They are a big box book store turned toy store, video and music store, and gift shop. They've lost their focus on books and published materials. The place is consistently messy and the customer service has started to disappear. There is always a wait at the check stands. No one there seems to view the cash registers as their responsibility. They are going to need more than toys and games to survive. My they should consider a strong management team that leads by example. I hated writing this review because I love books. read more

Pretty good selection of books and music. I prefer B&N to Borders for most things. Nice seating and atmosphere. read more

I'm grateful that Barnes & Noble is still around. To me, there is nothing like the feeling of grabbing a coffee and taking a long wander through a bookstore. I love every trip to this bookstore. My kids are adults now but I have many memories of them choosing books here as little children. My husband and I both have different genres we prefer and we can always find the perfect next book to read. I also love gift shopping here as well. So many options! read more

I like the layout of this store. It is bigger than the one in Oceanside, and the fact that the Starbucks is attached to the side of the store instead of being set up among all the books and magazines creates the illusion that this Barnes and Noble is more spacious. The magazine area is fairly large (again comparing to the Oceanside BN and the Calle Barcelona Borders), and there are lots of benches and chairs. At night, the parking area is lit up by palm trees with christmas lights wrapped around them. Pretty romantic. Great for a one hour date with my partner while the grandparents watch baby. read more

Great store - has a Starbucks attached which is a nice bonus! I get one every time! They have comfy chairs throughout where I have settled in to peruse a book or two. I take my girls there to play with the trains in the children's section. Some days, they also have reading time and a nice little stage that the kids can gather around and the "reader" can share from. Huge sections of any topic. If you can't find what you are looking for, they will order it for you. I even had someone call another bookstore chain for me - that's cool! read more

Really bad customer service from Jesse the manager. That said, everything you can get here, you can get from Amazon for 2/3 the price and have it delivered straight to your door without having to stand in line for 20 minutes. But it is a good place to come browse in person before buying it on Amazon. read more

I work right down the street. I stopped in on pay day last week to pick up the second and third book in a trilogy, and a young woman named Danielle or Daniella (sorry cant remember !) helped me. She was AWESOME. Great personality, friendly, and extremely knowledgeable. She gave me recommendations on fantasy to read, and knew story lines and plot lines of a ton of different books. It was a pleasure working with her and getting some recommendations from her on what to read. I bought on the books she highly recommended and so far I loving it! The staff at the front was extremely helpful and nice as well. The store is clean, and has an amazing selection. I love this place! read more

Who doesn't like walking through a bookstore. It's awesome. I love it. I don't buy all of my books here but I do buy enough that I'm a pretty big supporter. Being around tons of books is theraputic. read more

Very awesome bookstore. The entire store was extremely spacious and has a huge collection of books. Plenty of tables and chairs which seems to be missing at most B&Ns I go to. Outlets too. The people who designed this one in particular had the brilliant idea of having a starbucks opened right next to the store (a completely seperate one). The baristas were friendly and engaging. Overall I had a good time chillin at this B&N. B&N is the last of its kind... I wonder how long until it goes out of business read more

The team members at this store are wonderful! So kind and helpful! Deborah went out of her way to assist me for quite some time.

Good store, has plenty of seating, music section (believe it or not, some Barnes & Noble stores do NOT have a music section). Starbucks just next door (part of the Barnes & Noble though...) Hangout spot outside, and this store is near enough other interesting places to warrant a good 5 stars. Plenty of parking. read more

Great place to sit and feed your mind with positive information. I could spend hours and hours there reading business and leadership books. Great place to take kids too. Pros: Friendly staff. Store is well organized and books are easy to find. Love the variety of items available from movies and CDs, to games and puzzles. Starbucks located conveniently in the store. Cons: Bathroom didn't have any paper towels. read more

My son refers to Barnes & Noble as the library store. He and my daughter love the children's section. More specifically, the train table. Literally, they can play and look at books for hours. The great part about is there employees won't hover over you or make you feel you have to buy something or leave. Barnes and Noble isn't the cheapest place to buy books or magazines, but like everything else you pay for the service. They do offer a membership that gives fairly good discounts, especially on hardcover books. read more

