Can we talk about how to shop at this place? I just moved to a town that has one...

Our local Costco Wholesale switched to a Costco Business Center recently. So now it's primarily restaurant supply which means the place is always empty since they deliver everything.

Usually I get:
1) 50 lb bag of regular potatoes & 15 lb of Yukon potatoes
2) ~10 lbs of chicken thighs
3) 5 dozen eggs
4) 3x 12 pack of the cheapest brown paper towels
5) 50 lb of jasmine rice

My general rule is that I have to use everything I buy between visits.

Since it's a Business Center it also has some neat stuff too, like whole pigs and whole sheep, boxes of like 300 eggs, 50 lb sacks of rice, 5 gal soy sauce buckets...

The chicken bake sauce isn't gonna burst out with every bite. It's enough to coat everything inside without it dripping out.

Hot dog comes with a drink, sausage and peppers cost more with no drink. I don't know if they still use Hebrew National, but it's good enough. Depending on your Costco, you'll have to ask for sauerkraut, but there is ketchup, mustard, onions, and relish on the side for you to help yourself.

My mom goes there and buys all the stuff to stock her office with some stuff for the home.

>Here in Utah we have big pantries for feeding our 8 wives and 30 children
k

things i buy at costco all the time:

>boneless skinless chicken thighs, almost always around $1.90/lb which is comparable to the cheapest non-sale price i see at grocery stores, they come in vacuum sealed pouches that are nice for freezing
>rotisserie chickens for $5, absolutely ridiculously cheap for the amount of meat you get, plus you can easily make stock with the carcass
>big bags of salad greens for $5, much fresher than the bags at smaller grocery stores in my experience
>other veggies as well, i rotate between butternut squash, green beans, brussels sprouts, broccoli, etc
>eggs for dirt cheap, just be careful which kind you get because they carry a lot of different varieties and some of them are expensive (organic cage free local etc)
>bread, nothing special about it but it's almost always cheaper than the grocery store

i personally am not a huge fan of their chicken bakes, pizza, etc, but the costco brand hot dogs are really good. i don't get them at the food court (despite being insanely cheap there), i buy the actual packs of hot dogs and cook them under the broiler at home. soooo good with some sauerkraut, brown mustard, caramelized onions, pickles, you name it.

Go to Costco for produce, dairy, juice, and random super-high quality/organic/grass fed foodstuffs at bulk discounts. I'm on a keto diet and Costco was surprisingly relevant to my interests. Most meat sales are meh, but there are still a few gems to be had. I like their frozen grass-fed precooked beef patties. They sell half-gallons of Pom juice for $9, sometimes $7. Half dozen organic avocadoes go for $6-7.

If you were interested in a wholesale bulk store, but passed over Sam's Club for being too pleb, then Costco is for you.

forgot to add--most of their produce is organic.

Dude their alcohol. They have a kirkland brand 1.75 L 100% agave tequila for 20 bucks and its good.

How long does it take you to use 65 lbs of potatoes?

I don't know about your shopping habits, but my quality of life took a sharp turn upwards when I got a membership, and my food bills dropped like a rock.

That may not be the case in the U.S., where grocery stores pretty much all have low prices. Where I am, in third-world Asia, just the money I saved on cheese more than paid for the membership fee after four months.

Their rotisserie chicken is great and is only six bucks. I usually get four or five meals out of it.

Their bakery stuff is pretty good, but they're inconsistent about what they have.

Meats are decent quality at good prices. You won't get Wal-Mart tier shit with 33% saline solution injected for "flavor" to drive up the price.

Other stuff, their vegetables tend to be overpriced and are often on the verge of going bad. There's no way I can use fifty pounds of onions before they start to rot, especially when they're already rotting at purchase time.

If you're a wino, their wine selection is excellent. I've heard good things about their booze, but I haven't bothered to buy any since I don't drink enough to go through a three gallon bottle of whisky in anything approaching a human lifespan.

>food court
>hot dogs
Don't know if they still have them in the U.S. (they don't here), but the Polish sausages are a lot better. Also, the food courts in the U.S. used to have hand-dipped chocolate covered ice cream bars with almonds, which were heaven on a stick, but I heard they got rid of them because of the time it took to hand-dip them.

