I can't believe that I have been living in Gainesville for the majority of my life, and I am just now discovering the Main Street Liquor store. The store is located on Main Street in the Main Street Plaza that is a strip of stores, and I have always passed by the store, but never thought to walk in until the other day when the store's door was wide open.

When I first walked in the store I noticed how small it was, but the store owner has made good use of the size because it is stocked with some of the best spirits and liqueurs. There are about five shelves with the biggest shelf being up against the side wall from floor to ceiling. Just beyond the entrance is lottery area where you can pick your numbers, and there is also a refrigerator filled with Coke and Pepsi products which I assume is either for drinking the products by themselves or as mixers with alcohol. The prices were average and matches with other retailers who sell similar products in their refrigerator section.

Along the wall next to the Coke and Pepsi area is another refrigerator section which houses wines and champagnes. The selection was not as big as other stores such as ABC, but the brands were okay. I really don't care for champagne and I dislike red wine, especially the dry kind, so that section of the store didn't really meet my needs or interests.

Across from the refrigerated champagnes and wines was another wine section, and I liked this area better because they carried a lot of white wines by brands that I am familiar with. There was also a good selection of rose wines that I'm just starting to develop a taste for. Barefoot wines is one of my favorite go-to brands for quality wine at an affordable price and I was happy and shocked to see the brand in the store considering the amount of hard alcohol that dominated the shelves.

Aside from the wines there was a good selection of mixers which I was surprised by considering it is such a small alcohol store. The mixers came in a variety of bags, containers, and bottles. The prices for some of the mixers were a little higher than other stores I have purchased from about $1 or $2 more, but I still think it wasn't bad considering how close it is to my house compared to other stores, and the brands being sold. I also saw that some of the mixers used for drinks came prepackaged which I have never seen before. For example, there was a prepackaged mixer for the Sex on the Beach drink, and it was already prepared in a package of four shot glasses. I had never seen that before and the price of $5.99 wasn't bad considering four shot glasses were included and not plastic shot cups. The mixers also ranged in form of powder to liquid, and I guess your buying decision will be based on your preference for your finished drink. I ended up buying both the liquid and powder for
drinks and so that I could equally use both to cook and bake with.
Of all the small liquor stores I have been in, this one definitely can compete with larger stores in terms of the variety of alcohol they carry and the sizes. For example, I saw a bottle of Kahlua the size of a toddler for $36. Every type of spirit and liqueur you can think of this store had, and not by just one flavor but by dozens. Just about every big brand name was represented on the shelves such as Jack Daniels, Bacardi, Smirnoff, Absolut, etc., in a variety of spices and fruit flavors, and my all time favorite amaretto. Amaretto sour is my favorite drink, and I'm pretty sure the store owner thought I was with a fraternity considering the amount of Amaretto bottles I had purchased. Anywhere else I try to buy Amaretto it is sold out so I stocked up on four bottles which is probably excessive, but I figured I would never be able to find it anywhere else so readily available on the shelves for purchase.

Overall, the Main Street Liquor store is a nice hidden gem despite being right in front of your face. The store is rather small, but it definitely makes up for the lack of space in the type of spirits, wines, and liqueurs they offer. Prices range depending on both the brand and the size you're buying, and if you just want a shot of something, they also sell small shot bottles of alcohol for $1.99. The shot bottles are tall as an iPhone, and as wide as two fingers. I thought the store does an excellent job of carrying a wide range of brands, and I will be shopping there from now on in addition to my other favorite alcohol stores.