Open List Home > San Francisco, CA > tutoring > 826 Valencia
The dark, cozy storefront purports to be a pirate supply shop, but it's a tongue-in-cheek front for the Dave Eggers-funded youth literacy center operating from the back room. Rotten-looking beams and a...
citysearch.com - expert review - 04/18/2006
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Free writing classes for the wee tykes. It sells nice publishings written by those at 826 Valencia.
yelp.com - user review - 06/29/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
The most tasteful Pirate store I have ever stepped into. You can buy pirate shillings, oyster openers, and sand samples from Fiji. They even have a little booth has a small aquarium in it. This store…
yelp.com - user review - 06/14/2008
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4.0 of 5 stars.
I love how it's right next door to Paxton Gate (yeah the place with the freaky stuffed animals that SCARES me, and yet I can't stop looking.) Anyway, back to Pirate Supply Shop...
yelp.com - user review - 06/12/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I GOT MOPPED!!!!!!!!! If you don't know then I'm not telling you but I was both shocked and, most of all, honored. This place is absolutely amazing. "San Francisco's Only Independently Owned Pirate…
yelp.com - user review - 06/01/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
this is a really cool place. it also doubles as a pirate store.
yelp.com - user review - 05/24/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I came here with my um, stepson, and watched his seven-year-old self exclaim in delight at the maaaany cool and rad things in this place. Really? Yes, in SF, where people (in some ways) don't seem to…
yelp.com - user review - 05/24/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Arrrrr you kidding? Pirate Supply Store that is actually a front for promoting kids writing ability and creativity - how cool is that. 5 stars cool!
yelp.com - user review - 05/07/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Feeling like a generous pirate lately? 826 Valencia is your place then. Inside the store is equipped with all sorts of fun treasures; drawers full of unexpected random items, eye patches, maps,…
yelp.com - user review - 04/30/2008
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4.0 of 5 stars.
I was not in a great mood when I came to 826 Valencia. In fact, I'd say I was in a terrible do-not-talk-to-me-or-even-look-at-me mood. But since I'm a huge Dave Eggers fan and everyone always asks me…
yelp.com - user review - 04/29/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
After reading A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius I started to learn about the author, Dave Eggers and I absolutely love reading books set in San Francisco bay area. You have to look the…
yelp.com - user review - 04/29/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
You might not like Dave Eggers's writing or even his personality, but you've got to give him props for creating 826 Valencia. In a very kid-unfriendly city, 826 stands out as a magical place for…
yelp.com - user review - 04/25/2008
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3.0 of 5 stars.
I've only been here once for a panel discussion. The panel discussion was absolutely horrible and boring. On the other hand, the interior is really cool and the pictures and objects are great. I'd…
yelp.com - user review - 04/22/2008
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4.0 of 5 stars.
what's not to love about this place?! i mean, besides its association with that whole mcsweeney's crowd.
yelp.com - user review - 04/11/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
It's a store about pirates. With trap-doors in the ceiling and fun junk to do when you gotta kill some time. And it's FREE, too. Also, they host writing workshops and other awesome whatnots. I went…
yelp.com - user review - 03/20/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
What's not to like about 826 Valencia? A great non-profit and host of City Arts & Lectures. Plus a pirate store! I love opening all the drawers to find the surprises inside. Unique to SF.
yelp.com - user review - 03/19/2008
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3.0 of 5 stars.
826 valencia. well, if you want to bring out-of-towners to a store that will really drive home the point about san francisco's obsession with kooky unique stuff, this is it. where else can you stock…
yelp.com - user review - 03/18/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
YARR. The trade off for having a Yankee mother and making it all the way to age 7 without relizing that the eightenth letter is, in fact a consonant, "arr", and not "ah," a vowel, is that a wonderful…
yelp.com - user review - 03/18/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Seriously - a pirate store? Really? As in, "Shiver me timbers, matey! Avast! Land ho!" Aye, it is indeed.
yelp.com - user review - 03/16/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This is also one of my favourite stores on this street. The owner wanted to open a place to help children learn to read but since the location was deemed for retail, he opened a pirate store!…
yelp.com - user review - 03/05/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
this is the kind of place that makes me proud. This kind of spirit makes me sing the praises of this city, the artists it hosts, and their commitment to the community.
