Costco shoppers riled up over this big change at food court

For over a year, Costco has been teasing a major change to its food court layout. Part of the bulk retailer’s draw is its famed food court, which can usually be found chock-full of membership holders enjoying their $1.50 hot dog combos, slices of pizza and baked chicken rolls. However, a quick visit to any number of Costco food courts will show that plenty of locations are burdened with a common problem: overcrowding.

Chances are, your local Costco’s food court sees its fair share of large crowds on a daily basis. And while the tables provided are a welcomed opportunity to enjoy your meal after a long shopping excursion, the reality is that some people tend to overstay their welcome. In what seems to be an attempt to keep a constant flow of traffic in and out of the food court, Costco has started to replace some of the classic food court tables with new standing tables.

�� SIGN UP to get delicious recipes, handy kitchen hacks & more in our daily Pop Kitchen newsletter��

In recent weeks, Costco has rolled out the new standing table additions in warehouses around the world. Reports on Reddit are claiming the new table additions have already reached warehouse locations in New Jersey, Minnesota, Montana, South Korea, Japan and Canada, with dozens of comments voicing their distaste along the way.

“Those are the worst,” one unimpressed commenter shared online. “No one at our warehouse uses them and they just collect empty cups and napkins. 0/10 would not recommend.”

It makes sense that the seasoned Costco shopper would still opt for using a classic food court table despite the presence of the new standing tables. Who wouldn’t want to take a load off after a long day of shopping? The reality of the matter is that some customers have a tendency to take up more space than needed. And in more extreme cases, some treat the food court like their own personal hangout spot rather than a communal one.

“I’m fine with it as long as they don’t get rid of all of the regular tables,” one reasonable shopper shared to Reddit. “Keeps people from lingering too long but also still gives an option to disabled folks or families with kids,” they continued. Another commenter chimed in, “Yeah I think it’s a good idea. Otherwise people take a really long time to leave, causing cart traffic just trying to exit.”

The addition of standing tables will only encourage those who can, to eat quickly and keep it moving. They also provide an opportunity for someone to have a tabletop without having to squeeze themselves into a table full of strangers on a busy day. Many will still find a reason to complain, but in the spirit of food courts being a shared space for all, we can see this change being a necessary step in the right direction.