Costco food courts boast inexpensive and tasty offerings — so we asked the workers there to pick their favorites.
- Costco's food court is home to a number of cheap and tasty menu options that members and food critics love.
- Costco employees themselves have some favorites, too.
- Business Insider reached out to Costco workers and scoured the web to figure out what meals are considered standout hits with employees.
Costco food courts are famous for having cheap, yummy grub.
The food court menus are static in terms of price and offerings. You'll have to travel if you want to find any serious discrepancies between Costco food court menus.
They're definitely a good option for shoppers looking to grab a quick, post-shopping spree meal. And some Costco employees are fans too.
Business Insider recently asked a number of Costco employees to share their favorite food court menu options. We also scoured the internet for employee reviews of the food court items on social media.
Here are the food court menu options that Costco employees love:
Pizza
"Costco's pizzas are pretty incredible considering the price," Costco worker Stefan Winter wrote on Quora. "Crust is yummy, toppings are good quality, what's not to love?"
Nine other Costco workers told Business Insider that the pizza was their favorite food court item. Of those, one worker preferred the pepperoni pizza, while two went with the combo pizza.
"You get sick of the food after awhile, but the combo pizza is always my go-to," one Costco worker in Florida told Business Insider.
During a 2013 Reddit AMA, a Costco employee called the pizza "awesome" and added that "a lot of people don't know you can get vegetarian or do half and half."
The hot dog-and-soda combo
"The hot dog soda combo for $1.50 is a classic," one San Diego-based Costco employee told Business Insider.
Bratwurst
One Costco worker in Illinois told Business Insider that they liked the bratwurst and felt disappointed when their store got rid of it for chili.
Another worker who's been at Costco for 12 years told Business Insider that, while they didn't often eat at the food court, when they did, they opted for the bratwurst.
Churros
Three Costco employees who have worked for the warehouse chain for seven and half, eight, and ten years, respectively, told Business Insider that their go-to food court orders typically included a churro.
"Lunchtime is always a safe bet for fresh food," a seven-year Costco employee wrote in a Reddit AMA. "When the lines are long, the churros are good."
Polish sausages
A Costco food court worker wrote in a 2014 Reddit AMA that they preferred the Polish sausages over the food court hot dogs, adding, "There's more flavor."
Chili
"I love the new chili and the pizza," a Costco worker in Ohio told Business Insider, adding that she ate at the food court "every now and then."
Gelato
"Regardless of what you eat as the 'main course', the pistachio gelato — or any gelato — is to die for," former Costco employee Robert Lu wrote on Quora.
Berry smoothie
Four Costco employees told Business Insider that they favored the food court's berry smoothies.
BONUS: free samples
Costco samples don't actually count as food court items. But, as one Costco employee wrote in a 2013 Reddit AMA, it's always nice to get "free grub" on the job.
The employee noted that the people handing out the samples get "bored standing there all day. Just talk to them and they'll give you plenty."
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