Sahara Mart - East

Sahara Mart - EastSahara Mart - East
Sahara Mart - EastSahara Mart - East
Store

2611 E 3rd St
Bloomington, Indiana, 47401-5345
United States

// CLOSED //
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.55
Reviews:
18
Ratings:
28
pDev:
8.79%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by DAdams:
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Rated by DAdams from Indiana

4.75/5  rDev +4.4%

Apr 08, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.25 by heysuz from Indiana

Jul 02, 2015
 
Rated: 4.37 by chrismattlin from Ohio

Jun 20, 2015
 
Rated: 4.15 by snansel from Missouri

Feb 23, 2015
 
Rated: 4.56 by Jwesley from Illinois

Dec 09, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by sllewmas from New York

Jun 25, 2014
Photo of fredmugs
Reviewed by fredmugs from Indiana

4.58/5  rDev +0.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5
This is by far the place bottle shop in Bloomington. They have the largest selection and are usually priced lower than their main competitor in town. The only drawback is a constant stream of old IPAs. It doesn't matter when the bottles arrive on the shelf - if there isn't a bottled on date I cannot trust it.
Jun 16, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by delyea from Indiana

Jun 13, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by MSandahl23 from Indiana

Jun 02, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by IndyHop-s from Indiana

Apr 12, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by zrab11 from Indiana

Jan 25, 2014
Photo of Ahill163
Reviewed by Ahill163 from Indiana

5/5  rDev +9.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 5
The beer and wine selection at both locations is amazing. I can always count on them to have the hard stuff that I look for. I've never seen half the selection they have at big red. This is why I'm forever loyal to the local, Sahara Mart. The service is great and the staff is knowledgeable. If one person doesn't know they will find out for you.
Nov 04, 2013
Photo of Beric
Reviewed by Beric from Massachusetts

4.44/5  rDev -2.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.75 | service: 3.75 | selection: 5 | food: 4.25
Atmosphere: Incredible beer selection organized geographically. US craft beers separated by region, plus with a large "new arrivals section". Nice part of the store with good lighting next to their excellent wine cellar.

Quality: Incredible beers to be found here. Watch out though, some of the beers are dusty and old! Relatively shaded from blinding light, but not cooled due to IN state laws.

Service: The staff is pretty helpful, but don't ask them about the finer points of beer. They'll point you to the right section, but do precious little else.

Selection: Incredible selection. The best beer selection in Bloomington. Fantastic selection from US craft beers and international offerings. HUGE Belgian and German selections, available for purchase in single bottles. Sizable amount of beers from UK too. Cheapest options are PBR, Heineken, and Guinness Draught. Great selection of rare or hard to get beers, too numerous to list.

Food: Amazing selection of international food here! Great if you've visited Europe and miss something you had there, especially candy.

Value: Generally good prices. Prices about +/- $2 from other Bloomington establishments on the very specific craft stuff. No discounts to speak of, so buy more widely distributed craft (Sierra Nevada, Sam Adams, etc.) at other Bloomington area stores. If you want something very specific or obscure though, look here first!

Overall: If you are in Bloomington and want craft beer, visit this place.
Nov 03, 2013
Photo of mgeraci
Reviewed by mgeraci from Indiana

5/5  rDev +9.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 5
I love Sahara mart! From international cuisine, to unique natural foods, to vitamins galore they have great variety. Their beer selection is awesome! Probably one of, if not THE best in Bloomington Indiana. I found rare brews from all over the country that are regulars for them along with some awesome limited and seasonal selections to choose from. Highly recommend Sahara Mart to anyone looking for good beer in the area. The location is great as well. Near some of the best restaurants and shopping in the area including the College Mall almost virtually across the street and right down the road from IU campus.
Feb 16, 2012
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Reviewed by mdvatab from Indiana

3.8/5  rDev -16.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
The wife was nice enough to accomodate a detour to both Sahara Marts during an anniversary trip to Bloomington, IN.

Upon walking into the Mart, we noticed that it smelled similar to Whole Foods. It appeared to be a local chain organic and international supermarket with a fantastic beer section.

The beer dept. consists of two long aisles of craft and import selections. In addition, there's a long island of 6pks and 12pks, as well as some bomber racks, spanning the area in front of the two aisles.

I quickly walked up and down the aisles, assessing the selections. (All of which only appeared to be available in warm beer-- no coolers.) In general, your normal grocery store beer aisle (or even Whole Foods for that matter), doesn't come close to hanging with the variety offered by Sahara Mart.

The craft aisle contained most every sixer and bomber (+750ml) that one could hope to find at an Indiana bottle shop. Some stand-outs were Hoppin Frog BA Naked Evil (for $20 vs. the $25 I paid in Indy), some Jolly Pumpkin brews, and a couple of Upland Lambic selections. There were notably some holes, where some of the highest demand craft brews might have been. (Possibly picked over by visitors during the week's CBS craze?)

