Sam's Club food court on Portage St. NW in Jackson offers variety, value | Review

JACKSON TWP. − Fair is fair. After we checked out the food stand at Costco , some of our readers suggested we also try Sam's Club.

So Amy Knapp, education reporter for our Stark County newspapers, joined me at the food court at the store at 4790 Portage St. NW Jackson Township.

While the sign at Sam's calls it a Café , I cannot bring myself to call it that. If it's painted on the wall, as it is at the warehouse club, I consider it a food court. No judgments.

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A membership card is required to enter Sam’s, even if you’re only heading to the food court.

We tried almost everything available, except the ICEE. Knapp said her daughter Kennedy loves them, and Amy said the 89 cents price tag for a 20-ounces cup is perfect.

We compared the all-beef hot dog combo (1/4 lb. hot dog with a fountain drink for $1.38 at Sam's) and, though, it was served plump and hot, this version wasn't as flavorful as the Costco version.

While Costco's is only 12 cents more, I wonder if I've become a hot dog snob?!

The pizza pretzel ($1.98) with a cup of marinara sauce for dipping was served much differently than the photo on the food court menu screen. What we received was basically a large pretzel with some pepperoni and cheese melted on top. A disappointment.

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Knapp wanted the meat pizza combo (two slices of meat pizza with a fountain drink for $2.50), and I opted for the cheese pizza. Mine tasted as though it had been sitting under heat lamps for some time, and it was definitely over baked. Not enough cheesey goodness for my liking. Her slices, on the other hand, had just come out of the oven and were loaded with pepperoni, ham, Italian sausage and bacon. It was a satisfying slice.

I love large pretzels, especially when they’re served fresh and hot. They’re available at Sam’s for $1, with either coarse salt or cinnamon sugar. When I ordered mine salted, the hot pretzel was slathered with a butter-like substance and sprinkled with salt. Messy, but so good.

Fountain drinks are only available in a 30-ounce size, for 89 cents. Other beverage options (bottled waters and orange juice) are available in a stand-up cooler next to the payment counter. Frozen yogurt cups are a great option for a snack or dessert ($1), and are available in vanilla, chocolate or a swirl.

Good sports that we are, we decided to try the sundaes. Her four-berry sundae ($1.58) was loaded with a mix of raspberry, strawberry, blueberry and blackberry layered with vanilla frozen yogurt. My brownie sundae ($1.58) was drizzled with caramel sauce over vanilla frozen yogurt and included some chunks of Sam’s bakery chocolate brownie.

The brownie sundae was a hot mess to eat, as the brownie pieces that were layered in and topped the sundae were cut so large they were impossible to enjoy with a plastic spoon. It was not a sundae for the timid. Sam’s really needs to rethink the size of the brownie pieces included when serving this dessert. On a happy note, both sundaes were generous and would make the perfect stand-alone treat after a vigorous round of warehouse club shopping.

While Knapp said she feels the two food courts are comparable, I do not. The hot dog combo and cheese pizza, in my opinion, were much more enjoyable at Costco. But, I'm all for Sam's hot, buttery, salted pretzel.

Reach Bev at bshaffer@gannett.com or 330-580-8318.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Sam's Club food court on Portage St. NW in Jackson offers variety, value | Review