Disliking Costco probably makes me un-American, but I've always felt more at home in Europe than I have here, so, I'm going to tiptoe out on this limb, here. (Italy, I'm coming for you if they revoke my citizenship...)
There are so, so many things I dislike about Costco. It is always busy, like Starbucks, only with far worse ambiance. Speaking of ambiance, the number of screaming children present at Costco on any given day is enough to convince me never to have any of my own. It also always smells like bad pizza and burnt popcorn. On top of all of that, it's so intimidatingly cavernous and industrial that I sometimes worry I'll get lost in the giant refrigerator, possibly with some of the aforementioned children, never to be heard from again.
I mean, look at the place...
(from here)
But my real issue with Costco, at least for the purposes of this (theoretically) food-based blog? The obscene quantities in which they sell food. Let's be serious, nobody ever needs that much of anything, except maybe wine and ice cream, unless they are a)running a restaurant or b)raising the Duggar family, and really, that's what wholesalers are for, right?
I find myself on this tangent/rant because I've finally decided to get my behind back in the LKTC to make something OTHER than a baked good (although there are still plenty of those on my list, too). At the top of my "to-try" list are a few curries I found on a new (to me) cooking blog. Most of the recipes call for some quantity of coconut milk in the neighborhood of half of a cup. A can of coconut milk is more like 2 cups, so you're looking at some serious waste there, unless you want to be eating curry for a week.
This excess materials thing is a common problem in my life. So as someone who hates to waste, has a guilt complex, and is a bit obsessed with miniature things, I think we need an anti-Costco type store out there for those of us who: 1)are single, 2)often cook for just one person, 3)live in tee tiny apartments that can't accomdate Costco quantities, and/or 4)need built-in portion control. A store full of single-use size things. Except wine and ice cream, which can be Costco-sized, because if you're single, well, you need plentiful quantities of those staples in your life.
Who's with me on this, and what can we name this glorious mecca of all things tiny?
I have to comment and stick up for Costco! Did you know Nick and I absolutely love that place? In fact, one of our favorite things when he lived in Crystal City was that we were right around the corner from Costco. That particular Costco is by far the busiest one I've ever been to though. We found it worthwhile to shop there even when we were just a couple in a tiny condo. It's not all about quantity, and you can always trust the quality of their products. And if you don't like it, they will let you return anything any time.
ReplyDeleteBUT, I totally get what your saying too.
Maybe I'm just scarred by this particular costco :)
ReplyDelete