Walking down the aisle takes on a different meaning for two recently engaged lovebirds.
On August 27, network engineer Charles Phillips and special education instructional assistant Holly Walker announced their involvement in the Aldi Aisle of Shame Facebook group. The post, which showed the couple visiting Aldi on their first date, generated more than 17,000 likes and caught the supermarket’s attention.
The couple from Detroit, Michigan wrote that while they were not engaged inside an Aldi – they chose the edge of Lake St. Clair instead – the supermarket chain has played a big role in their love story.
“On our first date, in November, we decided to go to Aldi after our dinner,” Walker tells TODAY.com via email, adding that she went looking for a specific candle she had in mind, and that Phillips came along. “We took a selfie in the Aldi Finds aisle and I decided to post it to an Aldi group on Facebook and people loved it!”
Walker says she and Phillips got engaged exactly nine months after that first date. They expected simple congratulations from fellow Aldi fans as they shared the news in that same group, but then Aldi called.
A few days after Walker’s Facebook post, a store representative contacted her via Messenger asking for her email address. She received an email from the chain’s publicist asking if Aldi could treat them to a candlelight dinner at their local store. Phillips and Walker were “shocked” but decided to accept the company’s offer.
“We thought it might be a prank someone was playing on us, but when it came down to it, it was legit,” Walker adds, explaining that on the day of their dinner, Phillips went to the store to personally confirm that it happened. . “It was funny, sitting among the salt and pepper shakers and the cuddly toys, but it was so good!”
Walker says she and her boyfriend enjoyed a four-course meal served by a waiter.
They ate grilled asparagus with melon, mozzarella and prosciutto, followed by an arugula salad with citrus, avocado and goat cheese. The bread dish included ‘crispy bread’ with honey butter, and as a starter, Aldi served short rib ragout with polenta and roasted Brussels sprouts. Of course it ended on a sweet note with salted caramel cheesecake for dessert.
“It was so sweet and delicious,” Walker says of the meal.
“We helped these lovebirds celebrate their engagement in the place where it all began: the ALDI Finds aisle,” Aldi wrote on Instagram, posting a slideshow of images of the table setting next to the chain’s seasonal favorites. “It turns out happily ever after is an ALDI thing. 💙💍 Where others found low prices, Charles and Holly found romance.”
This wasn’t the first time Aldi has been part of a couple’s wedding story. In 2022, the chain hosted Michael and Jessica Hurd’s wedding and helped them strengthen their commitment to each other over pizza and Barissimo coffee from Mama Cozzi.
“ALDI is not just a supermarket, it is the place where memories are made,” a company representative told TODAY.com by email. “Our amazing ALDI team in Clawson, MI, hosted a surprise romantic after-hours candlelight dinner, right down the aisle where it all started. It is a great honor to be part of their story, and that of many other of our loyal customers. It’s just one of the ways we show love for our great ALDI community.”
Photos from the couple’s engagement dinner went viral, with their Facebook post receiving 28,000 likes and a post on the official Aldi Instagram page generating more than 27,000 likes.
For the happy couple, the viral fame is just icing on the Bake Shop Cinnamon Sweet Rolls cake.
“We’re surprised at how many people love this story,” Walker says. “For us, we just went to Aldi on our first date. But for some reason people love the wholesomeness of the story, and I love that!”
Over the course of their courtship, Walker has posted about German meals, Valentine’s Day finds and pumpkin spice gifts given to her by her love, all of which came from the discount store.
The couple has not yet set a wedding date; they just enjoy being able to call each other fiancées, Walker says. And for those wondering if the lovers plan to get married in an Aldi, that remains to be seen.
“Several people have suggested it, and we’ve joked about it too,” Walker says. “Soooo…. Aldi, would you like to organize a wedding for us?
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
