Costco

I would totally join Costco and get a membership just so I can come to their foodcourt.
You simply cannot beat the prices that you find at the foodcourt. a soda with free refills AND hot dog for $ 1.50 and a pizza for $ 2? It’s definitely hard to beat a deal like that around NYC! My boyfriend and I come here all the time when we need to pick up a couple items or because we don’t feel like eating at all the food places around us. The service is great although it does get really crowded during the weekends so I’d definitely avoid coming here unless that’s your only free day. They’re open until 9pm giving people who work during the day plenty of time to make it here after work.
Their movie tickets are extremely cheap (Regal/​AMC). You have to buy them in a pair for $ 16 which comes to $ 8/​ticket costing you a lot less than what you’d pay at the box office. There’s sometimes a surcharge for the 3D and imax feature but either way, it’s still a very good deal! And their rotisserie chicken are $ 4. I mean a bucket of KFC is already $ 20 and you’re getting something healthier for $ 5?! Amazing prices!
Who can forget the samples? Let’s be honest. if there was a Costco in the city, they’d be losing a lot of money because I’d be one of those people going there and making my way around the samples everyday. There’s at least 8 — 10 sample carts every time I go there (although they close up if you go past 7pm) so if you’re looking for a quick snack while you shop you get to choose from so many different promotional items.
There’s a garage for parking (I think it’s one hour free parking) and street parking too but I live right around the area so it’s conveniently within walking distance for me. Very good idea to open a Costco in a busy residential neighborhood!
P.S They only take AmEx credit cards, cash and all Debit cards (and EBT) as of right now but they are in transition to also accept VISA cards later this year.

Love costco, was here to grab chicken alfredo pasta and st. louis ribs for dinner. Both were very impressive and under $ 30. They still had samples on a monday night. The layout of this store was not too hard to navigate, but the only bad part is you have to pay for parking.

Who doesn’t love costco? This one gets really really busy at times and it’s hard to maneuver around the aisles. They also have a lot of samples on the weekends. The lines get very long. But the cashiers are pretty quick. The bad part about this Costco is that you need to pay for parking. It’s not like other locations where they have their own lot.

Pretty good, only sucky part is the paid parking, but this is NY after all

I really like this costco! it’s never «super» crowded and the food here is awesome. the parking isn’t so bad and the prices are decent especially if you get whats on sale for that month.
I get my contacts from here too. I think her name was Dr. Emily Chu? She’s super friendly and the cost is cheaper than other places.

Hard to find parking spaces on the streets and at its indoor parking lot.
Very long lines for paying. No CREDIT cards accepted but DEBIT cards. Exception is Amex until sometime 2016. Another form of payment that is accepted is Cash. Costco has a very inconvenient method of payment… Sigh
The product offering are ok. Nothing special. Pricing for some products are cheaper than other places but the difference is small. But sometimes I wonder if it is worth going through all the trouble mentioned above… Perhaps it is not for other Costcos located in Long Island. But at the moment I think it is too much of hassle to go through for this Costco located in Rego Park…

Parking; 1 hr 2 $
3 hr 3 $
This location is bigger than the one in astoria with more variety and selection (including furniture foods)
prices are basically the same, this one seems slightly more hectic because the area is not in perfect aisles meaning go up and down lanes, you kind of have to make swerves leaving you hopeless in finding the route that goes thoroughly across from point A to point B.
Life becomes an adventure and I’d come here drunk and just draw a map of the place because I think thats what drunk people do.
Srs note; some of the younger staff were annoying af and they wouldn’t/couldn’t get basic shit done.
Nothing on fleek.
⁴⁄₅ stars is random rating because I’m feeling the good good.
True rating is ²⁄₅. (Mainly because lack of mannerism from employees)
Astoria venue is better.

Pure chaos! There is so many people in here and no order of any sorts. However, They have everything I need and more! I love Costco but every time we come here, I feel like I am battling half of Queens in line and in everything else. The parking lot isn’t so bad, I can almost always find a close parking space and its only up to 1 hour for $ 2 or up to 3 hour for $ 3. We almost always just parked for two and half and go to bed bath and beyond or where ever else we need to go. If we are feeling like exercising, we will walk here and and that usually makes the experience better because we can take our time. This Costco does not have foster farms chicken breasts only Kirkland signature and I don’t know if thats a new thing with all Costco. I am not a fan of their brand chicken as it almost always has a lot of fat on it. But i love their brand for everything else. Also a tip if you turn your bottles in for money, make sure to go to the merchandise returns line for your refund. I stood in the membership line only to be told that i was in the wrong line and had to stand in a different line, that experience almost took 20 minutes just so I could get $ 3 back! Also try to avoid the late afternoon in the weekends, it is busier. We usually try to go early in the morning on Saturday. Also this past weekend, they had some great «black friday deals.» We ended up getting iTunes card ($ 200 worth for $ 158, I believe they were $ 79 each, $ 15 off) and a fitbit charge for only $ 99. The fitbit charge would only be $ 90 at best buy on black friday but we paid $ 10 to avoid having to wait in line at best buy on black friday morning and possibly not getting it. All in all, this is definitely the Costco I go to all the time. I just wish it was bigger and more organized.

