Costco Top 10

A lot of people know I'm a total Costco fanatic.  I run up a ridiculous tally there month in and month out.  But it's a very useful store, it's within walking distance of my house (not that I could ever walk home with what I bought), and for some reason, it's fun.  I'm not sure if it's because their stock rotates, so there's always something new to check out, or because it's exciting to buy in bulk and know you only have to buy laundry detergent twice a year....  The samples don't hurt either, but I won't wait in line for them like some die hards.  To be fair, there are some Costco offerings I'm really not impressed with, like their photo processing (just awful) and their pizzas (rubber cheese).  Anyway, since this is the season of spending, I thought I'd share my Top Ten favorite things to buy there.

1) Books.  An indulgence, to be sure, when I could just get them from the library.  Eventually.  But they always have the latest best sellers minus the hokey ones featured at the grocery store.  And the monthly Costco mag has book reviews, so it's easy to try new authors.

2) Wine.  I love wine, but I'm not gonna study it.  They have several wines in the $10 range that rate 90 points or more from Wine Spectator or Wine Enthusiast.  They have cheat sheets up for them telling you why they are good, what they pair with, what years to drink them.

3) Kirkland brand diapers and wipes.  They're not any cheaper than Huggies, which they also sell, but they're superior in my opinion.  I've found several Kirkland brand items to be better than name brand. Like:

4) Nuts.  You can get 2-3 lb bags of pecan halves, sliced almonds, walnut halves, even pine nuts, for dirt cheap compared to the grocery store.  And they last forever in the freezer.

5) Rotisserie chicken.  I used to be really turned off by rotisserie chicken.  I like the idea of it, and they always smell amazing, but then when you go to eat them, they're super fatty and kind of gross.  The Costco ones are PERFECT.  And only $5.

6) Frozen sweet potato fries.  No explanation needed.

7) Organic, free range chicken stock.  I like the name brand one (I think it's Pacific) better than the Kirkland one.  These cartons are pretty pricey at the grocery, even on sale.  I'll go through the case of 6 cartons in a month or two.

8) Gourmet cheeses and their cheese shows.  I've found really good brie, aged Gouda, super sharp Irish cheddar, Manchego....  yum yum yum.  Great for parties.

9) Dave's Gourmet pasta sauces.  They carry a big jar of Marinara, and a smaller twin pack of butternut squash pasta sauce.  They are literally good enough to heat up in a pot and serve.  But the Marinara makes a great meat sauce, and fried pancetta would be really really good in the squash one.

10) OMG, the food court!  The fat free frozen yogurt is amazing, and so is that chicken bake.  And they have Churros!!  Just stay away from the pizza....