The Root Beer Store — Restaurant in Sandy

I tried to be supportive and patient with this business. I really tried. I was willing to overlook certain quirks and imperfections (cluttered store, odd layout, sporadic inventory) because the concept is novel and the store has a scrappy sort of charm to it. My wife and I genuinely enjoyed coming here a few times last year to try new brands and flavors. The employees were always pleasant.

But at some point, your business needs to meet certain bare minimum standards of functionality, and TRBS just doesn't meet them these days.

Google says the store's hours are 11-7, closed Sundays, supposedly confirmed by the business 5 days ago (as of this review). I show up at 2 PM on a Wednesday and the doors are locked. There isn't a sign on the door explaining the situation, but there is (amusingly) a note that says to check Google for accurate store hours.

This is the second time this has happened to me this past month.

When you call the phone number for the store as listed in Google, it rings forever and then takes you to a voicemail that is too full to leave messages. The website seems mostly unfinished, except for the shop, but more power to you if you look at that site and think you can trust it with your money. I signed up for a newsletter months ago and haven't seen anything. I don't see a contact email on the site or Google, but obviously don't have a lot of faith that I'd get a response if I did.

Basically, I am desperately trying to figure out how to give The Root Beer Store my money, and have been trying for a couple months now, and they are doing everything they can to refuse it. I would love to base my review on the experience of actually shopping there, but their unreliability and noncommunication completely kill any chance of...

First off, my first time at the store there was obscene music playing very loudly throughout the store, and it is fairly dark inside, which wasn't a great first impression. I had come in to place an order for 7 cases of root beer and various flavored sodas, and the owner couldn't (wouldn't?) give me the total price for the order. I wanted the drinks for the 8th of Nov and I placed my order late September, and I did my budget accordingly. The owner calls me up a few weeks later asking me to come by and buy my order earlier than I wanted to, and doesn't do any kind of bulk discount or whatnot. The total comes out to nearly $400, which this week was to be used to cover moving expenses this weekend. So, my mistake, I buy the order anyway, then a week later when the reality hits, I ask, kindly, if I can return said order (because $400 for 168 bottles of soda is expensive) and I was going say that I can buy it back the next week, like we had originally agreed to. But the owner told me that I was wrong and stupid for not planning my budget! Telling a customer that is trying to work with you such things is bad juju, I've worked in customer service my entire career and have learned things to say or not say. So now I've got to use my credit card and acquire debt in order to cover this weekend until I get paid next week.

Because the owner insulted me, I will no longer do business with The Root Beer Store, in...

I am the root beer store's #1 fan. I'm a member of the root beer club, I have the license plate holder on my truck, and I have a shelf in my food storage room dedicated to my root beer store purchases. My wife only lets me go once a quarter as I spend too much. I'm super annoying with my root beer advocacy as I spread the message.

Sadly, the last three times I've gone to the root beer store, it's been closed with no warning. Each time I have brought a new guest with me for their first visit. One came all the way from El Paso on my recommendation.

I understand that we are all having staffing issues, but please figure out a way to communicate your hours and when you will be closed so you're not wasting the time of your loyal customers. I don't want you to clean up, I don't want you to organize things better, I don't want you to fix the AC, I just want you to be open when you say you'll be open.

When I walk up between the hours of 11 and 7, and you're supposed to be open, and the door is locked with no lights on, I finally understand why people loot. Props to you for not leaving crow bars on the front step as otherwise I'd be in jail right now, especially since I'm out of Steelhead and...