The Frozen Meal Sold At Costco That Reddit Routinely Raves About

Not all groceries are worth buying in bulk. For example, fresh produce can go bad if it isn't eaten quickly. On the other hand, frozen meals are considered a pretty good bulk buy due to their long shelf life, and fortunately, Costco's freezer section offers a variety of prepared meals to choose from. However, if Reddit has any say in the matter, La Boulangerie Smoked Ham & Swiss Cheese Pockets should be in your cart every time.

Costco shoppers on the platform regularly rave about the heat-and-eat dish produced by San Francisco's La Boulangerie bakery that features smoked ham and aged Swiss cheese wrapped up in a flaky, buttery croissant. And while Redditors can't seem to come to a consensus about the best method of preparing the pockets (some are fans of using the oven, while others argue that air frying is the way to go), most everybody agrees that this heat-and-eat meal is delicious.

"These things are phenomenal. I would pick these over a hot pocket 10 times out of 10 times," Reddit user u/Croatoan01 said of the "crispy, buttery, and delicious" croissants in December 2023. In another thread posted a few months prior, u/divemiguel boldly stated that the ham and Swiss cheese pockets were "legit the best frozen food item I've ever had." Considering that Mashed awarded the La Boulangerie product the top spot in our ranking of Costco's prepared meals, we can't help but agree.

Across the various Reddit threads discussing the La Boulangerie Ham & Swiss Pockets sold at Costco, several people noted that the frozen product reminded them of the ones sold at Starbucks. That's no coincidence; as it turns out, the java giant used to sell the exact same ham & Swiss croissants that rolled out to Costco warehouses nationwide in January 2024. 

In June 2012, Starbucks purchased the bakery as a means of expanding the coffee giant's food offerings. It also intended to keep the San Francisco-based bakery's retail locations in operation. However, by 2015, Starbucks announced that it was closing down all stores and baking facilities — then called La Boulange — though it would continue using the bakery's recipes to stock its pastry case. So where does La Boulangerie come in? After Starbucks called it quits on La Boulange, founder Pascal Rigo re-branded under La Boulangerie, re-opening several bakeries under the moniker. Then, in 2017, he got in business with Costco, thus beginning the road to Reddit's obsession with La Boulangerie's Ham & Swiss Cheese Pockets from Costco.

Most Redditors prefer to simply heat and eat the handheld. However, if you don't mind waiting a few extra minutes, adding a classic béchamel sauce and a sunny-side-up egg, which one chef told Mashed you can make perfectly with the help of some H₂0, can transform this beloved frozen product into a croque madame-inspired masterpiece.