

http://www.suttonsbusinessparkretail.com/

[dave m]

I did notice that Asda, lower earley have a click and collect service area.

[OLDMAN]

I did notice that Asda, lower earley have a click and collect service area.

Its odd as they seem to have 3 variants and from what I've seen they go -

1. You go in the store, order your stuff on a touch screen then wait for someone to collect it and bring it to you, you then a pay and leave - height of lazy in my mind!
2. You order your stuff online, then go in the store for a click and collect service where they bring it to you
3. You order your stuff - guessing on-line, then pull up at a collect station in the car-park tell them you are there by intercom and they bring it out - you load your car and go

[buseng]

I did notice that Asda, lower earley have a click and collect service area.

So has the one at The Meadway Precinct. Only recently opened.
The instore terminal is also still there.

[spectrum64]

There's a notice outside saying Aldi will open 15th March. Possibly Costa will open the same day but it is not specifically mentioned.

[h3mp]

Possibly Costa will open the same day but it is not specifically mentioned.

Costa has been open for a while now..

[THC]

Good. we use Aldi quite a lot but would prefer a local one as the town one isn’t always convenient!

[Mayfield]

I suspect the town centre one will really suffer, it seems so cramped compared with other branches I have been in...

[chris_j_wood]

Maybe I'm having a senior moment here, but I cannot bring an Aldi in the town centre to mind. Where is it?.

[buseng]

Maybe I'm having a senior moment here, but I cannot bring an Aldi in the town centre to mind. Where is it?.

I think near TGI's in Caversham Road.

[Voiceoftreason?]

Vastern Road I understand

[piwacket]

I suspect the town centre one will really suffer, it seems so cramped compared with other branches I have been in...

The day we went in a few months back it was virtually empty ... which considering the lack of stock and the fact that all the veg & fruit was prepacked I wasn't surprised. I'd never been in Aldi before, and on that visit am certainly not tempted to go again.

[Mayfield]

I think a lot of the fruit and veg is pre packed because they are not the sort of operation that has room for the weighing, pricing routine that say Waitrose has...

I go to a branch on the outskirts of Oxford once a month which is bigger and more pleasant...except their trolleys are a nightmare, there are never enough.

Most things we have tried, we have liked and we repeat those. I find the town branch untidy sometimes and you certainly sometimes have to hunt for the stuff but on the whole not bad at all.

[lizwing]

Ours has just been extended and had a big refit is always well stocked and it puts some other food stores in the shade. We’ve tried some things which we haven’t liked so we don’t get them again but the things we do like are great value. The staff are lovely too.

[Voiceoftreason?]

The Alledged etc etc bought chateubriand in Aldi a few weeks back. A tenner. Good grief, it was fabulous. If you’d been served that in a restaurant and been charged sixty quid, you would still have been happy. We’ve had it a couple of,times since, and got one stashed away in the freezer for a special meal.

I got the Christmas .turkey crown from there and it was brilliant. The cheeses, chorizo, sliced meats and fancy desserts are all really very nice indeed. Gammon is good, the duck is much cheaper for the same brand, the chicken and eggs are free range and the steaks are nice too.

You have to use the veg within a couple or three days, but they are very cheap, especially if you get them when they have their super sixes etc.

The only thing I don’t rate is the minced beef (Waitrose is far better quality) and I’d rather spend a few extra pennie on meat rather than the fat that dribbles out.

[windrush]

We used an Aldi (or Lidl, can't remember which) a few years ago when we were in mid Wales and tinned stuff was in tubs on the floor instead of shelves and with German labels on! Never bothered since, Aldi did try to get permission to build one locally but 'the powers that be' didn't think it suitable for a 'tourist spot' so we have an M & S instead which you need a mortgage to shop in.

Pete.

[piwacket]

...so we have an M & S instead which you need a mortgage to shop in.
Pete.

