I don't know how I haven't reviewed Costco before, this is the location closest to my home, so it is my go to for gas, groceries, and plenty of other items. By now most people know about Costco and other warehouse clubs; I have tried the competition, Sam's Club and BJs, but I much prefer Costco as the clubs are cleaner, the employees are great and overall the products are higher quality. To shop at Costco you do have to pay an annual fee, but it is easy to earn at least that amount in the year end cash back.
Lets start with my most go to item, filling up the car with gas; the Costco gas stations are pretty simple, all cars come from the same direction and if the pumps are filled you have to wait in line. The gas prices are usually significantly lower then surrounding gas stations so they really draw a crowd. The gas itself has 10% ethanol, but is Top Tier certified, which is a quality rating. A couple of hints for the gas stations are that they are open earlier and later then the main Costco are so if you can get there at these times the waits are much shorter. Also the pumps have long hoses so if the line is shorter for the pumps that are not on the same side as your gas cap it is easy enough to still fill your car. Of course the gas stations require that you scan your membership card.
The main Costco is loaded with deals, food, groceries, produce, baked goods, clothes, appliances, home goods, electronics, personal care and almost anything else you could want. Most items, especially food is sold in large quantities, but that is part of what helps keep prices low. As you shop around notice that most prices end in $.99 these are the regular prices; every month there is a sale book which has discounted items. Any price that ends in another figure is some sort of closeout or steeper discount so it is well worth looking out for these.
One of the most fun parts of a Costco visit is that they often have people out giving samples of food items to let you get a preview of something new and delicious. The samples can be located around the store and will be everything from candy, prepared food, sauces and more.
A couple of great places to visit at Costco are the pharmacy and the tire center. The pharmacy usually has some of the lowest prices you can find; before I got free refills by mail I used the Costco pharmacy on a regular basis and was very pleased with the prices and service. The Tire Center has a similar approach, although the tire selection is a bit limited there are enough choices of manufacturers and tires to fill almost every need. You do need to schedule an appointment for installation, but the prices include installation, balance, hazard coverage, tire rotation and the tires are great quality.
Finally the true highpoint of Costco is the food court, a bit barebones but the food is incredible, the prices a true bargain and this is the place to get a snack or light meal. The go to item for most people is the $1.50 hot dog and drink combo, but for me grabbing a huge slice of cheese pizza for $2 is the way to go. Even better if the food court has the chopped onions for the hot dogs, just grab a cup and use it to top the slice.
Costco can be an overwhelming experience for some, there is always a lot going on. The checkout lines can be long at certain times, but the employees do a great job of keeping the checkouts moving. I actually enjoy the treasure hunt element of Costco, they often move items around and while certain items always seem to be there, other items come and go, so you need to grab an item that interests you or it might be gone the next time you look for it.
Costco has an exceptional return policy, they will take almost anything back, so long as you bought it at Costco, hopefully you won't need it very often, but the few times I have returned an item it was handled quickly without any issues.
I especially have to shout out the tire department, after a day of hiking and then shopping I had just completed a Costco run when my car alerted me that 1 tire had only 2 lbs of pressure. I turned around to try to fill it, but it was so low that the pump would not do it. Since these were the original tires and had about 33,000 miles I figured I would just buy new tires. Unfortunately, Boston Heights did not have my size and would have to order them, they checked and found that Mayfield Costco did.
Boston Heights was great and fitted me in to changed the flat tire for the spare. I called the Mayfield Costco and they confirmed that they had the tires I needed and they managed to get me an appointment in about an hour. Once the car was ready I drove to Mayfield and they did a great job of getting me set up with a complete set of new tires. read more