>whole sheep
Including the "good parts"?

Can confirm. The tequila is NOM 1472. That distillery makes 100% de agave tequila. Particularly Kah tequila. Its good for mixing.

3 weeks for a family of 5

What do you make? Are you Irish?

>It's 2017 and Irish = Potatoes

Hush now, Seamus.

>Bragging about having to commute for weeks out of the year
>Bragging about having no culture

how DARE you attempt to silence my gift for gab!

10 min drive isn't much of a commute. Sorry you live in "bumfuck nonone cares about you life" state.
>falling for the culture meme
you probably don't even know what culture is other than some insulting word your faggot ass uses to make your worthless life seem more important and deserving of existence.

Best deal are their restaurant gift cards.

They are all chain restaurants and you pay $80 for $100 worth of gift cards. That's crazy. Unless you use the TV discount where you buy a $1,000 TV for $750, this is the best deal at Costco.

How the fuck does Costco make money on that?

They don't.
Costco makes like all their money on memberships.

Their gronola bars are like 10 cents each too

It's a store with a bunch of shit in it. Buy the stuff you need.

Get some of their pizza though on your way out though, it's good.

Buying in extreme bulk.

At any rate, I have a membership there. I always buy at least 1 big thing of water since its 2.99 for 40 bottles. Eggs are super cheap also, so I keep a full stock of those. Milk is about the same price, but I buy it there to save a trip (plus 2% cash back) chicken is ultra cheap, plus they vacuum pack it anyways at about 1lb. Beef is actually pretty decent cuts, my only complaint is the filet, seems like they cut it to wide or something and it has a bit to much fat. Otherwise, great cuts.

Costco is a meme for the elderly and you fell for it.

I have an executive membership. With the cashback alone I get my $110 a year back, not to mention what I save on gas and restaurant gift cards etc. Am I just in a minority of making that big of a reward on my membership and most don't cost over the membership fee?

I don't have any super secret inside knowledge into the grand Costco finances, except that my brother-in-law and his whole family work there.

From what they say Costco's main source of income is the membership fees, that is supplemented by what companies pay them to have their products in the store. Most products are sold at cost or at a loss.
The gift cards I would assume are sold to them near or at the price you pay. They're like a coupon promotion to drum up business, along with people that buy them and never actually use them.
So just guessing I'd have to say yes, the people that make their money back are not the norm.

Also fun fact you can literally return anything. They have a woman that every week brings back one watermelon, from the three pack they sell, and returns it for a new set of three.

I shop at costco a couple of times per month, what I buy there is pretty much limited to:

flour (cheap bread flour is the main reason why I bother with a costco membership at all)
huge bags of spinach or greens
coffee beans
salt
olive oil
honey

I can get meat and produce cheaper or at the same prices elsewhere - Costco isn't really cheaper for most things, especially since they don't have seasonal/holiday sale prices, the only thing they do especially well is consistency.

>tfw there is a Winco in my town
>tfw don't have to buy in bulk
>tfw everything is stupidly cheap

Do you belong to an upper middle class family with 9 kids? Then Costco will work for you.

Costco worker at your service.

Kirkland water is hard to beat at 2.99 for a 40 pack
Toilet paper is cheap as fuck.
Most of Kirkland brand booze compares to named counterparts, for half the price.
Restaurant gift cards, or most gift cards are always a bargain.
$1.50 hot dog and drink.

Things to be careful about,
The fruits and vege's have the shortest shelf life of all other grocery stores.
Some deli and bakery items tend to go bad quickly.

My plans are to overhaul the deli and bakery, and go Gordon Ramsey on their ass and create a Gourmet department

costco is the only place near me that has prime grade steak so I go there for holidays

Love me some winco, my local one just got a 10$ off 40$ coupon.
Fave grocer

>Love me some winco, my local one just got a 10$ off 40$ coupon.
Yeah their coupons are hugely generous. Plus mine has a sandwich shop in it and the sandwiches are fucking fantastic.

