Costco’s June restock landed heavy this week. We walked the aisles, scanned the deli case, hit the freezer wall, and pulled twenty of the most-talked-about new items off the shelves to weigh in on. Fifteen earned a place in our cart. Five didn’t. Sizes, prices, and an honest verdict on every one.
The Quick Verdict Table
| Verdict | Count |
|---|---|
| BUY | 15 |
| SKIP | 5 |
This week’s headlines: The new Kirkland Smoked Pork Back Ribs are the easiest weeknight dinner Costco has launched in months, the Frosty Peach and Mango Fruit-Shaped Ice Cream is selling out within 48 hours of restocks, and a brand-new Kinder’s Variety Seasoning Pack puts 16 grill rubs on your shelf for the price of three at the grocery store.
BUY — The 15 Worth a Trip
1. Kirkland Signature Smoked Pork Back Ribs — ~2 lb rack, $10.20/lb
What it is: Fully cooked, dry-brined baby back ribs naturally wood-smoked, sold sealed in the refrigerated meat case. Each rack runs roughly $17 to $20 total. No sauce — bring your own.
Why it works: Heat the sealed bag on a sheet pan at 200°F for one hour, broil two minutes, brush with your sauce, done. That is a 60-minute hands-off “I forgot to thaw something” dinner that tastes like a real BBQ joint. The rub is balanced enough that you can serve them plain.
Verdict: BUY. Stash one or two racks in the fridge for any week your dinner plan falls apart.
2. Frosty Peach and Mango Fruit-Shaped Ice Cream — 15.9 oz, 6-count, $11.49
What it is: Six individually wrapped ice cream novelties molded to look like real peaches and mangoes — three of each — coated in white and milk chocolate shells with matching fruit-flavored ice cream inside. About $1.92 a piece.
Why it works: Shoppers have been racing to find these because warehouses are selling out within 48 hours of restocks. The shells crack like a Magnum bar; the inside actually tastes like the fruit on the package. Perfect for a backyard cookout dessert plate.
Verdict: BUY. Grab two boxes if your warehouse has them — they freeze for months and disappear the day after a barbecue.
3. Nature’s Garden Probiotic Yoggies Variety Pack — 30 bags, $14.99
What it is: Yogurt-coated fruit bites in two summer flavors — Mango-Peach and Lemonberry — 15 bags of each, with two billion probiotic cultures per bag. About 50 cents a snack bag.
Why it works: A real grab-and-go for lunchboxes, road trips, and the glove compartment. The yogurt coating melts faster than the freeze-dried fruit pieces inside, so each handful gets sweet then chewy. Strong “I need a small treat” snack for the 3 p.m. slump.
Verdict: BUY. Cheaper per bag than any single-pouch dried fruit at the grocery store.
4. Slate Mocha Latte Protein Coffee — 8 oz, 16-count, $22.99
What it is: Lactose-free canned protein coffee with 20 grams of protein and 125 milligrams of caffeine per can. Sixteen cans for $22.99 — about $1.44 each.
Why it works: This is a real Premier Protein / Fairlife alternative for members who want coffee built into the protein drink instead of a separate shake. The mocha flavor leans real-chocolate, not artificial. Same-day pickup price is wildly better than the $3-plus per can at convenience stores.
Verdict: BUY. A morning-protein replacement that actually fits in a cup holder.
5. Kirkland Signature Shrimp Ceviche Salad — $11.99/lb (deli case)
What it is: A returning deli item — large trays of cooked shrimp tossed with diced bell peppers, red onion, cilantro, lime, and olive oil. Yes, the shrimp is pre-cooked. Treat it as a shrimp salad and you will love it.
Why it works: Scoop it onto tortilla chips with a squeeze of fresh lime, or pile it into avocado halves for a no-cook summer lunch. The peppers stay crunchy for three days in the fridge. A 1.5-pound tray feeds four people as an appetizer.
Verdict: BUY. Skip the “is it really ceviche” debate. The flavor is there, the price is fair, and it is the single fastest summer entertaining dish in the deli case right now.
6. Kinder’s Variety Seasoning Pack — 16 containers, $49.99
What it is: Sixteen jars of Kinder’s seasonings — Cowboy Butter, Carne Asada, Red Jalapeno Garlic, and more — for $49.99. That works out to roughly $3.12 a jar. Grocery store price runs $7 to $9 each.
Why it works: Kinder’s is the seasoning brand grilling forums have been raving about for years, and a 16-pack at half the per-jar cost is the kind of pantry investment that pays back the first time you use it. Cowboy Butter on chicken thighs is genuinely worth the membership.
Verdict: BUY. If you grill more than twice a month, this pays for itself before the Fourth of July.