Ordered two books online with guaranteed X-mas delivery then I get an email saying that only one will get here by xmas. I email B & N and they completely ignore the content of the email and send me back a reconfirmation that the book will be delivered on December 27th with a tracking code! Wake up customer service. read more

This location renewed my faith in this chain. I went to this store to check out their gaming section, saw an item I was interested in, but decided to buy it later. I came back the next day to realize they were sold out. Since I wanted it for my weekend dnd campaign, I called several locations in san diego area and was patronizingly told that the item was no longer sold by barnes and noble and I'd have to find it online through ebay or other channels. As a last hope, I decided to try asking the friendly staff members at my local Encinitas location for more information. Then, to my rescue, Timothy went out of his way to contact other stores and was able to manifest the item for me just in time for the weekend. He was very considerate and helpful in addition to giving great recommendations on books and games. I have had amazing experiences at this location. read more

Since Del Mar Town Center location closed. I'm happy with this location now. Even better they have starbucks in the store. It's clean and tidy, good book selections. sales people where helpful. read more

Consistently poor customer service at this location. They were never outright rude but their very curt responses and attitude just makes it very unpleasant to shop there. The first guy was condescending. I wanted help looking for a book and saw him at the help kiosk (in the middle of the store) but he looked like he averted my eyes when i saw him and went to go do some stuff to look busy. I got an overall unfriendly vibe like he didn't want to deal with customers so I decided that i already had a couple books so i would jusy check out. At the checkout it's that same guy and he asks me if i found everything alright, i tell him politely i didn't and he pretty much blames me for not finding him earlier. Kind of rude. He could have phrased it nicer, like 'oh next time you can come to the help kiosk' but his message was more like 'i cant do anything right here, why are you telling me now, and you should have come find me' In all my other experiences at this location the checkout people are consistently very short with me. They go through the bare minimum words to get through check out, regardless if its busy or im their only customer in line in the middle of the business day. I always get the vibe they couldn't care less about the customers. As soon as they print the receipt they just act like I'm already gone without so much as a goodbye. It's many small things like this that add up to an unpleasant experience. I'm going to go out of my way to go to a different location from now on. read more

What I can say! A Barnes and Noble has never let me down! So clean, including the bathrooms! Organized. Helpful and friendly employees. This is my sanctuary. read more

friendly staff willing to help you out if you need to order a book harry potter midnight book parties starbucks great music selection great selection of bargain books awesome. I also think that B&N is cheaper than Borders. read more

The bathroom is a sh!thole. One stall didn't have any toilet paper and there was trash all over the floor. If you want to people to come to the store instead of shopping on Amazon, maybe you should start with clean bathrooms. read more

Went there on Saturday at noon to buy two paperbacks. Picked them out, went up the counter that has eight (8) yes 8 registers and there was one (1) yes one, person manning the front of the store. Never saw another person that worked there. Stood in line for 15 minutes to get my books. For God's sake, you're a national chain with millions in revenue, HIRE SOME PEOPLE! Never again! read more

Too crowded. The line to check out is usually pretty long and you end up standing there for 15-20 minutes. There are a lot of teenagers inside and outside holding up the wall. The magazine racks usually don't have the latest issues of magazines out when I've seen them out already at other stores. The Starbucks is very crowded too and the staff isn't very friendly. I actually don't like going here because of the baristas attitudes and the teenagers loitering. read more

They always have what I'm looking for. The check out line is understaffed a lot of the timebut its the best in the area.

This location is apparently now a free day care center. Two women with two obnoxious kids were basically destroying this place today. Cheese was stuck to the floor, displays were being dismantled, and bottles and toys were strewn about a 300 square foot area. These women and their offspring were obviously oblivious to the annoying conditions they were inflicting, and where were the employees to stop it? Disgusting. read more

I went in here and bought a book and went to the check out and the guy says hi and I say hi back..he asks are you a Barnes and noble member and I said yes (as I was looking for my member card) he shrugs and puts his hands out like he had an attitude with me and was inpatient so I proceeded to give him my number connected to my membership and he inputs it and the receipt prints and he sets my receipt down on the counter and pushes it towards me very rudely. He had terrible customer service. Not impressed at all. read more