yelp.com - user review - 02/16/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
So if you didn't know by now, this shop sells pirate supplies. Their prices are reasonable and they usually have what I need to set sail and pillage booty. They also have writing workshops for kids. I…
yelp.com - user review - 02/11/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I can't even explain how much I love this place. I was actually the lucky recipient of a writing workshop here once, as an ickle one - I believe we were doing poetry that day and I wrote a long poem…
yelp.com - user review - 02/09/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Yarrrrrrr!!! Every town needs a Pirate Supply Store. Unless you live in San Francisco near this place, or in Brooklyn, where the 826 Valencia companion Super Hero Supply store is, then you cannot…
yelp.com - user review - 01/27/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
"I want to go to the pirate store!!!!" Poor John H.
yelp.com - user review - 01/24/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
We got mopped like suckaaz. And it was okay, since we were at 826 Valencia. I love 826's commitment to the community and to the kids. I love their silliness. I love their fish theater (esp. the very…
yelp.com - user review - 01/15/2008
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Here be a fine, fine store. Yar.
yelp.com - user review - 12/21/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Yarr, there's no better place for a pirate to go. When yer Jolly Roger finally rogers off, whar ye gonna get anudder one? What if ye scratch yer eye with yer hook and need a piratically approved…
yelp.com - user review - 12/06/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Yoooo Hoooo Yooo Hooo a Pirate's Life For MEEEEEE! YES! This place will make you want to be eleven again! Why eleven, why not! ARRRRRGGGGHHHH!
yelp.com - user review - 12/06/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
826 Valencia (The Pirate Store) is a must for all ages. I make it a point to bring all visitors to my fair city to this establishment no matter if they be 3 months or 70 years of age. It is a store…
yelp.com - user review - 12/03/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
More of an attraction than an actual store, the pirate store at 826 Valencia is one of the quirkiest businesses in San Francisco. Half of the merchandise doesn't even make business sense -- glass…
yelp.com - user review - 11/23/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Arggg, it's the pirate store!!! When you enter it, you are magically whisked away to another world (okay, not literally, but this spot is all about expanding your immagination- so use it or lose it)…
yelp.com - user review - 11/13/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Tis a fine establishment. Making a purchase sure plunters your booty, but it helps the young'ins learn to read. Yar
yelp.com - user review - 11/09/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
i love the pirate store. i love it so. i visited this weekend, and perused the drawers full of twine and the witty plaques. i also, for the first time ever, bought a tshirt from 826 valencia. now i…
yelp.com - user review - 11/05/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Did that many people really propose in the fish theater? Genius! If you only go to one quirky shop in the Mission, make it 826 Valencia. It's a pirate store, of course, but it's so much more than…
yelp.com - user review - 11/05/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
We went there on Sunday with our out-of-town guest. My partner got mopped.
yelp.com - user review - 10/23/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Karl is King! Every time I'm in the mission I go out of my way to come here and watch Fish Theater. It's amazing. The fish are really great actors and they always make me smile. I just wish I could…
yelp.com - user review - 10/12/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This place makes me want to have kids. Especially after I got mopped.
yelp.com - user review - 10/12/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This place is awesome on steroids. I just wish I could have come here as a kid. It rekindles all of the creative fires that I let die out long ago.
yelp.com - user review - 10/08/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
OK, as a store, this place is just OK. I mean, it doesn't really have things you'd want in most occasions. Although the dice in front always temp me. Directional/body part dice? Sounds like fun. But…
yelp.com - user review - 10/07/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
In the venerable McSweeney's Lists tradition, I present to you THE MOST COMMON ADJECTIVES USED TO DESCRIBE THE PIRATE STORE AT 826 VALENCIA
yelp.com - user review - 09/27/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This might be my favorite place in San Francisco. The Captain found and introduced me to it and I could love him forever for that reason alone. We still stop in if we're walking by and laugh at the…
yelp.com - user review - 09/25/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Pretty sweet pirate store. But I didn't see any parrots - that would really be sweet. But they do have a fish theater. Regardless, lots of cool stuff and lots of cool books. Friendly too.
