Okay I know I am late to this party, but I just discovered Costco!!

[Stepup2]

On my way to purchase pellets for my parrots yesterday, I stopped at Costco. It is about a 20 minute drive from my house, so I reasoned it would not be worth the membership (or the cost to buy in bulk) and never bothered to stop.

Well, not only is it worth the drive,I won't be shopping anywhere else! I used to run to three stores to buy the items I can now get at Costco for less!! I am a cancer survivor and very mindful of what I consume, and I was tickled to find, for example, beets in glass jars at Costco!!

I buy organic meat and veggies from a local farm and now with my new Costco membership I will save time and money shopping for food and household items.

However, I'd like to know if the selection changes regularly and what other healthful or low cost items are personal favorites of all of you in the C & B forum?

[Warpy]

1. The huge packages of veggies change seasonally

along with the type of fish. There may be minor changes in the electronics and housewares sections.

However, most of the selection stays the same. There is a lot of false economy there, as the sizes of many items encourage waste. Also, you need to realize how much space that 20 roll package of toilet paper is going to take and make sure you have it.

Still, I love Costco. I love the quality of their "store brand," Kirtland. I love being able to upgrade purchases I needed to make anyway for the same cost as the lesser item in a non membership store.

Finding out the CEO is a mensch is an added benefit.

[mike_c]

2. I do 80 percent of my shopping at Costco....

I live alone, so I buy MOST (but not all) fresh fruits and vegetables at a local market because I often can't eat the big Costco quantities fast enough. Otherwise, it's Costco for virtually everything else. I buy most of my food, clothing, and gasoline there. I even got the freezer there that allows me to deal with the large quantities of food, AND the steel shelves in the pantry that store all those big jars, stacks of toilet paper, and so on.

[vademocrat]

3. Congratulations - better late than never!

Some of my current favorites:

whole wheat tomato, basil, parmesan ravioli
soy spinach nuggets
irish cheddar cheese
healthy harvest whole wheat pasta
peach mango salsa (this is to die for - who needs chips, you can eat it with a spoon!)
hummus - (theirs is so good I don't bother making my own...)

I agree with Warpy about their house brand - I've used the Kirkland multivitamin for years. I've also been drinking the kirkland coffee for the last several months.

My costco also recently started carrying organic eggs - way cheaper than the store.

The cheesecakes are excellent also - I've had these at parties. They're way too big and way too good to have around all the time!

Be careful - Costco is addictive! Plus, they're blue, plus they treat their employees well. An all round great shopping experience.

[wildeyed]

4. Costco is wonderful.

I shop there every other week. I get my produce from an organic co-op. I rarely set foot in the repuke leaning grocery store anymore.

Costco has more than food. I buy some of my clothes there. They have good labels at reasonable prices, if you can deal with not having a dressing room. I just return stuff that doesn't fit or look right. Also, they have many additional items on their website. I ordered a new vanity for my master bath recently. You can get tires for your car. Go wild!

[SoCalDem]

5. It varies a bit, but most things are available all the time

If the vegetables come in too large a size for you, take a friend and split the cost.. My friens and I do this all the time.. we buy a 20 lb bag of potatoes and each take half.. we do the same with strawberries and tomatoes..
They have great buys on clothing too, but not much of a selevtion..

[Stepup2]

6. Thanks for the advice!

I knew the business model was way more employee friendly than "other" mega-stores.

Some of the products mentioned so far were obvious, but I can see I need to spend more time getting to know what is available there! The dilled green beans packaged in a glass jar for 97 cents were fantastic!

[Lorax]

7. I wish I was closer to a Costco

Costco is just a little too far from me to make it worthwhile. Especially because there is a BJs just five minutes away and I can buy gas there too. I do most of my grocery shopping at BJs. I just wanted to say something about the false economy thing. You do have to be careful about some things but I have found it to be worthwhile to find space to store things. I built a pantry in my basement with our old cabinets when we redid our kitchen. That way I can store the 4000 rolls of toilet paper. I know I'm never going to stop using toilet paper, or shampoo, or toothpaste, etc and I like knowing that I won't be caught short because there is always a backup in the basement pantry. I really only shop to stock the pantry, almost never shopping because I absolutely have to. I have a chest freezer and stock up on meat for that too. Sure, I like to pick up fresh veggies and fruit every week, but if I can't because I'm too busy with school or the budget is a bit tight, there is still plenty of canned food and meat in the freezer. I really think it saves money in the long run. The only thing that forces me to make a grocery run is when we run out of coffee.

Even if you don't have a basement or a pantry, I'll bet you can find room to store stuff in your house.

[Stepup2]

8. Well I do have a smaller house

However, a couple of friends have expressed interest in spliting bulk purchases, I think this will be a good solution for me.

[wildeyed]

9. I did a price comparison.

I brought a list of all the things I bought at the grocery, and compared them to the Costco items. Costco is definitely cheaper. If you are a savvy shopper, you can get some items on sale at the grocery for cheaper than Costco, but everyday prices are lower at the bulk store.

I too have an extra pantry to store my bulk purchases. In addition to being convenient, it is nice to have extra in case a hurricane or bird flu shuts down the stores for awhile.

[Blue Gardener]

10. I want a Costco!

The closest is more than a two hour drive from home, so it's not really feasible for me to join. I am envious of all who have one close to home.
A friend brought some Raspberry Chipotle Sauce to work that was purhased at Costco, and it is very tasty. It's the first thing I would buy if I had the opportunity.

[wryter2000]

11. Welcome to the club

I adore Costco!

I don't know about their staple items, but I do find that they'll get me addicted to something and then stop carrying it. Still, I won't buy beef anywhere else except the very expensive butcher shop, and I don't usuallly pay their prices.

[Stepup2]

12. Deep sigh....change is good... change is good.....

As I walked around the store, thoughts of varied selections tempered my overall excitement. Limited availability of soon to be new favorites be damned, I am ready to embrace the loss and try many of the items I walked past last week.

I am planning on a foray in the morning with a food sealer at the ready!

[vademocrat]

13. A food sealer is a great partner for a Costco run!

I just did that today - Have fun!

[blue neen]

14. The box of Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix.

Mmm. They are so good. There are six pouches in the box. You can make one or two at a time. I think it costs between $7 and $8.

Everybody raves about these brownies when I make them. :)

[Duer 157099]

15. That's it. I'm going on a Costco run. The brownies did it

I have never tried them but have passed by the box many times.

And I've never seen beets in a jar, where are those?

I've noticed that different Costcos will have slightly different items.

Try the artichoke jalapeno dip.

Edit to add: there are TWO Costcos within easy driving for me (one is 5 minutes, the other is maybe 8 minutes) How crazy is that???

[Stepup2]

16. I had a sample of that yesterday!!

Yesterday was sample taste day at Costco!! The store was packed with people and sample carts!

I can vouch for the Pot stickers and the Manicotti. Also, I found dog food mentioned in the dog food thread in the pets forum on DU, so I returned a bag I got else where and saved 16 bucks!!

I completely missed the veggie cold storage the first time through! What a chilly treasure that turned out to be, Fuji apples and lots of organic greens.

The beets are Safies and were located in the aisle with jarred fruits and spices.

The Parmesan flatbread crackers with the Irish Cheddar turned out to be dinner last night and their siren call makes it a likely breakfast too! :crazy: must. remember. the. splits. I. promised...