Let me start by saying that I love thrift stores. Always have and always will, but this particular store on this particular day was a freakin' disaster. Maybe my experience was just really bad, but I don't think that I'm going to ever give this place another try. If I could give this place 0 stars, I would....
First, a pretty shady looking guy with shifty eyes tried to sell us a bike as we were walking into the store. Considering the look of the bike, and his demeanor, I'm assuming either 1) he had already been in trouble for trying to sell stuff in this parking lot, 2) the bike was stolen or 3) "bike" was street slang for crack. Either way, not a great start. It also didn't help the situation to see a group of bums hanging out at the edge of the building.
Next up, I agree with Darrell Y. The crowd of people in this store made me question whether I had made bad life choices that led up to the particular moment I found myself in.
I felt like Raul Duke from "Fear and Loathing": "Who are these people? These faces? Where did they come from? They look like caricatures of used car dealers from Dallas, and sweet Jesus, there are a hell of a lot of them at 4:30 on a Sunday morning. Still humping the American dream... I was right in the middle of a fucking reptile zoo, and somebody was giving booze to these goddamn things. Won't be long now before they tear us to shreds."
Was I in the depths of a dreaded ether binge? Had my wife spiked my coffee with LSD? Was there a bus in the parking lot from a mental asylum? Nope... didn't think so. What the hell was I doing here? Why had Yelp lied to me?
I couldn't get over the smell... that moldy, mildewy, musty vintage store smell where you don't really feel comfortable trying on the clothes because you're just maybe a little bit afraid that you might pick up a serious case of toxic shock from the mold you inhaled while disturbing the fabric. All that lingering underneath the smell of old perfumes and stale smoke. Nah... I wasn't about to try on these clothes. I too felt like I needed to wash my hands after leaving this store.
On top of all this, while I was attempting to evaluate their selection of serving platters, a store employee aggressively interrupted a very important phone conversation to tell me that I couldn't have my cup of coffee (with lid) inside the store (after being inside for 20 minutes mind you) and I was going to have to go outside to finish my coffee. Holy hell was I mad!!! First of all, there isn't a single thing in this store that could possibly be damaged by a spilled cup of coffee, but even it was, it wouldn't be expensive to pay for. Second, its one thing to approach a customer politely and explain that you have a no food or drink policy, but to rudely interrupt a phone conversation for something trivial like this is just not acceptable. Its rude and lacks common sense.
True, I should have been more aware of the signage... I also missed the 'please check your backpacks and bags sign', and while I didn't have a backpack, I think anytime you find yourself in a thrift shop where most of the items are in the $5 range and shoplifting is a problem, then it says something about either the clientele or the neighborhood, and nothing it says is good. To their credit, everything here is dirt cheap. So, there. I guess they deserve at least one star for that. read more