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| - ** 3.5 Stars **
My love for cooking and food often drives me to search out the best wares and items to create that perfect dish. When Williams Sonoma came to Canada, I was thrilled but the price mark up kept me away from the store for the first few years. Fast forward to today and I'm still weary of paying the Canadian retail price but the service and noted constant sales is slowly winning me over.
The store is right at the corridor leading to Holt Renfrew and right across from Tiffany's. With it's golden accented and deep blonde wood doors, the waft of spiced apple cider pulls me in. They have a full working kitchen inside the store and one of their cleaver ploys is having a constant baked or bubbling item going at all times. During Thanksgiving it's their pumpkin butter bars and now it's their peppermint bark and spiced cider.
For the epicurean, this place is potentially nirvana (if it was all free). You'll find only the best (and most expensive) pieces to adorn your kitchen and dining room. Heavy copper pots, high end espresso machines, singular grain Japanese knives, hard to find herbs and spices, bakeware, and china fills the room in all corners. The associates free float and are super helpful to find the perfect utensil or item of your kitchen dreams.
They have many high end brands like Le Creuset, All Clad, WMF, and Kikuichi. It can be really daunting at first to pick up one item and see it being $300+. The nice thing is that there are some (relatively) affordable alternatives nearby and the associates are more than happy to explain which one would be best for you. If you're lucky, you may find one of those ridiculously high end items in their clearance section at a good 50% off. I managed to pick an All Clad saucier that way and I still love it do date.
The store is open, spacious, and well stocked. There is never an issue with service as they are so efficient in finding you a brand new boxed item and running it through the cashier till in minutes. Though it is a very expensive store, the quality of the items and service does make it feel special. Now... if they stop that horrid Canadian mark up, this would be a perfect 4 star store.
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