As said previously, we have an M & S Foodstore just a few hundred yards away, so really like a “corner shop”
We don’t buy too much in there, although it’s tempting! However the quality is very good and their Fish is excellent and not particularly expensive, and their weekend deals of Dinner for two are excellent value with a bottle of wine included as well, which, as we’re not particularly wine drinkers, goes in the rack ready for visitors who do

[Mayfield]

>>>The only thing I don’t rate is the minced beef (Waitrose is far better quality) and I’d rather spend a few extra pennie on meat rather than the fat that dribbles out.<<<

We found the fat reduced mince OK and agree with you about the other stuff, our Christmas gammon came from Aldi and was a tenner...very good it was too.

Every now and then I go to Cookham, to Cowderys ( http://www.cowderysofcookham.co.uk ) who are an organic butcher...their meat is lovely, their bacon doesn't leach white liquid when it's cooked and their things like sausages and pies are really good too. Obviously it's not the cheapest place in the world but it's swings and roundabouts, if I save with what I have bought at Aldi then a bit extra elsewhere balances out.
I don't find most of the veg too bad at Aldi , but the tomatoes don't keep as well as Waitrose or Marks....

Pete, I think that may have been a Lidl, I was pretty put of in a similar manner when they first started.

[dave m]

My first trip to a lidl about 15 years ago was kind of like shopping in east Germany when the wall was up
They have upped their game display wise, with in store bakeries etc, although it is still a pile it high system

I often buy aldi or lidl tools as they are ok within limits and I keep their spanners for lending out while I have my good stuff that doesn't get borrowed

[OLDMAN]

We use both quite regularly, but prefer Lidl

But still do our main shop in Asda – just means we buy less in there, and as stated its swings / roundabouts with the cost / goods bought so balance out

The 2 Lidl’s we use the most are Basingstoke Rd and Woodley – both of which do loose vegetables (which some Waitrose’s have stopped doing by the way)

Plus love their fresh baked stuff

And it’s one of the few places to buy Mortadella plus a few other ‘exotic’ food stuffs


Also bought a few ‘hard goods’ (tools / knives / jacket etc) in them as can be very good value at low costs - just have to check what your buying, although these days a lot of stuff is ‘named’ goods


And I agree when they first started it was odd to shop in them – but that’s been sorted over time

[OneGorman]

Costa Drive-thru almost ready in South Reading too. I don’t see the appeal myself. I am looking forward to the BK drive-thru though...

[piwacket]

Costa Drive-thru almost ready in South Reading too. I don’t see the appeal myself. I am looking forward to the BK drive-thru though...

I can’t see the appeal either. But OH has just, out of curiosity walked down there and had a look, he says there doesn’t appear to be much parking space for Aldi and the Costa does have a seating area too... I suppose a lot of the people who work on the estate will welcome that?

What’s BK?

[cnb]

I can’t see the appeal either. But OH has just, out of curiosity walked down there and had a look, he says there doesn’t appear to be much parking space for Aldi and the Costa does have a seating area too... I suppose a lot of the people who work on the estate will welcome that?

There are 126 parking spaces for Aldi and Costa to share. It sounds like it's plenty - the stores are small and designed to get people through as quickly as possible.

That compares to 103 for the new Lidl on Bath Road and 200 shared by Aldi and the Trooper Potts pub in Whitley.
There are about 250 spaces at the Vastern Road site but they serve TGI Friday, Mothercare, Aldi, Majestic, and The Range. Even when Aldi is busy there are normally less than half the spaces in use, though I expect there are more customers arriving by bus, bike, and on foot at that store than there will be at Suttons.

What’s BK?

Burger King

[Mayfield]

I'd suggest that the reason so many spaces are empty in Vastern Road is because of the over zealous parking wardens...even people well within the time limit and with receipts are issued tickets and have to argue the toss. It's put quite a few people off shopping there.

Hoped the new Aldi would be bigger...

[piwacket]

@ cnb - thanks!