Shopping at Costco Japan
Wagyu steaks, bulgogi bakes and fresh fish galore are just a few of the differences at Costco in Japan.
As of 2020, there are 27 Costco warehouses in Japan.
Their business membership is 4,235 JPY a year, their gold star membership is 4,840 JPY a year. You can use your US membership in Japan as well, but apparently a Japanese membership is required for online ordering and delivery.
Costco is one of the beloved shopping destinations for many expats as they sell a lot of items from back home that can be hard to find at normal shops in Japan.
They do, however, have a lot that are only in Japan.
Here are some of my favorites at the Tamakyo Costco location, just west of Tokyo.
Japanese Wagyu beef steaks. A4 grade. From Hokkaido and Ibaraki prefectures
Japanese Wagyu beef, sliced for stir fry. A4 grade. From Tochigi and Iwate prefectures.
Japanese Wagyu beef, sliced for yakiniku BBQ. A4 grade. From Hokkaido and Iwate prefectures.
Korean bulgogi
Beef garlic rice
Fresh fish for sashimi, and 50-piece sushi platters
Uni packed in salt water
Ikura. From Hokkaido prefecture.
Hawaiian ahi (tuna) poke
Salmon
Nihonshu (Japanese sake) and other alcohol
Egg tarts
Pineapple smoothies, soft serve ice cream from Hokkaido, cold brew, coffee and lattes, cheeseburgers, hotdogs, pizza, bulgogi bakes, clam chowder and chicken caesar salad at the Costco food court in Japan
Keep in touch:
Here’s how Japanese in Japan and Japanese-Americans in Hawaii celebrate Japanese New Year’s differently.