These Costco Products Are so Good that They Make Canadians Cross the Borders!
The question isn’t if you like shopping at Costco; the question is if you’d cross the border just to shop at Costco. Because that’s how good Costco is: you would cross borders and oceans just to get your groceries from there (ok, maybe not oceans, but it’s a nice figure of speech).
As it turns out, many people would do it, and rightfully so. Costco is and will be the king of warehouses, and things won’t change too soon. If you’re curious to know why so many Canadians cross the borders just to shop there, well, here’s a list of some of the most sought-after products:
Organic dark truffle figs
If you or your parents even traveled to Europe (specifically Eastern Europe) and returned with European specialties—in this case, dried plums—then you know how good they are.
Well, then you will know what I’m saying: I think the fig “truffles” from “That’s It” are just like that. The ingredients are simply dried figs with 60% dark chocolate, and they are the healthier version of some of our favorite childhood treats.
You can’t find them in Canada, so every time Canadians cross the border, they make sure to stock enough dark truffle figs for colder days.
Sparkling water
Truth be told, I’m a sparkling water fan. If you’re anything like me, then you must know the difference between good sparkling water and bad types. Even if sparkly water can be found anywhere in Canada, there are some gems that’s worth getting on a regular basis.
However, there are a couple of reasons why it’s important to buy sparkling water in the United States: there are more flavors, and the price point is better. Well, Costco has many of those brands, such as LaCroix, Waterloo, Spindrift, and even Kirkland Signature sparkling water.
Bear fruit rolls
Bear Fruit Rolls are reminding me of old-school fruit roll-ups, but better in every possible way. The ingredients are quite simple: blended dried fruits with black carrot extract for more color.
The fruit-forward flavor and natural texture are the best yet. In a blind taste test, I would bet you’d have a hard time making the difference between Bear Fruit Rolls and another flavor of homemade fruit leather.
A box of 24 servings is only $10.99, and every serving has two small rolls on a thoughtfully designed card with a game on it. Even if they can’t fully replace fresh fruit, they’re still great as a sweet treat.
The snack combination makes them ideal for road trips and any other type of travel when you need to entertain the kids with something.
Fresh organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Organic and grass-fed meat are way more expensive in Canada. For instance, a tiny package of fresh organic boneless and skinless chicken breasts is $5.99 a pound in the United States and $13 a pound in Canada.
Well, that’s quite a price difference! Given the environmental impact of producing meat, you might want to buy locally and support smaller farms as much as you can. Some farms offer sales or discounts on pre-orders, and you should try to stock up and freeze the meat when you catch high discounts.
Grillo’s pickles
Pickles have been getting quite the hype lately, especially since increasingly more brands are coming up with various pickle-flavored products like hummus, salad kits, falafel, and many others.
Well, they might be tasty, but nothing compares to the traditional pickled vegetable! Pickles also pair very well with many other things, and both the pickles and their brine can be used for other delicious foods, from dips to vinaigrettes to even pasta salads.
Generally, you can find fermented pickles at your local store, but if you ever get the chance to cross the border, you need to pick up a container from Grillo’s.
Butter
The Costco dairy section is nothing but a baker’s delight. The wide variety of butter options at U.S. stores is very wide, compared to Canadian stores.
First of all, the popular and beloved Kerrygold butter is easy to find in the United States, and you can find it at Costco at a great price. Besides, Costco also has grass-fed butter options and other Kirkland Signature sweet cream butter, both salted and unsalted.
Greek yogurt
Greek yogurt is one of those staples that should always be in the fridge. You can use it to prepare your meals on a daily basis. Now that we’re getting into it, I prefer the taste of the one with a minimum of 2% fat Greek yogurt, but the 750-milliter container at any Canadian grocery store is between $6 and $7.
Well, at Costco, you can find Kirkland Signature three-pack smaller containers of fat-free Greek yogurt for only $14, which is definitely a steal of a deal.
Unfortunately, Canadian Costco doesn’t sell 2% yogurt, so every time you cross the border, you might want to stock up on Greek yogurt. As much as you can, at least.
Cottage cheese
I think we can all agree that cottage cheese is having a moment right now. As new and innovative ways to eat it appear every day, you always need to have this high-protein dairy food in your cart.
In Canada, a 2 (ish)-pound container at your local grocer generally costs $5 to $7, depending on the store brand. But you can find 3-pound containers of cottage cheese at Costco for only $5.99, which also means we can add more high-protein ice cream and pasta sauce to our plates.
Wine and prosecco
If you travel for less than 48 hours to the United States, you won’t be able to buy either wine, sparkling wine, or Champagne. But if you stay for more than 48 hours, you can bring two 750-milliliter bottles of wine, and you should take advantage of that opportunity as often as you can.
At the risk of seeming like a broken record, the price is way better, especially when it comes to Kirkland Signature bottles (which you can’t find in Canada). And via Costcos in the United States, you will also have access to many other types of wine that you won’t find anywhere else.
King Arthur flour
Like any other human being on this planet, you probably enjoy baking the occasional banana bread, homemade sourdough, or a batch of healthy cookies and muffins.
I myself am an avid baker, and in order to serve my baking needs, I constantly buy 22-pound bags of all-purpose and bread flour from the local Costco.
While the flour is good, it can’t compare to King Arthur flour. I know it’s also a bit more expensive, but so many recipes end up being better when I use King Arthur! Moreover, the company is 100% employee-owned, and that’s just something that I value a lot.
Cholula hot sauce
Tangy and spicy, with a very subtle earthy backbone from the blend of arbol and piquin peppers, this amazing hot sauce is extremely versatile and popular for any type of food.
However, it’s not easy to find, as Cholula isn’t technically sold at every grocery store. Sometimes, this means that you might have to make multiple stops to find it.
Moreover, a standard 5-ounce bottle goes for $7, unless it’s on sale. But if you manage to find it at any Costco in the U.S., you can get a two-pack of 12-ounce bottles for only $10.
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