Ochtend Flits

What is it?

Albert Heijn — universally called AH — is the dominant supermarket chain in the Netherlands. Founded in 1887 in Oostzaan by Albert Heijn, it is now part of the multinational Ahold Delhaize group but remains the most recognisable grocery brand in the country. You will not live in the Netherlands for more than a few days without entering one.

There are over 1,000 AH stores in the Netherlands, ranging from large AH XL hypermarkets to compact AH to go convenience stores in train stations and city centres.

The bonus card

Get the Bonuskaart before your first real shop. It is free, takes two minutes to register via the app or website, and without it you will simply pay more — not miss out on extras, but pay the higher of the two prices shown on every shelf label. The Bonusprijs is the real price for most products most of the time; the non-Bonus price is the penalty for not having the card. AH rotates a large selection of discounts weekly, so the gap adds up fast.

The app also lets you build shopping lists, scan products, and sometimes self-checkout via your phone in select stores.

House brands

AH's own-label products — marked with the blue-and-white AH branding — are extensive and generally good quality. The AH Biologisch range covers organic products. AH Excellent is the premium tier. For everyday staples, the house brand is usually the sensible choice.

What to know

• Stores are closed on some public holidays — check ahead on Koningsdag and around Christmas.
• Self-checkout (zelfscankassa) is standard in most stores; you scan items as you shop with a handheld scanner or via the app.
• Plastic bags cost money; bring your own (tas meenemen).
• The Statiegeld system means plastic bottles and cans have a deposit — return them via the machine near the entrance. See Statiegeld.
• AH sells stroopwafels, hagelslag, drop, and other Dutch staples that you will either love or need time to understand. Drop — Dutch liquorice — deserves special mention: it is salty, often intensely so, and unlike the sweet liquorice found elsewhere. The Dutch are among the world's top liquorice consumers and largely do not understand why foreigners don't share the enthusiasm. It is an acquired taste that many expats never acquire. The variety on the AH shelf is significant: soft, hard, salty, double-salted, shaped, coated.

Cultural note

Albert Heijn is to the Netherlands what Tesco is to the UK or Carrefour to France — the default, the reliable, the slightly overpriced one you use anyway because it's on the corner. Competitors (Jumbo, Lidl, Aldi, Plus) exist and are cheaper, but AH's density and opening hours make it the path of least resistance for most city dwellers.