I typically judge a book by it's cover and this place has plenty of books with torn covers, ripped edges, crumbled magazines, and slimy kids books. I think people use this place more as a library or waiting room than a bookstore. read more

I am really fond of this location. It is well stocked with multiple categories.The access to both Starbucks as well as numerous other business's is perfect. I'm going to return for coffee and a book. read more

This is a really nice Barnes and Noble. They have nice cushy chairs all over so you can mull over your book or magazine purchase. A lot of people come here to drink their Starbucks (there's one next door) and just read the paper or magazines. Nobody bothers you and you can pretty much just hang out. The Dvd's and Cd's are way over priced unless they're having a sale. Other then that the sales people are always really nice and there's a pretty relaxed atmosphere. read more

I'm lucky and always find a bookseller who wants to talk and will help suggest other books. I think that they should hire me ;-) I have helped so many people buy books. I work at a used bookstore and when I want an edition ASAP or some cool book accessories like blankets, bookmarks and lights they're awesome! I do wish they'd add more book themed fun things. The prices are the most you'll see for books. Scan the 5.98 books and you'll score! Definitely get the membership read more

Nice little bookstore with some nice stuff and....Bobbleheads! Everyone loves Bobbleheads and I have a really nice Boba Fett I purchased here. So much fun! Everyone needs a Bobblehead on their dash who cares what the POHLEECE say. read more

Good selection of books, & clean inside the store. But getting towards closing time they don't become very friendly. They want everybody gone Asap so their rushing ppl out. Not very good for business. read more

Coming to Barnes and noble is one of my favorite things to do on the weekends but there is never enough seating at this one. Please incorporate more seating indoor and outdoor. More tables and chairs near the Starbucks would be great. read more

I normally love B&N, but this location has very few places to sit and no place to plug-in. The staff is not very friendly.

Love the place and always had great customer service at other locations. I had a question about a bent magazine and waited in line until the group of employees chatting noticed the line was building. The lady ran over and apologized then asked another employee to help me. Not much help, the guy just told me "yeah the magazine is bent and that's all we have". Very frustrating because he walked away and I was left standing there confused, bummed, and irritated. I left empty handed and upset I didn't get the magazine I wanted because paying full price for something that's bent in half was not worth it and that I'd have to wait in line again just to try to have one ordered. I'll just order my magazines online in the future or go to a different location. read more

Great store. Always clean and well stocked. Always nice and cool. The adjacent Starbucks doesn't hurt either!!

This is a very large, fairly new, and well stocked book store. I almost always find what I want there. Good Starbucks adjacent too.

I'm so so so disappointed in this location. I used to love going to Barnes and Noble. I tried to reserve a book for my father and went to go buy the book at the store on Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, my reservation wasn't completed. That being said, they did find one copy in the store. That copy, however, was reserved by another person. That reservation, however, was expiring in an hour. I waited around as long as I could before my family's Christmas Eve dinner. I couldn't find an alternative book in the store. I begged the employees. I asked to speak with the manager. It was clear that the person who reserved the book was not coming! The manager ran away before I said anything. I was really awestruck (REALLY!) that they would not sell it to me because they said they had to follow company policy. For the first time in my life, I wanted to buy a book on Amazon. Seriously, just to spite them, I'm going to buy a book on Amazon. FYI, the book I wanted to buy was about poop. It was a poop book. read more

I have a Nook HD and it was not working. I took it into the B&N store in Encinitas. I was assisted by bookseller, Tristin. It was not an easy fix, but he patiently went through all the steps and did not give up until it was working as new. Upgrades included. Kudos to B&N and Tristin. read more

