I especially decided to shop here because it happened to be less than a mile away where I was for a…read morefunction. And...I had checked out their menu online! This was the only place in the area where I could get brands I have been looking for. I was completely pleased with whole experience at Upstate Canna. Plenty of parking in front of the store. Pleasant check-in. Layout utilizes space efficiently so you can view products. Tremendous selection of flower and prices to fit every budget. many other products to choose from as well. I was very pleased with the prices on what I bought. Jeremy, my budtender was pleasant (as was Joe, lol) and knowledgeable about what I purchased. Overall, this was a great first-time experience. As a veteran of visiting six state's worth of dispensaries, I have had many good, some mediocre, and flat-out poor experiences (just a few). I will definitely visit again if I am in the Albany/Schenectady area.

I arrived at around 10am on a Friday to check out the first legally licensed by NYS upstate…read morecannabis dispensary. Very exciting! Not counting drive time, the entire process from line to purchase took 30 minutes. I overheard that the wait time is much longer after lunchtime. While the obvious reason for this is supply versus demand (one legal dispensary in the area), there are some other best practices I have seen used at other dispensaries that I think Upstate Canna should adopt: 1: A preorder process. I've ordered online at other dispensaries and they text me the information to present with my ID at the door upon arrival and that gets me into the express in and out lane. 2: Merch. There is a smoke shop and a candy shop down the street from Upstate Canna. Yet they have a entire space where folks just check in and wait on a u shaped booth. That is prime real estate to add snacks and pipes and such. 3: The check in person didn't know what was on the menu. There was a big screen sort of power point but if people are just going to sit around for 30 minutes waiting to buy, consider having a menu for them to look at while they wait or even just a QR code they can scan that pulls up the current online menu where they can... order ahead and pay to save time. Additionally, while they smartly had two atm machines on site, neither worked. Which is a obvious issue that I recognize they have only so much control over but, they're taking up space and not working which would suck for anyone needing to get cash to make a purchase. The above stuff being updated would bump stars up to 4-5 later for me. At the moment, they are the only legal shop in town so it isn't a big deal and easy to overlook but competing dispensaries will inevitably arrive.l and compete for my business. That was the needs work stuff that dropped them from a 5 to a 3 star. Now to talk about the good stuff! Customer service was friendly. From the check in to the sale. Staff were friendly and knowledgeable (except check in guy who was just friendly). I learned that Upstate Canna is going to be implementing a delivery service which is absolutely fantastic! Assuming they end up having a location close enough to me in Colonie for it to be used eventually I will. Product seemed pretty good but I need to do some more research over the weekend :) They have a good selection of local flower and vape blends. Even pre rolls and tinctures. Though the tincture selection was a bit limited it was still better than some places I've been. At the end of the day, if they can get their transaction time down to less time than it takes me to drive to MA and pick up my order (currently that is 48 minutes) and they make good choices about capitalizing on their first mover advantage in the region to adopt best practices, I am very optimistic that this local business will thrive and that I will be visiting again!