Tj R.
Yelp
We'd heard Hymie's is legendary and my boyfriend remembered visiting it in the '90s. We found a large, well-ordered store, with lots of selection, creative art and album covers on the walls, and '70s easy chairs that look like they've launched 100,000 sits.
We were greeted by an arthritic but sweet Boston terrier (always a bonus) and, later, by another unexpected pet - a mouse that has apparently tried to move in since the neighboring restaurant closed.
It freaked me out a little bit, hey, mice need shleltwr too, I guess.
Overall, we enjoyed the layout and organization of the place. Giggled a bit over some of their 'special' categories: 'Difficult listening,' educational records (subtitled with something like: 'Do something with your life already!'), adult 'topless' records (which turn out to be all men), etc. They seemed to have a bit of everything, although I was surprised by how shallow the selection was for some artists. (Do I really need every Kim Carnes' record ever made, while I can't find anything but an overpriced 'Best of' record and a bunch of Ric Ocasek under
The Cars?)
Prices seemed a little high in some areas, especially when we took out the records and saw some vinyl that was not worth the price tag.
This is also a good place for local bands; my partner found Flavor Crystals and Chatham Rise here.
My biggest complaint, besides the selection not being quite as amazing as legend has it: The lady behind the counter was cold and not helpful. It irks me when hipster places feel like 'cool' equals disinterested and rude. In the end , they are still a business and should at least feign interest in their customers. I don't want to feel like I need to fit some kind of 'cool' standard to shop there.