yelp.com - user review - 09/14/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
dave eggers deserves a 'i'm not worthy' shoutout. this organization is a-mazing and i got goosebumps when kids came by asking to sign up, i can't imagine what stories they'll come up with. i love…
yelp.com - user review - 09/02/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I love love love what this place does and stands for. I love that when I was in earlier this week to pick up my eye patch (a red one!), there was a mess o' kids in the back doing learny type…
yelp.com - user review - 08/30/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Sure, I'm sick of the whole pirate-ninja-zombie craze at this point, too, but the pirate store at 826 Valencia is old-skool: they were there before the craze started. And where else can you buy pirate…
yelp.com - user review - 08/29/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
i bought a t-shirt and a lovely piece of parchment which outlines a few of the uses one can find for lard. hooray! ps: pufka, you looked incredibly thin today.
yelp.com - user review - 08/28/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This place is amazing! Dave Eggers is really bitchin. When they first opened my friend's younger sister started doing free tutoring there. It was practically free after school care and she spent…
yelp.com - user review - 08/23/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This place is incredible. I've never been in a more interesting store. Someone got 'mopped' while I was there... i.e. the clerk opened up a large bucket of mop hair that fell onto a customer
yelp.com - user review - 08/15/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Anyone who gives this place less than five stars clearly has no soul or no heart and deserves to be strung up on the yard arm and left for the gulls to peck his (or her!) eyes out. The a wealth of good…
yelp.com - user review - 08/12/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Thank you Dave Eggers, for bringing piratittude to our fair city! Such benevolent and kind pirates you are. We need boatfuls of you:)
yelp.com - user review - 08/12/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
The first week I moved to San Francisco I went to a reading in support of Modern Times Bookstore--it was in danger of closing. Dave Eggers was there and afterward I briefly spoke with him about…
yelp.com - user review - 08/11/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I discovered 826 Valencia when a newsletter addressed to an ex-tenant of my apartment landed on the doorstep. I illegally read through it, impressed by the impact and progress that one small…
yelp.com - user review - 08/11/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Still looking for the right reason to drop by and pay for some lard here. Luckily, the staff are so great they let me just drop in and chat without it. Everything about this place is right. The…
yelp.com - user review - 08/10/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
OK, the pirate store is great--nothing like it anywhere. The writing workshops are admirable. McSweeney's rules. But the BEST thing about this place are the window displays. They are the coolest…
yelp.com - user review - 07/31/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I met a woman on an airplane on my way home from Mexico City. I took my paperback copy of "What Is the What" by Dave Eggers out and began reading it. "Oh, I read that!" she said, and quickly her son,…
yelp.com - user review - 07/30/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I love pirates (and ninjas, and cowboys), so naturally this is one of the first places we had to visit upon moving to SF. We picked up a wealth of supplies, and had fun browsing through the tiny…
yelp.com - user review - 07/28/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Stumbling into 826 Valencia in a bit of a disoriented state, my visitors and I were thoroughly puzzled to find a store full of pirate stuff. Is this stuff actually for sale? Is that *really* a huge…
yelp.com - user review - 07/26/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This is my favorite place in the world. Be sure to look under the trap door in the floor. Try to get mopped. The fish are the best. I believe the volunteer waiting list is months long.
yelp.com - user review - 07/26/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Once you've taken the time to get to know a new city, it's time to do some volunteering. Definitely, everyone should do it at 826. This place fills a community need by tutoring kids after school and…
yelp.com - user review - 07/24/2007
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4.0 of 5 stars.
An excellent source for all your pirate and molding young minds needs.
yelp.com - user review - 07/08/2007
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4.0 of 5 stars.
Oy matey!
yelp.com - user review - 07/02/2007
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4.0 of 5 stars.
As a piratephile, I naturally gravitated to a place that bills itself as a pirate store... with an educational mission to boot! I took my good lady-friend here for eye-patch shopping, and we reveled in…
yelp.com - user review - 06/30/2007
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4.0 of 5 stars.
