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Garden Apothecary

4.6 (65 reviews)
Closed 10:00 am - 5:00 pm

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The "Boutique Events" private party "package" starting at $5000
Niamoja B.

The retail space is fine, but my advice: DO NOT BOOK AN EVENT HERE! I was quoted a starting price of $5000 for the event space NOT including tables, chairs, or BATHROOMS for my guests to use. Their entire event booking "process" was very poorly executed, bordering deceptive. Consider instead: Ampersand SF that charges $990 base price, amazing customer service, regularly does thoughtfully curated events, and has an honest, straightforward booking process. My experience with Garden Apothecary: The third-party event planners the owner hired to assist me were the most unprofessional, sketchy people of any profession I've ever encountered. I've never left a business a negative review in my life, but I've also never experienced such senseless mistreatment as a prospective customer. I originally emailed the owner in December to book the event space for my wedding reception (I am having a very casual wedding, more of an "elopement" or "microwedding" with 25 guests) in June. We requested the space to hold a basic dinner party and the consent to decorate (really, just set the table) ourselves with tableware we'd gladly provide. Again, all very casual, no crazy or rigid expectations. There was touch-and-go communication but she told me she experienced two difficult life circumstances back to back. I am also going through some very difficult personal/family circumstances. I was understanding, I was patient; I had no reason not to be, I trusted her. Ultimately, she told me she'd be enlisting the help of friends who are wedding coordinators. But these wedding "coordinators" have no website and virtually no information about their business available online besides an Instagram page that reads as personal. All of that would've been fine, but without a breakdown of price or full understanding of what we did/did not need we were told the "venue and coordination 'package'" starts at $5000. The very obviously hastily put together welcome letter from the coordinators (now suddenly calling themselves "Garden Apothecary Boutique Events"), with its first typo in the second sentence, only serves to breakdown two real offers: A. Use of the plant store that has plants and B. The "coordinators" are two warm bodies capable of hypothetically, maybe doing the things (which things? who can say?) you might need maybe...who knows? I was open and tried my best to understand, justify, the $5000 starting price. Clarifying the inflated language made me feel the most intense secondhand embarrassment. "What decor is offered?" "Uh...the plants at the plant shop." "What floral installations are included?" "Uh...the plants at the plant shop." I also had to clarify what was excluded and considered my responsibility; the bathroom issue was the real kicker. The welcome letter said, in plain English, "[Restroom] rental referral list available upon request" which was a flat-out LIE! When you request it, not only is it not available, it doesn't exist! They then, for a moment, with this one specific issue where they most obviously went about it the wrong way, lead with truth- this is all new for them. I would've loved to be forgiving and understanding but $5000 is not an "I'm new at this. Please be understanding (as I blatantly lie)." price point! I had no choice but to tell them as kindly as I could "If we're going to work together can you please cut the bull****?" and (appropriately, all things considered) they cut themselves out entirely. Their "offer" was off the table (the table that I would've had to provide myself, not included in the $5000 starting price). The owner's curt, passive-aggressive, and flippant response when I brought the fact that her friends are lying to her customers to her attention tells me she co-signs this behavior; she's fine with her business being represented so poorly. I find that shameful. The other vendors we were interested in hiring (baker, florist, etc.) in the Half Moon Bay community, a few of whom are very familiar with and otherwise fond of Garden Apothecary, are appalled at what they're charging. We asked for a space with a long table to set ourselves and were instead offered a "Bridal Party Concierge" (whose specific duties are, direct quote, "hard to be specific about"). A mandatory upsell through slick talk, a nothing-burger repackaged only with boujie adjectives from disreputable, unreliable, dishonest people is never worth a minimum of $5000. Outrageous considering that price point is comparable to the nearby luxury venues actually in the wedding industry. The worst part, the senseless and hurtful part, is I did not want a luxury venue, I didn't request a luxury venue, I didn't give any indication it'd be necessary to hastily and sloppily rebrand Garden Apothecary as a luxury wedding venue. I wanted very much to celebrate one of the most important and memorable days of my life at a quaint little local plant shop. I'll never understand why they chose to go about things this way.

Kao S.

