What You Need To Know Before Splurging On Costco's A5 Wagyu Surf & Turf Pack

Costco sells many items on its website that are not actually available in its warehouse. They are sold by trusted third parties and are made available to Costco members at a discount. One such product is Northwest Fish's A5 Wagyu Surf & Turf Pack. This package is only available online and is sold and shipped by Northwest Fish.

It includes two 20- to 28-ounce cold water caught lobster tails, two 6-ounce Japanese A5 Wagyu filet mignons, cold water caught lobster tails from the North Atlantic, and imported A5 Wagyu from the Kagoshima Prefecture in Japan. It ships uncooked and frozen via UPS 2nd Day Air. At $379.99, the Wagyu surf and turf duo is definitely among the most expensive foods sold by Costco.

While Wagyu beef is expensive, it is worth the price. But when deciding whether to splurge on Northwest Fish's surf and turf package, you should consider its mixed reviews. The deal has a 4.3-star rating on Costco's website, with reviews spanning the past five years. Some reviewers gave the package a five-star rating, praising its incredible taste, large portions, and value for the money. One reviewer wrote, "I was very impressed with the [wagyu] beef. I've never had it before[,] and I will order it again. The lobster tails were also very impressive. They were good sized with plenty of meat. They also had a good flavor" (per Costco). However, even positive reviews point out longer-than-average shipping times, with one reviewer saying that it "took four times longer to arrive than expected."

The top complaint about the A5 Wagyu Surf & Turf Pack from reviewers on Costco's website is that there are major delivery issues from Northwest Fish. One customer reported that they received unfrozen or thawed seafood from UPS, while another claimed that delivery took a week and the product arrived at unchilled, and that one of the steak packages was already opened and had an awful smell.

Other reviews point out issues with quality and flavor. One reviewer said that they were extremely disappointed because, while the Wagyu steak was delicious, the lobster was chewy and tasteless. More than one reviewer pointed out major size and thickness disparities between the steaks, saying that made it much harder to cook them properly.

Another reviewer said that the lobster tails were not vacuum sealed, which caused frost to build up on them — a sign that your fish has dangerously defrosted. One other customer wrote that the lobster tails were packaged in a small bag that was knotted at the top, and there was evidence of freezer burn. They also noted that they didn't get the steaks at all, while other reviewers said that they only received one steak. 

Shoppers have been raving about Costco's Japanese A5 Wagyu beef, noting that it is of amazing quality at a great price. Many of them recommend making your own surf and turf meal with fresh Costco seafood and beef from a local warehouse, rather than spending two or three times as much on frozen seafood from another company.