Why Costco Sometimes Just Doesn't Cut It For Buying Meat (Quite Literally)

A steak is always so much more than just a steak. It's a fancy chateaubriand or filet mignon, substantial T-bone or mighty porterhouse, or one of many flavorful cuts that still remain affordable. You just might not be able to access that full, beefy spectrum if you're shopping at Costco exclusively. Costco does not typically provide custom cuts or any of the other little extras you might find at your neighborhood butcher.

Costco, as every bulk-loving American knows, trades mostly in big boxes (or bags, jars, and other containers) of products, all in its signature warehouse stores. That means while you'll likely have an easy time sourcing, say, 14 ribeye steaks to feed all of your favorite, carnivorous friends, Costco's butchers really aren't there to trim your tenderloin just so or even portion it down to particular measurements. There may be a Costco outlier here and there, but while you can pick up a quality case of New York strip or sirloin (and even in smaller quantities such as four cuts or so), Costco just isn't situated to French cut a rib roast or surface a relatively lesser-seen steak cut. Your local butcher is the better bet for those nuances than Costco's otherwise one-stop warehouse locations.

Costco will more than likely have plenty of crowd-pleasing steaks in stock, but you can ask your local butcher about — and ultimately for – some underrated cuts of beef that might eventually make it into your weekly cooking repertoire. Costco is obviously perceived as a value-forward retailer, but you might also save some cash by swapping some of your typical beef choices with relatively less popular options, like bavette or Denver steaks, now and then. And you'll have better luck buying meat from a butcher instead of Costco.

A patient butcher may also take the time to answer all of your meaty questions and even provide an extra functional perk or two. If tenderizing at home just isn't in the cards due to time, space, or even the noise a heavy mallet can wreak upon your kitchen, a butcher may be able to do it for you. The same goes for grinding your next favorite burger blend or even tying up your roasts so you can get them into the oven just a little quicker. So, while Costco may have a lot to offer, it does a little less than your neighborhood butcher can.