Buyer’s Best Friend – Wholesale & Mercantile

Last weekend before they close this weekend for good! Everything in the shop is 20% off and I am so sad to see this neighborhood gem go. I love that I can sample anything and everything before committing to buying something and I have never been disappointed with a single purchase here.
I’m always here for their artisan and gourmet chocolates. No joke, I easily load up on $ 35 – 60 worth of chocolate every time I walk in here. Needless to stay, I have stocked my pantry now that they will only be located in the Ferry Building.
I’m gonna miss you guys!

I have a hard time with this place. While I appreciate the samples and know they need to pay the high haight at rent, their prices are outrageous! And as another reviewer indicated you can get things elsewhere cheaper. My favorite example is the gourmet caramel corn. The bags are double the price of the haight st market which is 2 blocks away. Sad to say I won’t shop here again after getting burned on these prices.

You know all the great snacks you pass by at whole foods, that you don’t necessarily NEED (ever), but want to select one anyway?
This is a store full of that, at wholesale prices. (Which, unfortunately, are still quite high, but for artisan goods, is worth it)
Stop in here for a small hostess gift, or a new snack to treat yo’self.

Wonderful place to stop and sample a wide variety of treats. Some of the choclates are absolutely to die for and realitively reasonably priced. Extremely knowledgeable and friendly staff encouraging (yes, you read that right) to sample a plethora of chocolates. My only complaint is that some of the items in the bulk bins were stale and odd tasting. I highly recommed sticking to the prepackaged items. Well worth the stop, just be forewarned that you will be leaving with more yummy chocolates than you ever imagined. :)

This place is the bee’s knees if you like to sample your goodies before purchasing.
My best friend and I stopped by on NYE — she had previously picked up a bacon hot sauce for her bf and she was hoping to repurchase. Thankfully they had what she was looking for! We also sampled our way around the store — delectable coconut chips, chocolates, popcorn, coconut curry cashew candies (weird but delightful!). They also have a small section for gadgets and home/​body goods.
If you’re walking around this area — stop in for a look (and a snack!).

Total Scam & Waste of Money. It seems like an incredible gourmet food store with tiny tasty samples. But in reality the employees are liars and are not to be trusted. The manager scanned my Harbio gummy bears that were «rare» and $ 4 and said «oh myyyy, wow, yea my friends buy these here all the time, such a great deal». I went to WALGREENS (so rare, huh?) down the road and saw them for $ 1.39. This place is a rip off and full of liars who are WAY OVERPRICING THINGS and lying about it. I feel stupid and regret going here 100%. They had good products, a nice variety also, but they just smell their own farts and lie their butts off. Look at the comment attached to this… they don’t stop lying and making excuses for themselves.

The stocking stuffers I picked up last year were quite the hit, so naturally I went again this year. I’m just mad I forgot to pick up the one thing I wanted for myself, more of Community Spice Company’s «chimi Chimmi» spice rub!

A great place to stop in for high end candy and the staff gives it a boutique feel.

I love this place, as well as its sister store (Mercato) in North Beach. Tons of great local products. It’s a great stop to pop in when you have guests in town, or if you’re looking for a cute gift for someone. Or if you’re like me, great place to browse any day of the week :)
They also carry my favorite olive oil of all time; Calvirgin’s Jalapeño Garlic. Love drizzling it on top of avocado toast with a touch of sea salt or using it to roast veggies (e.g., brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, you name it) in the oven. Such great flavor.
Oh, and don’t forget to check in when visting the store (or Mercato) for your very first time. They currently have a coupon for 10% off your entire purchase for first time visitors.

A little hidden gem in the Haight. In between all the eclectic shops and people asking you to buy weed off them is this cute gourmet specialty food store. It obviously caught my eye so I strolled in to just look around. I ended up purchasing a Chapul cricket flour bar, which I have been wanting to try. The best part about this store are the samples they have for many of the products they sell. Foods range from chocolates, popcorn, jerky, candies, chips, ice cream, jarred foods, beauty products– the list goes on. Some of the stuff sold here is made by local artisans, which is always a plus.
Glad I stopped in while vacationing in SF :)

Not sure of the name. just know organic and artisan, and sometimes local products are featured here. free samples too. not just juices, chocolates nor gourmet products. some health and beauty aids present. (not for me, it’s too late, baby! going for the natural look)
drink: «sparking organic SIPP ginger blossom» 2.54
–organic agave sugar, vanilla, and lime
–very tasty, sweetness lingers…
drips:
–friendly service, one counter person does it all
–distracting noises in the covered up corner. a little unnverving.

