Aldi's new boutique promises affordable gourmet alternative

Aldi is opening a new store in Melbourne's CBD.

The corner store alternative promises to be a gourmet take on Aldi but still with the chain's famous low prices.

Opening on Thursday, September 8, the Aldi boutique can be found on Swanston Street.

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"They're low prices, we won't be beaten and that remains the same in our corner store format," Aldi's Adrian Christie told A Current Affair.

The store features artisan bread baked in Melbourne and pre-made meals and snacks to grab on the go, as well as Aldi's popular special buys.

"If it's a Crofton saucepan that you're after this week, or a fishing rod, you can pick that up with your sourdough," he said.

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The new store is a bonus for a city clawing back business that evaporated during lockdowns.

"It's great for businesses to see the opportunities, to experiment a bit, try a new format in the centre of Melbourne," Paul Guerra from the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry said.

"I think we'll see businesses coming together to share space, which means that people will come back into the office.

"(It's) slightly different to what we were before, but (we'll) come back and come back strongly."

Aldi will sell 37 cent barista-made coffee on its first two days of business.