Is it worth getting a membership to Costco or Sam's just for the meat?


 
I like Sam's for sure, but there are no Costco stores in these parts that I am aware of.

I'd go for the Sam's membership if they have prime meat.
 
Rusty James said:
I like Sam's for sure, but there are no Costco stores in these parts that I am aware of.

I'd go for the Sam's membership if they have prime meat.
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I joined just for the prime brisket. Bought in Feb, when they would take the $45 member fee off first purchase. On the same day I bought my first brisket, they were offering $45 off if I apply for Sams Credit Card, so what the heck. I don't need the card but I like bargains. Got $90 off total $150 purchase.

I was disappointed in the brisket selection. I've been there twice and both times , the smallest brisket was #16. Most were #20 and over. I prefer 13 to 14 #.
 
Lynn Dollar said:
(Sam's) I was disappointed in the brisket selection. I've been there twice and both times , the smallest brisket was #16. Most were #20 and over. I prefer 13 to 14 #.
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Wow..... last few times I've picked up brisket at Costco, I've had to look (and ask...) for anything over 14 lbs or so. I have no problem with bigger briskets (I'm not on a WSM 18.5" either.... :) ) and for some cooks, the bigger briskets work just fine.
 
JKalchik said:
Wow..... last few times I've picked up brisket at Costco, I've had to look (and ask...) for anything over 14 lbs or so. I have no problem with bigger briskets (I'm not on a WSM 18.5" either.... :) ) and for some cooks, the bigger briskets work just fine.
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Strictly speculation on my part, but I think most brisket buyers prefer the 12 to 14, which would make the larger briskets less in demand, and allow Sams to pick them up cheap and sell them cheap.

If ya factor a pound per hour of cooking time, those briskets take a lot longer. I bought a 16# er, but I trimmed it aggressively and smoked it a little hotter on my stick burner.
 
My wife and I have been Costco members for years. Enjoy many products but have been victims of over buying. Hence, I've coined the phrase, "Costco, where you buy more, eat more and throw more out". :-)
 
John Neuser said:
My wife and I have been Costco members for years. Enjoy many products but have been victims of over buying. Hence, I've coined the phrase, "Costco, where you buy more, eat more and throw more out". :-)
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Excellent quote, John!
I have learned to rein myself in some. When you first start going in and buy the huge boxes of...anything, you get a little caught up in the quantities. I try to keep myself more “directed” when I go in and only get what I went in for. Sometimes I do pretty well, other times, not so much.
Went in to get toilet paper came out with creme brûlée, sausages, Parmesan cheese, coffee, two kinds of cookies (for my wife) but, no brisket! I knew I had one in the freezer! Make and stick to your list and you might get out for under $150.00.
 
To answer the OP, no, membership is not worth it just for the meat. As many have pointed out, there are several other things that make it worth the membership. For me it’s the gas and the frozen fruit that stand out and that I actually use. However, if you don’t use Costco/Sams, in my opinion, you need a full service meat market. i.e., a butcher. And, a full service butcher will generally be more expensive so that will eat into the savings from not buying a membership. So then it also gets into the quantity of meat that you consume. Given that it’s just me and my wife and, that we eat a lot of chicken, it wouldn’t make sense to keep our Costco membership just for the meat. Also, we get our chicken from the butcher (Bell and Evans chicken) as the chicken at Costco, while good, is not as good as Bell and Evans.

So at takes a few more inputs to make the decision, but for me, no, I would not buy the membership just for the meat.
 
Bob Correll said:
Possible, I guess, but I doubt it.
I'm sure the Primes AF gets are at the very high end of grading, and the others are more at the low end.
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Lewis was speaking in the context of him regretting telling people he was smoking prime when he opened La Barbecue in Austin. He said he wished he'd never told anyone , because now the demand for prime is through the roof. He did not specify, but I think he was speaking maybe to what barbecue joints purchase , and maybe not consumers.
 
It's not just primes though, but all-natural primes like Creekstone Farms. Some major pit-masters swear by them. I've had really good luck with the ones I've cooked. I've had some pretty damn good briskets that were Certified Angus Beef too.
 
Hi All Just me and my wife here. I was thinking the same thing a few months ago, now I'm glad I joined Costco..Get my prime briskets and beef ribs there, going to try their St Louis ribs soon.. I use to shop for meat at RD,haven't gone back in awhile!
DanB
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Looks like Costco's getting in line with pricing. Packer briskets were $3.69/lb. tonight, up $0.40/lb. from a couple of months ago.
 
I joined strictly for the meat. I think its worth it - Prime cuts at Choice prices. I don't buy a ton of it there, but the prime NY Strips are worth the price of admission, and it is one of very few places around here I can get pork belly, aside from Whole Foods. I'll let you guess which place is the better value on those. An added bonus for me as an avid enjoyer of wine, is their wine selection and pricing. Some outrageously good values can be found. We also purchased our new deck furniture there last year and have been really pleased with it - a faux wicker set with couch, chairs, tables, ottoman and an umbrella. We spent a pretty penny, but comparable sets at patio stores were thousands more.

As others have mentioned, you need to have a list and stick to it; and you also need to know your prices. Some items at Costco are actually very poorly priced. When I go, I tend to stick to beef and wine - two things that I have a grasp of WRT pricing.
 
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OKC based Kosmos Q posted a vid today of a hot and fast brisket. He found a prime brisket for $3.48 at what he says was " a store " . But on the package its Winco Foods , with locations in

WinCo Foods, Inc. is a privately held, majority employee-owned American supermarket chain based in Boise, Idaho with retail stores in Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington
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The guy is a bit over the top, but his rubs and injections are very popular, nationally. Used by one of the better comp teams here in Oklahoma, Clarks Crew.

 
Pete D. said:
My wife and I don't purchase enough stuff to justify a membership in a place like Costco, but I keep hearing about people who buy superior cuts of meat there. Is the quality that much better at one of these stores vs a regular grocery store?

Thanks
Pete
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Pete, we had Sam's membership for years, thought their meat was great.
Until I heard Costco was much better... so I tried Costco.

We then let our membership expire at Sam's, haven't renewed it with no reason to.

Costco in New Berlin Wisconsin has spectacular PRIME Brisket, PRIME RibEyes and other PRIME steaks, (caps, NY Strips, sirloin)
Also, their line of alcohol is very equivalent to major name brands... Their ready to eat Mac&Cheese is OUTSTANDING!

I can go on about Costco.... It really IS WORTH the membership.
I never felt that way about our membership with Sam's.

Even their produce is top shelf....

My suggestion to you is: GO GET IT!

edit: let's not forget Costco has EXCELLENT pork belly for curing and smoking your own bacon.
 
Yes definitely. I got $320 back from their CC. I added $80 and got four new Michelin tires for my car with balance, rotate and all included 👍🏻
We use two gallons of milk every four days or so. I get the one with the red cap. About $2.29 a gallon. The only milk that is a little better in taste is $6 a gallon at the supermarket.
And yes $5 on average for full refill of 20 lb. of LP
Milk and LP alone are worth the membership.
 
I’ve been using a regular propane dealer, they run about $10-12 to refill. Now that I have four tanks, it’s pretty easy to drop one off and pick it up in a day or two. The guy is very pleasant too! It is reassuring to have a spare or two especially now that I have a patio heater!
 
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