The Costco Food Court Pizza Hack That's Too Obvious Not To Try

To fully appreciate Costco, one must also enjoy its adjoined food court. Maybe you grab the bargain-priced hot dog the CEO swears won't see a price hike, or perhaps you take home a whole pizza so you don't have to cook dinner after a shopping haul. But if a single slice of cheese or pepperoni pie is your post-shopping order, Costco members have gotten quite inventive with a food court hack to make it even tastier.

The trick involves the diced white onions that are typically available as a garnish for the beloved hot dog. Costco pulled the diced white onions from its food courts during the pandemic, but they have since popped back up in the warehouses. In a recent Reddit thread, a Redditor poses this question with a photo to prove their commitment: "Anyone tried putting the onions on the pizza?" The thread garnered nearly 1,000 upvotes and 270 comments — with mixed responses. 

You might prefer cooked onions on pizza, but since the pies slung at the warehouse are quite simple, it's worth trying. Raw, white onions provide a mild bite and subtle sweetness, similar to how the ingredient is used on street tacos. There's also no charge for the onions, so there's no harm in adding a spoonful — you can always take them off if the first bite isn't satisfying.

I didn't spot the diced onions on the counter during a recent trip to my local Costco food court, but I've seen them there in past months, so perhaps they ran out for the day. If this happens to you, there are a couple of other ways to upgrade your slice. The warehouse food court typically offers packets of red pepper flakes, which are ideal for adding heat to your pizza. Otherwise, sprinkle a packet of grated Parmesan cheese that's also usually available at the counter. And if all else fails, consider a squirt of ketchup on your slice for some sweet tanginess.

This isn't the only upgrade to the menu items that has gone sort of viral. Another savory upgrade to Costco's food court pizza is to buy a hot dog and wrap the meat inside the slice for a quasi-pizza taco of sorts. Prefer a sweet treat before you head home? Tasting Table recently reported on the Costco food court ice cream hack, which calls for crumbling the new chocolate chunk cookie and using it as a topping for your sundae. Or you can really go all out and buy two cookies and ice cream to make an ice cream sandwich with soft serve.