Famima!! Convenience Store

I’m not surprised it’s closed. The donut display had flies in it and when I told the employees, all they did was open the display and swat the flies out!!! Ewwww! Did they not realize that those flies were landing on the donuts and possibly laying eggs on them?! Disgusting!

Why did you close?! You were my lone Santa Monica savior! Effing bullshit! We need you, we want you, we love you!

Man service here is sad, this second time i have came here late night for a sandwich and was given a half ass excuse why they couldn’t worm my sandwich, bad customer service… and bad business…

Great place to stop for a quick meal or snack if you’re near the promenade. They have riceless sushi rolls, which are great, regular sushi, wraps, sandwiches, salads, pasta dishes, among a ton of other options. Krispy Kreme doughnuts too, which I TRY to avoid. The coffee is good. Everything is pretty cheap in price. An abundance of beverage choices.
There are tables outside that you can sit and eat at, but they are not always clean. Friendly service, and usually not crowded!

I come here quite often to grab snacks and such since I work just around the corner. This store has a good inventory of drinks, snacks, and personal items.

$ 2.99 brown rice rolls are the bomb, and probably as healthy as I’m going to get for you.
Quick and easy place to pick up almost anything on the run. Surprisingly, my go-​to item seems to be the HALLS Defense lozenges (such a strange word), especially when they were doing the 2 for $ 3. I should have horded the entire box then.
The four-​star rating specifically goes to the manager Rabin. He is loud, curt, but quick and gets you on your way. At times, I purchase with my debit card, withdrawing a small amount of ca$h. He always asks to confirm how much your want before processing, which is normally fine with me. This particular day, there was a slightly shady dude who was lurking nearby, and probably heard the amount I was taking out. As I turned to walk out with my purchase+cash, he approached me, starting with the, ‘excuse me…’ and right away, even though he started with the next customer, Rabin intercepted, asking the guy if he himself could answer his question. I was on my way out the door, but was touched that he gave me that brief amount of time to get on out.
I ended up calling Rabin after I arrived at work safely and thanked him for this small gesture. I don’t think he realized he helped me out there, and although we can speculate and say nothing was going to happen anyway, I’m happy to confirm, well, that nothing did.
Sorry for the long story, but I wanted to acknowledge that although they may seem hasty and robotic at the register, there was some certainly some observing going on, and I was grateful for this.
And, as for Famima!, they have some cool stuff you won’t find anywhere else–

IT’s cute, but it’s not all that clean. I would say to be careful what you buy. I’m sure almost everything is fine but the prepared food did not look fresh by any means.

I seriously love this plane like no other. It’s sooo convenient, has an amazing selection of everything, and is affordable but not cheap as in bad quality. The place is clean and orderly, the employees are kind, and I can’t get enough of the sushi triangle rolls for $ 1.75 ! I’ve been coming here all of high school and am almost in college and probably will never stop

I come here almost every day, I work on the same street. This place is cool with a good crew, always nice even though they deal with the constant homeless problem. Also the only place open 24 hours a day, which is awesome since I work as early as 3 – 4 am. Good selection one of the only places around with mochi ice cream mmmmmm I want some now.

Favorite convenience store on the promenade!
Has yummy sandwiches, sushi, teriyaki wings and drinks!
Service is happy and nice. Everything is SOO cheap!
I recommend this shop as a yummy quick cheap stop, ANYTIME!

This place is in a good location, and the name says it all… «convenience store»
They have soft drinks, oddly enough a 12 oz can of Coke is $ 0.99 and a 20 oz bottle of coke is $ 1.99, so you’re better off buying 2 cans for 24 oz than the bottle, or simply reduce your intake and just cut your costs and calories (plus whatever other bad stuff sodas provide) in half. (FYI — if you go to the vending machines at Santa Monica Place in the mall, bottles (I think they’re also 20 oz) are $ 1.75 and no CRV redemption fees)
They do as of this writing have Krispy Kreme donuts and from 6pm to 10pm if you buy 1 you get one free… a BOGO treat! So, the chocolate ring iced glazed is $ 0.99 for 1, and it then becomes 2 for $ 0.99 (no sales tax either).
They sell hot food snacks, some of Asian stylings like the «bao» white hot steamed sort of sweet buns which are soft n’ moist n’ tasty with various fillings inside.
They also have chicken wings, nuggets, potato wedges and other hot snacks all affordably priced.
The selection is good and area is nice
It’s like a cleaner nicer version of a ⁷⁄₁₁ with a more European /​Asian flair.
Being on the 3^rd Street Promende, near the Santa Monica Place mall is a good location for locals and tourists alike.
The prices aren’t out of synch nor unreasonable. The staff are friendly as well.
Parking of course is easy if you go to the adjacent lots where the mall offers 90 mins free parking and I think the street have lots with similar free time limited deals.

Great convenient store that has all the good stuff! I admit, I like getting scratchers and they always have them and most of the time I lose but it’s not Their fault :)
Very friendly employees!!!
I have yet to try these delicious warm stuff they have near the registers. Maybe one of these drunken nights!

