TikTok Is Recreating A Beloved '30 Rock' Pizza Hack At Costco
Costco's food courts have a variety of food items, perfect to refuel after a long, exhausting shopping trip, or just to pick up a quick bite to eat (Did you know that you can pick up an entire Costco pizza to take home for only $10, as per Costco Menu?) Additionally, the famed quarter-pound hot dog is notoriously low-priced, at the insistence of Costco's founder — a hot dog and drink will cost you only $1.50.
Though Costco's food court menu might be satisfactory as-is for most, some people seek out online "hacks" in order to invent something new. You can create your own root beer float with vanilla fro-yo and self-serve soda, a chili cheese dog with a cup of chili and a hot dog, or a Cinnamon Mocha Freeze by simply dipping a sweet churro into a mocha freeze drink (per Kitchn). And as Aisle of Shame notes, you can even get your Costco pizza delivered. One TikTok user shared their hack for combining a pizza slice with another food court classic, but some couldn't help but see the resemblance to a fictional food.
This isn't the first time people have seen this food
The original video, from @twistytowertowercrane on TikTok, shows a customer purchasing a hot dog and a slice of pizza from Costco. The customer removes the hot dog from the bun, positions it at the end of the pizza slice, and rolls it up, allowing the slice of pizza to act as the new bun. The customer then covers it in tin foil, saying, "Now we just let it cool down," perhaps allowing the cheese and bread to settle into their new form around the hot dog.
While this hack might be perfect for those who don't want to choose between the two foods at the Costco food court, some TikTok users couldn't help but notice that the resulting food strongly resembled one that once made an appearance on the sitcom "30 Rock" (via Peacock). The comment section was filled with users referring to "cheesy blasters" — a fictional food featured in one scene from the show.
TikTok users noticed the resemblance
The scene in question, which can be viewed on YouTube, occurs in the first episode of season 4 of "30 Rock." Four characters are out to dinner at an Asian fusion restaurant, and are served what Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) refers to as "cheesy blasters." She sings a song about the food item, describing it as a hot dog stuffed with Jack cheese, then folded into a slice of pizza. She goes on to describe the commercial, where the mascot "Meat Cat" rides off on a skateboard. Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) tells the other diners that it is "the number one selling food in the rest of America."
The TikTok was stitched by user @actorevanb, who included a clip of the episode where Liz Lemon sings the song from the commercial. That video was then duetted by TikTok user @gracktacular, who started off by saying "I'm down for a Costco hack." Once they realize what was being made, however, they say, "Looks like he's doing a cheesy blaster!" As the video continues, they sing the song in time with Liz Lemon, and finish quoting the scene.