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Wales Online
National
Josh Luckhurst & Dayna Farrington

Aldi's Carlos pizza range versus Domino's - the taste and value test

January is a difficult month for many households with money tight after the festive period and the long wait for payday.

But a good takeaway can alleviate them pressures despite the pricey outlay, particularly if you are on a spending ban or a health kick to start 2022.

Takeaways can cost upwards of £20 - and that's with a deal - so why do we go to the expensive chain restaurants rather than look in our freezers?

Dayna Farrington - a Black Country Life Writer for Birmingham Mail - decided to put the theory to the test as her family-of-four compare popular takeaway Domino's Pizza against Aldi's 'fakeaway' Carlos pizza range.

Pizzas, sides and desserts from both chains were analysed and ranked by taste and value, and the results may surprise you.

Domino's

Pizzas - Medium original cheese and tomato and medium Meateor (however, BBQ sauce, sausage, bacon and beef were removed and ham and tomato sauce were added to try and make it as similar as we could to the Aldi pizza) - £17.99 Two for Tuesday deal.

Sides - Garlic pizza bread - £4.49. Garlic and herb big dip - £1.25.

Desserts - Domino's cookies - £4.99.

Total - £28.72 (£42.72 without the deal).

"We ordered two pizzas from Domino's - and luckily for us on the day of our taste test there was an offer on, Two for Tuesday," Ms Farrington said.

"Therefore we managed to save a little bit more money with a buy one get one free deal. However, Domino's pretty much always has a deal on - so it's worth scouting these out.

"The Meateor pizza - which had ham, pepperoni and meatballs on - was a huge hit. It had lots of flavours all combined and the dough tasted fresh - you could tell they had been handmade to perfection and freshly cooked.

"So much so, it was given really high marks in our taste-test - with the 10-year-old giving it a 10/10 !

"The cheese and tomato one, however, was a little more disappointing. We felt it was much more tomato-y than cheese-y. We needed a bit more cheese!

"However, it was still delicious - just not on par with the previous pizza. The cheese that was there was gooey, and the sauce really was tangy.

"On average, we gave this an 8.5/10 .

"Moving onto the garlic pizza bread, it was soft and definitely flavoursome. But I don't feel like you get a lot for your money - four small slices for £4.49. It was given an average score of 7/10 at home this time.

"And last but not least, the cookies. I'm usually too full up on pizza to even contemplate eating any more food - but I've been told that these are some top tier cookies.

"And they were some good stuff. Gooey, melt in the middle and so soft. But a little on the small side.

"They weren't the biggest cookies we have seen, but overall, we gave them a good 8.5/10 ."

Aldi

Pizzas - Classic crust with big cheese pizza - £1.69. Fully loaded meat feast - £3.29.

Sides - Garlic pizza - £1.09. Garlic and herb dip - 89p.

Desserts - Cookies - £1.69.

Total - £8.25 (£20.47 cheaper).

Aldi's Carlos Takeaway range will cost only a fraction in comparison to Domino's (Dayna Farrington)

"We will start with the meaty pizza. The Carlos Fully Loaded Takeaway meat feast pizza box states it is loaded with mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, meatballs and ham," she said.

"And I must say, we were all disappointed. In fact, the children couldn't even finish theirs.

"We felt the meats lacked any flavour and there was a distinct lack of cheese!. I need cheese on pizza. On average, scored a 5/10 from us.

"Onto the cheese pizza, it actually had more cheese on - which is a win win for me.

"However, it wasn't as popular in other members of the family - but scored a comfortable average of 7/10 from us."

On the garlic pizza, Ms Farrington added: "I thought it was just as good as the Domino's garlic bread. I thought it tasted a little cheesier actually, which was nice.

"My other half, however, thought it was a little dry. It scored an average of 7/10 in the house.

"And the cookies! My friend had told me these were a must on her Aldi shopping list - so I had high hopes before I'd tried them. We were not disappointed.

"They were much chunkier and had a lot more taste. Yes they weren't as gooey as Domino's, but they really didn't need to be. It was a solid 9/10 for us.

Overall

"We were left really surprised. Domino's always feels like the far superior one when it comes to pizza.

"But they are extremely overpriced - and when you can't find any deals, you can be left very out of pocket.

"There's nothing better than a freshly made pizza landing on your doorstep when all you've had to do is a couple of clicks on your phone and it's ordered.

"There's a bit more work put into Aldi - and I suppose when you have cooked it yourself it never tastes as good. But there's not much work into putting frozen pizzas in the oven is there?

"However, Aldi comes out on top by miles when it comes to price! And some of their offerings were better than Domino's!

"If you're keen for a weekend takeaway to indulge in but you don't want to break the bank, then definitely opt for Aldi's budget-friendly offerings."

For more stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.

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