This store is super cute! We were eating at Cha Cha Cha down the street and I remembered that I had Buyer’s Best Friend bookmarked for years.
Love the samples of the chocolates — Bay Area favorites — Poco Dolce, Charles Chocolates, etc. The shop is mainly filled with food items but they also have toiletries (they smell great) and cards and such. I ended up only picking up a cute card but was so tempted to get the Poco Dolce chocolate tiles that I love and some truffle pasta. I know where to go when I want to splurge on gourmet goodies!

sample everything for sale here!
I walked into this store skeptical of what I would find. just another organic food market, right? wrong!
As my friend and I walked in, we were greeted by one of the employees, who let us know that everything in the store, even the ones all packaged up and pretty, we could take a sample of. we of course took her up on the offer.
Welcoming us first was the caramel corn– we tried some and it was definitely love at first bite. I had one with cayenne– the perfect combination of sweet and spicy.
Next was the balsamic vinaigrette, that the cashier standing by them quickly offered it to us in a spoon. My friend and I looked at each other like the guy was crazy, but once we tried it, we were hooked. so good! Who knew you would ever want to just drink vinaigrette like that?
My friend and I made off with the popcorn and some three twins ice cream. it’s a little expensive here, but so worth it!
come in for the samples and don’t feel bad if you don’t end up buying anything, the employees were friendly enough those who did.

Buyer’s Best Friend should change its name to my best friend because we got that far in my first visit.
My best friend would openly display samples of chocolates all over the store, reeling me in because they are so damn good when you taste them. Start with Amella Caramels.
My best friend would let me sample mint balsamic vinegar, but before doing so would add some basil olive oil to my taster spoon causing me to wonder how many bottles of both I could actually carry.
My best friend would find all the food (mostly sweets) I want deep inside of my brain and display it for me, making it almost impossible to make just one choice.
My best friend seems like nirvana for gift baskets and even though I don’t live here, my best friend will send me baskets that I order for myself online after I leave.
Judging from the other reviews, Buyer’s Best Friend has a lot of best friends, but I’m not jealous — there is plenty of merchandise to go around.

Tip: Sign up for the frequent customer/​local discount!
The Dang coconut chips they carry are absolutely amazing. I always leave with 2 bags when I walk in. + local discount = happiness.

So many reasons to come here! Vast selection of unique artisan foods such as chocolates, caramels, coffee, sauces, etc. Great way to support local businesses. Friendly, helpful, and laid back staff. But the absolute best part: endless samples for almost anything in the store. And if they don’t have samples on display for something you’d like to try, you can still try it anyway.
My favorites are the toasted coconut shavings, the gray sea salt caramel, and the green tea caramel.
If I was rich with lots of $$$$, I’d definitely be shopping here a lot more often. In the meantime, I’ll just write a good review to spread the word and keep on eating free samples of all the goodness they have to offer.

Though it may be small, this place has some really cool products. For coffee lovers, they have $ 1 cups of Stumptown and cold-​brew Stumptown. There’s not many places to find Stumptown at all in SF, so it’s cool to have this in the Haight.
There’s a bunch of other interesting drinks (wines, waters, juices, etc.) and LOTS of chocolate. Next time I’m there, I’ll do some investigating to see which ones are vegan.

They have a little spot in the Ferry Building, but this is a whole store of goodies to try and get hooked on! Amazing local everythings. from ice cream to caramels to oils to hot sauce. There was a mango chuntney purée hot sauce that was really bomb. And I never use the word bomb, it just seems to fit in this situation. Staff is super nice.
I know where I’m getting my friend her birthday present — she keeps talking about those caramels.

This store has great, unique foods and items! Chocolates, spices, coffee, chips, popcorn, ice cream, nuts, soaps, oils and more! My friends saw the sign outside advertising «Artisan Food Tasting Inside» so we had to check it out. There are samples of various items in the store and the employee there told us that if we wanted to try anything in the store, we could. They have close relationships with the companies that make the items sold in the store and seem really enthusiastic about trying to get these products out to the people. If you’re looking for some unique gifts, this store definitely has a lot of options!
TIP: Check in on Foursquare or use the Scoutmob app to get a 50% discount! My friend was able to buy this chocolate bar for $ 4 thanks to this deal :)

Despite being sandwiched between Whole Foods and Haight Ashbury Market — Buyer’s Best Friend manages to still fill a void when it comes to finding unique gourmet items. From Stumptown Coffee, to unbelievable aged Balsamic VInegar, to truffle salts, to unique sauces, marinades, and even natural soaps and such — Buyer’s Best Friend has a wealth of superb finds that you just can’t really find anywhere else in the city.
Buyer’s Best Friend is a what’s up call if you’re headed to a picnic and want to bring a memorable house-​warming gift or condiment. It’s a what’s up way to impress your foodie friends. It’s a what’s up way to support small businesses, and if you have the time and stomach room — it’s a seriously what’s up way to sample gourmet items with an engaged and informed staff.
Trust.