Costco's New Strawberry Dessert Is $15 For A Whole Lot Of Cream

After navigating the bustling horde of fellow customers at Costco (something most people hate about shopping at the discount retailer), it's about time for a pick-me-up. That could mean a detour into the food court for a satisfying classic nosh, but if you head toward the bakery section instead, there's a brand new dessert waiting to be taken home in some locations that is oozing springtime vibes. The latest strawberries and cream dessert is Costco's take on a classic that everyone is familiar with, and if you're a fan of whipped cream, it might be right up your alley.

Instagram user @costcoguide recently posted a video spotlighting a plastic clamshell container housing Chantilly cream topped with graham cracker crumbs and fresh strawberries for $14.99. At first glance, there doesn't appear to be anything special about this version of strawberries and cream. The package the Instagrammer picked up seemed to have an ample amount of strawberries (10 whole ones in total), and the cream itself has a silky, airy guise. 

However, when the user holds up the tub — a deep tub — so viewers can see it from the side, it reveals that the dessert is overwhelmingly comprised of whipped cream. A thin layer of graham cracker crumbs crowns the mammoth 2-pound beast along with the strawberries, but the bulk of the dish is decidedly comprised of Chantilly cream. That revelation had even some avid Costco advocates questioning whether the dessert should join the list of Costco food items that customers think are overrated.

Plenty of Costco die-hards indicated they couldn't wait to try out the latest dessert in the comment section of the Instagram post. But others — let's just say a few things about the treat rubbed customers the wrong way. Starting with the top of the confection, one person thought a little extra effort would go a long way, saying, "They can't even slice the strawberries?" A few people concurred, also wondering why there were so few of the berries compared to the colossal amount of cream, which brings us to the next criticism of the dessert.

While some folks took Costco to task for simply loading up a tub of whipped cream and calling it a dessert, others had an even bigger problem with the price. "I love Costco, but $15 for whipped cream and 10 strawberries is insane," one person commented. Another who actually purchased the item said, "Just bought it, immediately [regretted it]; it's a bucket of whipping cream for $15. Not worth it and not enough berries." Some thought $15 was double what the dessert is actually worth, no matter how tasty all that Chantilly cream may be.

But even the quality of the cream was brought into question as folks noticed the ingredients list on the side of the package went on for days. The included high-fructose corn syrup was especially offensive to some, with others pointing out that whipped cream only requires three ingredients. "Kind of a waste of money when it's easy to put this together yourself for a quarter of the [cost]," one person said, summing up why many people are likely to skip this Costco find.