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| - Let me start by saying that this isn't just another one of those "5 star" reviews you see all over Yelp, where the only real feedback someone has is that the place was adequate. This is a real, well-deserved 5 stars that would be even more if it was possible. So appropriately, my review is about to get long and way too detailed.
My husband and I also read about The Cinnamon Stick in the Journal, and thought it sounded like a great place to check out. Life got pretty busy for a few months (as it does..), and we never ended up getting there. However, we were driving by last night, and recognized it from the road and saw the Open sign, so we jumped at the chance to finally take a look. Well, by the time we got to the parking lot, the Open sign was then Closed! Just our luck - it was 6:03pm :(
Well, as we were trying to get a better look at the store hours, the owner (Steve) came out and asked if we wanted to come in! We accepted the offer, and are SO glad that we got to take a look. Steve made us feel so welcome, even though we were after hours and taking up his time. He even made sure we tried some of the free samples that were out, and got a good look at what was new and unique to the store. He wasn't pushy at all, and let us take our time making some new discoveries and finding what we had come for in the first place.
After moving to Madison about a year ago, and the East Side more recently, we had definitely noticed how difficult it has been to find one place where we can purchase all of our needed bulk goods at a reasonable price. Grocery trips that used to require just one or two stops at most, now take a combination of visiting about 3 or 4 different places to find everything we need. Well, now that we have (finally!) shopped at The Cinnamon Stick, I can confidently say that we are going to be back again soon, and happily long-time customers. They have a great selection of many different bulk goods, and absolutely everything that I looked at was a better price than anywhere else in town! (I love Penzey's just as much as the next loyal Wisconsinite foodie, but I don't always need to spend $15/pound for something that could be just as good at $6.) From spices to specialty flours, and other treats and necessities, everything was really fresh and high quality brands. Though the prices are low, these aren't those cheapo, flavorless spices and ingredients either.
Steve was also very helpful and honest with us as well. After buying different kinds of flax seeds by the seat of my pants for years, I thought I would ask what the difference is between the brown and golden varieties (as I had a bag of golden flax meal in my hands, ready to buy). He not only let me know about their nutritional similarity, but also pointed out that the brown ones are in fact priced lower (for looks, etc.). It was just the difference of a dollar or two, but his candidness made a huge difference to me. I was more than happy to grab the larger bag of brown for the same price.
In any case, since we were literally there after closing, we tried not to take too much of his time, and didn't get to see everything. But we saw that they have other fresh and frozen items, as well as some non-food things that we are looking forward to perusing next time. I wanted to see more of the products they offer from local craftsmen, and my meat-eating husband was particularly interested in the exotic local meat selection... But take my advice and don't wait until 6pm to stop by (or 4 on Sundays). Though you may still get in, you're definitely going to want more than just 10 minutes to enjoy your shopping experience at The Cinnamon Stick.
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