I shopped at Aldi and saw why the chain is one of the fastest-growing retailers in the US

This store is located near a busy intersection and a Metro station, so there was a stream of customers moving through the store, even at 2 p.m. on a Friday.

Aldi requires shoppers to deposit a quarter in order to unlock a shopping cart, which is then returned once you put the cart back.

This saves Aldi labor costs — employees don't have to spend time running around the parking lot collecting carts.

The technique isn't new, particularly on Aldi's home continent, though Tucker Carlson was very impressed by it when he recently encountered it at a Russian supermarket.

Cooler cases to the right contained everything from strawberries to broccoli, while onions, potatoes, and other produce that can stay at room temperature were on the left.

For years, grocery stores have been trying to compete with restaurants by offering dinner options that are easy to serve when you're short on time, and Aldi is no exception.

It was large enough that it reminded me of Costco's own take-and-bake pizzas.

These Cheerios look-alikes were just past the produce section and still sat in the carton they were shipped to the store in. They were selling for $2.65 a box.

Actual Honey Nut Cheerios were on sale at this store for $4.33 a box, which made the Aldi version seem like a bargain.

Aldi negotiates its own deals with food companies to cut costs and make the end product cheaper for consumers.

After I got home, I confirmed that they indeed tasted like Doritos. Again, they cost less than the Doritos that you could buy at this store.

This wasn't my first time at an Aldi, but it seemed like the signage at this store was much more focused on savings than I'd seen at other locations. That's not surprising, given the continued high cost of groceries.

I checked the prices of several items I bought with equivalents at Giant, another grocery store with a presence in the mid-Atlantic.

Aldi's mac and cheese, for instance, was 57 cents a box.

Everything, from cans of chickpeas to grape-seed oil, was cheaper at Aldi. Store-brand mac and cheese at Giant, for example, ran to $1.29 a box.

Mac and cheese at Family Dollar was 90 cents a box.

It's a great example of how dollar stores often aren't the cheapest option in town. A study last year by analysts at Bank of America found that Walmart and Aldi were both cheaper than dollar stores.

I found a selection of cheeses, from cheddar to smoked Gouda, in a cooler toward the back of the store. Much of it was sold under Aldi's store brands, such as Emporium Selection.

Besides bratwursts, you could also find Aldi-brand spaetzle, sauerkraut, and hazelnut chocolates.

The "Finds" section of an Aldi store includes a rotating selection of merchandise. The signage above those aisles told customers to buy something if they liked it since it could be "here today, gone tomorrow."

Easter baskets, toys, and plastic eggs were displayed on an end cap in the Finds section.

I had been looking for one for a while, so I bought this one for $6.99.

Aldi sells a variety of merch with its own logo and branding. It's even released multiple apparel collections, including hats, sandals, and sweatshirts.

Initially, I headed toward one of the self-checkout kiosks in the middle.

I saw a message at most of this store's stands indicating that they were closed.

The checkout process is efficient and took just a few minutes.

Asking customers to bag their own groceries is another way that Aldi saves money on labor costs.

Sharp-eyed readers may notice that this isn't the same coin I put into my cart when I arrived. That's because there was another cart — with another quarter — at checkout that the cashier put my groceries into. After I left, the next person in line got to use my cart and left their own behind, continuing the process.

The store I visited met or beat other value-focused grocery stores on price. It also offered a surprising range of foods and items I don't associate with a discount grocer — such as the Bavarian bratwurst and the bamboo steamer.

My takeaway: with inflation still a concern for many shoppers, it seems like Aldi's model fits the times.