I pretty sure everyone with a Costco membership buys toilet paper there. It's a superior deal, AND it's one of the best comfy feelings, knowing you have enough TO in your front closet for a month or so (senpai of 3 that entertains fairly regularly.)
Someone else mentioned the granola bars, I think I buy a box every two or three months, the kids love them, and you get like 60 for $5
Honey, bevpcause I like to make teryaki, and stir fry, and PB&H sandwiches. The good bread is half the price of a regular grocery store. AND YES, THE BOOZE. I am a rum fan, and it's 19.99 for 1.75 liters of pretty good stuff. If you're a vodka slob, it's even less. The tequila is more, but still cheaper than comparable stuff in supermarkets.
Kids love the laughing cow, three wheels for cheap. I get paper plates, Kleenex, and paper towels. They last forever. The pastrami, I forget the price, it's a decent deal, but the thing is that it's really, really good. I also get the 4 pack of Capri sun boxes, %100 juice, good for kids and adults. When my sister in law was living with me I would buy the giant sleeve of chicken patties, since it was 80% of her diet. They're really yummy anyway. And the damn kids do love their top ramen, so you can get like 50 packs for 4$ or something. Gross.

Don't let your kids eat ramen.
You'll thank me after googling the ingredients.

Can you tell me why I should be afraid of what's in ramen? The noodles are just flour noodles that are deep-fried.
The weird stuff is all in the spice packet, and even then it's just powdered broth, spices, and MSG along with a shit load of salt and preservatives.
Buy noodles and make your own broth.. good shit

Im not that guy, but top ramen has so much sodium in it one bowl contains most of the sodium that's recommended for the entire day. High blood pressure and strokes for everyone, keep away from children

Drink more water and don't live off the fucking stuff.
And besides, like I said, ALL the sodium is in the seasoning packet. Throw it out and flavor it yourself.

Cheese, meat and dairy products are usually a good price

Mashed potatoes and hash browns mainly. In an attempt to curb my bad junk food habits I've switched to things I actually have to make to eat.

I'm talking about the synthetic chemicals masquerading as "vitamins." They are all rated hazardous to humans. They are not the same as naturally occurring versions.
You HAVE to seek unenriched food in the US or you're helping the FDA to kill you.

That's all I have to say because you can Google this. (Chemical name) NFPA 704 is how you get chemical info.
Wikipedia does not list the dangers of this shit intentionally, so don't go there.
Enjoy your newfound paranoia friend. They poison your food. Who would have EVER suspected this? Ramen noodles are the worst offender because they know people eat it like hogs.
Have fun.

That shit is in the flavoring packet which he stated he does not use

Can you state in what ways your life, health, and mental state are better now that you've sought out unenriched food?

>NFPA 704

They're putting fire diamonds in my food? Oh God!

Can anyone place products? How about in a single region?

I'm starting a small manufacturing company and would absolutely love to retail the products through CostCo.

>he's not poor
>he still has to buy all his food at once and doesn't buy the best quality food needed weekly/daily
hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

i like a block away from winco. mine is 24/7 and its based to be able to do all my shopping at 11 am when nobody is around.

I still use costco for xtreme bulking but that check outline can such massive shit.

For how much they overpay register monkeys you would think they would have more lanes open

nigga if your kids are having strokes and HBO they need to get off the xbox. I had a friend that ate two of those a day and that was excessive

is she black?

> I don't drink enough to go through a three gallon bottle of whisky in anything approaching a human lifespan
Lol pleb

But really, great summary of Costco

>Dude their alcohol.
Yes, it is wonderful.

it's a bulk store for families of course you as one guy aren't going to go through as much

>pretty sure everyone with a Costco membership buys toilet paper there. It's a superior deal, AND it's one of the best comfy feelings, knowing you have enough TO in your front closet for a month or so

One CostCo toilet loaf lasts me about a year.

What do you think?

We are a family of 3, and entertain quite regularly, but it must be nice to have you TP last so long.

I really, really don't want to keep ramen in the house, but I was overridden.

gas, propane, condiments, nuts, candy, milk, frozen foods, canned goods, jeans, absurdly soft and cheap blankets (i just buy new ones when they lose their softness), toilet paper, etc

Basically use it like a store. If you have a family or a car, then you will absolutely save more than the cost of membership.

