Costco shopper from Italy shares you shouldn't buy Kirkland olive oil for cooking: 'Once you open...'

Costco is one of the most popular retail chains in America, but that doesn't mean people in different parts of the world would feel the same way about its food products. Italians love their food and are very picky about ingredients such as olive oil. Hence, all hell broke loose when an American-Italian couple, going by @thepassinis on TikTok, went about rating Costco products based on what to buy and what not to buy. “Let’s go fix Costco," Alessio Pasini quipped before hopping from shelf to shelf inside the giant retail outlet. He chronicled his opinion on Costco's Kirkland olive oil in a TikTok video that has since gone bizarly viral.
The food connoisseur first picked up a pack of Parmigiano Reggiano from the shelf and examined it. He then focused the camera angle on the product and recommended that his viewers buy the item. “This is Parmigiano Reggiano. Buy it,” he said, before dramatically placing a “Buy it” sticker onto the cheese packet.
Burrata: Spread it on crusty bread, pair it with ripe tomatoes, drizzle with olive oil — semplice e perfetto. 🧀🇮🇹 What’s your favorite Burrata dish?#BurrataLove #ItalianCheese pic.twitter.com/UPooocUGc4
— The Italian Way of Life (@learnitalianpod) June 16, 2025
The couple continued their little adventure, passing aisle after aisle as they next reached out for Molinaro’s organic pizza starter kit. “Nice crust with sauce,” Alessio exclaimed. Jessi then cut it, “It’s like a grown-up Lunchable,” cracking up her husband, who joked, “A big grunchable,” while tagging the American product with the “Buy it” sticker.
You could take a trip to Italy, OR you could just pick up some #Banfi Brunello Di Montalcino. The 1st bottle in Italy to get DOCG status, Italy's highest classification for wines. #ItalianWine #AwardWinning #Brunello #PinotGrigio #WineLover pic.twitter.com/baNuI7TbpN
— Alabama Crown (@AlabamaCrown) July 5, 2025
But the highlight of the video was American olive oil. Alessio gestured toward a stack of them on the shelves and picked one bottle of Kirkland Signature’s extra-virgin olive oil. His Italian reflexes acted quickly and swiftly placed the dark-colored plastic bottle at the back of the shelf. “I won’t say anything, and you know why,” he said, gesturing by zipping his lips. He purposefully skipped tagging the product with the 'Don't buy' label.
La Gerla's extra-virgin olive oil is strictly obtained from cold-pressing hand-picked olives from the trees in their two areas of production at Canalicchio and Castlenuovo dell'Abate. #verawinesandspirits #vera #LaGerla #oliveoil #italianoliveoil #olio pic.twitter.com/MzFzfduPeW
— Vera Wine and Spirits (@verawinespirits) April 3, 2025
Fans had similar reactions to the couple's food choices, "Give us tea on the olive oil! What does he think?" @hellojellz reacted. “Once you open that glass bottle, the oil will oxidize as well. Dark plastic is fine as long as you use it quickly. It shouldn't sit for months on end. That’s why you don't buy large bottles unless you use them often,” @mrsb71099 explained, defending the packaging. "The olive oil has a certification from Bureau Veritas, which serves as confirmation that it is a legitimate product. The organic," @happyhearts056 argued. The couple stuck with their previous stance against plastic and explained, “While the Kirkland brand olive oil by itself is pretty good, we no longer recommend it since it is sold in plastic containers. Plastic doesn’t do a good job at keeping olive oil fresh and keeping it from oxidizing,” they concluded.
For more content on Costco products and food, follow @thepassinis on TikTok
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