Lines are short on weekdays and weekends parking is horrendous. People are nice but if you don’t want to pay for parking go to Astoria or Westbury.
New for me is that you can pay on line for food so you can skip the que for your $ 1.49 hotdog and soda.
Getting a cell phone there for Verizon takes too long. They don’t have signal and need to send employees to walk upstairs to activate phone.

Staff is usually very helpful, be patient on the lines because they can be extensively long… Eyewear section is one of the quickest in town

They have everything I need, and the quality is good, which is the main thing. Once you learn the layout you can find things pretty quickly.
Sometimes they have people helping you unload your cart (whether you want it or not), and almost always there is someone packing it up for you on the other end, so the lines (in my experience) move better than at other Costco locations.
Checkout tip: Lines tend to be shorter on the side near the entrance, which is closer to the lower traffic electronics area, and away from the higher traffic food aisles.
Food court tip: There are more extra tables than you realize if you head down the aisle that leads past the restroom area.
Navigation tip: Leave your cart for a few minutes in an empty aisle, while you go get a few items and bring it back to the cart. No-​one will take it, and it’s way easier than pushing the cart continually through the crowded areas.
Parking tips: (1) Use the dedicated entrance by the Long Island Expressway service road. Traffic is better and you don’t need an elevator to access the store; (2) Don’t worry about the $ 2 fee for an hour of parking; it’s charged by the building, not by Costco, and if this is the closest location to where you live, it will cost more than $ 2 in gas to go to and from the next closest location which is in Astoria /​Long Island City. Also you get your frozen foods home faster; (3) If there is no parking on the lower level, go up one level to the floor that is all parking; there is plenty of room there. I’ve only had to do that 2 – 3 times in the five years this location has been open.
All in all, it’s a pretty good shopping experience.

things I love about costco.
free parking (not at this location)
great gas pricing for members (not at this location)
awesome liquor store only when it is inside the store (not at this location)
Rego park location maybe considered smaller than the average costco but it still has good meat, poutlry and fish section. As a matter of fact this week they have the sockeye salmon (organic) filets, all ready de-​boned ready to be cooked.
This costco has a good size produce section. Mens section they have a sale on golf clothing, I dont play the sport but I dress the part as the shorts and shirts are made out of some dry fit material that absorbs the moisture and keeps you cool.
Kids are going back to school so they had tons of outfits for kids and teens.
I noticed this location is not kept very clean, the parking lot is a mess. Overall when you have a large family and you need to feed them, you have to come prepared and know your prices versus quantity and be able to recognize value over premium brands. What can i say, I love costco. I even booked my last vacation via the costco travel website. I did try to buy a car by using the costco car buyer program (3 years ago) but that did not work out, as I was able to negotiate a better deal on my own. I bough TV and electronics as well as cell phone at the stores and or via the web. Best policy, you dont like something, take it back to the store for a refund. Electronics have a slightly different policy so read the fine print. I have yet to buy furniture but yo never know.
The Costco hotdog is the best deal in town, thank you Kirkland for bringing us such fine offerings.
My favorite costco is in Edison NJ.

OK overall… once you are inside shopping.
One reason that I do not like it here, but mainly because the parking feels like such a madhouse. The lights and intersections are always crowded here, so all you get are impatient people honking behind you, and by the time you get past that, you have to enter the lot, which always seems to have a tight entrance, between you and the other cars coming out, trying to turn right (only one way they can turn). Also you have to pay for parking, which can add up quickly if you can’t find your items right away, or the lines are super long (which they are, especially on weekends). The line for the exit was long and moved slowly, backing up into the registers.
As for the produce/​prices I was really impressed. Besides the fact they have a good amount of organic produce (10lb.carrots), organic frozen vegetables and fruits (broccoli crowns, blueberries, berry mixes), organic meat (chicken breasts, wings/​thighs, beef), there’s plenty of hearty looking peaches/​nectarines, avocados, apples, pears, asparagus, strawberries, watermelons. Compared to prices at Sam’s Club in NJ, or BJ’s in Middle Village, a lot of things here are cheaper across the board.
Some examples: (prices fluctuate over time, but here is a general overview)
Organic spinach 1 lb. $ 4.29 (versus 4.99 at BJ’s and 5.99−6.99 at Stop and Shop)
Organic Spring mix 1lb $ 4.99 (same as the spinach)
Organic brown eggs — 2 dozen for $ 6.99 (versus 1 dozen at BJ’s for $ 4.39)
King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls — 32 rolls for $ 4.69 versus 24 rolls for $ 4.79)
Brita filters 10 for $ 39.99 versus 10 for $ 42.99
Fage yogurt –only place that has the large tubs of this, versus the tiny single serve cups, which is a huge draw for me. Super cheap compared to the grocery store. You get 48 oz here for $ 6.49. At the regular stores you get 35.5 oz for $ 7.49-over $ 8 depending which location.
No unsweetened almond milk — just regular and that has too much sugar. I thought it was cool they even had organic detergent! The bakery looked fresher and more extensive than BJ’s too.
The workers are nice too overall. While we were looking at the mini chocolate chip muffins, he needed to use his ladder to get something, and he patiently waited, and told us to continue what we were doing. Unexpected.
****when signing up, beware that they will try to sell you the executive membership, for double the normal membership ($ 110 versus $ 55), and the idea is that you get 2% back on all your purchases with the executive plan. However, unless you own a store and do massive shopping, 2% will never make that extra charge worth it. Mark did his best to sway us, but we were firm.