>Also, what to get at their food court?
They have one or two rotating items, so if it's not pizza, hotdog, bake, or froyo, then buy it and decide from there.

Their pizzas are good, and a better value than little caesars, but it's a personal perferance thing.

>I usually get four or five meals out of it.
Are you a the average 110 pound nip or something?

business or family restaurants

coffee, rice, beans

poutine

>get chicken
>divide into portions
>add a vegetable and a starch
p. easy my dude

al/ck/ here you frequents liquor stores. i have a costco nearby. reading this thread, it seems a lot of you have found good value in taking advantage of costco liquor. do they sell it cheaper?? currently i'm buying fifths of smirnoff for about 23.00. how does this "kirkland" you speak of measure up, if you could be specific. and what the fuck? why is costco able to sell liquor? aren't they a grocery store?

same guy here. just looked at a receipt from today. i'm actually paying 18 for the fifths. don't know where i got the 23 from

Yeah, I'm pretty sure you got it from being a retarded fucking alcoholic

No, I'm the average 275lb Amerihamplanet.

decent quality whey protein, huge bags for $40
literally the only acceptable place to purchase cheese

Don't buy any condiment that needs to be kept in the fridge especially if you are single. I regret the jar of mayonnaise.

Arrive early in the evening (or late afternoon) to take advantage of the free food tasting, if you are near more than one Costco, pick a quiet one!

The fries in the concession area is delicious, so is the fried chicken. Unfortunately they sell pepsi instead of coke. The Pepperoni Pizza is huge and super greasy.

Get eggs and milk.

Meat, and remember to take tons of freezer bags.

Depends on the state whether they can sell alcohol, and how much tax is added. In California they sell it without additional tax. You can get a handle 'Kirkland American Vodka' - their generic brand - for $15, better than smirnoff (in my opinion) and close to grey goose/absolut/european import. They also have in-house Sailor Jerry for $18. I'm also told that their beer/wine are also fairly priced but I don't drink that. Pretty much they focus on bringing midshelf (or higher) quality at bottom shelf prices. And yeah, you have to buy in handles, everything in Costco is big,

costco is fantastic. if i could only go to one store for the rest of my life this would probably be it

cooking oil, cheese, and coffee, make it worth the price of admission

They have a decent sized selection of various beef products: steaks, brisket, ribs etc. They're the only place I frequent that I can get lamb from. Pork is good quality too, but not usually cheap. Chicken, ehh, I just get the cheapest 1.99 lb sales at the value markets (a carryover from my fit days).

So their meat selection is very good.

Next up is dairy: again, one of the few places where I can get French and Irish cheeses etc.

I Always grab a 5 dollar Rotesserie chicken.

Avoid produce. They have some apple types I like, but otherwise, everything produce-wise will be found cheaper at the discount market.

They have a great deal of greens (where I get my kale for my kale shakes), which has been useful for me on diets.

Pretty decent bakery. It's pretty much the only place where I get cakes now. Those danishes and white chocolate-macadamia cookies are to die for. I've gained a lot of weight from their baked stuff.

Good cheap Booze

Frozen shit as far as the eye can see, well, a lot at least. I like their frozen lasagna, italian meatballs, sirloin patties, shrimp, chicken tendies, and chicken bakes. Frozen veggies and fruits for fiber and vitamin. Great deal on the frozen fruits (where I make my shakes from).

Bacon is great, cold cut selection sucks, beef franks are good.

Greek yogurt is cheapest here if u eat any.

Olive oil and other pantry staples are usually a good deal here. Sandwich bread is cheap. So is coffee.

Non food

Jeans and button-ups are cheap and decent quality. Sheets are usually good for the price. I get my head and shoulders big bottle here. Generic drugs are nowhere cheaper. Batteries. Toiletries.

OH. and before I forget: Gas. Gas is usually 10 cents cheaper than anywhere else. Unless your points outweight those direct savings, then only pump up at Costco. Be warned though, do it during non peak hours (mornings, noons; never evening or weekends) or expect huge lines.

>Port Salut
Ça ne fait aucun sens ce nom...

What about trader joes?

c'mon lad, the 'average' american in 6+ foot and 210-240 pounds.