Lloyd’s Liquors

This place is a diamond in the rough.
Are there better quality liquor stores in santa cruz? Sure. Places with better selection and pricing? Yes.
Places that are locally, responsibly owned, that are fairly easy to get in and out of with not too terrible a markup? Not so much.
This is located in a strip mall with plentiful parking just outside the downtown traffic snarl zone.
There’s more then enough parking any time they are open.
This is a smaller store and like most small liquor shops it can seem overstuffed. In spite of this it’s well laid out, coolers of beer and wine are in the back, liquor behind the counter, no alcoholic things-​mixers, soda, and snacks up are up front.
Inventory is sorted by price and quality. Staring at dollar 40 oz bottles of hurricane and trying to figure out where the craft beer is? It’s on the opposite side. This logic extends to all items.
The selection is decent for local products-​especailly local beer– and for low to mid tier items. Looking for absinthe, a 1,000 dollar bottle of brandy or a bottle of ’47 Château Cheval Blanc? Yeah this ain’t the spot.
Need a half rack of pacifica ballena, a fifth of makers mark, and some 100 proof schnapps for less then 30 bucks? this is the place.
On a personal note, I was coming back from work on a weekday, later then I’d like, pulled into the lot as they were locking the doors. They opened back up so I could make a ten dollar purchase, without me being a regular.
For me that alone would make this five stars, the rest is just gravy.

This store robbed me! Please check your receipts!
They added on more than 3 bucks in fees. They are really dirty individuals

The old guy behind the counter who I assume is Lloyd is chill, but he has a son or some relative who is in his mid twenties and he is extremely disrespectful and has the worst customer service around
I’m not planning on going back as long as that dude is there

This is a liquor store. I guess I could go into more detail: it’s got a parking lot, it doesn’t smell too musky inside, it has an ATM, it’s got a pretty good selection, etc. But really, this is a liquor store.

Got lots of different types of liquor choices. Bought a ten dollar scratcher and won fifty bucks. Not bad.

I haven’t been to Lloyd’s for something like a year now but I used to go there often. They have a solid selection of Liquors, an average selection of beer, lots of good specials, and the guy behind the counter is friendly and casual. On top of all that its on soquel ave (a main thoroughfare) right across the river from downtown.

i’ve been going to lloyd’s for years, and i love it. they still have mad dog ²⁰⁄₂₀ btw vicky :) they will special order just about whatever i ask for if they don’t have it, and always know what i want.

On a mission to find Piper Sonoma for a friend but to no avail at Lloyd’s. I was also immediately got turned off when I walked in and the guy behind the counter was shouting on the phone so loud that it sounded like he was mad (which he obviously wasn’t). It was an unpleasant feeling and he could have toned it down a decibel or two.

Back in the day they used to sell Mad Dog ²⁰⁄₂₀ which is one of the secret ingredients for my famous Jungle Juice (a recipe given to me which I modified by a fellow student activist/​organizer in Santa Barbara). Every so often when I have nostalgia and folks want to get faded fast, I will make my $ 50.00 concoction. It was great I would go to Albertson’s and get my other stuff (which has been closed) then go here. No you cannot have the recipe. Anyways they are nice folks here and when you want to catch a local bum buying a forty on his bike you should come here… oh yea… they also have a decent selection of almost any liquid alcoholic dealio your heart could imagine… well if you are college student and not bent on «the good shit» this place will suffice. If you are a snobby mother f-​er about what you imbibe. go to Trader Joes LOL.