578974 Wed Dec 10 10:21:42 -0800 2008 31 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 4235748 there seems to be a difference from one costco outlet to the next. am curious as to which local costco people feel has the best selection. i usually go to the one in on 10th street in the city, but have noticed that the selection is sometimes lacking. Are there others south, east bay or in marin that are preferred? Wed Dec 10 10:21:42 -0800 2008 64139 lenox 1 4235759 Selection of what? Wed Dec 10 10:24:02 -0800 2008 4235748 105235 wolfe 2 4235796 selection in general - but specifically specialty items like cheeses, appetizers (not the frozen varieties), dips and spreads, smoked fish, artisan breads, and wines. Wed Dec 10 10:31:02 -0800 2008 4235759 64139 lenox 3 4237296 The South City location carries brisket. The SF Costco does not. Wed Dec 10 18:15:01 -0800 2008 4235796 15646 tranewreck 1 4235803 I assume you're referring to food selection. In my experience, the Richmond Costco seems to have a somewhat better selection of high-end food (liter tubs of Fage yogurt, interesting cheeses during the holidays, etc.). The Mountain View Costco does as well. Wed Dec 10 10:32:41 -0800 2008 4235748 10159 Ruth Lafler 2 4236409 So does the SF Costco. I do a tub a week of the non-fat Fage (doesn't seem to do any good!). The cheese selections rotate, but they seem to have something new all the time. They may vary a bit from region to region, but they've got a bulk pricing model and a standard 110,000 sf footprint to work within. They can't be all things to all people, but I can't complain about the prices. Wed Dec 10 13:13:44 -0800 2008 4235803 131118 Xiao Yang 3 4236543 But only a handful of stores carry the Fage -- for example, the San Leandro store doesn't (and it has a gas station). The product mix does vary slightly from store to store depending on the clientele (actual or perceived). The clientele at the San Leandro store is much less yuppie than, for example, Danville or Mountain View. Wed Dec 10 13:48:23 -0800 2008 4236409 10159 Ruth Lafler 4 4239296 We also love the non-fat Fage; we get it every two weeks or so at the SF store. We came across spectacularly inexpensive chanterelles last month at the Foster City location ($8.99 / lb!), but I think we're coming close to the end of the season for them. Are they available at any of the other locations? Thu Dec 11 11:57:59 -0800 2008 4236543 158479 drinkmoretang 5 4239379 This old article suggests that the chanterelle season in the Santa Cruz Mountains is from September to April, depending on rain. http://www.bio.net/bionet/mm/mycology/1994-August/000702.html Any Shroomers out there with more information? Thu Dec 11 12:19:46 -0800 2008 4239296 105235 wolfe 6 4239430 oh, that's helpful! i just blindly clicked the first link I saw, and had seen this one instead, also a dated article, but indicating a shorter season from the fall through December: http://www.portlandtribune.com/features/story.php?story_id=31803 In either case, though, I'd still love to be able to get my hands on some more while we still can! Thu Dec 11 12:36:17 -0800 2008 4239379 158479 drinkmoretang 7 4239622 I see the problem. The rainy season in Oregon is very short, yes? Thu Dec 11 13:26:59 -0800 2008 4239430 105235 wolfe 6 4241300 Yes chanttrelle season should be here. Porchini's are becoming more scarce. Fri Dec 12 06:12:12 -0800 2008 4239379 19543 gatun 5 4239578 My daughter saw them the other day at the El Camino, SSF one but said they did not look that great. I like to buy them at Monterey Mkt in Berkeley and saute in butter then add to risotto with fresh peas. Yum. Thu Dec 11 13:14:11 -0800 2008 4239296 12520 walker 5 4262446 Costco in Richmond had chanterelles on Thursday. Didn't really check them out, but they have ranged, over the years, from pretty much okay to damp and almost gooey. Sat Dec 20 14:36:59 -0800 2008 4239296 10245 oakjoan 1 4235894 I've noticed that the bigger and fuller Costcos are the ones that have gas stations with them, so Sunnyvale and Daly City/Colma are south of SF's better bets, but a lot more crowded. Wed Dec 10 10:51:06 -0800 2008 4235748 12872 K K 2 4236435 Costco uses a standard 110,000 square foot footprint for inside sales. (I used to work on Traffic Impact Reports for Costco sites.) If you think the SF Costco isn't crowded, I'd hate to see one that is. Wed Dec 10 13:22:30 -0800 2008 4235894 131118 Xiao Yang 3 4236476 The SF Costco is crowded. The South SF store is more easier to get around in with much shorter