Why You Don't See Costco's Kirkland Signature Boxed Mac And Cheese On Shelves Anymore

When people think of Costco, they think of the free food samples, the various Costco food court items (all of which we have ranked), and Kirkland Signature brand items. Items with the Kirkland Signature label are the retailer's own private label items and are typically only found in Costco warehouses. The private brand has everything from olive oil to paper towels and everything in between and has become widely recognized as a major part of the Costco brand.

Although very successful, Kirkland Signature doesn't always get it right, not even with tried and true classics like mac and cheese. Previously, Costco stocked Kirkland boxed mac and cheese on its shelves but it was pulled from warehouses after customers frequently returned it. The general consensus from customers was that the boxed mac and cheese just tasted plain awful, resulting in mass returns. The few that liked it admitted they needed to add a few extra ingredients to upgrade the mac and cheese and that by itself it was not worth it. It's hard to imagine messing up a beloved classic this badly but apparently that's exactly what happened, as one customer even went so far as to say the product tasted like soap.

The boxed mac and cheese disappeared very quietly with no public fanfare. There's very little remaining about the product, other than customers' complaints online and encouraging each other to seek out other boxed mac and cheese products. Since then, Costco has released a new Kirkland mac and cheese, this time refrigerated instead of boxed, and it has generally fared better. All in all, while there are plenty of discontinued Costco products that we were sad to see go, the Kirkland Signature boxed mac and cheese was not one of them, and it has been fittingly replaced.

The newer iteration of Kirkland Signature mac and cheese is quite a leap from the boxed version. It now comes pre-made and can be found in the deli section of your local Costco warehouse. Granted, it does take considerably longer to make than the previous boxed version, requiring 40 to 60 minutes of cooking time, but that doesn't seem to be a chief complaint among customers so far.

For most customers, the taste and texture of this Kirkland Signature product far outweighs that of the boxed version. Customers have complimented the creamy texture of this newer iteration and said that the larger size corkscrew noodles are both fun in shape and great in texture thanks to the ribbed pattern on the spirals. They've also pointed out that the noodles don't get overly soggy and that there's just enough sauce to coat but not overwhelm the pasta in the dish.

Of course, this is not to imply that the dish is perfect; it still has its share of haters. The biggest complaint customers have is that they feel the sauce is underwhelming in taste and feels too bland. Additionally, the tray it comes in isn't actually oven safe so you do have to transfer it to a different dish for cooking, taking away from the convenience of it all. Despite these complaints, it appears that this new Kirkland Signature mac and cheese product ultimately triumphs in comparison to the mass returns that the boxed mac and cheese previously suffered.