Awesome place with great things to explore! We appreciated the variety of stores and the restaurant…read morein the back. The dock was easy to walk on and hang out. Great time! We will be back.

In the 1900s, there were 5 ballrooms on West Lake Okoboji: Manhattan Beach, Roof Gardens, The Inn,…read moreThe Casino and The Central Emporium, then known as the Central Pavilion. The Central Emporium is the only one that remains a part of today's Iowa Great Lakes. It was originally built in 1901 and by the 1960s, the building sat empty until it was purchased in 1967 and used as boat storage. In 1971, the building was remodeled and began leasing out space for stores. During that first year, there were only 3-5 businesses including The Diver's Den, the Outrigger and a jewelry store. I started hanging out at the Central Emporium about that time in the early 1970s. It's gone through ownership changes since then and many shops have also come and gone. The Building itself has also been stabilized from falling into the Lake and at during my visit this summer, the old Girl looks pretty good on the inside as well. There's still the expected collection of tourist based shops, but the Central Emporium also includes a couple nice dining and drinking establishments (with great views), a branch of Hill Avenue Books, and even a few shops (e.g., Life on the Lake) that I enjoy. You can also get here by foot or by boat. I could see how a developer would think of this property as a good condo or other resort opportunity. And I do wonder how the Central Emporium makes money within the confines of a summer vacation season. But as long as this historic Iowa building still stands, I'll be there whenever I'm in town.

This store stocks items that the big stores don't carry. Like their meat, their store labeled…read morespices, deli and bakery items. I tend shop here only when passing through town, but make a point to plan our trip accordingly.

I must admit the people working here were fairly nice. The watch and jewelry department was not…read morevery put together. We had a watch that needed a new battery, but they couldn't put it back together. The lady asked us to come back later as we did. She wasn't here and other associates (someone new, and also someone who didn't even work in the department) had to help us. These ladies both were pretty nice. Other customers walked in and had the same exact problem with their watch. So we asked for a discount as it wouldn't even work. We were very appreciative of the ladies as they did their best and called other people who dealt with this situation to get this solved. But this whole watch system was a very bad experience and clearly needs to be resolved as many other people have the same problems. Diane was the lady who broke our watch.

I shop here a lot. I am in my mid-thirties and need professional clothes for work and in our area…read morethis is about it. That said, I always enjoy shopping here. The staff is very friendly and always helpful. Even on black Friday, everyone is having a great time.

We split the sandwich and the flavor is off the chart. Can't wait to see everything in the store…read morehere.

I'm a transplant to Northwest Iowa, so when I discovered The Hen House years ago - with its…read morebig-city charm, gifts and home decor options in a small-town setting - I fell in love. I often tell the owners that if The Hen House ever leaves town -- I'm outta here, as welI! The Hen House is my favorite shopping destination in Spencer. I also love to bring my out-of-town company to experience it for themselves, because it's tons of fun! They offer amazing seasonal items, baby gifts galore (ear of corn chew toy is my favorite staple gift), house wares, kitchen/dining, funking jewelry, pillos, lamps candles. . . Oh, and to receive a gift card from The Hen House is like finding a little lump of precious gold in your pocketbook.

Love this grocery store, their advertised sale items, the beef, dairy items and their brand potato…read morechips. Love the fact that every employee I have so far had an interaction with are so knowledgeable and helpful. This will be my number one stop in Spencer when I need to go grocery shopping. I shop as economically as possible and while I may not shop here exclusively, I will do as best as my budget allows.

Bought steak from butcher...immediately put in freezer. 2 days later defrosted and 1 of the 3…read moresteaks were brown and spoiled!

This is the corner drug store that I grew up with. On the other 3 corners of Central Avenue and…read more6th Street are a restaurant that used to be a Rexall, the Estherville Library, and the old Iowa Trust and Savings (now Bank of America) where I used to sell the Des Moines Register on some Sunday Mornings. When I'm in town, I still try to stop by and say Hi to the owner of this long time family business. He seems to have done a good job of mixing and matching a very diverse stock and pharmacy-related services to compete in a sometimes slow economy and with a Walmart on about 20 minutes away. This is one of those places that are comfortable to me. You can take me out of the Midwest and give me the privledge of living in Northern California. But sometimes it's OK to not to forget where you are from.

I have had the WORST experience with this Hobby Lobby in the framing dept…read more I had a print that I wanted a frame for so I took it to Spencer's Hobby Lobby. I was told they couldn't put a frame on it because it was a 1/4 off and unless they put new stretching bars on it, they'd be unable to frame it. I hesitated because of the cost but decided to go ahead with that. They said it would take a couple of weeks, after a couple of weeks I received a call that they ordered the wrong size stretching bars and would need to reorder so now it's going to take another couple of weeks. A week later the store flooded. (Of course there was nothing they could do about that which I totally understand). However, if they had gotten the correct stretching bars to begin with this wouldn't have been a problem. We called to ask what was going to happen to our print and they said they'd ship it to another location and have it taken care of there. I was fine with that. After another couple of weeks, I called to see if it had been sent and they told me that I just needed to come and pick it up. I did. I live 45 minutes away from this store and an hour and a half away from the next nearest store so I hadn't had a chance to get it anywhere. Once Spencer's store was up and running I called to see if I could bring it back and they said yes. They ordered the stretching bars and put them on and I went to pick out a frame. They said it would be another couple of weeks. Three weeks later I called on a Thursday to see what was going on with the print and the same gentleman asked if I had gotten his message earlier the previous week. (I looked through my call log and there were NO calls from their store and clearly no message.) He said, "we just need to know what you want us to put on the back to hang it with?" I asked his advice because that's his forte. He advised a double wire. He said it could be done by that afternoon and I told him I couldn't be there that day but could be there by the weekend. Saturday, we go to pick up our frame. $421 for the frame and stretching bars. I get it home and get it ready to hang, take the plastic off..... there is NOTHING on the back. Are you kidding me?????? I'm furious! This is absolutely unacceptable and ridiculous! Update, I took the print to another store location. I was told that the guy from the Hobby Lobby in Spencer had done everything wrong! She took everything off and started over. Alas my print is ready to hang on the wall.

I've missed this store since flooding so happy it's opening again. No other store offers everything…read moreI need to craft

This place is one of a kind. Multi levels of the greatest items. At any given time you could find a…read morekitten to eclectic jewelry, cards and holiday items. I highly recommend stopping by. **not a place for young children or strollers**

Absolutely my favorite store in the Okoboji area. You can find a gift for everyone on your list…read more Reasonable priced. Something for everyone.