My first visit to a warehouse store, with my fiancée to buy bulk items for our guest bags for overnight hotel guests. The place is indeed impressive, and while the items are stored in an clean way, there is no guidance when it comes to finding things. It took my 20 minutes to find an open pallet of 54 bag chip boxes were, even though you see the stored pallets all over the place in the higher racks.
Checkout was quick and efficient though, and there is a decent amount of parking.

I had to pay for parking after spending so much money there ???
Good store. Not enough help. And cafeteria is always packed.

I’m glad I now live walking distance from this newer Costco, but after having shopped at both the LIC and Inwood, the only remarkable thing about the Rego Park Costco is the Aldi’s competition upstairs. Rego Park also lacks many of the healthier «Trader Joe’like» choices you may find regularly stocked at the Inwood Costco.
I would caution anyone looking to do Progressive prescription eyeglasses to avoid Costco Optical, because they only offer low digital progressives, which are the narrowest and shortest +add channel on the market. this means you are likely to move your head a lot while trying to read something with them on.
I will post a separate review of Emily Chu, OD their in house Optician.

I went to this Costco Rego Park, and I find the customer service poor. Every one is oblivious to the customer. My cashier was horrible. They need customer service training its Soooooooo sad!!!
Please note that I love Costco’s but this locations customer service is lousy!!!

Horrendous and unfamiliar layout that shamed the Costco name, but otherwise your average experience (at least for this pedestrian who didn’t brave the parking garage), aside of course from ALL THE OPEN BOXES. Really, folks? (see photos, I gave up after the third in the first 5 minutes) The sample stands aren’t sufficient so you help yourself? Really?

Ah, FoHi Costco — How I fear thee…
This place is a MAD HOUSE. Good luck getting your car in and out of THAT parking lot in 1 piece — AND you have to pay to get your car dinged up! There is ALWAYS a fight in the parking lot and it usually involves someone very young and someone very very old.
Once you get inside, its hit or be hit — Yes, with a shopping cart. Rude people will tap you or or flat out push you with their cart if you are in the way. I got hit twice while signing up for membership, while trying to fight off a guy who played the «let me stand next to you then ease up hoping you won’t notice I’m cutting you» game. Seriously man? STEP BACK!
Quick stop by the food court $ 1.50 for a Hot Dog and Soda! We try to sit down as several open spots but were told they were taken, even got yelled at by a child. My husband asked where our soda was, I said it was on the counter, looked over and some kids nose was literally in it. Lets move on now…
You hop and dodge your way through the ripped packages of food and finally end up at the registers. Last time, the guy in front of me began checking out and «disappeared». Apparently he wasn’t done shopping, so we all waited… for him to shop and run back shouting Sorry! 15 minutes later. Yes we just waited there…
THIS time… the lady behind me with a HUGE cart questioned me about my pillows. She molested them (with my permission) then asked me where I got them. Then, with her cart still behind me in line, she left to go find these pillows. Good luck to the people behind her!
Ah, the last step– receipt check on the way out. I was 6^th in line and BOTH checkers just wander outside to take a break. The line builds. We just wait for them to come back, the line continues building. No one can leave. Great.
One good thing though, this Costco carried Moon Cake during Moon Cake Day. Not every Costco does. $ 12 for a box– Steal!

Hands down, the best one stop place for everything! Forget BJs, Costco outbeats them by a mile and more. They have more variety and fresher food than Bjs.
What I love getting here that I can’t find anywhere else are their Acai Berry Juice and their Golden Crush Jamaican Beef patties! Their poland spring pack comes in 35 bottles instead of 28 (which BJs sells). No more clipping coupons! You just scan the book and the machine does everything for you! Love Love Love. In NJ, they have really cheap gas too!
One con: The only credit card they accept is american express, but it’s all good!