Duane Reade

I can’t believe I’m writing a 5-​star review for a giant chain drugstore, but this branch of Duane Reade has a great pharmacy staff. The pharmacist and assistants have helped me out of a pinch several times, whether with discounts or just understanding what’s going on with my insurance. Three cheers for the pharmacy! And the rest of the store is huge and bright and brand new now, following a major renovation a couple years ago. Really happy to have this branch around the corner.

Its a Duane Reade, so similar to the hundreds of others scattered across this city! As others have mentioned, it has recently gotten a makeover which has improved to dingy, run down appearance of its former self. I remember a few years ago I tried to buy a soda with a $ 20 but they couldn’t give me change. It is decently stocked, however every once in a while you will see an item that was there last week gone. There are frequently deals and I have never had a problem with a mislabeled item. There is normally a line at the checkout and it feels like theres only ever one person working the register– but the line is never more than 5 – 8 minutes.
I did have a miserable experience with the pharmacy here. I came in very visibly sick to pick up a prescription which had been called in by the doctor. The woman at the pharmacy counter was incompetent and rude. She accused me of telling her my last name wrong. Excuse me, its my name! She was a real disaster to deal with and vocally blamed me in front of other customers. Let me make it clear that the issue was not my fault, and the clerk handled it pretty miserably. I go here because it is close and convenient, but it is not the best Duane Reade around.

Beware of this store!! They mark things as being on sale but when they ring it up at the register, it is not the sale price that was listed on or in front of the item. I’ve been going here for years and this happens ALL THE TIME. Now I take a picture of the sale sign and make sure it rings up that price. The management always acts surprised as if it is an accident. Feels like a scam.

Very bad pharmacy experience. After being my go-​to pharmacy since the place opened, recent pharmacy experience was so bad as to be a deal-​breaker. My MD had ordered an Rx with a request for the pharmacy to call me to let me know it was available. No word from DR. When I went to inquire about the Rx, the pharmacy counter person was not only dismissive, and made no attempt at any solution, but was actively combative. When I described this to the manager I happened to pass on the way out, he was pleasant, but dismissed it all because someone was on vacation. Seems to be a good way to lose long-​time customers.

Where can I start… this drug store has the worst management. They pre judge their costumers before you purchase anything. I was looked down upon because I came in to do bottle redemption. I brought the soda and water from them. I won’t buy anything from this site anymore.

Probably the least convenient «convenience stores» I have ever been too. The biggest issue by far is the fact that the beer is never cold. Fix your darn fridge Duane Reade! If I am paying $ 14+ for a 6 pack of bottles, is it too much to expect that its cold?
In addition, they are constantly out of stuff, aisles are always blocked with massive bins for restocking (although have never actually seen someone restocking), and the checkout line moves like molasses.
Avoid if possible…

If you want the best experience EVER with a pharmacist than look no further than the Duane Reade located at 194 East 2^nd Street.
I am writing about a particular pharmacist and her name is Lauren Burke. When you are lucky enough to have her serve you, on the day you need her the most then you are in for best experience ever.
Not only is she kind and brilliant as a scientist in the field of pharmacology but she will give you the best service you could imagine.
She sets the standard by which all others should be measured. In the hurried world that is Manhattan, it is so refreshing to find someone willing to be human and will exchange simple civilities with you. It is so rare but she goes beyond just saying hello.
She really, really cares about your well being.
Manners do matter. She is the Emily Post of Pharmacist.
if she is not working and it is not urgent then I will wait to see her before I fill a prescription that is how much I enjoy her caring professional service with a smile.

love the DR. i’m talking about the Dominican Republic.
love-​hate this Duane Reade… mostly because i love coming here to pick up odds and ends… and hate walking out with pointless impulse purchases (like CANDY!) also for some reason i always end up here when i need to buy gift cards for people.
this location got a pretty extreme makeover relatively recently. it’s way better than its prior dank dark period of existence.
nice clean bright aisles. though the layout of items and how they are organized perplexes at times… often times leading me to spend way too much time in the store than i can afford. maybe that’s the point. hmmm
i don’t use the pharmacy here. why? no reason. there’s often never a line at this pharmacy, so maybe i should switch!!! hmmm idk
this DR has pretty much everything every other Duane Reade has from OTC medicines to household goods to food to candy, cards, etc.
honestly the candy game here is pretty on point during any major holiday. the Easter Candy selection is ridic. (see my pix) and i love it. the candy sales here are weak though. i prefer buying mostly from Rite Aid because Duane Reade feel like they up-​price their candy even when it’s on-​sale.
the staff here is pretty stellar despite being understaffed. often times there are no enough people at the cashier spot when you need to get rung up and no one is to be found on the floor when you have a question. you wonder why i bemoan the death of mom-​n-​pop pharmacies this is WHY.
that said, as part of a retail chain this DR does a good job of representing clean retail experience with ample varieties of choice.
the choices of discount DVDs are so baaaad… they are good. i don’t know who picks them or if they are random, but damn their taste is bad it’s good. lol
the customers here range from families, to aging hipsters, to normal neighborhood people of all ages trying to fit convenience store shopping and errands into their lives, to drunk people trying to break 20s or use their debit cards to buy gum and/​or beer. beware!
drops the mic, so i can two-​fist these giant bags of Cadbury Mini-​Eggs!
i out (to get SUGAR HIGH)!