The imports aisle included most of the usual Indiana suspects. The best standouts I noticed were a variety of JW Lees barleywines.

While (aside from the low-priced BA Naked Evil) I didn't find anything that knocked me off my feet, the great selection was indisputable. I'd definitely visit the store again any time I'm in Bloomington, and would recommend you do so as well. We decided to hit up the other Sahara Mart location next in order to compare.
Oct 13, 2011
Photo of jmarsh123
Reviewed by jmarsh123 from Indiana

3.33/5  rDev -26.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Used to be my go to store. Sadly not anymore. If it's distributed here, they probably carry it. The only problem is they carry it FOREVER. I've found fresh hopped ales from the year before on their shelves and refuse to buy any IPA's that don't have bottle dates from here. Sadly this means no Hoppin' Frog among others since they are the only store in town with these often times.

They've got two long grocery sized aisles of beer, one from US and one Around the World. The mix a 6 pack is a little bland, but they offer many single bottles and variety packs as well.

Brooke, the beer gal there is very knowledgable and is usually very helpful and often times I can learn what IPA's are fresh from her, but the owner does not care. He is all about profit and will not remove old beer from shelves. Recently they have started price gouging like crazy. BCBS for $9.99 a bottle this year. I'll pass. I'll never go here for a limited release again because chances are the price is too much.

It's a health/organic food store too that usually has pretty good products and an excellent array of coffee bean choices.

If you are looking for the biggest selection in town, go here, but if you want a fresh product, you'll have to go to Big Red or trek to Indy.
Jun 28, 2011
Photo of hoosier3334
Reviewed by hoosier3334 from Indiana

4.28/5  rDev -5.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 5 | food: 4
Sahara Mart is the place I go when I need to find a good beer quickly. I know that if I go to Sahara Mart, they'll have something that is good, reasonably priced, and something that I haven't tried before. They also, of course, carry the easy to find ones (for our area) such as FFFs, Bells, etc. They always seem to have the right seasonals on time as well. Great beers at the right prices. Huge selection. This store has a much bigger variety than the 2nd street store, but even the 2nd street store has quite a good variety as well. Definitely a must-visit!!
May 11, 2011
Photo of khumbard
Reviewed by khumbard from Indiana

4.88/5  rDev +7.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 5
Sahara Mart is my go-to beer store. Their selection is one of the best I've seen anywhere. In Bloomington, they have the best selection and best prices. The knowledge of the staff may be limited, but if you know anything about beer you'll be fine. They typically have some limited stuff, a lot of regional stuff, and a very solid import selection. If you are anywhere near Bloomington, this is a must stop for any BA... you won't regret it. Sahara Mart also has high quality food selection, similar to a Whole Foods or something... just not quite as big. Their wine selection is huge as well.
May 06, 2011
Photo of flyingspatula
Reviewed by flyingspatula from Indiana

4.53/5  rDev -0.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 2.5
Sahara Mart definitely has the best beer and wine selection ever. I used to go to BevMo in LA, but this small town store has more than they ever dreamed of. The owner said he had 1300 or 1800 beers (can't remember which), but wow! They have several Dogfish Head special editions that I've never seen anywhere else. You can make your own six-pack from a great selection for $9.99, which is much cheaper than Big Reds single beers that are all about $2 each (sorry Big Red, still love ya!). The owner and his wife are very nice also. One thing I love is all the regional beers they have. There are several bigger regionals around that everyone carries, but Sahara Mart has some REALLY small time breweries. Very awesome place!!! Thank you Sahara Mart.
Mar 14, 2011
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Reviewed by Hopittome15 from Indiana

5/5  rDev +9.9%
I love going to Sahara Mart, they have the best selection that I have yet to see out of any beer store. I love that they split their beer into U.S and over the pond catagories. The staff is always super friendly and willing to help and the girl who stocks an orders the beer is my new love, great choices and great prices. I have had a few beers that were a little old and spoiled but you'll get that with any store that has this large of a selection. Still my favorite and always will be, I'll be sad to see the day when I leave Bloomington and Sahara Mart behind.
Aug 01, 2010
Photo of emerge077
Reviewed by emerge077 from Illinois

4.35/5  rDev -4.4%
Easily the best selection in town, only rivaled by their other store location. We came here to get some picnic supplies on our way to the Hoosier Nat'l. Forest.

Beer was on the extreme right end of the store, past the registers. Didn't see if they had any beer coolers, but perused the shelves, which were chock full of complete lines from most if not all available midwest craft breweries. Imports selection was equally exhaustive, with nice gems from Shelton (German, Belgian, Italian). Still a bunch of Hopslam sixers for $16, the cheapest i've seen. Lots of Founders including limited 4-packs, and singles of a certain three-letter variety. Thomas Hardys for cheap also, plenty of quality goods, too many to list really.

