A trip to Aldi and a look at "American" foods

After I dropped Indy off at summer camp (squeeeeeee!) I went over to one of our local Aldi's (seriously, they are everywhere) to pick up a few things. I mentioned the other day how they had all these "American" items for sale, presumably to celebrate the 4th of July. Who knows? I got a super duper cool new phone yesterday that has a 5mp camera (with zoom!) and I decided to take a few photos to entertain you. The Germans thought I was nuts. Nothing new there. Snap on crazy American. Snap on.



First we need a cart. See them? They're all chained together. If you need one, you have to put in a 1 Euro coin to release the chain. To get your coin back, you have to return the cart and chain it back up. No loose carts scratching up the paint on your car or blocking a parking space. Brilliant, isn't it?


I often forget or simply don't have a 1 Euro coin, but have been blessed with this happy little guy. Isn't he cute? He fits on my key chain and is always handy. Look closely at the white eyes and mouth. What could that be?


Why, it's a little coin made to fit in shopping carts! Genius!


Let's have a look at some "American" items, shall we? American Sandwich bread. Whole Wheat.



Blueberry and Cranberry juice. Have you ever seen blueberry juice in America (other than Whole Foods or some other such store)?


Plain and Garlic wraps.


Sandwich pickles (they are NOT dill, but more like bread and butter pickles-ick).


Blueberry and Chocolate Chip muffins. Yummy!


Peanut Butter! Crunchy and Smooth. This is a HUGE deal. Most Europeans don't eat peanut butter, but the ones who do, love it. Worship it, almost. Probably because it's so hard to find. My friend bought a gold and diamond bracelet in Italy (not off the street, at a real jewelry store) for a case of Jiffy. Can you imagine? The store owner knew they were Americans and told them his grandchildren loved Jiffy, but couldn't get it. If they got him a case, he's let them have the bracelet. When I go to Italy, I'm bringing cases of the stuff!
There was a guy in the store who was loading his cart up with jar after jar of peanut butter and giving me the evil eye. I had to take the pic before he wiped it out. If I knew the words in German I'd have told him he had nothing to worry about because I loath peanut butter.


Marshmallows are an American thing. I did not know, but it has been confirmed by several European friends. I also didn't know there was a "Traditional BBQ" style.


This is quite possibly the most disgusting thing there. Just the thought makes me shiver. It's swirled ketchup and mayo (which I have to admit does look very patriotic), or swirled ketchup and mustard. Ewwwww. Click on the photo for a close up. That so does not look appetizing.


Sweet popcorn? Yuck. The butter popcorn was sold out.


Donut mix? Do we make donuts?


Apparently, we do. There is even an American Donut maker.


I cruised over to the frozen foods, but all the American ice cream was gone. Probably the same day it was put out. Germans LOVE American ice cream. I prefer the German style. Funny, huh?
They did have BBQ spare ribs though.


And Ribeye Steak.


And popcorn "shrimps" in little containers that look like Chinese containers. Wonder why?



After Aldi, I walked about a block down the road and braved 2 lanes of traffic and strassenbahn tracks to get to Mantei. What is Montei, you ask? Heaven, I say. Heaven.


Okay, maybe it's just a bakery, but what a bakery.


I was drawn in not by the healthy breakfast offerings, but by this little temptress:


Choices, choices! It came down to this. No, not the "American" style donut, but the 2 types of chocolate croissant. The one with the chocolate on top is quite sweet, so I went with the flatter one that looks like it needs a bathroom. Yes, that's dark chocolate oozing out of it. Bliss.


Look at it, so pretty, nestled in its little bag, just waiting for me . In the immortal words the cutie pie Justin Timberlake (don't worry Johnny, any affection I feel for JT is purely familial, like a little brother, my heart still belongs to you. And Edward Cullen but we won't talk about that right now), in the song Love Stoned, which I was listening to in the car: "Hot Dayum!"


Want to see it again? Well, okay, here it....wait? Where did it go?

Oh, yeah, I ate it! And it was AMAZING! If you've never had a chocolate croissant, I feel sad for you. I won't rub it in your face that I can get one pretty much anytime I want (which is completely true), I will honestly feel bad that you can't have one too. They are soooooooooo freaking good. If you ever see one at Panera, Whole Foods, or a really good bakery (good being the key word there), buy one. No, buy two. Run away squeeling and eat it with sheer joy.