It had all the essentials, and was extremely convenient for my friend who started having stomach troubles late at night! We don’t have Duane Reades in Atlanta, but it’s just a brand of Walgreen’s

I love the pharmacist here. She’s amazing. Most pharmacists are transactional. Take your prescription, fill it, check you out. She takes the time to answer my questions. To let me know what side effects of new medicines are normal, and when to check in with my doctor. She is patient and caring. She’s gone above and beyond to figure out wonky insurance issues, to suggest the best ways to tackle a bad cold, and to answer lots & lots of questions. I don’t even know her name, but I hope she knows that her care and concern has not gone unnoticed!

Average 2 star review?! Man. Wow. Ain’t that bad. Come on, who reads Unilocal anyways to pick a drug store. They’re all kind of the same anyways!
I go several times per week. Come on though, it’s a pharmacy so why would people take the time to write a review if they’re happy. Unless they’re obsessed Unilocalers like me.
Staff are usually quite nice, but they change every few months anyways. As for prescriptions I’ve had many good encounters. The female pharmacist with the southern drawl can be especially nice and funny sometimes. Lauren?
Only had one bad encounter, they said my prescription would take 2 days and couldn’t suggest another location that could do it quicker. They didn’t give me another address or call them. Even after I stared at them awhile. I went to Union Sq, and they said it was fine since they’re end of day cutoff was 10pm so I could have mine 12 noon next day. Would’ve been nice my local store helped me on this just a bit. I had to run around and call all myself. Oh well. Sucks when you’re sick and gotta do that. But in 2 years that’s pretty damn good.

Pretty small and unorganized for Duane Reade. Get’s the job done if you need something quick in the neighbourhood.

This location is perpetually out of stock of the most basic brands. The shelves are comically empty, like a post-​apocalyptic movie. Speed Stick is a pretty basic brand, but they’ve been out of it for weeks. They’re down to about 4 boxes of Opti-​Free contact solution, but they’re arranged one-​per-​shelf to look like as many as possible. Still missing the most basic brands of body wash. This simply isn’t a reliable location to shop.

Literally wish I could give this a zero. I have never been treated so poorly in my entire life. I came to Duane Reade to pick up my birth control prescription, which I have been getting there for an entire year. For some reason they had deleted me out of the system so I had to go back to my apartment to get my insurance card, which was totally fine…
However, when I came back with it the pharmacist took it to the back «scanned it» and brought it back to me saying it was expired. I informed him that it was absolutely not expired and that I had just received it a few months prior and had been using it with no problems. He looked at me and rudly said «I can’t help you, go home we are closing in 5 minutes.» I guess he could not spend the last 5 minutes of his JOB to help me get my prescription.
I was freaking out thinking that my insurance was canceled. I called my insurance company in the morning and the woman on the phone informed me it was 100% fine and certainly not expired. Thus, I called Duane Reade 2^nd St directly and a way nicer man answered the phone and put my inforation through successfully.
Once I went back to pick up my presciption (3 days late) the same rude pharmacist was there and being insanely rude to the woman in front of me too! I could not believe it. Maybe he hates women I have no idea. I informed him and the idiotic cashier of how disrespected I had felt. They couldn’t have cared a less clearly. This pharmacist needs to be fired he is heinous. It is embarassing that he went through years of pharmacy school just to spend his days treating customers like trash. Worst service I have had in my entire life.

Well been here on plenty of occasions to pick up no name cookies for my friends. Double Stuff and Chocolate Chip cookies. Yes I don’t eat them but my friends love them with some fresh percolated bustello coffee.
The price is cheap compared to local bodegas in the area. One thing I will say service is fast and friendly. I mean like there was a long line of 10 people with 1 cashier, then magically 2 other cashiers appeared.

The pharmacy staff is amazing. They are concerned and helpful and happy to consult about medications.
The only reason not 5 stars is because the regular checkout can get really backed up and also the store stopped stocking some of my favorite items since reorganizing. Can also be hard to find things – not always in logical places.

Cause waking up at 2am on a Monday and shopping is usually the best thing to do.
I woke up craving apple juice. I have no idea exactly why. So basically this place is a life saver to have because all the other places charge you a arm and a leg to get some essentials at this odd hour.
Honestly, it a duane reade, I’m not expecting too much from anyone or anybody, the fact that you’re open 24 hours and sells some stuff at a reasonable rate is already a lot. I mean what do you expect? A personal concierge when you walk around?

I’ll admit that I’ve come here on many a late night for random essentials — so it’s a huge plus that this location is open 24 – 7. That said, it’s a smaller store so they don’t have a huge range of products, and the employees often don’t know where to direct me of I’m having trouble finding a specific item.
My biggest gripe (which may or may not be DR’s fault) is that they don’t carry the same generic medication I used to take when I got my prescription at CVS. I just don’t like switching brands unless it’s for a medical reason, and I was surprised that DR didn’t have the brand I wanted.
The have awesome store-​brand snacks at a good price and in cute packaging — I’m sold!

Wow, pretty shocking to read all the bad reviews. I think this is probably one of the better Duane Reade stores in the city. At most DRs, the vibe I get is «We hate our jobs, our lives and you. Please GTFO.», but not here.
The staff is really friendly and this is definitely the ONLY DR in the city I’ve ever seen that manages to keep their check-​out line in order without the use of barricades. That’s right, people. No cutting drama and no fights. Longtime DR customer know exactly what I’m talking about! Don’t know if this is a reflection on the customers or the staff, or both, but I am thrilled that my trips to this store are always so uneventful.
Is this the best, most well stock Duane Read ever? No. This is not one of those mega stores like the one in Union Square. Do not expect to find the same vast array of products as you would there. However, as a local, it is perfectly a-​okay.

I just got asked if I work here. Not that I blame the woman, because at the time I was standing around, reading a magazine. Indolence indicates employment here.
Also, the ATM was in service, because they knew I didn’t need cash.