Why I Love 34th Street's Duane Reade

The Duane Reade on 34th Street and 5th Avenue embodies everything I love about the big drugstore. Let me elucidate in bullets:

• Open 24 hours. So reassuring.
  
• Huge snack area on the first floor. Huge. This means not just kettle corn and all other varieties of organic, "healthy" chips, but also sandwiches. And I have it from my new intern that their sandwiches aren't bad. Crazy!
• Huge, revamped beauty section. Huge. I could browse makeup for hours in a drugstore. For some reason, I'm more comfortable shopping for beauty in a drugstore than a department store. I like getting lost in a drugstore aisle.

Now for a few visuals:

















That little boutique called "Look" on the left is at the top of the escalator, and carries the more high-end skincare brands (spotted 100% Pure on the rack). Right are racks of some of my favorite products, namely Burt's Bees. I was able to score some of their suntan lotion, which is always tough to find. And not in the picture but in between the two is a selection of MoroccanOil haircare. Nicely done, Duane Reade.

And guess what's at the new Duane Reade on 35th & Broadway? A brow bar! Crazy. But that's for a future story, as I'm in dire need of a brow shaping.

Duane Reade, 34th Street and 5th Avenue
Duane Reade, 35th & Broadway