The Grainery

Do not buy plants from here! I bought a Christmas cactus from them and quickly noticed gnats everywhere in my house. My cat kicked over the plant and it was clear that the dirt was taken from outside not dirt meant for indoor plants. I have lost 4 plants now and counting because of this. I have had some of these plants for over 10 years.
The shelves are completely empty and I was trying to support them but will not be back.

I agree with the reviewer who cited the sparsely stocked shelves as a vicious circle type thing. He’s right. It costs money to buy inventory. That being said, I stopped in over the weekend. Their shelves were stocked a fair bit more than previously though they are still a bit short of some things. They said once the inventorying is done, they’ll be remedying this lack.
This place has excellent prices and nice people running it. I really think that anyone needing health foods or supplements should check there first to see if the product is there. Most health food stores and co ops etc are far pricier.

I decided to give this place a try when I bought a $ 25 groupon. The staff is nice, but awkward. The prices for Bob’s Mill grains are over double what they should be. There are shelves upon shelves with nothing on them. The inventory was at about 30%full. I came for essential oils and all that they had left were the display bottles at the front of the wire case. How is anyone supposed to spend their money here?

The store is bare with empty shelves and look old and dusty like the others said. I’ve been there a few times before and found their items to be way over-​priced and very close to expiration date, if not already expired. Had a tough time using up the $ 25 coupon when the shelves were all near empty.

The Grainery has been around since 1975 providing natural foods long before the hip caught onto it. I have been going to the store since childhood and have grown to love the place for the unusually hard to find items. As a chef and owner of a food business, I use The Grainery to this day for certain flours and grains. Well… used to up until this past couple months. Currently, the shelves are bare as they say. The owners are trying hard to fight the slow down this past few months but are finding it difficult to stock the shelves when there are no customers — and customers are not returning when finding the stock on the shelves to be scarce. Viscous sad circle.
My 5 stars is in hopes that their name is not tarnished. They have been a reputable and reliable source for me and Burien for years.

This is a review of my past times at the Grainery. I live right in the neighborhood and I really enjoy having a mom-​and-​pop natural store nearby. I love going in there for their bulk grains.
Despite the recent negative reviews, I just purchased a Groupon. I am going to give them the benefit of the doubt and hope the shelves are stocked again. I peeked in the window on a Sunday a few weeks ago and noticed the same thing about the store looking empty.
Please take into consideration that one reason the shelves could be bare is that they are selling hundreds of Groupons (and over 1,000 the last time they had this offer a few months ago). I have heard stories about Groupon taking a long time to pay businesses in some cases so there could be a cash flow issue going on. I guess I will find out soon enough!

It’s true the shelfs were bare and business looks like it’s going under. Items were overpriced so it wasn’t difficult to use up the $ 30 groupon. I would not recommend this place.

Wonderful spot to shop! I have been going to this family owned business for years, and have received very good information from employees. Very pleasent personal! If the product I am seeking is not on the shelves they are happy to order it for you. I do not understand the negative reviews by some unhappy folks ??? I will continue to support The Grainery!

If I didn’t know better, I would think the other reviewers of this store and I were shopping in different places. I have been in a few times and have not had helpful, pleasant experiences.
The store looks like it’s going out of business. The shelves are not fully stocked, in fact, no where near it. Prices are extremely high for the items they do have. Staff is not knowledgeable OR friendly. In fact, they seem bored to be there.
Save your time and money and buy online if the local grocery stores don’t have what you are looking for.

Love this place. older employees very helpful!

Love the resident nutrition expert here. You have to just trust him, he really knows his stuff. There is a slim selection of goods at questionable prices but it is really worth a visit for the occasional odd item and bulk goods. I eat gluten free so the owner always has good information for me about that. He also helped my vegan niece with her questions.

I made a New Year’s resolution to try and support small businesses and brick and mortar shops whenever I could. So, when I saw a Groupon for the Grainery and I needed some vitamin supplements, I thought this would be ideal. However, it’s places like this that makes keeping this resolution a real challenge.
My first impression was that the place must have been the recent victim of a burglary because it was so under stocked. The shelves were only about 20% full, and the stock that was there looked ancient — dusty, dirty, and dangerously close to their sell-​by dates.
Daunted, but determined to give it a chance, I wandered the aisles looking for an iron supplement and a chewable daily, multi-​vitamin. I couldn’t find them. So I asked a member of their «expert staff» (quote from their Web site) and he stared blankly at the nearly empty shelves and apathetically shrugged his shoulders, saying they didn’t have either item and he had no idea when, or if, they would get any in.
I actually struggled to find enough items so I could use my $ 30 Groupon. «Lucky» for me, the prices at the Grainery are so outrageously high that I finally made it by getting some granola bars and cans of soups. Sadly, you’re out of luck if you want some granola bars too, since I bought the only box. I thought that was pretty hilarious — what kind of health food store has only ONE box of granola bars?!
I can only think this store has really taken a downward slide recently, since there’s just no way the previous reviewers and I experienced the same place. I would never go back to the Grainery, nor would I recommend it. Such a disappointment.

good selection, helpful staff. worth going there if you dont mind paying more for quality.

If it’s healthy, natural, organic or exotic you’ll find it at Grainery. Their loose spice and vitamin sections rivals that of any major store and every employee knows the answer to your questions.
We’re lucky to have the Grainery in Burien, even if being a regular customer makes you a «granola».

Great selection and great prices. A wonderful local alternative for your health and bulk food needs.

Such a neat little place! We came here on our monthly Groupon Sweep of Seattle and were quite happy by what we found.
Cool little place staffed by nice people and full of food that we all should be eating more of.

I love The Grainery so much! I’ve been here a couple of times and every time I’m simply amazed at how much they managed to get into the store. I try to eat mostly gluten-​free and dairy-​free and they have a HUGE gluten-​free selection of grains, flours, and a whole gf aisle.
I recently bought a Groupon and came in to stock up. The woman who helped me was incredibly patient and friendly. Every single time I’ve come in here I’ve had a positive experience.
I need to visit more often!

Great selection
Nice and helpful staff
I will be back!

There is nothing quite so satisfying than baking a perfect loaf of bread. Everything from kneading the dough to pulling it out of the oven. The temptation to cut into the loaf right then is almost insurmountable but if you wait, good things will come of it.
Obviously I love to bake bread. This is my go to place when it comes to anything bread oriented. They have all the flours and grains i need to make the perfect loaf. They also carry a huge amount of yeasts which I adore and buy in bulk (cheap!). They are inexpensive and very helpfull, they explained how to make a sourdough starter to me years ago, now that’s knowing your stuff!
Worth the drive!