Costco Business Center meat selection!

[jtw]

A new Costco opened up near me, but not a standard Costco warehouse - it's a Costco Business Center and it kind of blew my mind. A little different than the standard ones, with no food court or prepared food (so no rotisserie chickens or samples!), and a lot more restaurant and business equipment and supplies. I was with my family - shopping with kids can be a trying time - so I wasn't able to catalog everything, but......

There's no meat aisle like you normally see by the butchering windows. Instead the "walk-in cooler" is enormous, an entire cold room with waaaay more than I've ever seen at a non-specialty retailer. Prices were excellent (it's Costco, after all). I saw multiple grades of multiple cuts of beef: they had choice AND prime packers ($3.79, $4.19/lb). Beef ribs (back and short, I didn't see plate), clod, knuckle, honeycomb/tripe, cheeks, tongue. Large packages of 80/20 ground beef for $2.59.

The pork was amazing. I was there for belly to make bacon, but they had skinless AND skin-on belly. Whole uncured picnic, and a bunch of other cuts you wouldn't see anywhere besides a real butcher shop.

In the standard freezer aisles they had whole roasting hogs (approx 50 lbs at $4/lb). Cubed goat meat, all sorts of halal and other selections.

All told, it doesn't serve my everyday Costco needs, but for specialty purchases it is definitely worth the trip.

[Sid P]

Sounds interesting!

[captainlee]

Just saw that they have one in Denver. Looks like they are entering the food service equipment industry, interesting.

[J-Melt]

We have one about a 25 minute drive from us. I think I’ve been there once, but definitely need to check it out again.

[acorgihouse]

Interesting. I have seen the Business Center stuff on the Costco site (I tend to check to see if they have what I want in stock, before I go in on a weekend.) I have not been feeling great, the medical issues I spoke about 5-6 weeks ago are still issues (albeit better) so today I did a large Instacart delivery of Costco basics. In going through the meats, beefs IIRC, there were photos of basic boxes and listings for the BusCtr prices. Didn't say how to order, I would assume shipped to me, rather than Instacart delivery? Might go back and check, although freezer is ok now and not eating so much, so can wait. Still, a good resource.

[Oak Smoke]

I missed the post on health issues. You’re in my prayers now. Get well soon.

[synodog]

I think we have one in the west valley of the metro area but it’s 45 minutes away. One of these days I’ll make it out there. I want to see this walk in cooler with assorted meat if they’ve have one.

[Mosca]

We don’t have a Costco, just Sam’s. But there are rumors we’re getting one in the next few years.

[Dewesq55]

There's one in the Lehigh Valley and a business center in Hackensack. Maybe too far for you. I go to the regular Costco in Wharton, NJ, about a half hour away.

[Mosca]

The Wyoming Valley Mall was sold again in October, supposedly it’s going in somewhere around there. Fingers crossed.

[johnec00]

Sounds like they're trying to compete with Restaurant Depot. Do they still have a ($60 or $120) cover charge, or can you shop there with a business license?

[JohnPaul]

Yes your standard membership lets you shop there. Costco business centers are completely AWESOME!!!

[carolts]

I was going to say it sounds like a Restaurant Depot type setup. The many Publix down here seem to package for snowbird couples mostly. It would be worth a visit if one was near.

BTW, nice pic of the traveling Birthday Hat!

[Dewesq55]

All you need is your regular Costco membership.

[barelfly]

Do they have a liquor section? Some newer costcos have been offering a great selection at their openers. Just curious on that.

[jtw]

No alcohol. Most Costco warehouses in the area do have beer/wine, and some carry liquor (Michigan state law reasons) but I didn't see any alcohol at all there.

[radiodome21]

Wow. I never heard of this. As J-Melt pointed out there is one in Chicago, though I’ll probably never go there as it’s nowhere near me. Hopefully they open closer to me or my office.

[realdocBBQ]

Unfortunately, the closest to me are Dallas and St. Louis - both 5 hours away.

[Draznnl]

Orlando for me. A mere 2.5 to 3 hour drive. And no, Costco Business Center does not deliver to my zip code. 😢

[Bkhuna]

acorgihouse They spent a billions dollars and 15 years widening I-4 in the mid 90's in order to accommodate the traffic of the 80's. It's a total disaster. I'd rather cross the state on 60 to Vero Beach and up I-95 than sit at a standstill trying to go eastbound on I4.

[acorgihouse]

Bkhuna the sad thing is IT STILL ISN'T FINISHED!

[Bkhuna]

acorgihouse Just when they get close to being only 10 years behind from the pace of development, another quarter of a million people move into the area and we're right back where we started.

Growth never pays for itself. It's something our politicians are absolutely ignorant about.

[Max Good]

Thanks for sharing this. I'm a Costco fan. Most of the meat & fish I use for product testing is Costco. I discovered a business center about an hour away. Gotta make a trip there and check it out. If they have tri-tip I'll flip!

[jtw]

I didn't see tri-tip, but here in Michigan *no one* carries tri-tip unless you special order it.

[BBQPhil]

They have 2 in San Diego area, one here for over 5 years, and I frequent it about once a month. They have a huge assortment of paper goods for takeout restaurants, sacks of rice and flour, a wide range of cleaning supplies, knives, silverware, pots and pans, shelving, carts and tables, heavy duty small appliances, and a huge meat department that’s very different from the regular stores. Mostly large cuts, less prime/mostly choice, and additional items such as chicken wings, all sorts of pork cuts, briskets and ribs. Also a wide selection of candy, crackers, and beverages. Has no clothing, no books, no TVs, no pharmacy and no snack bar.

[jtw]

That's a perfect summary. Tailored to small business and catering.

[Flip43]

We have one in the Minneapolis area about 25 minutes from me. It is my go to when I’m doing big events. Besides the excellent meat selection (including bone in pork butts that my Costco doesn’t carry) they also have a wider selection of paper products, silverware and other miscellaneous items to pull off a big event. If it was more convenient for me to go there, I would choose it over regular Costco. As an added bonus the fuel island always has shorter lines too. Check it out if you get the chance.