7. Loacker Classic Strawberry Crispy Wafers — 15.9 oz, 12-count, $10.49
What it is: Twelve individually wrapped strawberry-cream wafer packs from the Italian Loacker brand. No artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. About 87 cents a pack.
Why it works: A clean-ingredient pantry sweet that hits the airy, crunchy, light-cream texture the chocolate version made famous. Kids will inhale them; adults will use them as a coffee-break snack at the office desk. Long shelf life.
Verdict: BUY. Cheaper than the same Loacker pack at World Market or Italian groceries.
8. Poppi Shirley Temple Soda — 12 oz, 18-count, $26.49
What it is: A retro Shirley Temple-flavored prebiotic soda from Poppi — cherry-grenadine forward with the brand’s apple cider vinegar base. Eighteen cans for $26.49, about $1.47 each.
Why it works: Online single-can pricing runs $2.49 and up. The flavor leans nostalgic — cherry, a little citrus, less sweet than a Coke. For members who have moved off diet soda, this is the easiest swap in the cooler. Stocks an entire summer party.
Verdict: BUY. Pair with the kids’ menu nostalgia and the adults will reach for it too.
9. Yerba Madre Organic Yerba Mate Variety Pack — 155 fl oz, 12-count, $28.99
What it is: Twelve cans of organic yerba mate in three summer flavors (Berry Lemonade, Peach Revival, Bravo Mango), 150 mg of plant-based caffeine each, zero added sugar. $2.42 a can.
Why it works: Real afternoon-pick-me-up without the jitters of an energy drink. The Bravo Mango flavor is the standout — light, fruity, and the caffeine builds slow. Great for the 2 p.m. desk slump or pre-yard-work hydration.
Verdict: BUY. Anyone who has been paying $3.50 a can at gas stations should switch.
10. Sencha Naturals Emperor’s Ceremonial Matcha — 3-pack of 1.06 oz tins, $39.99
What it is: Three 1.06 oz tins of high-grade Japanese ceremonial matcha — first-harvest, sourced from family farms. Roughly $13 a tin; specialty tea shops charge $25 to $40 for the same size.
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Why it works: If a household member has gotten into matcha lattes, this is the single best price-per-gram on real ceremonial grade in the country right now. The flavor is the genuine umami-grassy-mildly-sweet profile, not the bitter $8 supermarket can.
Verdict: BUY. Worth the $40 outlay only if matcha is in regular rotation; skip if you tried it once and shrugged.
11. Peugeot Grill to Table Ceramic Pizza Stone — 13.4-inch, $64.99
What it is: A 13.4-inch ceramic pizza stone from Peugeot’s Grill to Table line. Enameled finish, grill- and oven-safe to 750°F, includes a serving handle. $64.99.
Why it works: Two upgrades over a standard pizza stone: the enameled surface wipes clean instead of staining and absorbing oils, and the integrated handle lets you carry the stone from grill to dinner table with the pizza still on it. Reaches 750°F so a thin crust char-blisters in 4 minutes flat.
Verdict: BUY. A real upgrade pick for anyone doing summer pizza nights on the grill.
12. Denmark 16-Piece Dinnerware Set — Service for 4, $46.99
What it is: Sixteen pieces of stoneware — dinner plates, salad plates, bowls, and mugs in a clean modern shape — service for four. $46.99 works out to under $3 a piece.
Why it works: For members refreshing a cabin, a starter apartment, or replacing a chipped-up everyday set, this is a real-furniture-grade dinnerware bundle at fast-furniture pricing. Dishwasher and microwave safe. Stoneware weight means it does not feel cheap on the table.
Verdict: BUY. Better-looking than the Target or IKEA equivalent at the same total cost.
13. Bloom Sparkling Energy Drink Summer Splash — 12 fl oz, 12-count, $21.49
What it is: Twelve cans of Bloom Nutrition’s sparkling energy drink in three summer flavors. 180 mg of plant-based caffeine per can. About $1.79 a can.
Why it works: Lighter and less syrupy than Celsius or Monster, sweet-tangy fruit profile that drinks easy at the pool. The brand has been a viral favorite this year and Costco’s pricing undercuts every grocery store by at least a dollar a can. Mix into a cooler with the Yerba Madre and the Poppi for a no-alcohol summer entertaining lineup.
Verdict: BUY. Get one case to see which flavor your household defaults to, then stock up.
14. Lay’s FIFA World Cup 26 Variety Pack — 31 oz, 26-bag pack, $12.13
What it is: Twenty-six snack-size Lay’s bags featuring four flavors — Original plus three limited-edition World Cup flavors: Argentinian-Style Steak with Chimichurri, Brazilian-Style Garlic Sauce, and Wavy French Onion Soup. $12.13 for the whole carton, about 47 cents a bag.
