The European Aldi Find We Desperately Want In The US

There's nothing quite like the excitement that comes with perusing international grocery store aisles. To those used to American-based Aldi stores, this grocer actually looks a bit different outside the United States. Commonly stocked with regionally specific items, Aldi stores across Europe also often have an orange juice station where you can get fresh squeezed OJ right there on the spot (you even juice it yourself).

Aldi provides a selection of oranges that you can juice and pay for by the bottle, which is also provided at the juicer section. Whether it's Spain, France, or Germany, prices will range from store to store across countries depending on local market rates and currency. (Which begets the question as to why some Aldi stores are cheaper than others.) While it might seem a bit out of the ordinary to Americans, online shoppers note that fresh orange juice machines are actually very common across Europe.

You'll find these types of stations across myriad other grocery stores like Monop', Franprix, Lidl, and other smaller bodegas and corner shops. Avid travelers are often shocked at the sheer number of places you can find and enjoy fresh orange juice in standard grocery stores. Comparative to the United States, squeeze-it-yourself orange juice seems to be a European grocery trend that Aldi made sure to include at many of its locations. 

While you won't find orange juice stations in United Kingdom-based Aldi stores, you will discover a surprisingly vast selection of fresh pastries instead. The grocery conglomerate established a more extensive bakery program in London in 2019, and it has since expanded, with many stores across England and Wales set to gain upgrades to their bakery sections. American Aldi locations seemed to be test running a few in-house bakeries back in 2018, but there is apparently no comprehensive list nor update on this progress across stores. Despite this, there are still many quality bakery section items that are worth a try.

A new initiative is dedicated to updating U.K.-based Aldi stores across departments, which will substantially impact the company's health and beauty offerings, too. European Aldi stores are also home to many exciting varieties of foods and snacks that you wouldn't find in the United States, with some remarking on its relative aesthetic qualities compared to the Aldi we're used to in the States. Some stores even boast multiple floors of goods and homewares.

In some German Aldi locations, you can expect to see liquor (both name- and store-brand options), cigarettes, and rolling papers that you can buy alongside your standard grocery list. Though Aldi is known by its iconic name across countries, the company is split into two separate operations (connoted by Süd and Nord) due to the cigarettes debate specifically. This is why you can find cigarettes in some stores based in Germany, but not in the United Kingdom. All said, across Aldi's many international stores, you'll be sure to find something you like at a very competitive price.