In addition to the great beer selection, they have a good deli selection of bulk olives/pickles/cheese, etc. Some focus on import Mediterranean/Mid-East goods.

Checkout was quick and friendly. Will return in the future.
Apr 05, 2010
Photo of brundo4
Reviewed by brundo4 from Illinois

4.5/5  rDev -1.1%
This place is great. All the brew is at least 2-3 bucks cheaper than anywhere else. The selection is insane. Pretty much anything you can get in Indiana will be here. They have 2 long rows of bombers and singles, and also 2 long rows of six packs. Often, they have some vintage goodies and even some sales of near-dated treats like De Struise and Mikeller. They have tons of gourmet food as well as wine, for the non-believers. I drive occasionally from Indianapolis just for this place (about 1hr 15min). It's well worth it.
Mar 11, 2010
Photo of hoosier222002
Reviewed by hoosier222002 from Illinois

4.85/5  rDev +6.6%
What can I say. After reading the reviews I was not let down at all. Exceptional selection of craft beers and imports. I was able to pick up quite a few beers that I cannot get in my area. Started with a Sampler pack of Upland. They have a nice selction of bombers suck as Stone, Brooklyn, Boulevard, etc. They have the Harpoon Leviathan series (picked up the Imperial IPA).

If you are a wine drinker as well, they have an enormous selectio of wines as well.

I can honestly say this was one of the better selections I have seen. Highly recommended!!
Jan 23, 2010
Photo of Beast35
Reviewed by Beast35 from Indiana

5/5  rDev +9.9%
Dear God,
When I die can my heaven be sahara mart?
Love,
Me

This place is awesome, by far the best beer stop I have been to in my craft beer search. Two full isles of beer (full like humongous full). The first isle is packed with American Craft brews. The second isle is imports from every where. If you want to find a beer in Indiana you have to go to Sahara Mart. The guy they have running the beer and wine section knows his beer too. Plenty of bombers and six pack. Would love to see an expanded mix a six though. No domestics in sight either.
Nov 02, 2009
Photo of erz316
Reviewed by erz316 from Indiana

4.4/5  rDev -3.3%
The new mart down by the petco and asuka. this place has a huge selection of quality beers, comparable to the big red in town. two huge isles allow one to pick and choose at leisure and at great variety. mixed sixers for ten bucks, a definite go-to place for good beer in bloomington! plus, no annoying frat bros holding up the line cause they're getting a couple of kegs. the service is always good and they generally have some good suggestions to make, cause god knows they have the selection to make some suggestions.
Aug 05, 2009
Photo of Yetiman420
Reviewed by Yetiman420 from Ohio

4.55/5  rDev 0%
An excellent ethnic/eclectic grocery that doubles as an exceptional beer store.

If the beer is available in Indiana, you'll find it here down one of the two lengthy, incredibly well-stocked rows of beers.

Picked up some Three Floyds and Belgians I can't get in Ohio.

A must stop if you're in Bloomington. If you're a foodie as well, it's a must stop if you're within an hour's drive.

The only minor downside is they only had one or two people working the whole place during my visit at Thursday at 5:00. Really wish BA mad more PDA friendly to do my onsite research.
Apr 18, 2009
Photo of afoersch
Reviewed by afoersch from Kansas

4.7/5  rDev +3.3%
This store is great. They carry almost all of the best beer you can get in Indiana, and are one of the cheapest stores in town. Surprisingly enough, recently they are missing a few of the Upland lambics (brewed in-town... how does that happen?) and random specific brews from various other breweries (i.e. no Kasteel Rouge, Tripel, or Blond, but yes Kasteel Donker? hmm...). The service is good - I've gotten a few great recommendations, and they always package your purchases well. Only once have I gone in and spoken to someone manning the liquor section who didn't know exactly what I was looking for, but I'm going to assume he was more of a wine-guy, haha. They carry a cool variety of glassware now, as well, which is a plus for me.

All in all, this is my go-to beer store. Only if they don't have something specific I'm looking for will I make a trek downtown to the 'Biggest Red,' as I call it. Great store!
Feb 03, 2009
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Reviewed by adamhdv from Indiana

4.85/5  rDev +6.6%
This is the new Sahara Mart downtown, across from Cheese Burger in Paradise.

HUGE selection of beer and wine!

Host two huge isles (think grocery store size) of individual bottles of beer and a few brews in packs. Great selection of different types of beer and mainly sorted by region. Great selection of local brewers too! Seems like some of the stuff is marked a few dollars less than Big Red Liquors (the big one), which is a good thing!

Every time I've been its been rather quite and not a lot of people shopping around. This place is definitely worth a look if in the area!

BTW, great selection of hot sauces too!
Dec 29, 2008
Sahara Mart - East in Bloomington, IN
Place rating: 4.55 out of 5 with 28 ratings