Contan Discount Liquors

Despite the suspiciously thick layer of dust coating all of their beer bottles, this place has a pretty good selection. But I can’t recommend it, their service being as bad as it was. The staff was curt and unresponsive while we browsed and eventually became outright rude, refusing service to my entire party because one of us couldn’t find his ID (even though he wasn’t buying anything, and wasn’t even looking at the liquor, because he doesn’t drink). Thankfully, there are plenty of liquor stores out there without arbitrary rules to enforce and a bad attitude to display to their customers.

Stay away from this store. Its beat and rundown for starters. Leftover in a closed shopping plaza. Plus they dont take cards for anything under $ 10, so buying a six pack you better go out of your way to find an ATM first. You’d figure their such a lousy place with no reason to go there theyd need the business, but NOPE.
The main reason I suggest staying away is that their ENTIRE wine selection is «hot». not stolen but HOT! you touch a bottle and its warm like its been under a heater. Every bottle is basically ruined but they dont care whatsoever, they still sell it. Ive walked through testing every location and theyre ALL hot. Ill settle on a bottle that is the least hot and drinking it just proves theres no good choices in this store. This has been going on for a looong time and stupid me, I keep going back thinking its a fluke… No fluke… Ive even spoken up about it asking «do you have any bottles that arent warm?». they really do not care.
If youre looking for beer, its your run of the mill place. Not a huge selection. but again, some to most are skunked. Some of the staff is nice, The guys in the back are good guys. Theres one women in her 50’s or so whos nice too, probably the youngest one there, but youll get the occasional bitter old woman in her 70’s who really doesnt know what shes doing and takes forever. If youre looking for EXPENSIVE VINEGAR this is your place, otherwise steer clear

This is the liquor store that is next to the Foodmaster on Mystic Valley Parkway. It has a huge LIQUORS sign in front and that’s it – fairly non-​descript.
However, it has everything I ever need:
–A wide enough beer selection to satisfy friends
–A wide enough wine selection to satisfy my non-​discerning pallete that enjoys pretty much any non-​South American white wine
–Prosecco
–Absolut Brooklyn!
This is the only liquor store in the area that I have been to that carries this limited edition vodka. I was so elated. SO elated.
Staff has been great whenever I have gone in, even if I am just buying ice. Really, it’s all I need in a liquor store. Best of all, prices are right. It’s far from outrageous.

Kinda shady, but I like it.
Liquor selection is pretty limited. But ask if you don’t see what you’re looking for. I was looking for something that they didn’t have on the shelves — and I asked — and they were able to find two different kinds in the back.
A decent selection of good beer.
Pretty limited wine selection.
This is a small shop — they’re doing fine with what little space they have. Employees are fairly nice, but seem to be pretty rigorous about carding. The last time I was there I saw multiple people’s business refused due to not having adequate IDs.

My five star liquor store review is reserved for places that make some effort to help you pick a wine by telling you something about each bottle on the shelf (like «David’s World Famous» in Davis Square does with theirs).
That said, I am still a big fan of this place because they are SUPER cheap ($ 40 for a 1.75 liter bottle of Jose Cuervo Especial) and their selection is actually much classier than their façade (which is super-​ghetto-​trashy and fits in well with the Johnny’s Foodmaster attached to it) would have you believe.

I was in Chicago the day before Valentine’s Day 2007 and had to fly back in that huge snowstorm. So I needed to get a bottle of wine for my boyfriend and me. I went into there and was casually looking at the bottles, not knowing what the fuck I was looking at, just trying to base how good a wine is by price. So I go to pick up a bottle and I knock another bottle over with my huge puffy coat.
Crap. There was another woman standing nearby and I thought she was a customer, but her lack of jacket didn’t seem to tip me off. I kind of gave her a little «shhh. This is just between you me and the wall of wine» sort of look. She loudly yells «Walter! We need a clean up by the wine bottles.» Walter or whatever the fuck his name is comes with his mop in like 3 seconds, like he’s been waiting for this moment and looks and says «This is a TWENTY dollar bottle of wine! TWENTY DOLLARS!» And I’m like «Well, I don’t drop the cheap stuff. heh heh.» *crickets chirping*
So I buy a $ 30 bottle of wine to compensate for the bottle because I was going to try to find something $ 10 worth [Nothing but the best!] and I get carded. Crap. No ID. Oh shit! I was at the airport yesterday and I think I had it in my back pocket when we went through check-​in.
«Uhmmmm…I don’t have my ID, but I have my Tufts Health card that has my birth date on it and here’s my college ID from the late 90s with me with bleached hair so obviously, I’m old enough.» She let me buy the bottle. I went home, uncorked and the only food I could make were instant potatoes and spinach-​filled faux nuggets. Classy.
So I got a replacement ID a week or so later and then a week after that, I’m taking all of my clothes off of this chair to do laundry [I’m kind of a slob] and out plops my ID in all it’s over-​21-​ness.
So if you look like me and are under 21, let me know. We’ll discuss a price.