I no longer trust LaTorre based on the actions of the owner himself. This is a long story, but I think it will give you a bit of insight into this business. I have been using LaTorre for about 8-9 years to service my riding mowers. I had a TroyBilt Bronco mower, and now a Cub Cadet RZT riding mower and I used LaTorre because they were close, they would come to your house and pick up your mower, service it, drop it off once finished, and they did a pretty good job. Never had any problems with them. A little over a year ago they did the service as usual. I used it as normal, and when winter came I drained the gas, covered it, put it on a trickle and put it away. This past season, I took the mower out, started it up and used it, but noticed that my "low oil" indicator was flashing, and so I immediately turned around to put it back away until I could figure out what was wrong. The mower started to sputter, and then stopped. I could not start it back up and when I went to check the oil dipstick, there was none, and smoke was coming out. I also noticed that there was oil caked below the filter where I had to really look to see it. After checking, I found the oil filter was so loose that it was about to come off. I tightened the filter, put 2 qts of oil in it, but it still would not start. I did some research and then called LaTorre to have them check it out. I drove to the store, and told the gentlemen at the counter everything you read above. The guy I spoke with then went and spoke to someone who ended up being Victor LaTorre, the owner. I told him again what happened, and he told me that they "hand tighten" the filters, which I assume is normal, but I reiterated that his store is the only place that ever serviced my mowers. I dont touch it because I am not an expert, and I wanted him to know that someone didnt tighten it enough. He calls me back about a day later and says that they cannot break the engine free because it had seized up pretty badly. I asked what he could do to help since I felt like the filter coming loose was partially their fault. He said that he would get back to me as he would try to order a new engine if he could. I got a call back soon after and he told me that he could order me a "short block" which is just the main part of the engine that has the pistons, cylinders, etc. Victor told me it would cost $850 for it and that he would, and I quote, "eat the cost of labor". I agreed to this. (A member of my wifes family, who owns a landscaping company and used to fix mower engines even said 'he is marking up the cost of the block') Long story short, once the part was in and installed I went back to pick up the mower, and when I went to pay, the price was indeed $855 (tax added). The problem now, is that on the receipt, it showed that the cost for the part was actually $650, and also there was a cost for a new oil filter, and lo and behold, $168 for labor. Victor was there and so I asked him about it. He said, "We gave you a discount on the labor" (the sheet said that instead of charging me for 2.5hrs, I got charged for 1.75.) I said "this isn't what we agreed to", and he mumbled that he had to charge me for the cost of "shipping" of the short block, and that they should have marked the receipt better. I was getting pretty angry at this point, but I needed to mow my lawn and I am not the most confrontational person out there. If he had told me up front, "Look, its been a year, and I cant do anything for you" or "I am going to charge you for the cost of the shipping, and I will give you a discount on the labor, I would have been pissed, but at least I would have known where I stand. But instead, he lied to me. To save $200 on a part, he lost all the years of business I would have given him on oil changes, blade sharpening, etc for the next 10-20 years, as I have 2 acres of yard to mow and will always need mowers serviced. In summary, if you use LaTorre for your mower service, check your oil filter to make sure they tighten it right. If there is a problem, and Victor LaTorre makes you a promise, get it in writing because he lied to me, so he might just lie to you to. read more

Came here for some outdoor garden supplies. Didn't find what I needed but this is still a cool hardware store. Some hard to find items. Good selection of cabinet hardware and bird. Love the Italian section in the back. Service was attentive. Came early in the morning before opening hour and they opened on time. read more

LaTorre's is a place that could never be replaced by a mega store like Lowe's or Home Depot. Their garden supply is the best around, and their plants are cheaper than the mega stores. I can also walk in with a random part from my lawnmower and, without searching for a half hour, someone will take the part and replace it in minutes. You can't beat the service, it's family owned, and the prices are very reasonable. I live about 5 minutes from the Millville Lowes and I still go to LaTorre's because it's so much easier. read more

In this day of home improvement stores, an independent hardware store seems antiquated. Yet, LaTorre survives. Over the years I have come here several times. Help is always excellent here. They are extremely knowledgeable and I have always been pleased with what I have purchased here. They usually have mason jars, which is helpful since I tend to wait until the last moment before purchasing them. They also have seed packets later in the season than most. I do most of my hardware business at Lowe's in Millville where I live. But LaTorre seems to step up when I can't find things elsewhere. read more

I've never been here for hardware related needs. For the past few years I've been getting tomato plants (and some herbs and pepper plants) here. Compared to most of the places I go in Cape May County - they're pretty cheap. The plants are always healthy looking and they have a decent selection of herbs. Nothing like McNaughton's (they have a CHOCOLATE - MINT PLANT!!!) but they have the standard basil, parsley (flat leaf thankfully), lemon basil, lavendar, mint, oregano and a few others and they're cheap! They sell them in the little 6 packs which is awesome usually I can only find herbs in a 4" pot for 4x the money. The tomato plants I bought this year did well so far (still dont have all my red tomatoes - stupid June with it's stupid weather!) I'll definitely go back again for the herbs. Also, the staff was very helpful - they let us water our plants with their hose before we left (we were going to dinner then making the long hot drive back home) and gave us cardboard to set the plants on and even carried them to the car! read more

I brought a hedge trimmer here because it wouldn't start and needed sharpening. After a couple weeks (no problem) I was called to pick it up, dropping off another trimmer. I brought it home and it wouldn't start. Needless to say I was angry, mostly because I hate inefficiency! I paid for it to run, specifically. Also, the prime bulb ( needed to start it) had a crack in it which they didn't notice therefore didn't fix! Neglect and incompetence. I called them and told them how I felt and that I refused to pay, again, for what should have been fixed the first time. So they agreed and I made the 20 minute ride back to drop it off again. After about a week, they called for me to pick up both trimmers. I made sure both started (one took some effort on their part but they started). A few days later I began to use my trimmer but the motor sounded week, began to surge, then stalled. Time after time I tried to use it only to have the same thing happen repeatedly. I then noticed that, during the SECOND repair, they replaced the prime bulb with a used one which cracked shortly after I began to try to use the trimmer! Now, we have 50 acres with hedges all over this place, about 80 hours of trimming. I don't do it all myself, only about 20 hours of it. I am a woman, not a mechanic so I paid them as to have dependable equipment! I do not think I am being unfair here. I paid for a service that, in my opinion, was never completed. I called again, to speak with a manager. They asked my name, said hold on, then asked me to spell my name and give my number so someone could call me back. No thank you! Apparently they didn't want to deal with me at that time. Therefore, I will NEVER return to LaTorre's Hardware for ANYTHING!! It's easy for a store to deal with happy customers but it's how they handle Unhappy ones that shows their true colors. I would like to say thank you to the young man that did listen to me. read more