Costco killed a hugely popular food-court menu item, and now furious customers are threatening to go to Sam's Club instead. Here's how the food courts compare. (COST, WMT)

• Costco and Sam's Club are extremely popular in the United States, and while memberships are needed to buy items, the food courts are open to all. 
• After Costco's recent decision to remove the much-loved Polish hot dog from its food-court menu, many loyal customers are vowing on Facebook to take their business to Sam's Club.
• During a recent visit to both warehouse stores' food courts, we found that both had nearly identical set-ups and price points, but Costco's larger selection and shockingly good quality won out in the end. 

Costco and Sam's Club are shining basilicas of American bulk shopping.

Within their hallowed — and exclusive — corrugated-metal-and-concrete walls, shoppers grab pounds of pasta and peanut butter amid miles of aisles of marked-down goods. There is virtually nothing that isn't offered by these warehouse giants — coffins, cars, even vacation packages can be purchased through their services.

And no matter which warehouse store you're shopping in, you're bound to get hungry. Luckily, both Costco and Sam's Club have mini food courts to satiate hungry shoppers. While they may look rather bare-bones, make no mistake: under the right circumstances, the food can be shockingly good.

So good, in fact, that customers can become fanatics. Costco's recent removal of the beloved Polish hot dog from the food-court menu has infuriated many shoppers who are now taking to Costco's Facebook page to threaten to go to Sam's Club instead. There's even a Change.org petition to save the hallowed wiener — with over 500 signatures, and counting. 

We visited a Costco food court and were floored by the quality and downright deliciousness of some of the options — it was suspiciously good. But is it good enough to stem the flow of disgruntled diners making the switch to Sam's Club?

Here's what we saw on a recent trip: 

SEE ALSO: We tried biscuit breakfast sandwiches from major fast-food chains — and the winner is shockingly clear

First, a recap of Costco's highlights.

Costco has a fairly large amount on its menu considering it's a tiny kitchen hidden within a bulk retailer.

This entire spread — cheese pizza, hot dog, three different sandwiches, a quasi-stromboli, a soda, and a churro — cost just over $25. That's pretty impressive. 

The pizza is fine, but nothing astounding.

It's a large, doughy, slice that's similar in taste to Pizza Hut — salty, with a slightly sweet sauce. It's nothing special, but for $1.99, I wasn't complaining.