Bob: Goods & Services

Best Bookstore (New Or Used)

12 min read
The Things We Buy
(Amelia Olson)
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For 30 years this locally owned and independent book shop has been catering to Albuquerque’s literary tastes, whether that means offering a rich Southwestern history selection, providing ample room for children’s books or bringing in A-list authors for talks and signings on a regular basis. And after we’re done shopping, we like to head next door to Flying Star to peruse our new book while sipping a cup of coffee. (TB)

2) Page One

3) Treasure House

Bob: Goods & Services Best Antique Store

Where else can you find Swedish modern furniture sharing floor space with taxidermied sting rays, fossilized poop and vintage erotica? We love this place and can literally spend hours perusing the eclectic oddities in the sprawling rooms. Coming out into the sun afterwards feels like waking from an opium-induced Victorian daydream. (TB)

2) Antiques & Things

3) Uneek Findings

Bob: Goods & Services Best Bicycle Shop

This University-area stalwart has been fixing up our fixies (and tending to our 10-speeds) for three decades now. Even though it’s changed locations from Nob Hill to the Bricklight District, you’ll still find the same knowledgeable, friendly staff on hand to help you out with your cycle needs. (TB)

2) Fat Tire Cycles

3) Two Wheel Drive

Bob: Goods & Services Best Plant Nursery

This massive garden center in the North Valley is worth a day trip in and of itself. The multi-acre lot covers outdoor and indoor plantings, as well as offering a robust selection of landscaping materials, from flagstone to beauty bark. There are even landscape designers on staff who will come to your home and help you plan the garden of your dreams. (TB)

2) Rehm’s Nursery

3) Jericho Nursery

Bob: Goods & Services Best Flower Shop

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People’s Flowers once again takes the prize. And why not? With multiple locations in the Albuquerque area, this homegrown original has been providing artful flower arrangements for our special occasions for nearly 70 years. Also we love the shop’s classic, and classy, ’60s-chic signage. (TB)

2) Tie: Flower Shop at Nob Hill and Mauldin’s Flowers

Bob: Goods & Services Best Gym

You wanna get ripped, brah? You aren’t gonna do it by sitting on your couch and binge-watching “Game of Thrones,” are you? You need to hit the gym and feel the burn in your quads, your delts and your, uh … back … muscles? Our readers say Defined is the way to go if you’re serious about turning yourself into a slab of sculpted flesh. (TB)

2) Sports and Wellness

3) Planet Fitness

Bob: Goods & Services Best Yoga/Pilates Studio

Finding rhythm in your breath and disciplining your body to reach inner peace is not an easy task. And with new yoga studios seeming to pop up every day, it can be difficult for first-timers to know where exactly to begin. Our readers suggest Cloud9 Divine as a starting point. Entice your chakras and find a new you! Special thanks to our reader write-in, “Italian Yoga at my house with smokes and espresso,” for making yoga sound a little more tempting to the skeptic. (AO)

2) Blissful Spirits

3) eVOLV Fitness

Bob: Goods & Services Best Spa

Go ahead and sign up for a soak in one of Betty’s private hot tubs. Followed by a deep tissue massage of course. And you’ve got to get a calming, exfoliating facial, obviously. Then, maybe back to baths, why not? Before you know it, the whole day is gone. But it’s been the best day ever. (TB)

2) Albuquerque Baths

3) Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa

Bob: Goods & Services Best Hair Salon

squarerootsalon.com
Put down that bottle of wine and dull pair of craft scissors, and allow our readers to steer you away from the at-home haircut. Having flawless, healthy hair can be an uphill battle, but thanks to local salon Square Root, our readers are pleased as pie with their mane. Moxi Evolution of Beauty comes in at second place. The women at this charming Nob Hill salon know how to get bangs right, and they always play good jams while you get your locks tamed. (AO)

2) Moxi Evolution of Beauty

3) Swank

Bob: Goods & Services Best Barber Shop

After the hair, of course, a good barber shop is all about community. It should be a gathering place where all comers are given equal time in the chair, where friends banter and fat gets chewed. Ace embodies that spirit after a decade Downtown. From traditional “#3” clips to punk rock styles to shaved-in designs, these guys know what they’re doing with a pair of scissors and a razor, and our readers want to reward them for it. (TB)

2) The Barber’s Shop

Bob: Goods & Services Best Men’s Apparel

Dressing well in Albuquerque takes determination, patience and a little help from Izzy Martin. According to our readers, this small, swank boutique in Nob Hill has captured the hearts and eyes of Albuquerque’s most stylish folks. With a carefully selected collection of menswear, you can find intricately designed button ups and stylish underwear and shorts that won’t make you look 14. If you’re a dude and you are tired of ordering your entire wardrobe online, our readers urge you to graze the racks at Izzy Martin. (AO)