Most people miss this shop completely... And those that do wander in seldom notice the wonderful Chris Ware comic painted about the entrance. Now cross the street, turn around, and look up. Isn't that…
yelp.com - user review - 06/22/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
A -hoy matey! My boyfriend and I volunteered here. He's an engineer and not so great with the kiddies, I thought this would be a great way to loosen him up. Plus he's super smart and likes to tell…
yelp.com - user review - 06/08/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Genius. Have been enjoying Eggers books for years, and after stumbling into 826 years ago, I fell in love. Here is a link to a complete story from Benefit magazine =…
yelp.com - user review - 05/30/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I gave this place 5 stars for the way cashier person made the whole experience so special for my six year old girl. We were just cruising the Mision window shopping and stumbled on this place not…
yelp.com - user review - 05/29/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I have a two-year-old nephew. He lives far away, but someday, when he is a little older, he is going to come visit his Auntie in San Francisco and I am going to take him to 826 Valencia and we are…
yelp.com - user review - 05/25/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
At a concert, I got punched by a skinhead who gave me a nasty black eye. The next day at work, the head of my H.R. Department pulled me aside and told me "If I need to talk about my problems at home,…
yelp.com - user review - 05/25/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
What can I say, I break for pirates. I own an eye patch.
yelp.com - user review - 05/22/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
The number of people purchasing pirate paraphernalia at this store and enjoying it tickles me. But what's all the more impressive about this place is what goes on behind the scenes--er, behind the…
yelp.com - user review - 05/22/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Come on, we all know that you live in San Francisco because you're a bit of a rebel. At what better way to let it out by taking a trip to your friendly, neighborhood Pirate Store!
yelp.com - user review - 05/08/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I have a great dirty pirate joke but out of respect to 826 Valencia, the children, and all the great things they do for education and literacy, I shall refrain. Genius genius I tell you for coming up…
yelp.com - user review - 04/24/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Love the fun concept of this place, especially the drawers, the warning signs and the aquarium in the alcove. it's one of the best things to check out if you're in this part of the Mission. what else…
yelp.com - user review - 04/15/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I'm proud that I live in a city with a store where I can buy pirate supplies, specifically a turquoise eye patch for my girlfriend. Though I think she would have preferred a nude eye patch like the…
yelp.com - user review - 04/05/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Every town in the world needs a pirate shop. I don't know what we did before it existed. The drawers, explore them. The fish, revere him. The literacy that is happening, take advantage of it. Be…
yelp.com - user review - 04/02/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Literary programs for youth are good. Lard is good. Put them together like a Reeses peanut butter cup and you have yourself one of the best things going on in San Francisco. Thanks for coming back to…
yelp.com - user review - 04/01/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Aye, ye be wanting to drop anchor here for the best in pirate provisions, ye poxy salt. Thar be many a pirate be gazin' for a dock where ye be welcome with ye peg leg and hook. Avast, me yarn be spun…
yelp.com - user review - 03/30/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Fun to poke around. Wasn't sure if you were supposed to buy anything (drawer with old wine corks?). Love the tiny fish theater. Left with a smile and a Literary Map of San Francisco.
yelp.com - user review - 03/30/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I'm opting out of the Pirate jokes...this review is about ONE THING!! FAKE MICE!!!! Not rats...MICE!!
yelp.com - user review - 03/16/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I don't think I ever call this place "826 Valencia," I refer to it as the Pirate Supply Store. Not to be confused with the Ninja Supply Store (also in the Mission, and also not really called the…
yelp.com - user review - 03/15/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
being a lifelong resident of brooklyn, my first exposure to 826 valencia was actually through it's nyc counterpart in park slope (the superhero supply company.) i'm partial to the latter (i think…
yelp.com - user review - 03/12/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
My gang of ped legged pirates and i hang out here so beware mateys. whenever i'm down or confused i try to come here to get some oomph back into my life (ie pirates put the umph back into me). I like…
yelp.com - user review - 03/08/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Treasures you will find on this ship: -gracious tutoring for children
yelp.com - user review - 03/07/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Jay H. called me up and said, "I'm bored, and I wanna go to the pirate store." If you know Jay H, you know that you don't say no to Jay H. I mean, I would TOTALLY say no to Jay H., 'cus I ain't…
yelp.com - user review - 03/05/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
i'm giving them 5-star kudos for their social action with 826 valencia, but i can't stand mcsweeney's irony. boring boring boring.
