Duane Reade

It is a Duane Reade: very clean and equally efficient to all to all others. Not much more one needs to say.

The pharmacy people are incredibly rude. Instead of fixing a reoccurring problem they give you an excuse, tell you it won’t happen again and it’s fixed. Low and behold the same mix up happens and they yell at you for it. I’ve experienced the same problem with them every 3 months for a year. It’s absolutely unbelievable.

Very friendly staff and a very well run pharmacy. Like all Duane Reade pharmacies, don’t go if you’re in a hurry.

Normally I would not even bother leaving a Unilocal for a DR but the people that work here and awful.
If they think being rude and dismissive to customers is the way to go, they are mistaken. Funny thing is that they think that wearing their name tags backwards is a good way to get away with the poor manners. How about you pick up a broom to your dirty store or how about a smile instead of that stink face you think is cool? Not our fault your hate your job. It is actually yours.
In the end your rude and obnoxious behavior will eventually catch up to you. It always does.

The pharmacy never has my prescriptions in stock. They take forever to fill them. When my kid has an ear infection and I need his antibiotics filled, they tell me it will take a week. They always claim not to receive the prescriptions my doctor sends over. If you have any issues with your insurance they will not help you sort them out or give you any useful info. Awful customer service. They just couldn’t care less. NEXT!
If you need lipstick this place is great! If you need prescriptions filled not so much.

I had a small issue after traveling to NYC from home in Vegas today. I left my daughters medication at home and needed to find a pharmacy. As I went through the reviews for the Duane Reade pharmacy, I was concerned to say the least. Would I be able to convince the pharmacist on duty to call my doctor and fill the prescription on a Sunday evening at 9 pm. Not many positive reviews on Unilocal.I was worried.
Well, I can honestly say that I went to the right pharmacy and had the pleasure of being helped by a fantastic pharmacist who simply made my visit effortless and completely satisfactory. She took my doctors info, called him and within 20 minutes I left with my daughters medicine.
Thank you for the fantastic service.

This location frequently overcharges you for items, by which I mean that the price you pay at the register is NOT the listed price. For example, for several months, they had Coors Lite six packs listed for $ 7.99, but would charge $ 9.99 at the counter. This persisted even after I told them about it 4 or 5 times, so eventually I just stopped buying them. I’ve also had them overcharge by like 30% on moisturizer and food items like almonds.
That being said, I live by this Duane Reade and I shop here regularly, as the only other option is Whole Foods, which I find to be too expensive. The staff has always been nice to me, and they have a great selection for a pharmacy. Just make sure to check your prices when you check out.

I must say this is one of the nicer DRs and most likely due to the sheer size and layout plus the great upscale beauty products they have available. I love browsing here as they have a great selection of british and french pharmacy products which can be hard to find unless you want to shell out beaucoup bucks!
I usually find what I need throughout the store, the only drawback is the checkout line. It moves pretty slow no matter how many people are on registers although most of the time it looks like it’s the customers who are holding up the line (taking out rewards card/​credit card/​cash way late)…Come on people, you know what you’re there for! Have your card out and let’s keep it movin.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a bright and shiny cosmetics section and medical section of a Duane Reade like this one. It’s very new, and very bright.
Ironically, it felt more like that was the entire store rather than anything else, but the shelves wrapped around to the other side of the block and more aisles with food and more. Doesn’t feel like a great use of space, too used to the cramped, taller shelves (you can see over these) and though I like the spacing, I shudder to think how much rent they would be paying. Definitely trying to catch the younger crowd, some food items that are trendier and towards the healthier end rather than just salty and sweet snacks.

The door in this store is crazy. It almost closed it self on me. Its either really hot or extremely cold in here. Can they fix this already!

My daughter’s boyfriend said that these drugstores are so prolific in NYC that they actually have created a phrase «the Readification of NYC» to explain just how this drugstore chain is taking over the city. Well, not quite, but you can pretty much find a Duane Reade on every corner… or every other corner. No matter what, I had never been in one until my most recent visit to NYC. I have to say, at least this particular location is very nice… esp. for a drugstore. It’s quite nicely stocked with above average brands of toiletries and make-​up, and shelves are displayed in a very attractive manner. Sure, it’s still a drugstore, but they have so much more. This one’s open round-​the-​clock, which is great if you need something late/​early… or whatever.
Anyway, if you live here, you know the store… and even for those of us who don’t live there, yah, we know the store too… it’s EVERYWHERE.

***WARNING: IF YOU ARE EAST ASIAN over the age of 30 AND have SUPERIOR and SERIOUSLY NON-​AGING genes, be prepared to be questioned and harrassed by the staff thinking you’re underage, this place is RACIST and think they’re the TSA or something lol ***
I’ve never had any problem in my previous visits here except today. Unfortunately, I DO NOT look over 18 to these douchebag girls and their IDIOTIC South Asian looking so-​called ‘Manager’ that works here wouldn’t let me purchase a pack of cigarettes LMAO.
The manager basically said «I don’t care who you are and I don’t care what you think or say, you don’t look over 18!!» (I’m 30) Is that managerial behavior or way of talking to a customer? No wonder everyone hates DR with a passion
After talking out loud so that EVERYONE in the store can know how foolish and how badly this store is managed, I left and went to the Deli I usually go to and bought my pack of cigarettes in less than a minute.
Duane Reade, you guys SUCK ass and your employees and mangers suck as well
NEVER AGAIN

This Duane reade is huge and they are open 24 hours. My boss sends me here to buy a bucket load of Forever stamps (~100). I actually enjoy my short trips here even though Duane Reades are ubiqutious in Manhattan now. One great thing that this Duane Reade and others in Manhattan have over the ones in Brooklyn is that there’s packed lunches, fresh bagels, donughts, and crossaints here for a great price.
Cheap breakfast/​lunches on the go.

