Costco’s Food Court: Most Disliked Food Items

We must talk about Costco’s food court. This conversation is happening conveniently on Reddit.

The warehouse’s fans use the message boards to discuss everything from healthy snacks to price monitors to just geeking over their favourite items (see this crowd-pleaser Pizza). There is no online debate as passionate as the Costco food court discussion.

The food court’s reputation for quality has suffered in recent months, largely due to the pandemic. Customers and staff alike feel the same way. Some people are less concerned about the reasons and more focused on how to improve things. This is what led to the food court hot dog. The Costco community is a great place for those who don’t like their favourite items.

Here’s what we discovered from the message boards. We searched the message boards, and here’s what we found.

Pizza

Although pizza is a Costco staple, online sources indicate that it isn’t as delicious as it once was.

“Pizza at my local Costco is going seriously downhill,” he says. They are using frozen dough, or they don’t proof the dough as it seems undercooked and dense.

u/BeatElite also agreed, stating that it seemed like the mega-store was cutting back on cheese.

u/MakePeaceAndBeFree discovered a UPP (Unidentified piece of Paper) in their crust and shared it with the community. This is a frightening turn of events for Costco food courts fans.

Baked Chicken

The chicken bakes! These poor boys have been on a similar path to pizza and are drawing criticism online. The Costco Reddit community seems to agree that Costco began sending frozen and premade pizzas to its stores instead of having them made fresh at their locations.

u/Moms_Chapagetti claimed they taste “gritty”, and u/BeatElite stated that they now taste more like a glorified hot bag than a real chicken bake.

u/PM_MeYourAvocados has settled the matter. “I’ve probably had around 100 chicken bakes in my Costco career. These new ones don’t hit the same level.”

Churros

Reddit’s dislike for Costco’s food court Churros is almost unanimous. There are few dissenting opinions on the topic of churros. They have been criticized for their texture and taste.

u/white Christmas says, “Churros certainly taste like crap now.” “I am a Costco fan. I still go there every other week. I still get a hotdog at the food court. It’s disappointing to see them cut costs, which means they are reducing quality.

On the same thread, u/comments_Wyoming was even better: “The churros can be hard as hell.”

Café Drinks

The problem with cafe drinks, especially the cold brew latte or mocha freeze, is their lack of consistency.

u/ballinforfood says that the drink will weigh a lot less if the colour is too light. This means you won’t get the right texture that sets the frozen coffee apart from other blended coffee drinks. “All I want is consistency in product. This is what I look forward to every day.

French Fries

Like cafe drinks, french fries are often referred to as “love them/hate them”. These delicacies can make or break a food court meal depending on how they’re cooked.

u/pwastage says that French fries are the best and worst. They are delicious if cooked correctly. Sometimes, workers will pre-package french fries. This makes them soggy and less delicious.