Back where we live in the Carson City area, there are 3 Walmart option, all that I consider last…read moreresort shopping. But here in Spirit Lake (on vacation), this Walmart is a life line for selected groceries, toiletries, and supplies for the Cabin. I think I was here 3 times during our last visit. As I know what I'm looking for while here, it's usually an easy in and out. When I get turned around in part of the store, I've found it pretty easy to find store staff to help me forward. The key purchase this time was a sweatshirt for Gayle. It was a little colder here than what we packed for....and she wore it a lot during our week here.

I love this super store! I'm not from Iowa nor am I used to going to a super store, but I am a fan…read moreof this Walmart! Friendly smiles upon entry, plenty of carts, bathrooms near entry, clearly marked sections with big blue signs with white lettering. The grocery section has a fresh produce section as large as a regular grocery store and everything I bought was fresh. There is also a large frozen food section with an entire side of an aisle dedicated to ice cream/desserts. Only in the Midwest! The center of the store is dedicated to men's and women's clothes. I found some awesome PJs here as well as intimates for low prices. Walmart does a good job at buying and setting low prices. I found some awesome buys like men's PJ pants, women's undies, and baseball caps all at low prices under 10! The best department/experience was the Electronics. The floor manager came over and talked to me about the TVs I was looking at and helped me by explaining the difference in everyone I was looking at. Each cashier I experienced was super friendly and truly interested in knowing about my shopping experience. A+ to this store! I feel that it must be managed well to have a crew of helpful employees. Plenty of parking too!

This is my rating of the pharmacy only. I consider this pharmacy to be horribly managed. Not being…read moreopen at all during the weekends is my biggest complaint. My second complaint would be that too often the pharmacy doesn't have my meds on hand or I get a partial script filled. This causes another trip to the store. The pharmacy also has a very large employee turnover. This is a sign of a volatile work place.

There used to be a employee there named Deb, one of the most unhelpful people I have ever come into…read morecontact with. I ask her to move a cart so I could see some items (they apparently were restocking or something) she moved the cart and mumbled something under her breath, I complained to the manager who did nothing and still works there as far as I know. Poor service, poor management, no wonder the store is hanging on barely.

A trainee helped out with a partial drug refill and not once mentioned that if I use a coupon for…read more10 pills I could not use a coupon for the remaining refill when it is ready. When the price was given to me it was cheaper than the GOODRX coupon so I used that. The wise trainee failed to mention that my insurance was uesed for that as well. Maybe mention that when I asked that SAME Question to the trainee when I picked up the partial prescription. If trainee mentioned that at all I would have waited to save $30. Then the pharmacist explained that my insurance was used. I have been using GOODRX every time there no problems, why not explain that to me as well the first time. Maybe if you are training someone train them correctly. Sorry nothing we could do. LOL.

I love this Walgreens! Everyone who works here is so nice and I always spend way too much money…read morebecause I get lost in the makeup department!

Hy-Vee (along with Fairway) are the more notable Iowa grocery store names. Hy-Vee also sells…read moregasoline and runs a separate chain of stand-alone drug stores. This one in Milford offers the pharmacy in back, a kitschy gift selection in front, and various household sundries in between. I wandered in one day to supplement some cabin supplies and hung around a bit longer just to listen to various community gossip being exchanged at check-out.

This is the corner drug store that I grew up with. On the other 3 corners of Central Avenue and…read more6th Street are a restaurant that used to be a Rexall, the Estherville Library, and the old Iowa Trust and Savings (now Bank of America) where I used to sell the Des Moines Register on some Sunday Mornings. When I'm in town, I still try to stop by and say Hi to the owner of this long time family business. He seems to have done a good job of mixing and matching a very diverse stock and pharmacy-related services to compete in a sometimes slow economy and with a Walmart on about 20 minutes away. This is one of those places that are comfortable to me. You can take me out of the Midwest and give me the privledge of living in Northern California. But sometimes it's OK to not to forget where you are from.

Only Walgreens in Mankato that sells alcohol (due to MN law), but the liquor store half is only…read moreopen till 10 during the week and not on Sunday. The regular store staff are nice, but they aren't as helpful as some of the other Walgreens that I have been to - they aren't rude, they just don't go out of their way to be nice. I also have experienced some employees here who are not well trained and some quality control issues (I went to buy some slim jims and they'd all expired 8 months prior...), but overall a decent store. They have a good locational deal on Angie's popcorn.

If you are rolling through Mankato on your way to or fro and need to stop at a convenience store or…read moresimilar, this fits the bill. It's a fairly large Walgreens, but then again it's in the Midwest where land is cheaper and buildings are larger. My "what is normal" for buildings has changed a bit after living in the NYC metro area and then later the SF Bay area. You have aisles full of the typical Walgreens stuff, drugs, makeup, stuffed animals, etc. What interested me was the aisle of food. There selection was at least as good as a gas station with a long aisle with chips, nuts, chocolates, popcorn, and dried fruit. The glass cases have drinks and even ice cream if you want to get really decadent. The bathroom is down a long hall and they have one room. I hope by the time you stop you are able to h old it for at least a minute or two because you will need it to walk all the way down the hall. The store was fairly well lit and reasonably clean. All in all a decent stopping point.

It takes more than 5 days for them to fill an automatic renewal if they refill it at all. I take…read moreall my meds every day, yet my sleep medication they never refill on time, even if I call like today, at noon if they can have it done by 2. " Sure, no problem." Ha, not ready, So no sleep tonight as I'm at work now.

At this point, nothing can or will improve especially with the new company in charge. I made the…read moredecision last month to move to a different pharmacy. No more waiting in hour long lines. No more inconsistencies in information depending on who you talk to. And the best, no pharmacists playing god with medications my doctor prescribed that ends up in weeks long delays. DO NOT USE THIS WALGREENS. This location made a 25 year customer leave.

Sterling's is more of a mass general store with just about everything you'd want (think World…read moreMarket style)! There's a large home section in the middle of the store with a small furniture selection, multiple home decorations (think elevated Home Goods style), and jams, soup mixes, drink mixes, cake mixes and much more. There's also a kitchen ware section as well as a toy section. I was able to find several locally made gifts for family including handmade wool dryer balls, strawberry rhubarb jam, bbq dry rub, and "Melissa & Doug" toys for my one year old niece. Locally made goods were on sale for 30% off, lawn and garden plants were 50% off, and there was also stacked deals going on (20% off 1-2 items, 25% off 3-4 items and 30% off 5 or more). Service was excellent with several associates helping us find our way without being pushy. This is a must-visit while in Fairmont!