So this place has been around for over a year and they haven’t shut down the crappier 24-​hour DR on 2^nd and 57^th, one block away. Interesting.
This DR is good for when you need something open 24 hours that isn’t a bodega (but charges higher prices than a convenience store) and a pharmacy (but don’t want to walk as far as the CVS on Lexington and 53^rd).
I go here mainly for Pop Corners chips after 10pm (because that’s when the grocery store closes).
If you want beauty products nearby for a better price, go to Bed Bath and Beyond on 1^st Ave. If you want beer or groceries, go to any store nearby. Even the Whole Foods is less expensive, and it’s an actual grocery store!
Occasionally there are decent sales with your card that bring the prices down to what things should cost normally.
It’s very pretty, but the employees are hit or miss like most of the previous reviewers have mentioned, either nicely, or in a racist way like Max M (!!! seriously? how was this not removed?).
It’s a Duane Reade. If you’ve been to one, you know what this one will be like. This one probably just has more stuff. That’s about it.

I’m a night person and this Duane Reade is open 24 hours and is basically a little Walmart in terms of item selection (not so much on the prices).
My favorites: make your own Starbucks mocha decaf for like $ 2 (I think its okay that I mix them)
Blockbuster movie rentals (haven’t done it yet but I appreciate the option)
They have gluten free and organic selections!
Late nice service has been good as well.

This is one of the newer Duane Reades in the city.
The manager sucks here. I wanted to grab a couple of items on my way home. I had already lined-​up in the pharmacy line to check-​out my items, the Manager at the desk (May 30, 2012 around 8:30pm) told me that I needed to check-​out my items at the front. First of all, I had like 5 items; and second off, why couldn’t you tell me sooner as I was lining up (not when I had been waiting patiently for a good 3 minutes as you were inputting someone’s driver’s license information into the system)?
Now, I had to walk to the front, and I had to wait in another line for another 6 minutes. Apparently, everyone else was just grabbing something on their way back home. Finally, my cashier lady was so eager to go home, she was super quick with trying to get me out of the store. I like the efficiency. Eff you manager who made me walk all the way to the front of the store! (What? It’s a big store, and you should be able to check-​out wherever you have a freakin’ cash register).

You know what they say about pigs and lipstick. The updated store sure looks nice, but Duane Reade, your staff is still shit.
Nothing drives me crazier than when I walk in at 7:30am, am the only person on the register line and there are 5 staff members behind the registers chatting it up and eager to clown around amongst themselves, yet no one is ready or willing to help me pay (which, you know, helps pay your checks). Listen, I realize I’m at a DUANE READE, but someone needs to teach these people the basics of customer service.

And yet another store shuts down because we really need a duane reade on every block.
Ooh la la. It’s such a pretty store, with counters that glow in soothing pastel purple colors, it’s a drug store, inspired by department stores. After a stressful day you can really come in here and feel as if you are indulging in retail therapy even if you are just buying lipitor and shampoo!

But too bad most of the products don’t measure up to the quality of the ambiance– there is food, but prepared food, sandwiches of the type you would find at 7 – 11. I’d guess i’d shop here if you want to put together meals that consist primarily of starch (sandwich or sushi), chips, and soda, and then buy makeup to cover breakouts from eating like that and the vitamins to enrich a poor diet they serve and the drugs to cure the conditions they cause. 5 stars for strategy and execution though :)

THE FIVE PILLARS OF DUANE READE
Shahada
There is no other store but The Convenience Store and Duane Reade is the last messenger of The Convenience Store.
Salat
Making Salat is all about going to Duane Reade «five times a day» — not literally, just going to Duane Reade whenever you need something. Need some non-​dairy creamer? Duane Reade. Need some Sudafed? Duane Reade. Just go there a lot and you got Salat under your belt.
Sawm
Sometimes Duane Reade is out of things, and you are like, fuck it, I will have to go without it until Duane Reade restocks it. This is Sawm — fasting. Only when Duane Reade restocks an item can you use it again. Exceptions are made for travelers, especially those outside the Dar al-​Duane Reade, where the benighted masses have not yet seen the light.
Zakat
While I was walking to this Duane Reade I saw a hobo sitting on a milk crate, shaking his cup at me. Duane Reade is all about Zakat. You pay for stuff, you get change, and you can give whatever alms you desire to anyone who might be around. Much like Mansa Musa on his journey to Mecca, people heading to or from Duane Reade are noted givers of alms.
Hajj
Everything is relative and only by having been on a journey, or hajj, in our lives before we learned of the Dar al-​Duane Reade can we appreciate that Duane Reade means we will never have to hajj again. The proliferation of Duanes Reade — this location within a five minute walk of at least two others — means that hajj is a thing of the past, as there is always a Convenience Store within a stone’s throw. Hajj is the most nuanced of all of the Five Pillars of Duane Reade, but it is important to fully understanding what we mean when we profess the Shahada.
Inshallah.

This isn’t just any Duane Reade, people.
If you’re a fan of megga drugstores, this Duane Reade is your store. If you’re a fan of cosmetic smorgasboards a la Sephora, this Duane Reade is your store. If you’re a fan of 24-​hour, one-​stop shopping (they have everything from a pharmacy to toys to prepared foods to produce to a manscape aisle), this Duane Reade is your store.
If you’re prone to bemoaning the lack of convenience in whatever city you’re living in at the moment that isn’t New York, this Duane Reade may make you cry.