2) Free Radicals HQ

3) Toad Road

Bob: Goods & Services Best Women’s Apparel

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For the second year in a row, local rockabilly and punk mecca Free Radicals takes the lead in women’s apparel. With an impressive selection of vintage-inspired clothing, swimsuits, jewelry and hosiery in goth, punk, rockabilly and pinup styles, no wonder Albuquerque has voted it the best. Make your way over to the shop in the UNM neighborhood; it’s the one with the hearse parked out front. (AO)

2) Toad Road

3) No. 13 Boutique

Bob: Goods & Services Best Thrift Store

The only thing missing at this thrifting favorite is more cash registers. If you need an 11-year-old wig, a plaid love seat for your new apartment, a Cher-inspired disco outfit for a first date or another Barbra Streisand album, Thrift Town is your place. Our readers have lovingly sifted through the aisles in search of hidden treasures and voted Thrift Town our city’s most promising thrifting excursion. Special high-five to our runners-up: Savers, which continues to wow us with an impressive offering of rainbow-colored afghans, and Buffalo Exchange, which provides Albuquerque with hard-to-find and affordable fashion year after year. (AO)

2) Savers

3) Buffalo Exchange

Bob: Goods & Services Best Grocery

This national chain has garnered our readers’ attention, both for the quality of the produce and the affordable selection of organic and natural goods. The stores are also quite comfortable feeling and approachable, and the staff is knowledgeable and friendly. Best of all, with prices like these you definitely won’t spend your “whole paycheck” here. (TB)

2) La Montañita Co-op

3) Trader Joe’s

Bob: Goods & Services Best Pet Rescue Group

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With recent news of abductions and horrific, inexplicable violence toward our most beloved community members, our pets, the need for organizations like Animal Humane and Watermelon Mountain Ranch is imperative. Every day these shelters welcome, love, rehabilitate and heal vulnerable animals. Thanks to these two incredible groups, homeless pets have an opportunity to live out the lives they deserve, chasing balls, eatin’ snacks and running around free as a bird. Our readers and the Weekly Alibi salute our first place winner, Animal Humane NM, and our runner-up, Watermelon Mountain Ranch, for their endless commitment to New Mexico’s animals. (AO)

2) Watermelon Mountain Ranch

Bob: Goods & Services Best Vet

Whether your pup needs shots, your cat got into a street fight or your rabbit hasn’t been eating well, a visit to the veterinarian helps to keep the family members we love so dearly safe and healthy. Yearly vaccinations, treatment of minor ailments and emergency visits are all part of pet ownership, and the folks at this year’s best vet, Aztec Animal Clinic, are doing their best to make it all better. (AO)

2) Blue Cross Animal Clinic

3) Rio Grande Animal Hospital

Bob: Goods & Services Best Medical Cannabis Dispensary

With medicinal cannabis finally legal and available (to those with qualifying medical needs), a whole new world of dispensaries has emerged. Some take the medical aspect of their product more seriously than others, of course, and R. Greenleaf is a cut above the rest. From the moment you walk in, it’s clear that these guys are all about helping people with legitimate medical concerns. Our readers appreciate the professionalism. (TB)

2) Minerva Canna Group

3) Verdes Foundation

Bob: Goods & Services Best Tattoo Shop/Piercing Parlor

We were sort of afraid the first time we went to Tinta Cantina’s website, which welcomes you with a black and white picture of the shop’s artists pointing a variety of guns at you. But our readers swear it’s the best parlor in town. With nine different artists, you are sure to find the perfect match for whatever inked dream you have in mind. And if you’re looking to get a body piercing, our readers suggest Evolution and Star Tattoo, who tied for runner-up. (AO)

2) Tie: Evolution Body Piercing and Star Tattoo

Bob: Goods & Services Best Tattoo Artist

It’s not always easy to find a talented and professional tattoo artist. A shop can boast all it wants, but the proof is in the pudding as they say, and word of mouth is truly the most effective advertisement for any tattoo artist. This year our readers voted Johnnymac Howell at Tinta Cantina as Albuquerque’s best tattoo artist. But please note that one of our readers praised “Smiley in cell block 8” as their favorite. (AO)

2) Rudy Lopez

Bob: Goods & Services Best Smoke/Vape Shop

With an attendant cloud of cherry-scented vapor, Oasis has emerged from the rest of the pack as Albuquerque’s number-one choice for e-cigs, e-juice and other e-things that give you an e-buzz. There are six locations in Albuquerque, all offering Oasis’ custom e-juice blends, from “Tiger’s Blood” to “Pikachu.” (TB)

2) Just Urban Smoke Shop

3) Minerva Canna Group Lifestyle Shop

Bob: Goods & Services Best Adult Shop

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The sex-positive and feminist-run Self Serve has become a must-go for any of Albuquerque’s erotically inclined pleasure-seekers. Not only does the shop offer an excellent lineup of toys, lubricants and literature, but there’s a full schedule of classes available, from “Tantric Orgasms” to “Polyamory 101.” Clear your calendar! (TB)

2) Castle Megastore

3) Seductions
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