13 Discontinued Products From Costco We Wish We Had Back

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For those who love to shop in bulk or get products their normal grocery stores might not have, Costco is the absolute best place to go. The best thing about Costco is its variety. You can head there to stock up on groceries for weeks, but you can also get pharmaceutical items, electronics, computers, furniture, outdoor living, appliances, jewelry, and so much more.

Since the first location opened in 1976, Costco's membership warehouse club has grown to hundreds of locations worldwide. The store prides itself on bringing the best possible prices to quality, brand-name merchandise. Most Costcos even offers a food court, so if you get tired of shopping and need a snack break, you can sit and eat.

Because of the wide array of items, walking around Costco is somewhat of an event. You spend a lot of time browsing and often come across products or items you might not have put on your shopping list, but cannot seem to leave the store without.

The downside of the store's longevity, however, is that a lot of fan favorites have gone the way of the dodo. Below, a trip down memory lane with 13 discontinued Costco products that we all desperately wish we had back.

Part of the huge appeal of a long shopping trip at Costco — especially for children dragged there by their parents — is the food court. Menu items like hot dogs, chicken bake, and turkey sandwiches are perfect for your lunch or dinner needs, and their twisted churros and various ice cream flavors make for a delicious dessert or snack. 

One item that was a long-ago sought after treat from the Costco food court were Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels, which were discontinued more than a decade ago. These pretzels were soft, with a thick coating of cinnamon and powdered sugar that turned the savory pretzel into a delicious dessert.

However, this treat can no longer be found. In 2013, one Costco customer posted on Costco's Facebook page, pleading with them to reconsider. "Please Costco, you are messing with lives here," read the post. "Bring back the pretzels." 

Technically, the Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels were replaced with the food court's cinnamon twisted churros. The taste is quite different, with the churro having a crispier, more intense coating of sugar. Compared with the well balanced Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel, the churro is a bit disappointing.

Part of Costco's efforts to ease the blow of discontinued food court items has always been to conceptualize new products to take their place. One example of this was the Chocolate Frozen Yogurt, offered in an attempt to help ease the pain of the fallen Hand Dipped Ice Cream bars.

Ultimately, the Chocolate Frozen Yogurt might be remembered as one of the best "replacements" in Costco history. This delicious treat was less intense than ice cream, but thicker than soft serve. The chocolate flavor was a much better choice than the vanilla, and perfect captured the texture of ice cream.

Like the All-American Chocolate Cake and the Hand Dipped Ice Cream Bar, the Chocolate Frozen Yogurt eventually was retired itself — and like those other products, a petition-wielding group of malcontents organized themselves in opposition. One Costco patron even made a blog post talking about how disappointed they were to see the Chocolate Frozen Yogurt go. "Something as plain vanilla [as] plain vanilla is not going to do it for me. Bye, bye Costco!"  

The chain eventually decided to replace the Chocolate Frozen Yogurt with an acai bowl complete with fruit and granola, hoping that would satiate the food court customers. This fruity treat, though delicious, was not enough to make patrons forget about the beloved Chocolate Frozen Yogurt. One Reddit user posted a picture of the replacement Chocolate Frozen Yogurt, and said: "Swirl yogurt cup will never be the same again."

Naturally, among the main benefits of shopping at Costco is you can get your items in bulk. Stand outside and you'll see large cases of water, soda, and other options weighing down shopping carts as they go past. One of the more popular beverages from yesteryear, however, is no longer offered: Kirkland Iced Green Tea bottles, which were sold in a pack of 35. 

Once upon a time, these bottles of Iced Green Tea were a great way to drink something refreshing, not too sugary, with a dash of citrus. Now, they are gone.

Part of the convenience with these bottles was that you didn't have to brew the tea yourself. As opposed to Kirkland Green Tea Bags, and those who would brew their own green tea at home, the taste of the bottled Iced Green Tea was wholly unique. The citrus taste contrasted with the tea, making for what many considered the superior taste. 

"There is a quality control issue from the manufacturer," one Reddit user posited in 2018. "Once it is rectified the tea will return to (warehouses) once supply returns." A half-decade later, folks are still waiting; don't hold your breath.

As Costco loyalists are well aware, Kirkland brand makes many different kinds of frozen pizzas. But one pie ruled the roost for years: The "Take and Bake," available in pepperoni and cheese varieties that were popular for their compatibility with those feed-the-family-fast moments. Unlike frozen pizza — which required defrosting and a significant expenditure of time — Take and Bake was an easy way to feed everyone in your home. Oddly enough, at a time when people were more together under one roof than any other in recent memory, it was the COVID-19 pandemic that seemed to wipe away the Kirkland Take and Bake.

Customers were sad to see the familiar pizza go. While obvious would-be replacements include a variety of brand-name frozen pizzas and the food court pizza slices, neither is as good an option to feed your whole family at home in such a quick way. The Kirkland Take and Bake pizza is deeply missed — for many Costco shoppers, it will always have a pizza their heart.

Another Kirkland product gone but not forgotten, the Strawberry Margarita made with Gold Tequila harnessed 100% cane sugar, triple sec liqueur, and real lime juice to put an at-the-ready cocktail within arm's reach should friends should ever stop by unexpectedly and start blasting Jimmy Buffet songs. A ready-to-drink delight, the only thing you had to really concern yourself with was whether to drink it with or without a salted rim. 

A relatively recent casualty, Costco discontinued the adult beverage at the start of 2023 — denying would be consumers like a disapproving convenience store clerk confronted with a "McLovin'" driver's license. Customers were disappointed with the absence of this convenient, delicious, quite affordable party night pick up, but could perhaps console themselves with news that the Golden Margarita is still on shelves. So mix that with some strawberry puree if you must, round up your local parrot heads, and pour one out in memory of the Kirkland Signature Strawberry Margarita made with Gold Tequila.

The next fallen snack comes not from Kirkland, but Kellogg's. 

Anybody who's ever watched a "Scooby Doo" show has likely hungered for the Scooby Snacks that always seem to motivate the crime-solving dog, Scooby Doo Grahams offered not only a twist on graham cracker treat, but also a fun way for kiddos (and perhaps a few grown-ups) to re-create their favorite Mystery Machine adventures.

The graham cracker sticks resembled bones, and were made with whole grain and cinnamon. They came in packs, usually 12 of them, and made a great snack.

Now, with Scooby Doo Grahams gone, there's no real replacement unless you just want to go with traditional graham crackers. Which is a shame, because the Scooby Doo Grahams had a thicker texture, a cinnamon finish and a fun gimmick that that took the taste of a graham cracker and elevated it a bit. 

Costco's loss, however, might be another chain's gain: Other stores still carry the Kellogg's Scooby Doo Grahams; you can even order them through Amazon.