This place still surprises me with the products they sell but I love that because it makes it unique. Different items throughout the year so if you see something you like them make sure you get it. I gotta say it's pricey but it's local sourced and it's a small business so you have to support the locals. Keep up the good work and the unique crafts.

Saffron bloom
Joellene B.

I recently visited the Corner Garden to buy some variegated sage and saffron plants. Such a beautiful oasis. The people who work here were very knowledgeable and helpful. Thank you to Dominic for taking the time to explain which plants would go well in my garden!

Carmen V.

Super elegant floral and apothecary boutique, small and heavenly scented. Love all the decor and the color palette in cremes and pale yellows. Is very soothing and even if just to stop by and smell the lavender or whatever beauty products they have, it is a just when in downtown Half Moon Bay. Extremely well decorated, this store seems directly downloaded from Pinterest, so cute!

Front of the store
Sylvia K.

I love it when I walk into a store and it looks like I walked into someone's rustic cottage in the countryside. Garden Apothecary is a charming little store on Main Street that sells soaps, bath salts, and lotions on one side, and herbs, tillandsia air plants, and other home & garden items on the other side. They actually had their grand opening just this past Friday. The store smells really good (kind of like a spa) because of the blocks of french soaps that they sell here. This is a great place to pick up gifts (for others or for yourself!). I saw some one-time mud mask packs where you just add water - that would make a great addition to a gift bag for a party or bridal shower. There was also a chalkboard tablet which I thought would make a cute gift as well. The interior of the store is just really pretty and there are lots of beauty and garden things to look at.

Steven W.

This is a small gardening centric shop that also has a retail goods section located right on main street in downtown half moon bay. Parking is street only, but usually there is a spot available if not right in front then somewhere on main st. or one of the side streets close by. This is logically and physically divided into two sections, a nursery/gardening part which is the larger of the two and outdoor, and smaller super awesome indoor retail section which carries a good selection of botany inspired products-skin care, dietary supplements, scents and whatnot. The nursery side of things is prefect if you are needing to jump start up a herbal garden. The staff are more then usually knowledgeable about the care, feeding, environmental needs and other fiddly details involved in getting a healthy garden plot up and running. The retail section has a good selection of plant based skin/health care stuff, and a lesser selection of kitchen/home decorating stuff, also plant based. That is to say, non synthetic-wooden spoons instead of metal or silicone. They also have some of the usual small touristy items that everyplace in a beach town is expected to have-cards, stationary, small decorated shells etc. The skincare items are extraordinarily well made especially the lotions and soaps. The stock of dietary items-edible oils, extract pills-is not the largest, but what they do have is also of high quality. This is a good spot for those that have any kind of soap/scent allergies, are very serious about skin care, have/are planning to have a garden or just want to browse along main.

Cute small store. Sells gardening supplies and some skin care. Nothing in there that I wanted to buy but it was so cute I had to stop in for a look. If you are walking around main street checking out the shops, it worth strolling by.

Succulent alphabet box planters
Dahlia C.

If you're in Half Moon Bay, Garden Apothecary is definitely worth visiting especially if you appreciate quality, organically handmade bath and beauty products. I first discovered Garden Apothecary through their online shop a few years ago and instantly fell in love. All of their bath products are amazing, but my favorites are the French Green Clay Mud Mask, Cacao & Cardamom Bath Tea, the Vanilla Balsam Sugar Scrub, and the Eros Sugar Scrub. Also, if you're looking for some really beautiful treasures for the home and garden, there's a great selection of items that you can't really find anywhere else like their vertical alphabet box planters, local Half Moon Bay honey, organic herbal teas, and unique gifts from handmade artists. You can tell that they put a lot of effort in offering goods that are truly unique and inspiring. The staff and customer service are always friendly, helpful, and attentive, which makes shopping here, a really pleasant experience. Definitely one of my favorite shops on the coast!

The cleanser, the toner, and the serum!

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The skin care is nothing short of a miracle and the store is always full of beautiful and interesting things. Worth a visit!!!

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Ask the Community - Garden Apothecary

Review Highlights - Garden Apothecary

One of my friends was in town from Sacramento and this was the perfect activity to do in downtown Half Moon Bay!

Mentioned in 5 reviews

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