Why it works: Limited edition. The Argentinian Chimichurri is the surprise of the bunch — actually tastes like real chimichurri, not a chemical approximation. Stash a few in lunch bags for the next 60 days because once the tournament ends, these vanish.
Verdict: BUY. Lower per-bag price than a regular Lay’s variety pack, and three flavors you cannot get anywhere else.
15. Amylu Teriyaki Beef Sticks — 1 oz, 14-count, $15.89
What it is: Fourteen individually wrapped beef sticks from Amylu — 100 percent grass-fed beef, 9 grams of protein each, no nitrites added beyond what is in cultured celery powder. About $1.14 a stick.
Why it works: Most warehouses sell jerky in giant bags that go stale fast. The individually wrapped 1 oz format throws three in your bag for a hike, one in the glove box, two in the desk drawer. Teriyaki flavor is real soy-ginger, not the cloying “teriyaki” of cheap brands.
Verdict: BUY. Worth it for the format alone; the protein-per-dollar is the bonus.
SKIP — Five That Did Not Earn the Cart Space
16. Monster Energy Drink Ultra Red, White, and Blue Razz — 16 oz, 18-count, $36.99
What it is: Eighteen cans of Monster Ultra zero-sugar energy drink in a limited-edition Fourth of July razz flavor. $2.05 a can.
Why we are passing: Per-can price is identical to grocery-store sale pricing on regular Monster Ultra, and the razz flavor itself is a one-note artificial berry that drinks too sweet after two sips. The patriotic can design is the only thing new here. If you are a Monster loyalist already, fine; if not, the Bloom or Yerba Madre upstairs are cleaner, cheaper picks.
Verdict: SKIP. Not a meaningful upgrade and not actually a deal.
17. Gatorade Thirst Quencher Liberty Variety Pack — 12 fl oz, 28-count, $18.99
What it is: Twenty-eight small Gatorade bottles in Glacier Cherry, Cool Blue, and Fruit Punch — under 68 cents a bottle.
Why we are passing: The math sounds good until you realize the 12 oz bottle size is the in-between Gatorade format you can already find on grocery sale weeks at the same per-bottle cost. Walmart and Target run 24-packs at $13.99 every other month. No new flavors, no formula change, just a patriotic label run for the World Cup summer.
Verdict: SKIP. Get the bigger 32 oz bottles or wait for a grocery BOGO week.
18. Skittles Gummies Variety Pack — 42 oz, 9-bag pack, $16.89
What it is: Nine bags of Skittles Gummies in Original, Wild Berry, and Sour. About $1.88 a bag.
Why we are passing: Skittles Gummies are a polarizing texture — chewier and stickier than a real gummy candy, with the same “did I just bite into a piece of plastic” mouthfeel of the original Skittles. At nearly $2 a bag for what is essentially a single-serving size, the value is not there compared to a $4 standard-format bag of Haribo at the grocery store that lasts twice as long.
Verdict: SKIP. Stick with the original Skittles if you must, or skip Skittles altogether and grab the Loacker wafers upstairs.
19. Korean BBQ Spam — 12 oz, 8-count, $25.99 to $28.99
What it is: Eight cans of Spam in a Korean BBQ flavor — soy, ginger, garlic, paprika, and a touch of gochujang. Roughly $3.25 to $3.62 a can.
Why we are passing: Real Korean grocery stores sell better Korean-style canned meats and lunch meats for less, and an 8-can commitment of any flavored Spam is a lot to ask of a household that does not eat Spam every week. The gochujang spice level is mild enough that it does not land as a true Korean BBQ flavor — more “Spam with sweet soy.” Single-can curiosity buy fine; eight-pack not so much.
Verdict: SKIP. Try one can from an Asian market first.
20. PATH Ultra-Purified Water — 25 fl oz, 12-pack, $35.99
What it is: Twelve 25 oz recyclable aluminum bottles of ultra-purified water with electrolytes. $3 a bottle.
Why we are passing: Three dollars for a bottle of water — even a 25 oz aluminum bottle of “ultra-purified with electrolytes” water — is a premium aesthetic play, not a value buy. The aluminum bottle is genuinely better for the environment than plastic, but a reusable Yeti or even a $6 grocery-store stainless bottle and a Brita pitcher solves the same problem for life. If you cannot live without electrolytes, the Liquid I.V. variety packs Costco also sells deliver more electrolyte content for less.
Verdict: SKIP. The bottle is cute. The water is just water.
Costco’s June restock is genuinely one of the busier months we have tracked in a year. Most warehouses will rotate at least half of these items out by mid-July, so if any of the buys above caught your eye, this week is the trip to make. We will be back next week with the new July arrivals and a fresh round of verdicts.
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