Tried some corn dogs. It’s good, and the price is 1.19 plus tax. The cashier there is so enthusiastic, I thought that was nice. As I was waiting in line, you can hear him really loud asking everyone if they need a bag. He rang the lady in front of me and told her it was $ 10 and I guess she thought he was shouting at her when he was just full of energy. So she shouted back, I KNOW!!! Lol. The day in a life of Santa Monica…

Can I give zero stars? Because that is what Famina deserves.
I was temping a few doors down from the promenade and a co-​worker suggested Famina… HUGE MISTAKE!!! I got the tuna fish sub and ate half (thank God it was only half). Four hours later, I started to get chills, my stomach was churning and crying out in horror and I started PUKING AT WORK WITH FOOD POISONING!!! The puking did not stop there, it continued all night long (lets just say the drive home was fun).
My coworker told them to pull the tuna fish sandwiches off the shelves and they seemed confused and said «No one else complained.» What? Because everyone else is too damn sick to come in themselves (just like I was)!!!
This place might be «cheaper» than a Barney’s Beanery across the street, but the couple of dollars you save will creep up on you (quality of life and lost wages come to mind).
Garbage food at best. Never again.
— — — — — -
Went back again and this sales person was very helpful (and actually seemed sorry and concerned). He refunded my money and asked if I would like the card of the manager. Again, does not help the fact that it happened but a little compassion goes a long way.

Probably my favorite one stop shop in Santa Monica, and especially on the Promenade. It’s like a better version of 7-​Eleven – mini packs of medicine and necessary hygiene supplies (ladies, you feel me), to-​go sandwiches and reheatable meals (vegan options totally available!), and beverages and snacks galore. I am especially fond of their sticky buns (the chicken and mushroom amg!!) and coffee, even if the extra strong is often burnt.
The employees are very friendly and chill. I come here 4 – 5 times a week, so they’re used to seeing my ugly mug pick up a morning coffee before work. Once you make friends, it’s a nice atmosphere to roll into when you’re feeling less than friendly at 6 am. Holler!

I had an errand to run on Third Street Promenade and I wanted a pre-​dinner snack so I was on the hunt!
I felt like stopping at a food counter, Coffee Bean, pizza place or Wetzel’s would be too much to eat and not healthy!
Saw Famima and decided a convenience store on the Third Street Promenade was a great idea to get my snack and bottled water fix!
Turns out it worked and I got a healthy-​ish bag of organic vegetable potato chips and a water! It wasn’t bad!
I wouldn’t visit the street or go out of my way to visit but to pick up a few items, it worked! They also had pre-​packed foods which were a little pricier!
It’s convenient and it’s a store on the Promenade!

I’m so glad Famima! is on the promenade!
I enjoy walking in Santa Monica.
Long walks in Palisades Park., doing stairs nearby, or just browsing the mall & shops.
Famima! is a great, fairly healthy and not too pricey snack shop.
I love the onigiri (Japanese style rice balls) here.
You can get different things in the rice balls:
–spicy tuna
–teriyaki chicken
–salmon
+ a few others
You need to know how to unwrap the triangle shaped treats to keep the nori (seaweed) wrapper intact and in place.
There are many other snacks & drinks.
Some hot food located near the cash register.
Sometimes the line can seem a bit long here but it usually moves quickly.

Super nice little convenience store. They even heat the pre-​pack meals for you.
It’s small, not the cheapest, not much selection, but what they do have is pretty good quality, and you pay for the location.

Famima had high hopes and aspirations of becoming a gang of upscale convenience stores across SoCal, but with a hint of Japanese flavor. However, even ideas that often start hot get cold quickly, as the collection of shops (initiated by Family Mart stores of Japan) closed rather abruptly within the past few years.
So, before the chain disappears quietly into the sunset, check out the remaining locales left in the Southland (as of 3÷28÷15).
3^rd Street Promenade (Santa Monica)
Pacific Center (Downtown LA)
Roosevelt (Downtown LA)
700 Wilshire (Downtown LA)
California Plaza (Downtown LA)
City National Plaza (Downtown LA)
Union Station (Downtown LA)
Broadway (Downtown LA)
Famima claims to serve premium food (ie. hot wings, steamed buns) and deli style lunch boxes (ie. sushi, sandwiches, panini) but I don’t consider them to be based on their taste. Simply put, there’s no reason to boast about the food. Personally, the edibles resemble items that you normally can’t find on a fast food menu. They have all the snacks and refreshments that a normal convenience store will carry, but aside from the overseas candy and their off the wall goods, I can’t seem to give them any more love than what I already give them now. It gets less appealing each time I frequent the place.
Their concept is attractive and the upscale design and style sets them apart from a 7-​Eleven or an ARCO am pm, but that’s about it. I think people like visiting them since there are less of them now, which is what makes them unique.

Smaller version of the one downtown. Still a fan since they have a variety of goods ranging from American chips to Japanese pockey sticks.
Parking is a bit harder here since it is on the Santa Monica shopping area.
Still a fan!