Laundry detergent recommendations?

Can anyone recommend a laundry detergent brand that works well on typical food and dirt stains? I know Tide works fairly well, but I was wondering if there were any less expensive alternatives to Tide. I have tried All, Purex, Gain and Arm & Hammer. Arm & Hammer and Gain did okay but I was pretty unhappy with the results of the others. I know there's a lot of brands out there that I haven't tried, so I'm just wondering how they work for others who have to deal with frequently stained laundry and how they compare.