yelp.com - user review - 03/04/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
One of my favorite shops in San Francisco, I bought my nephews their Christmas gifts here and was awarded the moniker of "World's Coolest Uncle", as least according to them. Nephew's favorite items:…
yelp.com - user review - 03/03/2007
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4.0 of 5 stars.
I am a ninja. The pirate is my natural enemy. Be warned.
yelp.com - user review - 03/02/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Perfect place to go on a date, sit in the private aquarium and linger into each others eyes..and if they're literate you can pick the lates MucSweenys full of interesting essays....
yelp.com - user review - 03/01/2007
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4.0 of 5 stars.
this review is in response to daniela r.'s review for: 826 Valencia I love pirates, therefore i love the pirate store.
yelp.com - user review - 03/01/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I froze when I walked past. It's the same sort of body dejavu that happens when a smell triggers a long lost memory, or a picture brings back a piece of childhood you thought was gone forever. back…
yelp.com - user review - 03/01/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Where else would a self respecting Pirate get their supplies. Wait...do pirates self respect? Seriously, this is a great place to get lost and browse and buy things for a good cause.
yelp.com - user review - 02/26/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I bring all of my out of town guests here and wait for them to get mopped.
yelp.com - user review - 02/18/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Fucking rad. Pirate supplies out front. Writing workshops for kids in the back. Buy an eyepatch, volunteer to help a kid bring his Star Wars fantasies to life on paper. And you don't have to read…
yelp.com - user review - 02/06/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Thank you, Pirate store, for satisfying all my pirating needs. Double- Dog Thank you for helping kids to become better writers and creative thinkers, not to mention letting them do it all at a PIRATE…
yelp.com - user review - 01/30/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
If you enjoy volunteering with kids, this is a great place and the people who run it - Erin, Jory, etc. are wonderful. I'm not a connoisseur of pirate paraphernalia, so I can't really comment on the…
yelp.com - user review - 01/29/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Only in San Francisco would you find a PIRATE STORE. This is one of the reasons I love San Francisco.
yelp.com - user review - 01/29/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Thank you for all that you do for Bay Area students. The Pirate store is great and all, but what happens in the back is truly magical. 826 represents what education should be - passionate, committed…
yelp.com - user review - 01/27/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
pirates, skulls, and treasure hunting = love. educating & supporting youth = love.
yelp.com - user review - 01/27/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I've started working at 826 as a volunteer tutor for their after school program. They provide a safe, supervised place for kids to go after school where they can get help with their homework or hang…
yelp.com - user review - 01/25/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
were i a child i would have liked being forgotten by my mother there forced to spend the night. still would.
yelp.com - user review - 01/24/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
I was standing there reading the "I was mopped. Why me?" sign, wondering what "mopped" meant, when all of a sudden I was mopped. It was a surprising experience.
yelp.com - user review - 01/21/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
Yar. I love pirates. They are certainly better than ninjas. Here are the reasons: -Pirates have big ships.
yelp.com - user review - 01/19/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This is one of the better pirate stores in the city. A bit short on the essentials (sails, deck mops, rum, parrots, scurvy dogs,etc.) but you can't beat the selection of good old fashion…
yelp.com - user review - 01/12/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
yaaaaaaaarrrrrrrgh!!!!!!!!!!!!!
yelp.com - user review - 01/11/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
This is the only place you need to go for all of your pirate supply needs. Eye patches? Check! Beard timmings? Check! Lard (as a seasonal salad dressing)? Check! Really this place has it all.…
yelp.com - user review - 01/03/2007
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5.0 of 5 stars.
The pirate store at 826 Valencia is quite fun--where else can you buy eye patches, pirate flags, feather quills, and plundered bullion? Back issues of "The Believer" and McSweeny's, along with a few…
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