Lidl in Luxembourg currently employs around 270 people at its 7 supermarkets across the Grand Duchy; in February next year it will open two more, one on the Route d'Arlon in Strassen and the other at the Aire de Berchem on the A3 motorway towards France.
On Monday, Lidl in Luxembourg held a Street Food Tasting event at the Abbaye de Neumunster in Luxembourg-Grund to promote its seasonal range of haut-de-gamme produce. With Christmas being synonymous with familys, the favorite Luxembourgish holiday also means meal carefully cooked with superior products while staying within a reasonable budget - this was the main finding of an independent survey commissionedby Lidl in Luxembourg a month ago with 500 respondents. For 8 out of 10 people in Luxembourg, Christmas involves a meal for 8-9 people on average, mainly parents, children and siblings, on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, with just 3% opting to spend Christmas with friends, and 4% on holiday, with just 1% going out to a restaurant for a festive meal.
Celebrating Christmas at home implies for the overwhelming majority of respondents (82%) active participation in the preparation of the meal, from creating the menu to shopping in the supermarket or at the caterer, then cooking. For Christmas food shopping, most prefer supermarkets, with the Lidl Group ranked 6th, ahead of a number of competing brands, markets and grocery stores. Three hours on average is spent on shopping, with 68% considering it as a pleasure, that exceptionally buying luxury goods. The cost of the average basket amounts to €40 per person, or about €314 in total, with €88 for alcoholic beverages and €36 for non-alcoholic. Because of the economic situation, 13% of people doing Christmas shopping this year will spend less money than last year, with 55% seeking products on promotion.
For 94% of respondents, cooking on this occasion is a deliberate choice and 88% like to do so for their loved ones. Unsurprisingly, favourite menus start with an alcoholic aperitif (champagne 47%; sparkling wine 19%), followed by entrée of fish or crustaceans (62%), or pâté, terrine, foie gras, liver mousse (39%) or soup (24%). For the main course, meat comes first (37%), followed by poultry (33%), fondue, raclette or pierrade (28%), game (21%) and fish (19%). As for drinks, 54% have red wine with their meal and 18% have white wine, plus 20% water and sodas. For dessert, the Yule log has a 47% popularity followed by ice cream (39%).
Chef Gaétan COLIN prepared a number of dishes according to recipes in the Lidl's Christmas edition of its Delicieux magazine (most meals for under €15/person), with produce available in its stores in Luxembourg. The dishes included a venission carpaccio with foie gras and balsalmic sauce; dressed Scottish smoked salmon; lamb chops with pumpkin purée and courgettes; venison filet; pear crumble with red fruit sauce.
Photos by Geoff Thompson (L-R): Julien Wathieu; Gaétan COLIN, chef.
