The Costco in my town has the unique appeal of being both a warehouse and an ethnic grocer.
While I can count a dozen Asian markets within a five-mile radius of my house, none of them — not even my beloved HMart — can boast the inventory and ethnic diversity of my favorite membership club.
While shopping at Costco, I found Japanese Suntory whiskey, custard-filled taiyakis, Taiwanese moon cakes, Chinese sausage, Philippine dried mangos, Vietnamese bottled coffee, Korean kimbap, fresh mangosteens, and my family’s favorite pork dumplings. During the same shopping trip, I can also grab pupusas and birria tacos.
For these reasons, as a mother who shops weekly for my household of four, Costco used to be our weekly go-to destination. But the store has become so busy that I can barely get in the door anymore.
With two hangry children in the car whose patience for grocery shopping can only be coaxed with promises (or bribes) of getting to pick their own weekly snacks, I’ve had to rethink my grocery shopping.
My local Costco has become too popular
I live in Torrance, Calif., which has a large Costco. It’s known to be one of the busier locations.
It routinely appears on rankings and lists like the “most Asian” Costco in SoCal, simply one of the best in the state, or the most “elite” in the country.
Those rankings have ultimately become both a blessing and a curse. The parking lot there has always been a chaotic mess, but lately, it’s become impossible to maneuver.
My last three attempts to visit have failed because I could not find a single parking spot in the lot. I had to leave completely and ended up buying none of my favorite items.
I’ve been forced to replace my favorite Costco items with food from other stores.
I’ve been on the hunt for Costco alternatives at Aldi
I used to buy all our organic, free-range, and “natural” dairy products from Costco, especially the milk, eggs, and coffee creamer our family couldn’t live without. These days, whenever I can’t find a space in their parking lot, I buy the Aldi versions. Recently, the eggs at Aldi cost me less than $7.
Getting my kids (and husband) to eat vegetables is an ongoing battle. I used to fight this battle by buying a giant bag of organic spinach at Costco once a week and challenging us as a family to finish before any of the leaves wilted. Now, I try to do the same with the bulk-sized organic salad mixes, also courtesy of Aldi, which costs less than $5.
We don’t live solely on white meat, so while I used to get our rib-eye steaks and marinated bulgogi from the butcher’s section of Costco, now I get seasoned pork pastor and carne asada from Aldi for around $5 and steaks from whatever is on sale at Amazon Fresh.
Admittedly, there are a few things I’ve had a harder time finding the dupes for. No Costco trip is complete without their iconic $5 rotisserie chicken, and this remains one of their hardest products to replace.
Costco’s individually wrapped bags of organic edamame also remain elusive. While I can easily find smaller bags of frozen young soybeans in any Asian grocer, none of them have the convenience and bulk of the membership warehouse I used to love but am now learning to live without.
I won’t give up on Costco, though. I still periodically drive into the parking lot to see if I can snag a spot. If I can’t, I leave knowing I can get some of my favorite items elsewhere.
