Solomon Ventures

You have to take this place for what it is, a discount emporium. This is not Walmart, and this is not Trader Joe’s. They have a limited amount of things and it changes pretty much every day.
Some of the stuff is out of date and some of the stuff is not and you just never know what you’re going to find. Today I found in date boxes of decaffeinated black tea for $.50 apiece. By the counter they had boxes of Mucinex allergy 80 pills for four dollars. They expired in the end of January this year. They have a refrigerated section that has various items in it today there wasn’t much in there some days there’s a lot of things like cheeses and yogurts and organic things I’m not sure where they get it from but they’re usually just out of date or about to go out of date.
The guy that owns it is super nice. It’s pretty clean inside and they are organizing it fairly nicely now. Sometimes they’ll have racks of Bulk Foods like a 5 pound can of mustard in case you need it… I like it because they always have some various gluten-​free items that are usually in date and I don’t know where they get them from but they are about a quarter the price of the regular store.
It’s fun to pop in once in a while and see what you find.

It’s not fantastic but it’s not terrible. It’s a solid ok and that’s A-​okay. Timing and luck determines your experience. Still though, it’s worth the stop if you’re in the area. You never know what they’ll have and what you want. Do check the expiration dates in food products. Sometimes they have really gourmet stuff for cheap. I believe their motto is «where shopping is an adventure». They’re not wrong.

Pretty cool place that has a wide variety of things. Grocery items (some I’d never seen before) and some closeout items you’ll never see there again. There is organic food available and regular food. I got a dozen free-​range chicken eggs for only $ 2, quarts of organic milk for only $ 1. Most stuff hasn’t expired yet. I also got a set if 4 bamboo coasters for only $ 2. It’s kind of entertaining just looking around at stuff.

My husband and I are kind of a little obsessed with this place. We try to go every couple of weeks just to see what strange new stuff they have, and we’ve only walked out without buying something maybe once. Usually we end up dropping $ 20 on things we didn’t even know we had to have!
Generally we stick to the grocery section, which is full of lightly damaged or just barely expired boxed and bagged food, often strange trendy «healthy» food like Pop Chips or lentil chips or organic mac and cheese or gluten free everything, some of which is amazing and ends up becoming a regular purchase at our local grocery, some of which is kind of terrible but I only spent 50 cents or a dollar on an entire bag so I don’t feel too bad pitching it. I’ve only had a product that was «bad» once, and it was just that a bag of Starbursts had become a giant multicolored block of Starbursts, which is mostly just difficult to eat.
We don’t often venture over to the «stuff» section, with overstock underpants and $ 5 computer chairs, but we’ve found some great foil pans and paper cups and plates for party purposes there and I think they may still have some of the nice but pricey sets of dishes they had the first time we ever visited. They are not kidding when they that «shopping is an adventure» here!

Between Unilocal and my mother, I had heard quite a bit about Solomon Ventures and finally made my way there recently. It was much bigger than I had imagined it would be and packed with the most random items. My roommate was surprised to find Kraft salad cream (apparently an English thing, I’d never even heard of it) on the shelves. I picked up an armful of items (whole wheat couscous, salt and vinegar pop chips, throwaway cooking pans, etc). The food items are basically all past or very close to their expiration dates but the items I found don’t expire until November, which isn’t bad at all. I think the best way to check this place out is with no expectations because then you’re bound to find something you can’t live without. I got 5 or 6 items and since they were doing 10% off, I only spent $ 4.50. The location is a bit out of the way but if you’re around, it’s a fun place to explore.

What a gem of a store. You never know what goodies you will find while shopping at Solomon Ventures. They often have organic shelf stable food. Solomon’s even has a small refrigerated section. I always have to set a budget for myself so I don’t spend all of my money.

We got a ton of stuff for $ 17.
Yes, the place is very interesting, one side of the store sells organic/​natural stuff the other side party supplies.
Lots of really great deals on food. I don’t really care for everything else. I wasn’t brave enough to purchase anything from the freezer. The food we got didn’t kill us, it wasn’t stale or scary.
I feel like if they had a tiny storefront in riverside with just the organic/​natural stuff, they would make a killing. Maybe if they got rid of some of the weird stuff and made the place look nicer, they would gain more clientele.
I will return again.

Found this store perusing Unilocal as I have been known to do. Sure glad to come across the suggestion. Like others have said Solomon’s seems to have a bit of it all. I would like to mention a large selection of gluten free snacks for those gluten intolerable folks. We have found gourmets cheeses, party favors, nice dinnerware& I’m sure you will find something too.

I almost don’t want to review Solomon’s! I don’t want everyone to shop there… there isn’t enough awesomeness for everyone! I’ve gotten veggie dogs for $ 1, chips (various gourmet highend) for 50 CENTS, Better than Boulion for 89 CENTS, Brie for 50 cents… totally random in what you will find from visit to visit. I want to go everyday! You can go down the same aisle three times and see something you didn’t see just a minute ago on each aisle cruising. Prom dresses? Check! Tuxedo? Check. Comic books? check! things that scare me under the tables? check! Silk butterflies for my kiddos birthday party decorations? they got em! Wine? Yep! K cups? Yep! Tea, coffee, odd things in packages… those African Princess statues are still there! Boxes of Bolts? Yep! I am pretty sure that the people who work there don’t know everything they have! You just have to go see for yourself!

The widest [and sometimes weirdest] thrift store selection I’ve seen in Jacksonville. They seem to have anything and everything, at least on a rotating basis.
The merchandise seems to be a mix of used thrift store items and new items that were overstocks [or just plain bad ideas, check the CD rack, seriously]. The last time I was in they had a wide selection of crazy African princess statues, brand new, just as an example. I will say that the book and vinyl records selection here is not that good, though, which is a black mark for a thrift store. I don’t know if its picked over by the time I get there or if they just don’t have much, but its always pretty slim.
On the plus side, its pretty clean and organized and the people who run it are very nice and friendly. If you’re the kind of person who even barely likes thrift stores, this is a must visit.