Metropolitan Lumber & Hardware

Go to prince lumber! I could write a book on how much I hate the old grumpy dick at the counter (owner?). I unfortunate have to go here a lot since I do a lot renovations in soho. I usually will take the train up to prince to avoid this guy. Every time he acts like everything im saying is dumb. He Actually yelled at me to get out of the way so he can ring up the next costumer the other day! I’ve spent tens of thousands here over the years and the asshole still talks to me like I’m some housewife.

Terrible customer service. Sorry for burdening you with my business. I will never be back.

This morning was doing a small job in Soho and needed some basic supplies.
Tried OK Hardware on Broome and what a joke they don’t take Visa cause «they don’t give me good deal» ok buddie whatever and on top of it the prices are double then most places.
Back to Metropolitan, they had everything I needed and a fair price. I would know I think I’ve been to about half of the hardware stores in city.
They are surly and old school New Yorkers which is charming in it’s on way since these genuine folks are slowly being fazed out by boring ass folks from Ohio. So sack up and have your balls busted a bit it’ll keep you on your toes.

It’s a measure of how desperate Soho is for a lumber store that this place is still in operation. My husband has spent a lot of money there over the years (God knows why), and today he went in and asked them to cut these little wedges of wood that you put under a bookcase which, as it turns out, already exist (they’re called shims? I think. You can buy them, but my husband didn’t know). So he went in there with wood, asked them to cut it – and naturally he would have paid. The store worker was going to do it, but the manager, or at any rate the guy who seemed to be his boss, not only wouldn’t do it but shouted at my (82 year old, slightly rickety) huband for no apparent reason. Just an unhappy, not particularly competent fucktard.

Disappointing experience for someone who tries to support a local shop versus a big box hardware store. Bought an item, was not told of the no-​refund policy, and brought it back with receipt and item still in unopened packaging to be told it was unreturnable, no questions asked. Extremely rude manager, apathetic employees — sorry to say I’ll never be back here and will need to go to Home Depot where I know I will be given exemplary customer service.

I wish I read the Unilocal reviews first. Instead, I chose convenience and went to the nearest hardware store to have keys reproduced — unfortunately for me, the nearest place is Metropolitan Hardware. Not only did the newly copied keys not work, but they claimed not to remember me when I came back a few hours later for a refund. They realized that the didn’t actually have the key I needed. Waste of time. Also, though I was in the store well before it closed, they proceeded to clock the front door and close the blinds while I was in there. Creepy. A bad sign that they have to lock customers in to keep them. Don’t waste your time.

The only thing you need to know about this place is that it is no frills and the staff isn’t here to answer questions– they are here to get your lumber/​hardware order processed, then you out of the building, and then on to their next customer. I learned long ago to come in knowing exactly what you want. This way there isn’t any confusion and you can get what you need and get out. Plan as that. They have good stuff, good lumber, just KNOW WHAT YOU WANT!!! Finally, any place that has a photo of Jonhny and Dylan together at the counter is cool in my book!!!

I ended up coming in here early Monday morning before work. Got what I needed, and the cashier, was helpful. Not overly cheery (maybe that’s what some of the bad reviewers are complaining about) but he was direct and was able to get me the lumber I needed quickly. Can’t argue with that! I would come back here again.

Unlike the other reviews, it wasn’t the customer service that was particularly appalling. It was the quality of products. I needed a cordless driver. The man, arguably the proprietor, really tried hard to get me a corded bigger horsepower drill at triple the cost. I only needed a light duty one and the only model they carried was already overpriced. After some banter, he reluctant sold me the light duty drill.
Well I figured out why there was a hard sell. The light duty drill was crap and the motor blew after a week of very light use. I wish he would have just been honest that it was an inferior product.
I should’ve trusted my gut and bought a less expensive but higher quality one via Amazon.
Upon reflection, the store was horribly kept, filthy, disorganized and likely full of crap quality products. So much for my efforts to support mom and pop shops. I shan’t return.

Who are these people downing my beloved hardware store??? I’ve been coming here for some years and have had nothing but amazing service. The music they play is amazing and you can honestly find everything you need, don’t let the size fool you.
I usually am here at least twice a month getting wood cut. I even got serenaded the last time I was here.
Are these bad reviewers serious??? I love Metropolitan!!!
They honestly have everything you need for a large or small project and are super knowledgable.