I ordered a textbook on Friday, August 1, from barnesandnoble.com express delivery 1-3 business days. My class starts on Saturday, August 9, enough time to deliver the book, right? Wrong! I checked on the tracking number on Tuesday, August 5, that the book which was shipped UPS is now with my county's local USPS-no other update. So I thought the book should be delivered by end of business day Wednesday, August 6, and it wasn't. I called Barnes and Noble customer service Thursday morning and the customer service rep said that the book was scheduled to deliver Saturday, August 9. I asked her why is that the case if this is express delivery 1-3 business days and I need the book before Saturday because I have class starting Saturday morning. She stated for some reason my local post office has the book and "maybe" it will be delivered by end of business day Friday, August 8. That it's out of their hands because it's with the post office now. I asked her what am I supposed to do if the book doesn't arrive in time for my class?! She stated there's nothing they can do on their end, possibly issue a refund if the book doesn't arrive but I have to wait. So I told her I don't care about a refund, I just need the book on-time, can't you just send another book by tomorrow and I just send back the one that's supposedly arriving Saturday, so long as I get my textbook on-time? She said no, I have to wait, they cannot do anything on their end. Guess what, it's end of business day, Friday, August 9th, and my book isn't here. I call Barnes and Noble and talk to a customer service rep, explain my story all over again and ask him what does 1-3 business days mean to him? He was claiming it takes 24hrs for the warehouse to process and the order is scheduled to deliver tomorrow, August 9. I ask him, does that make sense to him that the book which is supposed to be shipped in 1-3 business days arrive 1 week later? If anything, I should have had the book by yesterday, Thursday, or today, August 8. He also mentioned something about a refund. I again said I just want my book on-time. I was very upset and he transferred me to a supervisor who apparently didn't know why I was speaking to her and I asked her if I had to explain my story again and she straight up hung up on me. I called Barnes and Noble again and this time I was furious. I told them their supervisor hung up on me and my textbook didn't arrive. They transferred me to another supervisor and had to rehash my whole story again. She was unsympathetic as can be. She claimed the textbook was "considered lost" and said the tracking number didn't state when it was to be delivered and I asked her why did your reps say it is supposedly going to be delivered tomorrow, August 9, and she said "I don't know where they got that information." I asked her if Barnes and Noble was trying to blame some other entity such as the Post Office so as not to assume responsibility and she said they're not blaming anyone. I asked her what am I supposed to do since I don't have the book and the class is tomorrow. She told me she couldn't overnight the book and the best she could do is have another one "shipped by Tuesday" with a "10 percent discount code," and she said "I apologize" in the most monotone, robotic, unsympathetic, insincere voice and I told her that she didn't sound sympathetic at all. That's freaking insulting. I asked her "Are you joking?! I don't need a 10 percent discount, I need my book!!" I asked her if she "were in my situation and ordered something and the website stated it would be here in 1-3 business days and it wasn't," wouldn't she "be upset" and she stated that she would, in the same drab, monotone voice. I told her Barnes and Noble should have treated this situation as if it were Christmas Day and the order did not arrive on-time, should be the same situation that deadline was not met. She claimed she understood but could offer me nothing. I told her I wanted a refund and the book shipped to me as soon as possible because it was their fault and she said no, there's no form of payment. I asked her is this how Barnes and Noble became the big company that they are, by ripping people off-making shipping statements on their website that they cannot fulfill and telling people that they cannot do anything for them, that they don't care whether someone's book arrives on-time?! She said nothing. I told her I want a refund and she went on with her scripted dialogue of how long it takes to get a refund. I'm writing this here because there is no public forum to write about how bad Barnes and Noble's online customer service is because apparently to them, the customer is wrong even when it is Barnes and Noble's fault. I will never shop at Barnes and Noble again and I will see to it that many people will read this and hopefully, it will deter you from shopping there as well. The only reason I didn't buy from Amazon is they didn't have the print version of the book, which is required. read more

Let me just start out by saying I joined yelp just to voice how disappointed I am at the customer service at this store. No less than three times have B&N employees been rude and condescending. I've even experienced horrible service at the Starbucks connected to the store. Rude cashiers, drinks made incorrectly more than once in a row, and the promise of a mistake coupon that I never got even after coming back after they weren't so busy (at their request). In addition to the rude employees, the store flat out ignored a scheduled story hour listed on their events page on their website. Many people were there with their kids waiting, but the B&N employee simply said that they changed the time to 4:00 PM by putting a sign on the door. It's extremely unfortunate that this is the only book store in town. They have lost me as a customer and you can be sure I will encourage friends and family to stay away as well. I suggest B&N make some serious changes to their staff. read more