Costco Wholesale — Local services in North Brunswick Township

With some rare and recognizable exceptions, the staff in this North Brunswick branch range from inattentive to downright rude. Like many other families, ours have become dependent on Costco for affordable yet good-quality products for the last 10 years. Thus, we have to put up with low quality service of New Jersey's Costco stores since moving here 4 years ago (first Edison, and now N Brunswick branch).

Today is one of really low point for my Costco experience. Early on, I had to defend my decision to return a Shark Rocket vacuum cleaner to an unfriendly lady after it simply stopped working after 4-5 months. While annoying experience like that happens quite often, what happened next just compounded it multiple times over.

It rained after we checked out and I had to ask my 22-week-pregnant wife and 7-year-old son to wait inside while I ran out to get the car in the parking lot. I drove back to pick them up (and the goods in the shopping cart) near the store so that they don't have to be too wet. There were about 3 other cars doing that, although my car was a little closer to the store by encroaching their orange-coned area (adjacent to the store) with about half of the car. A female staff went out to confront me in the rain while I was loading and our short exchange were as followed, almost exact to the words:

She: Sir, I know you have to be quick and go back to your family [sounds quite reasonable...], but you are not allowed to do this. There's really NO EXCUSE [the emphasis on "no excuse" jars with her seeming sympathy with family earlier]. I [somewhat annoyed with the aggression]: My son and my wife's pregnancy is my excuse, OK? She [with eyes wide open]: Even if your wife is in labor right now, you can still get a ticket. I [while turning away]: I hear you

I felt more and more ANGRY the whole 30-minute drive back to Princeton. Really, Costco will not be sympathetic with me stopping the car next to their store, "EVEN IF MY WIFE IS IN LABOR". Either Costco has become a dehumanized large corporate, or this staff is way out of line in the scale of customer mistreatement. I'm surprised with so many 4 and 5-star ratings that this branch has. Maybe most stores are always crowded in this area and people are used to less than average customer service. They should really visit states with fewer people, like Boulder, Colorado where I spent 10 years, to really understand high-quality customer service from happy staff.

The sad thing is: We'll probably have to continue shopping...

I purchased this meat from Costco, and it was in terrible condition. When I returned to the store to address the issue, I spoke with the customer service supervisor, who apologized. However, when I requested to speak with a manager, Miguel came over and showed no concern for the issue. Instead of asking what had happened, his only focus was that the purchase had been made using an EBT card and that the refund needed to be processed back to it. He didn’t even offer an apology.

My father is battling cancer and recently had a transplant, making him immunocompromised. The thought of him consuming this contaminated meat and potentially developing a bacterial infection or illness is terrifying. Whoever selected this meat for sale either ignored its condition or intentionally placed it on the shelf, assuming that EBT recipients wouldn’t complain.

Let me be clear—people who rely on food assistance are not trying to scam anyone. These programs exist to help individuals and families access necessities, and how someone pays for their food should never determine the quality of what they receive. The real issue here is food safety. Selling spoiled or contaminated meat is dangerous and puts lives at risk. If Costco is knowingly allowing this to happen, they are jeopardizing the health of their customers. This isn’t just about a refund—it’s about accountability and ensuring that no one else is put in harm’s way.

Interestingly, about an hour after I left the store, Miguel called and left a voicemail apologizing. This only happened after I informed the supervisor that I would be contacting Costco’s corporate office and the health department.

It’s important to note that I never asked for anything not a refund, not a replacement. My only concern was what could have happened if my dad had eaten this meat, or if someone else unknowingly purchased it. All I wanted was an apology and for the issue to be addressed properly. This situation needs to be taken seriously,store leads must be aware to prevent this from...

Today I had a very unpleasant experience at this location. I went to the customer service desk to ask if it was possible to exchange my ring for a larger size, since after my second pregnancy it no longer fits me. A very polite associate tried to help, looked up all the purchase information in my account, and then called the manager. Also she told me that the chances of exchanging, returning, or repurchasing the ring were slim since it’s a diamond piece and was purchased several years ago.

While waiting for the manager, I started feeling very anxious, which gave me a stomachache and a headache. When the manager finally arrived, he didn’t explain anything or apologize—he simply said “no.” That kind of response was very upsetting, and at that moment I just wanted to leave the store. However, I still needed some groceries, so I continued shopping.

The situation got even worse at the exit. An employee there told me to take my child out of the cart so she could check every single item. I asked, “Is this a joke?” and told her that I would never return to this location again. Instead of checking the items properly, she immediately called the manager over. When the manager came, she only looked through my cart superficially, without actually checking everything as the employee had said she would. This made me even more upset. I told her, “Then check every item, like you said before! Count them!” She replied, “I’m not going to count.”

Why make such a big deal about checking if in the end you don’t even do it thoroughly? This entire situation completely ruined my state of mind. I will never return to this location again. Many longtime customers have already noticed what’s happening with Costco—prices have gone way up, employees are rude, and there’s no willingness to work with customers. Maybe one day America will feel “great” again, but...