I’ve come here and asked a number of dumb questions since I moved. Like, «Do you have this woodscrew, but for metal?» and «How about rolls of cork?» and «Where are all the 3M Command Strip things» while I was standing write in front of them.
Followed by «Of course, let me show you,» and «I know we used to, let me check — we do, follow this guy and he’ll show you,» and «Right here, miss,» respectively, and sans sneers and snark-​casm.
Docking a star for the prices. Some things seem really cheap, and others, I’m like IS THIS SCREW MADE OF GOLD LEAF?

I’m totally baffled by all the negative reviews – just ran in here to get a bunch of keys made, they made them right away, I was in and out in 5 minutes. The staff was professional, not overly friendly, but not negative either. A totally fine experience, for me anyway.

After my shitty experience here today I was planning on writing a condemning review full of foul language and cutting remarks, but based on all the other terrible reviews this disgusting little asshole-​filled crevice has been getting, it seems like I can’t damage their appalling reputation any further.
To sum it up I will say this: Every review on this page that mentions sneers, condescending comments and I-couldn’t-give-less-of-a-shit-about-you attitudes from the employees is dead on accurate. Anybody who had a positive experience here and was actually helped by the staff must have been mistaken for a celebrity, or wandered into a completely different lumber yard, thinking it was Metropolitan.
Playing Bob Dylan isn’t enough to get me to suffer another insulting experience at Metropolitan Lumber. I would rather shoot myself in the testicles with a nail gun than ever set another foot in this dump.

There’s ONE guy there (William) who seems to know stuff and cares about educating customers. Other than that, it’s a fend-​for-​yourself kinda place. Messy. The staff seems to almost take pride in not knowing anything. Lots of shrugs. The only way they stay in business is having an actual LUMBER yard (ok, a bit of a stretch) in the middle of lower Manhattan.

The absolute WORST — clerks do not know anything and the stock is so messy and unorganized that no one knows where anything is or if they have it at all. NEVER AGAIN — not even in an emergency…

Wanted a $ 90.00 piece of 96×48 inch plywood, «Cut once– a 60 inch and a 36 inch piece». The man at the saw cut the the board in two at the right measurement. Then proceeds to cut the 60×48 inch into a 60×36 inch piece. Before he makes the cut I urgently stop him asking him what he was doing. «I don’t want you to cut this piece». He shrugs his shoulders and pushes the piece through anyway and then proceeds to tell me that they do what is on the ticket. The ticket was wrong. Not what I said– «One cut: 60 and a 36 inch”– but two cuts into a 60×36 inch cut. I walk in to protest but they said they couldn’t help me and that I would have to buy another $ 90 piece of wood. The guy at the counter says „I carefully checked with you. You wanted a 50 by 36 inch.“ I reminded him that I said „one cut“ into 36» and a 50″. «Well what are we supposed to do? It is an expensive piece of wood.» You could be a man and and admit a mistake. You could talk to your employee who ran the wood through the saw even after I told him not to regardless of what the ticket said. You could display better business acumen and realize that a customer who has spent thousands of dollars there over the years might be worth keeping around.
Additionally the service has always been condescending and rude. This was the last straw. Avoid this place.

The guys that work in this store are total a-​holes. Regardless of what you ask for (and you have to ask for a lot of things) you will be greeted with a blank stare and then some kind of a condescending remark, as if I could dare to be so stupid. Their prices are also RIDICULOUSLY high. I know Metropolitan has a convenient Soho location… but if you go to OK Hardware a few blocks away you will be rewarded with lower prices and much better service.

One of the most condescending encounters I have had in a hardware store. I managed to get insulted at my request and then told it didn’t exist except that it does. Great job, thank you. You are far better than me, great.
It gets a star back because it did have everything I needed and they had decent music playing. I would much rather go to any other hardware store in NYC than this one again.

I’d prefer to give this place NO STARS.
Reviewer #1 is right on the mark. This place is absolutely horrible in terms of customer service and selection. Everyone who works there is chronically in a bad mood, aloof to the point of being totally useless, and obviously not concerned about building customer relationships or loyalty. They continue to exist because the high turnover in the area results in an endless stream of new faces looking for stuff for their cramped apartments. Avoid this place if possible. The ACE hardware on West 4^th is much nicer and the sales staff there will at least be friendly if not knowledgeable.

Absolutely the worst customer service for a consumer store I’ve ever had anywhere. On top of that, the store is hardly organized through out their narrowly crammed aisles. «Service» is provided with a shout of direction or a condescending smirk but all customers are treated equality… as if they are idiots. They have a complete key section, but only provide the service if they feel like it. I was asked to come back on a Thursday to get my keys done, this was a Monday. On top of that the pricing seems to be either inconsistent day to day or over priced. I’d be more than happy to pay for a cab there and back to Home Depot on 23^rd than ever step foot into this dusty hole.