checkout lines. Wed Dec 10 13:31:28 -0800 2008 4236435 11277 Paul H 4 4236556 best one is in Novato 94949. Check it out Wed Dec 10 13:52:06 -0800 2008 4236476 246039 Breakbread 4 4236582 but its definetely not my imagination that the various stores carry different stock/ items? like the example of the fage yogurt above. and i've noticed that the SF 10th street location doesnt have the tzatziki dip or variety of cheeses (for example) i've seen in other stores. Wed Dec 10 14:00:44 -0800 2008 4236476 64139 lenox 5 4236788 The SF store carries the Tzatziki and has a wide variety of cheeses right now -- the cheese selection in all Costco's varies according to season, with Christmas/New Year's having the largest selection. The SF store also has wines that aren't sold at other stores -- the wine consultant there told me that. And the variety of artisan breads changes according to area with, for example, SF carrying Acme and El Camino (S.S.F.) carrying Semifreddi.The suburban stores carry more gardening, camping, outdoor cooking and pool stuff. Wed Dec 10 14:53:11 -0800 2008 4236582 10644 Nancy Berry 6 4237556 The other day I was in the El Camino one near Hickey and could not find Gruyere cheese and asked an employee and he said he'd never heard of it so I gave up. I could swear I'd gotten it there before. Any suggestions for where I can find it at a good price? (Making mac n cheese with that and cheddar.) Wed Dec 10 20:03:11 -0800 2008 4236788 12520 walker 7 4238825 Trader Joe's usually has gruyere. If they have any of their harissa-spiked cheddar, that makes excellent mac 'n cheese with a kick! The horseradish cheese at Costco is also good for that. Thu Dec 11 09:38:37 -0800 2008 4237556 10159 Ruth Lafler 8 4239178 Thanks -- I'll take a closer look next time at TJ -- it's hard to get through the swarm of people. Thu Dec 11 11:20:54 -0800 2008 4238825 12520 walker 1 4236604 For the Peninsula Mountain View is the best and in the South Bay I like Santa Clara one. But for a large selection there is there is the Hayward Business center. Much more food and cooking supplies. The same size as most other stores but no books, clothes other non-business items. I would say double the footprint of food. Wed Dec 10 14:07:31 -0800 2008 4235748 10686 yimster 2 4236671 People don't read down in the burbs? Actually, a lot lot of the books are cooking or food-related in SF. The EL Bulli Book, Keller's books, etc. show up at about 40-50% off retail. Wed Dec 10 14:22:50 -0800 2008 4236604 131118 Xiao Yang 2 4239543 Yimster, I agree with you. BTW: the S'Clara one has the El Bulli book but the Sunnyvale one does not. Thu Dec 11 13:06:05 -0800 2008 4236604 17220 Claudette 1 4236668 The Livermore location seems to have a wider selection of items especially wine and clothing. Often times when I can't get what I want in Danville they have it in Livermore. They also have a gas station. Someone once told me that the Livermore store is a distribution center and because of that has an expanded selection. No idea if that is true or not but it seems plausible. I believe that the larger wine selection stems from their location in Livermore wine country and they do have a nice selection of local wines. Wente wines are cheaper there than at the vineyard. Wed Dec 10 14:22:14 -0800 2008 4235748 70474 baseballfan 2 4237283 Best wine selection (i.e. largest) is the Novato location. Wed Dec 10 18:09:53 -0800 2008 4236668 84603 baron45 3 4237497 I can imagine. I'll have to check it out next time I am up that way. Wed Dec 10 19:41:40 -0800 2008 4237283 70474 baseballfan 1 4240640 Can't get pizzles (smoked beef penis, not to be confused with the cookie/waffle things known as pizzelles) for my dogs at the SF or South SF stores so I go the the Costco near Point Isabelle (is that Richmond?). Otherwise, they all seem pretty much the same. Thu Dec 11 19:35:55 -0800 2008 4235748 53530 Zeldog 2 4240699 They do have them at the SF Costco, along the west wall. I know that because when I see them I always wonder if they could be rehydrated and used in my Sichuan recipe for Home Cooked Ox Penis: http://is.gd/3wf7 Thu Dec 11 20:01:12 -0800 2008 4240640 131118 Xiao Yang 2 4240980 Yeah, the store at Pt. Isabel is the Richmond store. They carried them there before they carried them in San Leandro, but they eventually did start carrying them at San Leandro. Maybe the Richmond store is a test market for products they haven't decided to carry in all their stores yet. Thu Dec 11 23:24:49 -0800 2008 4240640 10159 Ruth Lafler